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TM
PRODIGY
user s manual
c l s e l e c t r o s t a t i c
MARTIN LOGAN
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CONTENTS Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Dispersion Interactions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Installation in Brief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 Controlled Horizontal Dispersion Assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Controlled Vertical Dispersion Electrostatic Panel Three Major Types of Dispersion Front Grill Cloth Home Theater . . . . . . . .
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INSTALLATION IN BRIEF Step 1: Unpacking and Assembly We know you are eager to hear your new Prodigy loud- speakers, so this section is provided to allow fast and easy Remove your new Prodigy speakers from their packing and set up. Once you have them operational, please take the time assemble them (pages 4-5) to read, in depth, the rest of the information in this manual. It will give you perspective on how to attain the greatest Step 2: Placement possible performance from this most exacting trans
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ASSEMBLY 1.4 Connect the electrostatic panel by aligning the line NOTE: Assembly of the Prodigy requires 2 people. on top of the connector with the dot on top of the receptacle and gently pushing the connector into 1: Electrostatic Panel Assembly place. To remove the electrostatic panel connector, twist the end of the connector in the direction indi- 1.1 Remove the top two screws and washers from the cated by the arrow and gently pull it off. Prodigy woofer body. Back out the two screws and wash
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Assembly 5
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INTRODUCTION Congratulations! You have invested in one of the worlds Through rigorous testing, the patented curvilinear electrostatic premier loudspeaker systems. panel has proven itself to be one of the most durable and reliable transducers available today. Fabricated from a custom The MartinLogan Prodigy represents the culmination of an tool punched high-grade steel, the panel is then coated intensive, dedicated group research program directed with a special polymer that is applied via a prop
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OPERATION AC Power Connection We also recommend, if possible, that short runs of speaker Because your MartinLogan Prodigys use an internal power cable connect the power amplifier(s) and speakers and that supply to energize their electrostatic cells with high-voltage high quality long interconnect cables be used to connect DC, they must be connected to an AC power source. For this the preamplifier and power amplifier. This results in the reason they are provided with the proper IEC standard power
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Single-Wire Connection Passive Bi-Amplification Please take note of the jumper clips installed under the For those of you that desire ultimate performance, the binding posts. These clips attach the high and low frequency Prodigy may be passively bi-amplified using the existing sections of the crossover together. Leaving these in place, internal passive crossover elements. connect the (+) wire from your amplifier to either red binding post and the (-) wire from your amplifier to either WARNING! O
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With horizontal bi-amping, one amplifier drives the high pass (ESL) section while the second amplifier drives the Low A Amplifier low pass (WOOFER) section. To horizontally bi-amp your speaker output Prodigys you must loosen the binding posts and remove the jumper clips. Connect the low frequency amplifier to the lower set of binding posts of both speakers. Connect the high frequency amplifier to the upper set of binding posts. Jumper clips High A Amplifier Next, connect the left and right pream
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PLACEMENT Listening Position By now your speakers should be placed approximately sheet rock or textured wall is generally an adequate two to three feet from the front wall, the wall in front of surface if the rest of the room is not too bright and hard. the listening position, and at least one to two feet from Sometimes walls can be too soft. If the entire front wall the side walls. Your sitting distance should be further consists of only heavy drapery, your system can sound too than the distanc
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have pinpoint imaging and good bass response. That position Imaging is the point of the optimal placement from the front wall. In their final location, your Prodigys should have a stage width somewhat wider than the speakers themselves. On well Now experiment with placing the speakers farther apart. recorded music, the instruments should extend beyond As the speakers are positioned farther apart, listen again, the edges of each speaker to the left and to the right, yet a not so much for bass res
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ROOM ACOUSTICS Your Room Resonant Surfaces and Objects This is one of those areas that requires both a little back- All of the surfaces and objects in your room are subject to ground to understand and some time and experimentation the frequencies generated by your system. Much like an to attain the best performance from your system. instrument, they will vibrate and carry on in syncopation with the music, and contribute in a negative way to the Your room is actually a component and an importan
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on the floor or solid surface, it can shake as it produces detailed. It is best not to implement the spikes, however, sound and, consequently, the sound can be compro- until you are secure in the positioning, as the spikes can mised. If your speaker is sitting on the carpet and only foot damage the floor if the speaker is moved. gliders are used, the bass can be ill defined and even boomy. The use of spikes is recommended to insure MartinLogan ETC spikes are also available with a common secured
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DISPERSION INTERACTIONS Controlled Horizontal Dispersion Three Major Types of Dispersion Your Prodigys launch a 30 degree dispersion pattern when In the field of loudspeaker design, it is a known fact that as viewed from above. This horizontal dispersion field gives a the sound wave becomes progressively smaller than the choice of good seats for the performance while minimizing transducer producing it, the dispersion of that wave interactions with side walls (See Figure 6). Make sure both become
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Figure 89. As can be seen here, point source concepts invite a great deal of room interaction. While delivering good frequency response to a large listening audience, imaging is consequently confused and blurred. Figure 1011. Even though they suffer from venetian blind effect, angled multiple panel speakers can deliver good imaging, but only to specific spots in the listening area. Figure 1112. A controlled 30-degree cylindrical wave-front, which is a MartinLogan exclusive, offers optimal s
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HOME THEATER It had long been the practice of stereo buffs to connect their Surround Speakers. television to the stereo system. The advantage was the use We recommend that the surround speakers play down of the larger speakers and more powerful amplifier of the to 80 Hz or below. The surround speakers contain the stereo system. Even though the sound was greatly improved, it information that makes it appear that planes are flying over was still mono and limited by the broadcast signal. your head.
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ELECTROSTATIC ADVANTAGES How can sound be reproduced by something that you are push-pull operation and is a major contributor to the sonic able to see through? Electrostatic energy makes this possible. purity of the electrostatic concept due to its exceptional linearity and low distortion. Where the world of traditional loudspeaker technology deals with cones, domes, diaphragms and ribbons that Since the diaphragm of an electrostatic speaker is uniformly are moved with magnetism, the world of e
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Full Range Operation The most significant advantage of MartinLogans exclusive narrow, fixed bandwidth of the frequency range, and then transducer technology reveals itself when you look at combined electrically so that the sum of the parts equals examples of other loudspeaker products on the market today. the total signal. While nice in theory, we must deal with real-world conditions. The Prodigy uses no crossover networks above 250 Hz because they are not needed. The Prodigy consists of a sing
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MARTINLOGAN EXCLUSIVES TM Curvilinear Line Source (CLS ) Vapor Deposited Film Since the beginning of audio, achieving smooth dispersion The diaphragm material used in all MartinLogan speakers has been a problem for all loudspeaker designers. Large panel employs an extremely sophisticated conductive surface transducers present even more of a challenge because the that has been vapor deposited on the polymer surface at larger the panel, the more directional the dispersion an atomic level. A propri
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ELECTROSTATIC LOUDSPEAKER HISTORY The outcome would dictate the way that future generations In the late 1800s, any loudspeaker was considered exotic. would refer to loudspeakers as being either conventional, Today, most of us take the wonders of sound reproduction or exotic. for granted. Bell Laboratorys electrostat was something to behold. It was 1880 before Thomas Edison had invented the first This enormous bipolar speaker was as big as a door. phonograph. This was a horn-loaded diaphragm
