Yamaha's goal in developing the HX Series speakers
was to achieve the three key elements of accuracy,
speed and depth, thereby creating a home theater
audio experience comparable to a real movie theater
or concert hall. This goal has been brilliantly realized
on the HX Series, assuring superb reproduction that
expresses every nuance of the soundtrack designer
or concert-recording engineer's intentions.
The Waveguide Horns
When conventional direct radiating speakers are
used in a home environment, their broad directional
characteristics result in a relatively high proportion of
reflected sound. Even at frequencies above 5kHz, a
significant portion of the sound reaching the
listeners' ears has been
reflected from the room's
walls.
Modern movie theaters,
however, are designed to offer
a highly absorptive acoustic
environment in which
soundtrack recordings with
five or more channels can be
used to achieve a rich sense
of spatial expression. To achieve a similar level of
spatial expression in the home, it is therefore
necessary to use speakers with a direct/reflected
sound ratio that is quite different from the speakers
used for listening to conventional music recordings.
Yamaha's exclusive Waveguide Horns were
specifically developed to address this problem, and
have now been refined and improved to offer an
even higher level of spatial expression in home
H X S e r i e s : H o m e T h e a t e r R e f e r e n c e S p e a k e r S y s t e m s
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listening environments.
Optimal Direct/Reflected Wave Energy Ratio for
Home Theater Sound
Yamaha's exclusive Waveguide Horns differ from
conventional horns in that their waveguide features a
horizontal control angle of 135° and a vertical control
angle of 120°. This allows the sound field to be
shaped and controlled for optimal spatial expression
in home theater environments.
Diecast Aluminum Waveguides
Yamaha tested a wide range of waveguide materials
to determine which offered the best home theater
sound reproduction quality. Cherry and other
hardwoods were considered, but in the end, diecast
aluminum was found to make the detailed nuances
of dialogue easier to hear, while providing the
incisive attack needed for action and horror scenes.
Flat High-Frequency Directional Characteristics of the Waveguide Horn (NS-8HX)
(5 kHz)
Rear
Rear
Front
Front
(8 kHz)
NS-8HX Tweeter Construction
30µm Aluminum Dome
Shielding Magnet
Top Plate
Edge-Wound
Rectangular
Voice Coil
Main Magnet
(Ferrite, 16,500
Gauss)
Shielding Yoke
Bottom Yoke
Face Plate
Surround (Rolled Edge)
Aluminum
Diffuser
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20
10
50
40
30
20
10
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0
0
30
30
Con
Wav
50
40
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Conv
Wav
Conventional Radiation
Waveguide Horn Radiation
High frequency directional
characteristics of an installed
Waveguide Horn speaker (red
lines) and ordinary (blue lines).
The Waveguide Horn speaker
shows excellent balance in the
front direction, with the surround
effect to the sides and rear is not
adversely affected by reflected
sounds.
