Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, both the woofer and the AMT line array sections are dipoles with the exception of the Atlas bass section which has built-in sealed-cabinet sub-woofers.

Dipoles are relatively simple to position in a listening environment. Another feature about dipoles is that when the back wave and front wave meet at the side of the speaker, they are often out of phase and cancel each other. This cancellation at the side of the speakers is a real asset because it removes most of the interaction between the speakers and the side walls, often a significant factor in positioning conventional speakers.

They sound louder because the attenuation of the sound wave during its travel through the air is less due to the greater dimensions (length) of the line array drivers (AMT array). Theory stipulates that, with the exception of a small area close to the sound source called “near field”, the sound wave experiences a drop in amplitude by 6 dB for any doubling of distance. In the near field, the attenuation is only 3 dB. The near field extends to roughly 3 times the dimension of a speaker or array. The near field for a long line array reaches beyond the normal listening position.

Most of our models do. Most loudspeakers are delivered with analog passive crossovers built into the speakers. Our speakers are designed with active crossover management which gives us more control of the system’s performance and also eliminates any potential losses in the passive crossover components which maintain performance. Our Atlas and OB-1 are hybrid systems.

1. Room integration – Our listening experience is largely affected by the room and how well the speakers and room work together. Arion Audio speakers greatly simplify the process of integration which expedites full music enjoyment through the use of advanced digital crossovers and room correction.

2. Equipment integration – Primarily amplifiers to speakers. Arion Apollo speakers are directly coupled to the outputs of the amplifiers and are an easy load to drive. Any high-quality low noise amplifier can be easily integrated into an Arion system.

3. High efficiency – High efficiency speakers are much less likely to suffer from truncated dynamic range or sounding compressed during music peaks. Amplifiers from as little as 1.5 watts per channel and up can be used with Arion speakers. Amplifier power is, of course, dependent on the room and listening habits of the owner.

4. Power handling – Power handling coupled with high efficiency allow the speaker system to reproduce uncompressed dynamic peaks. Dynamic contrast and uncompressed dynamics are essential to realistic music reproduction.

5. Light membrane driver elements – Well controlled low mass driver elements coupled with strong motor assemblies excel in transient response both in acceleration and deacceleration. This is an important element in resolving complex wave forms and low distortion.

6. True line array – Arion Apollo and Athena speakers use a true single element (single line) line array. Some of the advantages are no phase or timing issues and a desirable polar response. Another advantage of a true line source is that the vertical spectral content of music is virtually the same throughout the length of the line so the seating height does not matter with Apollo or Athena speakers unlike point source speakers where it is important for the ears to be aligned in relationship with the tweeter. Additionally, a true line source speaker has minimal vertical dispersion at any frequency. Hence, there is no sound bouncing from either the floor or the ceiling. No deleterious interference from these surfaces is created as in virtually all other kinds of speakers.

7. Advantage in using a True line array speaker – The attenuation of the sound wave during its travel through the air is less due to the greater dimensions (length) of the line array (AMT array). Theory stipulates that, with the exception of a small area close to the sound source called “near field”, the sound wave experiences a drop in amplitude by 6 dB for any doubling of distance. In the near field, the attenuation is only 3 dB. The near field extends to roughly 3 times the dimension (length) of a speaker or array. The near field for a long line array reaches beyond the normal listening position.

8. Dipole or open baffle – A dipole true line array radiates sound in a figure 8 pattern from a polar response perspective. It’s clear to see that side wall interaction is reduced. Dipole speakers energize the listening room in a very natural way. There is no “speaker box” to control.

9. Advantage in using dipole speakers – Dipoles are relatively simple to position in a listening environment. Another feature about dipoles is that when the back wave and front wave meet at the side of the speaker, they are often out of phase and cancel each other. This cancellation at the side of the speakers is a real asset because it removes most of the interaction between the speakers and the side walls, often a significant factor in positioning conventional speakers.

10. Open baffle woofer modules – Open baffle woofers energize the listening room in a very natural way and integrate seamlessly with the OB towers. There is no “speaker box” to control. They produce a more linear power response within the room.

11. DSP with advanced room correction – Excellent in-room response in both the amplitude and time domains at the listening position are easily achieved. Most important is the system achieves a desirably impulse response. How critical is impulse response & transients? The impulse response of a loudspeaker gives you an indication of how well it can handle transients and provide a clean and powerful impact. A clean impulse response also gives you some indication in terms of time alignment between drivers as incorrectly aligned drivers in a speaker will show two distinct impulses rather than a single powerful impulse. The impulse response also shows you early reflections and other problems occurring in the room that may alter the inherent speaker’s performance in terms of transients and imaging as impulse responses carry localization cues. Our advanced DSP system provides hassle free speaker-room integration, user adjustability to personal preferences and presets (29 in memory) that can be selected on the fly.

12. Arion loudspeakers are active systems which allow almost unlimited amplifier choices – Our loudspeakers are designed with active digital crossover management which gives us more control of the system’s performance and also eliminates any potential losses found in passive crossover components, which helps maintain efficiency and performance. Our active digital system contributes to achieving near perfect system-room integration. Since our speakers are high sensitivity and can handle a reasonable amount of power your choice of power amplifiers is almost unlimited. The automatic gain matching feature balances the tower output to the woofer module output for seamless integration. Our Atlas and OB-1 are hybrid systems.

13. Separate extended range AMT towers and woofer modules (Apollo Series) – Separate cabinets allow the extended range line source dipole towers to be placed in the perfect location to optimize soundstage and imaging for the main listening position. The bass modules can be placed for optimum extended in-room bass response and seamless integration with the full range towers. Multiple woofer modules can be used in stacked or distributed configurations.

14. Loudspeaker/Room Interaction is very critical – All rooms will change the sound characteristic of a loudspeaker quite drastically. It is arguably the single biggest factor in the system’s performance. In an ideal world, an acoustician would design a room based on the characteristics of a loudspeaker or a speaker designer would design a custom loudspeaker for the given room. This would give the designer maximum control of the Loudspeaker/Room interactions. Even then, too many parameters come into play. So many that it is nearly impossible to perfectly predict the behavior of any given loudspeaker in a room. This is why in-room measurement provides better results when fine-tuning a system than any pre-calculated or simulation-based models. Our advanced room correction system essentially modifies the signal going to the amplifiers after measurements are taken to build compensation so the speakers and room working in harmony.

15. Can loudspeaker/room correction harm the sound of a loudspeaker? Certainly, it can if not done correctly, just like a badly designed room will destroy the performance of the best loudspeaker on the planet. It mostly comes down to the tonal balance and the way the system is calibrated, and by whom. Our system is very user friendly, easy to calibrate and generates great results automatically. Further adjustments can easily be made to tailor the sound to your preference.

Well, very critical. All rooms will change the sound characteristic of a loudspeaker quite drastically. It is arguably the single biggest factor in the system’s performance. In an ideal world, an acoustician would design a room based on the characteristics of a loudspeaker or a speaker designer would design a custom loudspeaker for the given room. This would give the designer maximum control of the Loudspeaker/Room interactions.

Even then, too many parameters come into play. So many that it is nearly impossible to perfectly predict the behavior of any given loudspeaker in a room. This is why in-room measurement provides better results when fine-tuning a system than any pre-calculated or simulation-based models.

The impulse response of a loudspeaker gives you an indication of how well it can handle transients and provide a clean and powerful impact. A clean impulse response also gives you some indication in terms of time alignment between drivers as incorrectly aligned drivers in a speaker will show two distinct impulses rather than a single powerful impulse. The impulse response also shows you early reflections and other problems occurring in the room that may alter the inherent speaker’s performance in terms of transients and imaging as impulse responses carry localization cues.

Certainly, it can if not done correctly, just like a badly designed room will destroy the performance of the best loudspeaker on the planet. It mostly comes down to the tonal balance and the way the system is calibrated, and by whom.