Genesis Advanced Technologies Speaker GENESIS 53 User Manual

Five  
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A Message from Genesis  
Congratulations! You are now the owner of one of the finest  
loudspeaker systems in the world. Based on technologies developed  
and evolved over the past four decades, the Genesis 5.3 is a small  
4-ft tall floor-standing loudspeaker, and yet it delivers some of the  
dynamics, imaging and soundstage of our largest 7-foot tall 1½ ton  
reference Genesis 1 product.  
The G5 loudspeaker system was created for the music lover living in  
smaller environments. It is designed to reproduce music (and film) at  
live listening levels with virtually no restrictions on dynamic range,  
frequency response, or imaging capabilities. This is what we mean  
by absolute fidelity™, the ability to reproduce the musical event  
faithfully, as was intended by the performer, or the film-maker.  
Standing 46 inches tall, and only 11 inches (13 ¼” including base)  
wide, the Genesis 5 is a diminutive giant. By means of an active  
servo-feedback bass system, response down to 18Hz is achieved,  
and the full range and impact of a symphony orchestra or a rock  
band can be reproduced.  
With adjustable tweeter, midrange, and bass controls, the G5 can be  
tuned into any room. The adjustable acoustic platform suspension  
system also allows the G5 to be ideally sited on all types of flooring –  
from the typical joist-suspended carpet-covered floorboards in the  
USA, to uneven terracotta tiles in an Italian villa, and flagstones in an  
English castle.  
Please read this Owners Manual and Set-up Guide to get the  
maximum enjoyment out of your purchase. Also, if you have access  
to the Internet, please check back at our website often. The address  
is www.genesisloudspeakers.com. We will put the latest updates,  
tips and tricks, and support for our owners on our website.  
Please write the serial number and purchase details of your  
Genesis 5.3 here for future reference.  
Bought at: _________________________ Date: __________  
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Set-up Guide  
Now that you have your new Genesis 5 loudspeaker system, we  
realize that you can’t wait to hook it up and start playing! However,  
please read this set up guide (even if your dealer is setting it up for  
you!) before you proceed.  
Unpacking  
Your loudspeakers will come to you in two large shipping cartons  
and a smaller box containing the acoustic suspension. The G5’s  
weigh over 145lbs (66kgs) each, so we suggest a minimum of two  
strong people to move the speakers around. We will not be held  
liable for damage (to either the speakers or your backs!) during  
unpacking and setting up if you ignore this basic advice.  
The bottom of the speaker’s acoustic suspension will be spiked into  
the foam. You may want to retract the spikes at each corner of the  
suspension frame before attempting to remove the foam. It will also  
be very much easier to move the speaker around with the spikes  
retracted.  
Please collapse and store your packaging material in case you need  
to ship the speakers later. You WILL need all your packaging  
material to transport your speakers safely.  
Room Placement  
A good starting position for your G5 is about 20% the way into the  
room as measured from the front wall (the wall you look at as you  
are seated listening to the speakers), six feet (~2m) apart, and firing  
straight ahead with no toe-in. You will want to sit ten to twelve feet  
(3m – 4m) away from the speakers, and have at least 24 inches  
(60cm) from the back of the speaker to the wall.  
If in a smaller room, you may have to sit closer to the back wall, or sit  
closer to the speakers, but try to keep at least 24 inches of space  
behind the speakers. This allows the speaker to “breath” as there is  
a rear-firing woofer, a mid-bass coupler and a tweeter.  
Start with the speakers six feet apart, and not toed-in. You will want  
to sit at least 10 feet (3 metres) away from the speakers for proper  
integration of the drivers. (See diagram on the next page). We will  
experiment with moving the speakers around, and toeing them in  
later.  
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Typical room placement: Place speakers about 20% of the  
way into the room and 10 to 12 feet from the listeners  
6’ to 8’  
10’ to 12’  
20%  
80%  
Power Connections  
There are two connections you will need to make to the G5. First,  
the power cord for the built-in amplifier will need to be plugged into a  
power socket. A 10-foot power cord is included with your speakers  
for this purpose. We do not recommend using an extension cord for  
the G5 due to the high power demands of the 500W amplifier.  
However, if you MUST use an extension cord, use an extremely  
heavy duty one. The amplifier can draw up to 10 amps  
instantaneously at 115v, hence make sure that the extension cord is  
adequately rated.  
Before you plug the power cord in, please make sure that the  
voltage selector is set to the proper voltage. Japan and North  
America will require the 115v setting. Most European countries and  
other Asian countries will require 230v. The fuse is a 5amp 250v  
slow blow irregardless of voltage used.  
There is an on/off switch for the power amplifier. This switch should  
always be left on. We recommend that you plug the G5 into an  
unswitched outlet, or a switched outlet that can always be left ON.  
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The built-in amplifier consumes about 10w on standby – about the  
same as a child’s night-light. Hence, leave the amplifier on unless  
you will not be using the system for an extended period of time (like  
a month-long vacation).  
Source Input Connections  
Connect the speaker-level output of your power amplifier to the High  
Level Input binding posts using a high-quality loudspeaker cable.  
Make sure that you have the correct polarity connected for both  
speakers – the plus or positive (red) terminal on the G5 should be  
connected to the plus, positive, or red terminal on your power  
amplifier.  
The Bass Input selector switch should be in the up or high-level  
position – pointing to the inputs being used. This is the  
recommended hook-up, both sonically and  
for convenience.  
Nevertheless, if you know that your power  
amplifier may be deficient in the bass, or  
does not have a response down to 18Hz  
(such as some Single-ended Triode  
amplifiers), you may wish to connect the  
bass section of the G5 directly to your  
preamplifier instead.  
If you use the low-level inputs for the  
servo-bass of the G5, you will need to  
check for the phase correctness of your  
power amplifier. If your power amplifier  
inverts phase, you will need to invert the  
high-level inputs when the bass section of  
the G5 is driven by the preamplifier.  
If you do this, use a good quality balanced  
interconnect cable to connect the balanced  
output of your preamplifier to the preamp  
level input XLR connector, or the single-  
ended output of your preamplifier to the  
preamp level input RCA connector on the  
back plate of the G5.  
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While using this connection, switch the Bass Input Selector to the  
down/line-level position. This will bypass the high-level input from  
the servo amp, and the bass input is taken directly from the low-  
level inputs. Do NOT connect both the XLR and RCA inputs at the  
same time.  
If you are planning to use long runs (over 10 feet or 3m) of  
interconnect to connect the line-level inputs of your G5 to your  
preamplifier, we recommend that you use a balanced connection.  
The Acoustic Platform  
The G5 sits on a suspension system designed to allow the  
loudspeaker to perform at its optimum. It consists of three elements  
– neoprene vibration-absorbing de-couplers, a tuned skeletal acrylic  
frame, and stainless steel spikes. The system holds the loudspeaker  
firmly, and yet isolates it from the floor on which it sits.  
Like the architectural suspension of a  
skyscraper in Tokyo, the suspension  
allows the speaker to sway at  
frequencies that do not affect the sound,  
and yet remain absolutely rigid at higher  
frequencies.  
After you have positioned the speakers,  
screw down the supplied spikes from the  
top of the suspension frame to raise the  
speaker off the floor so that it only rests  
on the spikes and no part of the frame  
touches the floor. The suspension frame should be barely off the  
surface on which the loudspeaker sits.  
If on thin carpet, hardwood floors or stone floors,  
this should be less than 1/16” or 1.5mm. On deep  
pile carpet, screw the spikes down until the  
suspension frame is not resting heavily on the  
carpet.  
A second set of shorter spikes and hole covers  
(included with this Owner’s Manual) are provided  
for a neater cosmetic. However, any adjustment  
and fine-tuning should be completed before these are used as the  
thumb-screw spikes are much more convenient to adjust.  
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Controls  
There are a total of five control knobs in two rows on the back plate  
of the Genesis 5 loudspeaker.  
The upper left knob on the back  
plate marked “Tweeter” is a volume  
control for the front tweeter. Turning  
this control clockwise will increase  
the level of the front tweeter. Use  
this control if you need a bit more  
treble or to increase the apparent  
space of the soundstage. Start with  
this control at the 12 o'clock  
position. There is about a one dB  
range for this control. The 12 o’clock straight up position is  
nominal for all controls.  
The upper right knob marked “Midrange”is used to adjust the  
level of the midrange. Again, start this at the 12 o’clock position.  
Turning the control anti-clockwise (or counter-clockwise) will  
make the midrange sound more laid-back, and turning it  
clockwise will make the midrange more forward. There is about a  
one-and-a-half dB range for this control.  
The knob on the middle of the lower  
row of knobs marked “Bass Gain”  
controls the volume of the built-in bass  
servo amplifier. Begin with this control  
at 6 (the 12 o’clock position). Adjusting  
the gain higher will make the  
loudspeaker sound “fuller” and more  
bass-heavy.  
The knob on the middle right marked “Low Pass” controls how  
high the woofer will play. At the extreme low of 71Hz, the woofer  
will play up to 71Hz, and then begin rolling off, or reducing its  
volume, above this frequency. The recommended beginning  
position for this control is 90Hz. Adjusting the crossover point up  
will make the G5 sound warmer and fuller in the mid-bass.  
The knob on the left marked “LFE Gain” is used for home theatre  
applications, so ignore it for the time being.  
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Tuning the system  
Two channel stereo music is the best way to begin your setup  
procedure. We suggest that multi-channel and video sources be  
used only after you have setup the system to properly reproduce  
music. The room in which the G5 is placed would probably be the  
greatest influence on the sound of the loudspeaker.  
Since we do not live in anechoic chambers, at Genesis, we do not  
design our loudspeakers to work perfectly in a perfectly damped  
room. The amount of hard/soft and absorbent/reflecting surfaces will  
affect the sound of the speakers tremendously.  
A room with solid concrete or brick walls, floors and ceiling will have  
much more bass than if the walls were made of plasterboard, with a  
suspended floor and false ceiling. An over-stuffed leather sofa will  
absorb different frequencies to different extents from a light fabric-  
covered armchair. So, you may even find that you will want to re-  
tune your system when you change the furnishings in the room.  
We suggest that you start your tuning with a single vocal with simple  
instrumental accompaniment because the sound of the human voice  
is more easily recognizable than many instruments and is the least  
complex sound to deal with. A male voice, or a low female voice is  
the easiest to start working with.  
Adjusting the Bass Gain  
Leave the low pass filter alone for the moment, as it should remain  
set at approximately 90 Hz. This control will be addressed later.  
Turn the gain control of the woofer amplifier up or down until the  
voice sounds correct. Whatever controls you use, turn them up and  
down only a little at a time. It is easy to turn it up or down too much.  
However, the 12 o’clock position is only the starting point. Different  
room construction and size will greatly influence the setting of the  
bass gain.  
If your room has “lossy” walls instead of solid brick or concrete walls,  
you may find that the bass settings may need to be higher. If you  
have a sealed room with no bass loss, the bass gain may be set as  
low as 2 or 3.  
Concentrate on the mid-bass regions (as opposed to the very low  
bass in your recording) to achieve a natural blend. The voice and the  
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music accompaniment should sound as if it were cut from one cloth,  
not separate.  
If the voice sounds “thin” or does not have enough “chest” to its  
sound, turn the woofers amplifier’s gain up till it does. If you find that  
turning the volume up creates too much low bass and makes the  
speakers sound boomy, you will then need to work on the low pass  
filter.  
Low Pass filter  
This control will lower the upper-frequency cut-off point of the  
woofer. It does not affect the lower-frequency cut-off point of the mid-  
bass couplers.  
Turning the low pass filter up to a higher number will extend the  
upper bass regions at the crossover point between the woofers and  
the mid-bass couplers without affecting the low bass level. Some  
rooms may require you to set the low pass filter up to 130Hz, while  
others will require you to lower it down to 80Hz.  
Do not be afraid to increase this control to give the sound more body  
or to make the balance “warmer”. There is a balance between the  
setting of the bass gain control and the low-pass control. The trick is  
to find this balance.  
A general rule of the thumb is to turn the low-pass filter as far  
clockwise of the 12 o’clock mark as the bass gain control is anti-  
clockwise of the 12 o’clock mark. For example, if the bass gain is at  
10 o’clock, the low-pass should be at 2 o’clock. If the bass gain is at  
1 o’clock, the low pass should be at 11 o’clock.  
Next, set the woofers using more than just a voice. Select some  
music that you know to have good deep bass. Set the gain on the  
woofers for a natural and powerful bass sound. Use a symphonic  
piece of music if you can, or use a natural bass instrument for your  
guide. Try to make it sound real. You may have to return to the vocal  
to make sure you have not gone too far in one direction or the other.  
At this point, if there is not enough mid bass, turn the low pass  
number to a higher position or, alternately, position the main  
speakers closer together in order to achieve better mid bass  
coupling between the main speakers. If it sounds too “fat” turn the  
low pass control down or adjust the volume.  
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Small rooms have more bass gain, hence the smaller the room, the  
higher the low-pass frequency to use, and the lower the bass gain  
level. The larger the room, the lower the low-pass frequency to use,  
and the higher the bass gain. The two knobs are turned in opposite  
directions – what you want to achieve is balance.  
Imaging and Soundstage  
If your vocal selection is a well-recorded audiophile CD or LP, the  
performer should appear to come from behind the loudspeakers and  
be at the appropriate height and size for a person. If it is not, there  
are several remedies that will address this.  
If the vocal appears to be larger than life, you should first check the  
system volume. Is it a volume that would be appropriate for  
someone actually singing in your room? If there is too much  
volume the artist will appear too big and the opposite is true  
for too little volume.  
If the volume is set correctly and the image is still too big, place  
the speakers closer together and listen again. Place the speakers  
no less than 5 feet apart. If the image is still too big, toe the  
speakers in by a slight amount.  
Conversely, if the image is too small, move the speakers apart.  
The speakers should be no more than nine feet apart. Repeat  
this process till you have it right. If the voice is too low in height,  
turn the midrange control up (turning the knob clockwise) and the  
image of the voice will move upward slightly. However, this will also  
at the same time make the speakers sound more forward.  
If you have the speakers 20% of the way into the room, and you are  
not getting enough front to back depth (the singer not appearing  
behind the speaker enough) pull the speakers away from the front  
wall a little bit at a time. If you do not have them pulled far enough  
away, you may not have enough front to back depth. However,  
slightly more than 1/3 of the way into the room is about as far as  
you want to go. Pulling them half-way into the middle of the room  
is unlikely to help (and probably incur the wrath of your spouse).  
Find the best compromise for your room, your tastes and your space  
requirements. If you are not getting proper focus on the voice, you  
may angle the left and right speaker up to about 15 to 20 degrees  
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(toe-in) towards your listening position until you have a properly  
defined center image.  
If the speakers are too far apart you will lose the side image and if  
they are too close together you will have too small a center stage. If  
the speakers are far apart and toed-in significantly, you will find that  
you will only have a small sweet spot in which to sit and enjoy your  
music. When these speakers are properly set up, you will have a  
sweet spot wide enough for you and your partner. When you sway  
side to side while enjoying the music, the image and tonality of the  
system should not waver.  
The spikes on the acoustic suspension give you an additional control  
over the height of the soundstage. Tilting the front of the  
loudspeaker up and down will affect the height of the soundstage  
depending on the furnishings and wall coverings in your listening  
room. In some rooms with hard walls, tilting the front of the speaker  
up will lower the soundstage. In other rooms, it will raise the  
soundstage. Experiment!  
When properly set up very little sound should appear to come  
directly from the speaker, instead, the sound stage should extend  
far beyond the left and right edge of the loudspeakers and they  
should have tremendous front to back depth. When the recording is  
close miked (when the instrument or performer is very close to the  
recording microphone) the music may appear to come directly  
from the loudspeaker. This is normal. Typically, however, the sound  
should appear to be detached from the loudspeakers.  
A simple rule of thumb to follow is that focus will be achieved by  
placing the speakers closer together or farther apart, and front to  
back depth can be adjusted by the distance from the rear wall.  
Further, as the system “breaks in”, the depth and width of the  
soundstage will increase and so will the “smoothness” of the sound.  
Soundstage Height  
A unique feature of the acoustic suspension is the ability to alter the  
height and shape of the soundstage. In most “live” rooms, if the  
soundstage is deemed to be too low, increase the height of the  
spikes at the BACK of the loudspeaker. If the height of the  
soundstage is too high, increase the height at the FRONT of the  
speaker.  
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Do not extend the spikes all the way to the end. They should only be  
screwed far enough down so that no part of the acoustic suspension  
touches the floor, or rests heavily on the carpet. Keep the part of the  
spikes protruding from the bottom of the suspension frame as short  
as possible.  
Tuning into the room  
There are no absolute rules concerning the speaker/room  
coupling, so do not be afraid to experiment with speaker  
placement for best results. Positioning the speakers within the  
room will significantly affect the quality of the bass.  
This is because of standing waves caused by bass modes in the  
room. Hence, you should experiment with asymmetric positioning  
in the room. Do not have your speakers the same distance from  
the side and front walls – try putting them closer to the left or the  
right wall. If the speakers are equidistance from side and front wall,  
you may find strange suck-outs at some frequencies.  
In some problematic rooms a resonance may develop at one or  
two frequencies that is unnatural to the music. By moving the  
speakers closer to the front/side wall or farther from the front/side  
wall, the resonance may be reduced at the listener’s position.  
The amount of hard and soft surfaces in your room will also affect  
the tonal balance of your loudspeakers. For example, with lots of  
very hard surfaces such as marble or granite floors, large picture  
windows, and concrete walls, you may find that the room is very  
bright and you will have to turn the tweeter control down  
significantly.  
On the other hand, large sofas and arm-chairs tend to absorb  
frequencies in the lower mid-range and mid-bass. When your  
room is full of furniture, you may find that you have to turn down  
the tweeter, midrange, and bass gain.  
Ultimately, an enjoyable and musical system is all about balance.  
You have a number of controls at hand with which to adjust the  
bass response, the low-pass filter frequency and woofer volume.  
You can also move the speakers closer together for better  
speaker-to-speaker mid-bass coupling, or further apart for less.  
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You can tilt the tonality of the speaker towards bright or dry with  
the tweeter control, and forward or laid-back with the midrange  
control.  
Home Theater and Multi-Channel Music  
While the Genesis 5.3 was designed with the audiophile in mind, its  
performance and features make it ideal for Home Theater as well.  
The G5 is truly a full frequency loudspeaker that satisfies the  
requirement for THX™, Dolby Digitaland DTScinema  
reproduction. However the combination of the low frequency  
capability and a unique set of controls and connections on the G5  
provide Home Theater users benefits beyond other loudspeakers on  
the market.  
In essence, the G5 has a servo-controlled subwoofer already  
included in each speaker. This capability allows the G5 to  
reproduce the low frequency effects (LFE) signal available on all  
modern movie decoders. An additional benefit of using this feature  
is that the LFE will come from two (or more) locations in your room  
versus using a single subwoofer for LFE. Utilizing this capability  
dramatically reduces room bass mode and bass node problems.  
This results in smoother bass integration in the room, and a huge  
system impact capability.  
LFE Input  
The Low Frequency Effects (LFE) input allows the G5 to be used in  
addition to, or in place of, a separate sub-woofer. The LFE input  
blends the low frequency effects signal from the home theatre  
processor into the woofer section of the speakers.  
The LFE input bypasses the internal crossover, and hence uses the  
home theatre processor’s crossover. Since the G5 is able to play  
down to 18Hz, the bass section can also be used as your Home  
Theater System’s LFE sub-woofer if you do not have one – even if  
you are using a completely different set of loudspeakers for your  
home theatre system!  
On the home theatre processor, set the speakers to “LARGE” and  
sub-woofer to “YES” even if you do not have a separate sub-woofer.  
Then, take the sub-woofer line-level output from the processor, and  
plug it into the “LFE IN” connector on the G5.  
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If you are planning to use long runs (more than 10 feet) of  
interconnects to connect the line-level LFE inputs of your G5 to  
your processor, we suggest that you use the balanced XLR inputs.  
For runs of interconnect less than 10 feet (3 metres), a single-  
ended interconnect can be used.  
LFE Gain  
The G5 has a knob that controls LFE GAIN separately from the BASS  
GAIN. This allows you to have the G5’s plugged both into your  
audiophile stereo system as well as your home theatre system at the  
same time without conflicts. The usual way to control the level of the  
LFE output is to set the LFE gain to 6 – the twelve o’clock position –  
and then use the home theatre processors level control to dial in the  
level. However, having the LFE gain control allows you to tune the  
LFE if your two systems have completely different gain structure.  
LFE Output  
Along with the LFE input, the G5 has a unique capability of LFE  
output. This is a true powered buffered balanced output, and hence,  
can convert a single-ended input signal into a true balanced output.  
This buffered output can be used to daisy chain the LFE signal to  
other LFE inputs including other G5 speakers and separate  
subwoofers.  
Thus, it is possible to channel the LFE signal from your home  
theatre processor to one speaker, and then from that speaker to  
another, and to another, and to another!  
Distributing the bass is also helpful for reproduction of multi-channel  
music because you get incredible articulation and detail in the bass  
all around the room.  
The Refinement stage  
After following the rough setup guide above, you may not be  
completely satisfied with the results. We share with you here some  
of our observations in setting up these loudspeakers.  
One rule of thumb you should always keep in mind. Make one  
change at a time! Do not, for instance, change position of the  
speakers and make an adjustment to the tweeter, midrange, and  
bass all at once. Make each of these changes separately and note  
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the difference - by listening - with each adjustment, then make the  
next change.  
A common problem we find with many set-ups is a tendency to  
separate the speakers too far from each other and toe them in too  
much. This gives an unnaturally wide soundstage between the two  
speakers, and creates problems beyond the unnatural width of the  
center stage. It also results in a very narrow sweet spot that is really  
only suitable for one person with his head clamped still.  
The key problem is a lack of soundstage information beyond the left  
and right sides of the speakers, and also a loss of focus between the  
speakers.  
If you find that the sound is not spacious enough or you are not  
getting enough front to back depth, pull the speaker away from the  
front wall. This is typically preferable to separating the two speakers  
too far and will almost always give you better depth and soundstage  
information. A word of caution, however, if you move the speakers  
too far from the front wall you may lose focus.  
Yet another problem is a lack of mid bass energy. In order for the  
appropriate amount of mid bass energy to be present, the speakers  
should be close enough together to achieve proper "coupling" of the  
midrange driver and the mid-bass couplers. Coupling is desirable in  
the lower frequencies from the mid-bass on down. This simply  
means that the left and right drivers "work together" as opposed to  
working separately.  
If you find there isn't enough deep bass, your first remedy is the  
volume control on the woofer amplifier. This has several limitations.  
First, turned up too high, you may get some distortion on very low  
frequencies or you may overdrive the amplifier.  
Secondly, you may make the mid bass produced by the top of the  
woofer out of proportion with the mid bass produced by the bottom  
of the mid-bass coupler. This would tend to sound "boomy" in the  
mid bass regions.  
Another good rule of thumb is to first set the volume control of the  
woofer for proper midbass rather than low bass. The theory is that if  
the midbass is correct, then the low bass should be very close to  
correct. If the midbass is proper and the low bass is still not right,  
here are some other suggestions.  
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A good balance between proper low bass extension and a deep and  
spacious soundstage needs to be established to optimize your  
speaker's performance.  
In order to achieve what the speaker is capable of we suggest you  
focus your efforts on a proper balance of soundstage elements that  
includes information beyond the left and right sides of the speakers,  
front to back depth well behind the speaker, excellent focus of  
instruments and voices with proper vertical information and mid bass  
fill.  
A Genesis loudspeaker system correctly set up, can and should  
provide a soundstage that “melts the walls of your room” and with  
pinpoint focus. The speakers disappear completely on a recording  
that has such quality.  
Room Treatment  
No room is perfect. To optimize your sonic presentation it may be  
helpful add some minimal acoustic treatment to your room. Here are  
some guidelines:  
1. Front walls. This loudspeaker is a dipole and therefore there  
is sound coming from both the front and the back of the  
speaker. How the front wall is treated or not treated is  
important. Generally speaking, the Genesis loudspeakers  
prefer a live front wall to a dead front wall.  
By these terms we mean the amount of reflection of sound. A  
typical wall of glass or, brick, cement or drywall material is a  
reflective surface. A heavily curtained or sound absorbent  
wall would be considered a "dead wall" or a non-reflective  
wall. A normal thin curtain across a window causes only a  
small amount of absorption. Hence, a curtained glass window  
would just be about perfect.  
2. Sidewalls. Because the speaker is a dipole it is less sensitive  
to the sidewalls. However, as a rule of thumb, it is a good  
idea to keep the speaker as far away from the sidewalls as is  
practical. With this in mind, it may be helpful to add some  
damping material or diffuser panels to the point of first  
reflection. This is a point on the sidewalls between the listener  
and the loudspeaker. It is where the sound from the  
loudspeaker first hits the sidewall, then bounces to the  
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listener. This reflection is undesirable because it is slightly  
delayed from the original sound and “smears” pinpoint  
imaging. This point on the sidewall can be easily determined  
with the help of a second person and a mirror.  
Sitting in your listening position have an assistant hold a  
mirror up on the sidewall. Move the mirror until you can see  
the tweeter. This is the point of first reflection. A diffuser (see  
your dealer), an absorptive material or even a piece of  
furniture (a rack of CDs or LPs is ideal) can help break up this  
point of first reflection.  
3. Rear wall. In many cases it will be unnecessary to do  
anything with the wall behind your listening position unless  
you are sitting very close to the rear wall. You may want to  
experiment with diffusers or absorbers behind you for best  
sound. Absorption behind the listener is usually beneficial.  
Mastering the Refinements of the system  
Fine tuning an audio system is an art that will take time and  
patience. It can be one of the more rewarding learning experiences  
you will have in the pursuit of music and its enjoyment.  
Keep at it and remember to enjoy your music as you work on  
perfecting your set-up. Use as wide a range of music and  
performances as you can get a hold of in your set-up. The better your  
set-up, the better badly-recorded music will sound. If your system only  
sounds great on a very small number of “reference recordings”, then  
you will be restricted to enjoying a narrow range of music.  
One of the best pieces of advice we can offer is that you take  
advantage of the ear's ability to identify similarities and differences in  
sound. This ability is useful in fine tuning your system because if  
every recording you listen to has a similarity of sound (too much or  
too little of a certain frequency for instance) then you can be fairly  
certain that you have yet to perfect your set-up.  
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at Genesis. Our  
website is the first place that you can look to for more information,  
but you are welcome to either send us an email, or just give us a  
call!  
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The Technology  
The Genesis Ribbon Tweeter  
Reviewers in the Audiophile press have often remarked that the  
Genesis circular ribbon tweeter is the world’s best. It is a one inch  
circular planar ribbon design crafted from an extremely thin  
membrane of Kapton with a photo-etched aluminium “voice coil” that  
is a mere 0.0005 inch thick. The entire radiating structure has less  
mass than the air in front of it! That is why it will reproduce accurately  
frequencies beyond 36k Hz.  
The result of this design is a driver that has a rapid and uniform  
response to high frequencies, and has the speed of the best  
ribbon/electrostatic designs without the high distortion and poor  
dispersion that is typically associated with them.  
The G5 use two of these tweeters per channel. One front-firing, and  
the other wired to the crossover out of phase to the front tweeter and  
firing to the rear, creating a dipole. Dipoles radiate the same sound  
from both front and rear out of phase in “push/pull” fashion. Thus,  
the sound waves from the front and back of the speakers cancel out  
as they radiate from the sides of the speakers; which means that  
there is minimum radiation of sound to the sidewalls of the room.  
The net result is that the G5 generate far fewer detail-robbing room  
reflections from the sidewalls than other types of loudspeakers. With  
fewer spurious reflections to confuse your hearing, the program  
source emerges more clearly. Imaging is deeper, yet more focused.  
Titanium Midrange  
We sometimes say that the midrange is a window into the mind of a  
composer or a singer. And indeed, the midrange is where the  
“magic” is in a well-recorded musical event.  
The G5 uses a Genesis-designed proprietary 4.5inch titanium coned  
midrange to cover this critical frequency spectrum. Machined out of  
one of the lightest and stiffest materials known, this low mass cone  
driver is one of the best midrange transducers ever made with nearly  
instantaneous transient response, enabling the G5 to sound lifelike  
and effortless.  
The driver is housed in an enclosure that is open to the back. Thus,  
the midrange operates as a dipole too.  
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Mid-Bass Couplers  
In order to create a “sound bridge” between the midrange and the  
bass section, the G5 incorporates two 6.5inch metal cone mid-bass  
couplers. One front and one rear firing, again working as a dipole.  
Made of aluminum, this metal cone is extremely light and stiff. The  
driver is hence capable of handling the huge dynamic range  
demands of live music while maintaining extremely low coloration  
and excellent transient response.  
The Servo-bass 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.  
The concept of the Genesis servo bass system is an easy one to  
understand: It employs, an accelerometer as a sensor, to constantly  
monitor the movement of the woofer cone and instantaneously  
compares it to the input signal. This comparison circuit identifies any  
deviation from the input and instantaneously applies a corrective  
signal to compensate, thus practically eliminating the inherent  
distortion of the woofer!  
As an example, when you have a high-impact, low-bass signal that  
starts and stops suddenly (for example a tympani), the inertia of the  
woofer cone makes it slow to start moving, and then after it is  
moving, the momentum of the cone makes it continue moving even  
after the signal has stopped.  
The sonic result is overhang, bloat, lack of tautness and definition,  
and a blurring of dynamic impact. With the servo system, the circuit  
senses that the woofer is not moving as fast as it should, and it  
instantaneously applies much more current to make it move faster.  
When the signal stops, it detects that the woofer will continue to  
move when it shouldn’t and applies a counter-signal to stop the  
woofer faster and more effectively than an open loop woofer could  
possibly respond.  
Thus, the servo-drive reduces distortion and improves transient  
response by making the woofer seem massless. Typical non-servo  
woofer systems have distortion levels that exceed 10% at even  
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moderate levels. The Genesis servo bass system reduces this  
distortion to below one percent at almost any output level. It also  
drives the woofer to constant acceleration, which makes its  
frequency response totally flat!!  
The servo system is a more proactive approach to controlling a  
loudspeaker than high-damping factor and high current in the normal  
amplifier. However, this also means that the woofer, the cables  
attaching the woofer to the amplifier, and the power amplifier has to  
be designed as an integrated system. Thus, the Genesis 5 is  
designed with a built-in 500W servo amplifier for the bass section.  
Aluminium-cone Woofers  
The transducer used in a servo system must be strong enough to  
withstand the high current approach of the servo, and yet delicate  
and light enough to react extremely quickly. The G5 features three  
8-inch aluminium cone long-throw woofers per channel.  
While the servo system is able to ensure that the driver works  
linearly as a perfect piston, it is unable to correct for distortion  
caused by cone wobble, bending, and break-up. Hence, the drivers  
were designed to minimize these non-linear distortions, allowing the  
servo system to most effectively eliminate the linear distortions.  
The woofers are a uniquely designed metal cone driver made for the  
Genesis servo system. Made of a cone of solid aluminium, the  
suspension and voice-coil have been maximized for long distortion-  
free excursion so as to increase dynamic range. Our aluminium  
cones are a magnitude stiffer than any plastic or paper cone on the  
market, and virtually eliminate the problems caused by cone bending  
and break-up.  
The lowest break-up mode (where there can be any chance of  
distortion at all) is at 6,000Hz – far above the 16Hz to 120Hz  
frequency range at which these drivers operate. Therefore, the  
driver is a perfect piston within the frequencies used. Thus, low cone  
break-up distortion is inherent in the driver designed for the G5.  
Unlike the mid-bass couplers, midrange and the tweeters, which  
operate in dipole, the three woofers in the G5 operate in phase as  
an omni-pole. All three woofers work in phase to control the air mass  
of the listening room. This means that the surface area of the three  
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cones and the loudspeaker enclosure all work in unison to produce  
bass output that descends evenly to below your hearing limits.  
500 watt Class D Servo Amplifier  
While the advantages of metal cones include extreme stiffness  
resulting in very low distortion and break-up, one problem is that of  
greater mass. To over come this, Genesis had to build an  
amplification system of great wattage, and high damping factor. The  
servo system also places extraordinary demands on the amplifier  
because the system uses enormous amounts of current to make the  
woofer follow the input signal. Combined with the metal cones, this  
means that the amplifier used must deliver extraordinarily large  
amounts of clean power.  
In the Genesis 5, the built-in amplifier was specifically designed and  
tuned for low frequencies in order to produce “floorshakingly  
musical” bass to power the servo woofers.  
One side benefit of this powered woofer system is that almost any  
sized amplifier can be used to drive the Genesis 5. No longer must  
one choose between having an amplifier with enough power to drive  
the woofers, and a smaller amplifier having better spatial and tonal  
characters. Nevertheless, we generally recommend 60 watts as a  
minimum.  
The Acoustic Suspension  
The suspension for the speaker comprises three elements:  
1)  
The neoprene vibration absorbers are tuned to isolate and  
decouple the loudspeaker cabinet for optimal bass response  
no matter what surface the loudspeaker sits on.  
If the loudspeakers sound extremely hard and relenting, AND  
you have them on extremely hard floors (solid granite, etc), a  
set of softer vibration absorbers may be substituted (please  
contact us if you need these). If a very resonant floor (such as  
if the speakers were to be used on a wooden stage), the  
softer absorbers may also be used for further decoupling to  
ensure that floor-borne vibrations are not transmitted up into  
the loudspeaker.  
2)  
The skeletal frame acts as a tuned absorber. Made of a high  
molecular weight acrylic, no two parts of the frame will  
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resonate at the same frequencies. This ensures that all  
midrange frequencies are “dumped” below the base of the  
cabinet so that floor-borne vibrations do not affect the imaging  
and soundstage of the loudspeaker.  
3)  
The spikes rigidly couple the suspension system to the floor.  
If you have hardwood floors and do not want to make holes in  
the wood, use a copper penny (instead of expensive “spike  
cups”) under the spike.  
A pin-point suspension system is designed to pass all  
frequencies. Using a spike cup under the spike will defeat this  
system. A copper penny gets deformed – the spike making  
an indentation where it meets the penny, and a little “nipple”  
on the other side. This still performs the same function as a  
pin-point suspension system, but at the same time protects  
your hardwood floor.  
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Specifications  
Dimensions:  
H 46” x W 13 ¼” x D 23 ¼”  
145 lbs (66kg) per side  
Weight:  
Frequency Response: 18Hz to 36kHz, +/- 3dB  
Controls:  
Low-pass, bass gain, LFE gain  
Rear Tweeter (+/- 1 dB)  
Midrange (+/- 1.5 dB)  
Inputs:  
Speaker Level  
Line Level (RCA & XLR)  
LFE Line Level (RCA & XLR)  
Outputs:  
LFE Buffered Daisy Chain (RCA &  
XLR)  
Nominal Impedance: 4 ohms (speakers)  
Sensitivity:  
Power Rating:  
Finish:  
90 dB 1 watt 1 meter  
500 watts each  
High Gloss Black  
High Gloss Titanium  
High Gloss Arctic Silver  
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