Summary of the content on the page No. 1
absolute fidelity™
Owners Manual and Set-up Guide:
Genesis ServoSub™ 4/8
Contents
A QUICK START SET-UP GUIDE 3
SAFETY TIPS 3
CONNECTIONS 3
PLACEMENT OF THE SUBWOOFER 4
ADJUSTING THE CONTROLS 4
SETTING-UP THE S4/8 6
POSITIONING AND CONNECTING THE S4/8 6
LFE GAIN 7
LFE OUTPUT 7
POWER 8
SPEAKER-LEVEL CONNECTIONS: HIGH LEVEL INPUTS 8
LINE-LEVEL CONNECTIONS 9
PHASE SWITCH 9
MAKING YOUR SYSTEM SOUND RIGHT 10
THE MAIN CONTROLS 11
TUNING THE SYSTEM IN 11
LOW BASS 12
TUNING FOR L
Summary of the content on the page No. 2
absolute fidelity™ A Message from Genesis Congratulations! You are now the owner of one of the finest sub- woofers available for music and home theater systems. The Genesis ServoSub™ 4/8 is a unique subwoofer with 4 ultra-fast 8” ribbed aluminum woofers and an integral 500W servo-controlled bass amplifier. When used to complement the Genesis 6.1c center channel, or any other center channel for that matter, the S4/8 adds body to the voice channel for home theater applications. The ha
Summary of the content on the page No. 3
absolute fidelity™ A Quick Start Set-up Guide Now that you have your new Genesis ServoSub 4/8, we realize that you are eager to hook it up and start listening! Nevertheless, please read this quick start guide NOW before you begin setting it up. Safety Tips The S4/8 is a powered subwoofer with a built-in amplifier: it needs to be connected to a power socket that is always on. Make sure that you are providing the correct voltage, and keep the S4/8 away from water and direct heat. Con
Summary of the content on the page No. 4
absolute fidelity™ For traditional subwoofer use in audio/video systems in multi-channel home theater applications, connect the line level LFE output of your processor to the LFE input on the S4/8. Our unique LFE Blend™ technology allows you to use the S4/8 in BOTH your music system and your home theater system at the same time by using the high-level speaker inputs to augment the bass response of your satellite speakers and connecting your processor’s LFE output to the LFE Input. Yo
Summary of the content on the page No. 5
absolute fidelity™ The Phase switch allows you to reverse the phase of the S4/8. By flipping between 0° and 180°, the correct position for this switch will be apparent by the greater low frequency output of the system. Note: Should your woofer amplifier unexpectedly turn off and you are unable to turn it back on, you may have overheated or over-driven the amplifier. It can take up to thirty minutes for the amplifier to cool down enough to turn back on. Be patient. The two most commo
Summary of the content on the page No. 6
absolute fidelity™ Setting-up the S4/8 While it is relatively easy to add a subwoofer into your system and hear more bass, it is not as easy to integrate a subwoofer seamlessly into your system. The Genesis ServoSub 4/8 makes system integration far easier than most other subs because the servo system makes the S4/8’s bass quick, clean and articulate. This means that no matter which main speakers you use, the S4/8 will integrate well with them; even fast electrostatic or magnetic plan
Summary of the content on the page No. 7
absolute fidelity™ RCA or balanced XLR “LFE IN” connector on the S4/8. Do not use both of these inputs at the same time. We recommend that single-ended interconnects be no longer than 10 feet (3m). Hence, we have provided balanced LFE inputs. If your processor is further than 10 feet from the S4/8, please use a high- quality balanced cable. If your processor has only single-ended outputs and is further than 10 feet from the S4/8, we recommend that you consider using an active (or pa
Summary of the content on the page No. 8
absolute fidelity™ You can even use BOTH single-ended RCA and balanced XLR LFE outputs to daisy-chain even more subwoofers when either the single- ended input or the balanced input is used. In the case of bass and LFE, using more low frequency sources (not higher level) is better than using less. The point is not to achieve a higher level of bass response but rather, by using multiple subwoofers to distribute the LFE signal around the room, dramatically reducing and evening-out room
Summary of the content on the page No. 9
absolute fidelity™ terminal of your amplifier must be connected to the plus (+/red) terminal on the back of the S4/8, and the negative (-) terminal to the negative (-/white) terminal. Using the high level inputs to feed the S4/8 power amplifier will not degrade the sound quality of either your loudspeaker or the subwoofer. Line-level connections As an alternative, you can use the low-level inputs on the S4/8. Using a high quality interconnect cable, connect your preamplifier’s output
Summary of the content on the page No. 10
absolute fidelity™ inputs to the subwoofer. Connect the +ve speaker lead to the –ve input terminal, and connect the –ve speaker lead to the +ve input terminal. Making your system sound right The ServoSub 4/8 subwoofer is perfect for use in 2-channel or multi- channel music and video applications. The setup for either is very similar and the goals should be quite the same too. In our opinion, the end goal of adding a high-end subwoofer should be to not “hear” the subwoofer work, but
Summary of the content on the page No. 11
absolute fidelity™ The Main Controls The S4/8 subwoofer has two controls that you will use to make your system (and that includes the room), sound right. The first is the gain control of the woofer amplifier. This adjusts the volume at which the subwoofer plays. The gain can be adjusted from 1 to 11. The second control is the low pass filter. This adjusts the crossover frequency for the built-in 12dB per octave variable crossover. The crossover frequency can be adjusted from 40Hz
Summary of the content on the page No. 12
absolute fidelity™ experiment with increasing or decreasing the low pass filter control. This control will raise or lower the frequency cutoff point of the woofer. If you find that the sound is “thin” or lacking in mid bass, and that turning the gain control up to “thicken” the sound creates too much low bass, this is a good indication that you may want to turn the low pass filter up to a higher frequency instead. This will extend the response of the S4/8 into the upper bass regions
Summary of the content on the page No. 13
absolute fidelity™ Tuning for Low Frequency Effects (LFE) The LFE input has a separate gain structure and bypasses the crossover in the subwoofer. Hence, it should be set-up separately from the main speaker augmentation function. A simple way to set up the S4/8 for LFE is to use the test and level signal available in most home theater processors and multi-channel players, and test discs. Many DVD’s include a THX calibration option that has a set of test tones for speaker level adjust
Summary of the content on the page No. 14
absolute fidelity™ These placement guidelines are only suggestions. Depending on your room and the speakers you have, you may want to place them differently. Any combination of Genesis subwoofers may be used. With one subwoofer, place it in the front of the room between the center channel and the right speaker. If your main left/right speakers are full-range, and the center channel is not, use the subwoofer to augment the center channel as well as to deliver the LFE channel. The se
Summary of the content on the page No. 15
absolute fidelity™ The final touch will be a fifth subwoofer added into one corner of the room. This will excite all room modes equally, so pick any convenient corner. In asymmetric rooms, find a corner that makes the system sound smoothest. This subwoofer can be used to also augment the nearest speaker to make it full-range. Notes: 1. Bass frequencies are not localizable below 60Hz. With a wavelength of over 18 feet (6 meters), it is possible to use a subwoofer with the low-pass se
Summary of the content on the page No. 16
absolute fidelity™ The Technology The Servo Advantage Very few loudspeakers use servo drive, either because most designers think that it is too difficult to design, too expensive, or because of the extraordinary demands a servo system makes on the amplifier and the transducer. However, the Chief Scientist of Genesis, Arnie Nudell, first introduced the servo system in the legendary Infinity Servo Statik One in 1968(!) – so we know how to design and build servo systems. The concept of
Summary of the content on the page No. 17
absolute fidelity™ The best amplifier for this application is a Class-D switching amplifier. One of the reasons a Class-D amplifier is optimum for this application is that it has a dramatically increased efficiency, especially at lower frequencies. A typical Class A/B amplifier is only 50% efficient. A Class-D amplifier, on the other hand, can be 90% efficient. A Class-D amp also puts out more power with less heat and less power consumption; ideal for use as a subwoofer amplifier. T
Summary of the content on the page No. 18
absolute fidelity™ Specifications Dimensions: 24” x 22” x 11 ½ ” (w x h x d) (610mm x 559mm x 292mm) Frequency Response: 20Hz to 120Hz +/- 1dB 16Hz to 180Hz -3dB, +2dB Weight: 87.5 lbs (39.8 kg) Inputs: High-level left and right with 5-way binding posts; Low-level left and right, single-ended RCA and balanced XLR; LFE low-level mono single-ended RCA and balanced XLR Outputs: LFE low-level mono buffered single- ended RCA and balanced XLR Controls: Va
