Wilson Audio ® is a registered trademark of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc. Cub ® is a registered trademark of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc. This manual was produced by the Wilson Audio Engineering Department in cooperation with Sales and Marketing. The information contained here in is subject to change without notice. Current Revision 1.0, if you are in need of a more recent manual please contact your dealer. The information in this manual is the sole property of Wilson Audio Specialties, Inc.
T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S CUB STANDARD VIEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iii CUB SPECIFICATIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . iv CUB INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
T A B L E O F G R A P H I C S FIGURE 1-REFLECTIVE COMB FILTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4 FIGURE 2-ROOM SHAPES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7 FIGURE 3-PROPER SPEAKER ORIENTATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-9 FIGURE 4-CUB STAND SPIKES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L CUB SERIES II: COMPONENTS AND DIMENSIONS CUB ENCLOSURE CUB BOLTS TO STAND NON-RESONANT STAND SPIKES 19.5 IN. 9.5 IN. HIGH FREQUENCY CROSSOVER LOW FREQUENCY CROSSOVER 22 IN. 40 IN.
C U B S P E C I F I C A T I O N S CUB SERIES II: SPECIFICATIONS Nominal Impedance 4 ohms Minimum Amplifier Power 10 Watts per channel Woofer 2 - 6.5 inch double front ported Overall Dimensions Height - 22 inches Width - 9.5 inches Depth - 19.5 inches Tweeter 1 - 1 inch inverted Titanium Dome Weight (approx.): 75 lbs Frequency Response (with port contribution) Sensitivity 39 Hz - 22 kHz 94 dB (2.
C U B I N T R O D U C T I O N 1
C U B I N T R O D U C T I O N APPLICATIONS Your CUB precision loudspeaker has been carefully designed to provide superb, uncolored, limited full frequency range response in a single enclosure. Due to our very successful research on the WATT/PUPPY and X-1 Grand SLAMM systems, the CUB has a sonic character quite similar to its larger predecessors.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS Your CUB has been designed to perform all of the specific functions of a high performance studio monitor in a less costly, scaled version of the WATT/PUPPY. This was a difficult task, because a small enclosure is needed for high speed and linearity in lowermid to high frequency playback, yet the CUB needed to convincingly suggest the size and weight of full scale, full range music.
C U B I N T R O D U C T I O N DEPTH OF DESIGN The combination of the best in composite materials and adhesive technology, provided to us by the leaders in their industry, allow us to design an enclosure with unmatched performance. The Cub has been designed to eliminate vibration and cabinet signature, while maintaining an internal acoustical integrity that is simply, the best. Further, the Cub loudspeaker has over 340 constraining relationships defining the placement of over 75 parts.
C A R E O F T H E C U B L O U D S P E A K E R 2
C A R E O F T H E C U B L O U D S P E A K E R CARE OF THE FINISH OF YOUR CUBS Your Cub loudspeaker enclosures are hand-painted with Wilsongloss™ paint and hand-polished to a high luster. While the paint seems quite dry to the touch, final curing and complete hardening takes place over a period of several weeks. To protect the finish of the Cubs during final manufacturing, shipment, and setup in your listening room, we have applied a removable layer of protective film over the finish.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L BREAK IN PERIOD All audio equipment will sound its best after the components have been broken in for some period of use. Wilson Audio breaks in all woofers and mid-range drivers for a 12 hour period. All drivers are then tested, calibrated, and matched for their acoustical properties. In your listening room, expect 25-50% of break-in to be complete after two hours of playing music fairly loudly. Ninety percent of break-in is complete after 24 hours of playing.
C A R E O F T H E C U B L O U D S P E A K E R T E C H N I C A L - N O T E If the user wishes to test the polarity of the Cub with a battery, the plus (+) terminal of the battery is connected to the RED (+) input terminal of the Cub and the negative (-) terminal of the battery is connected to the BLACK (-) terminal of the Cub. The results of this test will show the Cub woofers to move outward. This is the correct driver movement in response to a D.C. signal.
I N Y O U R R O O M 3
I N Y O U R R O O M ROOM REFLECTIONS There are 3 commonly encountered room reflection problems, slap-echo, standing waves, and comb filter effects. SLAP-ECHO Probably the most obnoxious form of reflection is the slap echo. In slap echo, primarily mid-range and high frequency sounds reflect off of two parallel hard surfaces. The sound literally reverberates back and forth until it is finally dissipated over time.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L Nonparallel walls do not support slap echo, but rather allow the sound to diffuse. Slap echo is a common acoustical problem in the typical domestic listening room, because most of these rooms have walls of a hard, reflective nature, usually being only occasionally interrupted by curtains or drapes.
I • N Y O U R R O O M Sound staging- LF component of image shifted Standing waves are more difficult to correct than slap echo because they tend to occur at lower frequencies, whose wave lengths are long enough to be ineffectively controlled by absorbent materials such as Sonex. Moving speakers about slightly in the room is, for most people, their only control over standing waves.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L The subjective effect of comb filter effects, (such as is shown in Figure 1) is as follows: • Added roughness to the sound • Reduction of harmonic richness • Smearing of lateral sound stage image focus and placement Comb filter effects are usually caused by side wall reflections. They are best controlled by very careful speaker placement and by the placement of Sonex or air duct panels applied to that part of the wall where the reflection occurs.
I N Y O U R R O O M RESONANCES Resonance in listening rooms are generally caused by two sources: • The structures within the listening room • The volume of the air itself in the listening room STRUCTURAL RESONANCES Structural resonances are familiar to most people as buzzes and rattles, but this type of resonance usually only occurs at extremely high volume levels, and is usually masked by the music.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L ROOM SHAPES There are three basic shapes for most rooms: square, rectangular, and L-shaped (see Figure 2). A perfectly square room is the most difficult room in which to set up speakers because, by virtue of its shape, square rooms are the perfect medium for building and sustaining standing waves. Standing waves are pressure waves created by the integration of sound and opposing, parallel walls which accentuate particular frequencies.
I N Y O U R R O O M COMMON ROOM SHAPES: OPTIMUM SPEAKER PLACEMENTS FIGURE 2 3-7
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L SPEAKER PLACEMENT VS. LISTENING POSITION The location of your listening position is as important as the careful setup placement of your Cub speakers in your room. The listening position should ideally be no more than 1.1 to 1.25 times the distance between the tweeters on each speaker. Therefore, in a long rectangular room of 12’ x 18’, if the speaker tweeters are going to be 9’ apart, you should be sitting 9’11’’ to 11’3’’ from the speaker.
I N Y O U R R O O M SPEAKER ORIENTATION Speaker placement and orientation are two of the most important considerations in obtaining superior sound. The first thing you need to do is minimize the influence of the side walls on the sound of your system. Speakers placed too close to the side walls will suffer from a strong primary reflection. This can cause out-of-phase cancellations, or comb filtering, which will cancel some frequencies and change the tonal balance of the music.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L The Cub is designed for maximum phase coherence and pulse replication accuracy when they are aimed directly at the listener or microphone. Thus, your Cubs should be “toed in.” (see Figure 3) In other words, the listener, when seated in the listening position, should just barely see the surface of the inner side of the Cub.
I N Y O U R R O O M 3-11
C U B S Y S T E M I I S E T U P 4
C S U B Y S T E M I I S E T U P Note: Before setting up the Cub System II study carefully the previous section on room acoustics. It provides valuable information on determing the ideal room location for your speakers. PREPARATION You will need the following items: • • • Supplied hardware kit Tape measure Known listening position SETUP PROCEDURE 1. Stand the unit up (inside the crate) and gently walk/slide the CUB out of the crate.
C O U B W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L Note: If you did not purchase the optional stand skip to step 5. 3. Set the stands in the desired listening location and attach the spikes. (see Figure 4 below) Cub Stand Spike FIGURE 4- INSTALLING THE CUB STAND SPIKES P R O T E C T Y O U R F I N I S H Note: Your CUB loudspeaker enclosures are hand-painted with Wilsongloss paint and hand-polished to a high luster.
C S U B 4. Y S T E M I I S E T U P Bolt the Cub to the stand using the four 1/4-20 threaded bolts provided. (see Figure 5) Note: Do not over tighten the bolts, a snug fit is all that is required to secure the Cub to the stand.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L SPEAKER CABLES The very high current input terminals located on the rear of your Cub loudspeaker are color coded with a small plastic plug, so that RED corresponds to positive and black to negative, common, or ground on the amplifier output. Be sure to connect the loudspeakers in phase with each other. We recommend the use of the very highest quality loudspeaker cables, particularly those designed for high frequency propagation correction and phase linearity.
C U B S Y S T E M I I S E T U P FIGURE 6- SPADE LUG ATTACHMENT 4-5
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L Connection of the Cub to the Power Amplifier 1. Turn off the power amplifier(s) and remove the AC power cord from the wall outlet. 2. Lay out the speaker cables before hooking them up to the CUBs. Make sure that there are no kinks, twists, or right-angle bends in the cable. If you need to turn corners, attempt to use a gradual curve as opposed to a severe right-angle bend. 3.
C U B S Y S T E M I I S E T U P Proper attachment FIGURE 7- CUB CABLE CONNNECTION 4-7
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L COMPLETED SETUP The setup of the Cub series II loudspeaker is now completed. If you are in need of further assistance contact your local dealer and they can answer any further setup questions that you may have.
C U B S Y S T E M I I S E T U P
WARRANTY INFORMATION 5
W A R R A N T Y I N F O R M A T I O N Wilson Audio Warranty Information LIMITED WARRANTY Subject to the conditions set forth herein, Wilson Audio warrants its loudspeakers to be free of manufacturing defects in material and workmanship for the Warranty Period.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L Wilson Audio Dealer Technician or a service or repair center authorized by Wilson Audio to service or repair the product. Contact Wilson Audio at (801) 377-2233 for the location of Wilson Audio Dealers and authorized service and repair centers. Most repairs can be made in the field. In instances where return to Wilson Audioʼs factory is required, the dealer or customer must first obtain a return authorization.
DEMONSTRATION EQUIPMENT Equipment, while used by an authorized dealer for demonstration purposes, is warranted to be free of manufacturing defects in materials and workmanship for a period of five (5) years from the date of shipment to the dealer. Demo equipment needing warranty service may be repaired on-site or, if necessary, correctly packed and returned to Wilson Audio by the dealer at the dealerʼs sole expense. Wilson Audio will pay return freight of its choice.
T R O U B L E S H O O T I N G G U I D E A
T R O U B L E S H O O T I N G G U I D E SECTION 6.0 TROUBLESHOOTING SETUP DIFFICULTIES Problem Reason One channel is not operating... Check inter-connects from source. Check the connections on the speaker cables. Both at amplifier and speaker ends. Watch especially for connector touching each other. Imaging is off center... Check your connections. When a tweeter or midrange driver is not working, or is out of phase, the imaging will be off.
C U B O W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L Using the 1/8” Allen wrench remove the crossover for the driver that is out (upper crossover is for tweeter, lower crossover is for the midrange) Locate the resistor and remove the resistor using a soldering iron. Replace the resistor and solder the new resistor in the old ones place. Note: An improper resistor value will deteriorate your speaker performance Plug your amplifier into the wall and turn it on. Listen to the channel at a low level.
T R O U B L E S H O O T I N G G U I D E If the problem is solved: Call your Wilson Audio dealer. There may be a problem with the crossover or the speakerʼs internal wiring. If the problem persists continue on to the next step. Turn the amplifier off and disconnect it from the AC wall outlet. Disconnect the speaker cable leads to the amplifier and turn the amplifier on again. If the problem is solved: You have a short in your speaker cables.
R E P A I R P R O C E D U R E S B
R E P A I R P R O C E D U R E S REPLACING A BLOWN RESISTOR The cub loudspeaker had protective resistors that will blow if the speaker is overdriven, or if a power surge moved through the system. This is done so that the driver is not damaged. Replace a resistor on the cub as follows: 1. 2. Determine which driver is not playing music. Remove the appropriate crossover can from the back of the cub enclosure by removing each of the 10-32 button head machine screws from the crossover see figure below.
C O U B W N E R ʼ S M A N U A L 3. Heat up the leads of the resistor with a 45 watt soldering pencil and remove the faulty resistor (see figure below). 4. Wrap the leads of the new resistor around the ends of the posts and re-solder the leads. Note: The tweeter resistor value is 4.2 ohms The low frequency resistor value is 1 ohm 5. Re-attach the crossover can to the enclosure, making sure not to over tighten the screws.
R E P A I R P R O C E D U R E S REPLACING A BAD DRIVER If you believe that a driver is blown make sure that you have tried replacing the protective resistor before you replace the driver. No sound coming from a driver is often a blown resistor and not a bad driver. If you need to replace a driver do so as follow: 1 Using the supplied Allen wrench, remove the machine screws holding the driver in place. 2 Insert the Allen wrench into one of the driver screw holes 1/8”.
