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Speaker placement, Installation considerations – Niles Audio PERFORMANCE PR6 User Manual

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er, so you must connect the wire from the

amplifier to the volume control and then

from the volume control to the speaker.

Speaker Wire
Use 2-conductor speaker wire when con-

necting PR speakers to your receiver or

amplifier. For most applications, we rec-

ommend you use 16 or 18 gauge stranded

wire. For wiring runs longer than 80 feet

(25 meters) we recommend 14 gauge

stranded wire. When you run wire inside

walls, special jacketing (CL-2 or CL-3) is

required to both protect the wire and for

fire prevention. In some areas conduit

is required. For a trouble-free installa-

tion, low voltage wire such as speaker

wire must be run in accordance with the

National Electrical Code and any applica-

ble provisions of the local building code.

If you are unsure of the correct installation

techniques, wire jacket or type of conduit

to use, consult a professional audio/video

installer, your building contractor, or the

local building and inspection department.

Incorporating a Remote Control
If you are planning to use a stereo system

with a hand held IR remote control, con-

sider the advantages of installing a Niles IR

Repeater system. You are able to control

all of the functions of your system from

the room via the remote pair of speakers.

Niles makes a number of IR sensors which

install in the wall, in the ceiling, in cabine-

try, on tabletops, or even behind the grille

of some of your Niles speakers.

An IR sensor requires that a 2-conductor

shielded wire (West Penn D291 or equiv-

alent) be home run from each sensor loca-

tion to the main equipment location. This

wire is normally run beside the speaker

wire at the same time. Typically, the sen-

sor is placed in a location that faces your

listening position. Most remote controls

will have an effective line of sight range of

18 to 30 feet (6-10 meters) with any Niles

sensor placed in a wall, ceiling, on a cabi-

net or tabletop. However, when you place

a Niles MS110 MicroSensor behind the

perforated aluminum grille of a speaker

the effective range is reduced to 9 to 15

feet (3-5 meters).

Insulating the Wall Cavity
For best performance from your speakers

fill the wall cavity behind the speaker with

fiberglass insulation (e.g. R-19 unbatted

insulation). Try to keep the same amount

of insulation for each speaker, particu-

larly in the same room, for consistent

bass response.

5

Installation Considerations

TECH TIP

Wire size is expressed by its AWG (American Wire

Gauge) number. The lower the number, the larger
the wire, i.e. twelve AWG is physically larger than

fourteen AWG.

6

Speaker Placement

Placement for Critical Listening
If you like to imagine that the band or

orchestra is playing in front of you as you

listen to music, or you are very conscious of

clarity, detail and the textures of the individ-

ual instruments, you are a critical listener.
In a home theater, the intelligibility of

dialog and action reproduced by the front

speakers is paramount! The position of

the speakers plays a very important role in

how clear the sound is and how a stereo

image is created. Here are some guide-

lines to make the process of placement

quick and easy.

Make sure the sound will not be blocked

or reflected off of furniture or other objects.

You should have a direct line of sight with

the front of the speaker. To determine the

best position, measure the “listening” dis-

tance between the ideal listening position

(your favorite chair or couch) and the wall

in which you plan to install the speakers.

Try to place the speakers so that they are

equally distant from your listening spot

and at least one half of the listening dis-

tance apart (this maintains a large pleasant

stereo “image”). In home theater applica-

tions where there is a center channel you

may choose to space the left and right

main speakers farther apart for a “bigger

than life” sound with Dolby

®

encoded

movies and TV shows. However, for com-

bined music and movie usage stay within

the good placement zone for music. For

example; if you are ten feet back from the

wall, the speakers should be between five

and ten feet apart (See Figure 2).

Speaker Placement

Speaker

Placement

Zone

Speaker

Placement

Zone

10’

(3 meters)

5’

(1.7 meters)

Figure 2

10’

(3 meters)

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