MartinLogan The Quest Speaker System manual

The Quest Speaker System User's Manual THE ELECTROST A TI C TECHNOLOGY[...]

Page 2 Quest User's Manual Introduction 3 Installation in Brief 4 The Electrostatic Concept 5 History 6 Martin-Logan Exclusives 8 Operation 1 0 Room Acoustics 1 4 Placement 1 8 Questions 2 1 Troubleshooting 2 2 Recommended Music 2 3 Glossary 2 4 Quest Specifications 2 6 Notes 2 7 Important Contents Your Quest speakers are provided with an auto[...]

Page 3 Quest User's Manual Introduction Congratulations, you have invested in one of the world’s premier loudspeaker systems! The result of cumulative technology gleaned from eight previous Research and Development projects, the Quest represents the latest developments in Electrostatic and Hybrid loudspeaker technology. Combining our proprie[...]

Page 4 Quest User's Manual Installation in Brief We know you are eager to hear your new Quest loudspeakers, so this section is provided to allow fast and easy set up. Once you have them operational, please take the time to read, in depth, the rest of the informa- tion in this manual. It will give you perspective on how to obtain the best possi[...]

Page 5 Quest User's Manual The Electrostatic Concept How can sound be reproduced by something that you are able to see through? Electrostatic energy makes this possible. Where the world of traditional loudspeaker technology deals with cones, domes, diaphragms and ribbons that are moved with magnetism, the world of electrostatic loud- speakers [...]

Page 6 Quest User's Manual History In the late 1800’s, any loudspeaker was considered exotic. Today, most of us take the wonders of sound reproduction for granted. It was 1880 before Thomas Edison had invented the first phonograph. This was a horn-loaded diaphragm that was excited by a playback stylus. In 1898, Sir Oliver Lodge invented a co[...]

Page 7 Quest User's Manual arrays. The test instrument needed an extremely accurate speaker, but Janszen found that the cone speakers of the period were too nonlinear in phase and amplitude re- sponse to meet his criteria. Janszen believed that electrostats were inherently more linear than cones, so he built a model using a thin plastic diaphr[...]

Page 8 Quest User's Manual Martin-Logan Exclusives Critical Zone Critical Zone Critical Zone Critical Zone Critical Zone 250 - 20kHz 250 - 20kHz 250 - 20kHz 250 - 20kHz 250 - 20kHz Tweeter Tweeter Tweeter Tweeter Tweeter Midrange Midrange Midrange Midrange Midrange Woofer Woofer Woofer Woofer Woofer Critical Zone Critical Zone Critical Zone Cr[...]

Page 9 Quest User's Manual Curvilinear Line Source Curvilinear Line Source Curvilinear Line Source Curvilinear Line Source Curvilinear Line Source Since the beginning of Audio, achieving smooth full range dispersion has long been a problem for all loudspeaker designers. Large panel transducers present even more of a challenge because the large[...]

Page 10 Quest User's Manual Operation AC Power Connection AC Power Connection AC Power Connection AC Power Connection AC Power Connection Because your Martin-Logan Quests use an internal power supply to energize their electrostatic cells with high-voltage DC, they must be connected to an AC power source. For this reason they are provided with [...]

Page 11 Quest User's Manual Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1. Standard connection. One channel shown. BI-WIRE/BI-AMP SWITCH in BI-WIRE/BI-AMP SWITCH in BI-WIRE/BI-AMP SWITCH in BI-WIRE/BI-AMP SWITCH in BI-WIRE/BI-AMP SWITCH in the the the the the Single-Wire position. Single-Wire position. Single-Wire position. Single-Wire position[...]

Page 12 Quest User's Manual Passive Passive Passive Passive Passive Bi-amplification Bi-amplification Bi-amplification Bi-amplification Bi-amplification For those of you that desire ultimate performance, the Quest may be passively bi-amplified using the existing internal passive crossover elements. WARNING! Only after the BI- WARNING! Only aft[...]

Page 13 Quest User's Manual Figure 4 Figure 4 Figure 4 Figure 4 Figure 4. Vertical passive bi-amplification. One channel shown. BI-WIRE/BI-AMP BI-WIRE/BI-AMP BI-WIRE/BI-AMP BI-WIRE/BI-AMP BI-WIRE/BI-AMP Active Bi-Amplification Active Bi-Amplification Active Bi-Amplification Active Bi-Amplification Active Bi-Amplification Amplifier INPUT INPUT [...]

Page 14 Quest User's Manual Your Room Your Room Your Room Your Room Your Room This is one of those areas that requires both a little background to understand and some time and experi- mentation to obtain the best performance from your system. Your room is actually a component and an important part of your system. This component is a very large[...]

Page 15 Quest User's Manual Rules of Thumb Rules of Thumb Rules of Thumb Rules of Thumb Rules of Thumb Hard vs. Soft Surfaces Hard vs. Soft Surfaces Hard vs. Soft Surfaces Hard vs. Soft Surfaces Hard vs. Soft Surfaces. If the front or back wall of your listening room is soft, it may benefit you to have a hard or reflective wall in opposition. [...]

Page 16 Quest User's Manual Room Acoustics and Dispersion Interactions Figure 2 Figure 2 Figure 2 Figure 2 Figure 2. Your Quest speaker system is a 4 foot line source when viewed vertically. Actual height above the floor is from two to six feet. Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1 Figure 1. Martin-Logan Quests deliver a 30 degree wave launch d[...]

Page 17 Quest User's Manual Three Major Types of Dispersion Three Major Types of Dispersion Three Major Types of Dispersion Three Major Types of Dispersion Three Major Types of Dispersion In the field of loudspeaker design, it is a known fact that as the sound wave becomes progressively smaller than the transducer producing it, the dispersion [...]

Page 18 Quest User's Manual Listening Position Listening Position Listening Position Listening Position Listening Position By now your speakers should be placed approximately 2 to 3 feet from the front wall (wall in front of the listening position) and at least 1 to 2 feet from the side walls. Your sitting distance should be further than the d[...]

Page 19 Quest User's Manual Experimentation Experimentation Experimentation Experimentation Experimentation Toe-in Toe-in Toe-in Toe-in Toe-in. Now you can begin to experiment. First begin by toeing your speakers in towards the listening area and then toeing them straight into the room. You will notice that the tonal balance changes ever so sl[...]

Page 20 Quest User's Manual Placement The X-tra "Tweek" The X-tra "Tweek" The X-tra "Tweek" The X-tra "Tweek" The X-tra "Tweek" A major cable company developed the following proce- dure for speaker placement. As a final test of exact placement, use these measurements for your speakers placement[...]

Page 21 Quest User's Manual Questions What size of an amplifier should I use with the What size of an amplifier should I use with the What size of an amplifier should I use with the What size of an amplifier should I use with the What size of an amplifier should I use with the Quests? Quests? Quests? Quests? Quests? We recommend an amplifier w[...]

Page 22 Quest User's Manual No Output No Output No Output No Output No Output Check that all your system components are turned on. Check your speaker wires and connections. Check all interconnecting cables. Weak Output, Loss of Highs Weak Output, Loss of Highs Weak Output, Loss of Highs Weak Output, Loss of Highs Weak Output, Loss of Highs Che[...]

Page 23 Quest User's Manual Recommended Music Analog Discs: Analog Discs: Analog Discs: Analog Discs: Analog Discs: Astounding Sound Show ......... Reference Recordings RR-7 Chet Atkins in Hollywood ............................. RCA LSP-1993 Berlioz: Symphonie Fantastique ........ Chesky Records CR1 Big Band Jazz ..............................[...]

Page 24 Quest User's Manual Glossary AC AC AC AC AC. Abbreviation for alternating current. Active crossover Active crossover Active crossover Active crossover Active crossover. Uses active devices (transistors, IC’s, tubes) and some form of power supply to operate. Amplitude Amplitude Amplitude Amplitude Amplitude. The extreme range of a sig[...]

Page 25 Quest User's Manual Midrange Midrange Midrange Midrange Midrange. The middle frequencies where the ear is the most sensitive. Passive crossover Passive crossover Passive crossover Passive crossover Passive crossover. Uses no active components (transistors, IC’s, tubes) and needs no power supply (AC, DC, battery) to operate. The cross[...]

Page 26 Quest User's Manual Quest Specifications The Quest hybrid speaker system consists of a broad-range single element electrostatic transducer integrated with a quick-response woofer. This approach takes advan- tage of the benefits that both technolo- gies have to offer. Dispersion is a controlled 30 degrees. This was achieved by curving t[...]

Page 27 Quest User's Manual Notes[...]

$ 3.00 $ 3.00 $ 3.00 $ 3.00 $ 3.00 2001 delaware street p.o. box 707 lawrence, kansas 66044 ph: 913.749.0133 © 1990 martin-logan ltd. martin-logan ltd. martin-logan ltd. martin-logan ltd. martin-logan ltd. all rights reserved THE ELECTROST ATI C TECHNOLOGY[...]