The drivers in all three new models are mounted at a fixed 45° angle inside of a cylinder that smoothly descends out of the ceiling when the system is activated. During setup the installer manually rotates the cylinder to point the speakers toward the listening area. The speakers return to their flush position when desired. All of this is accomplished through the use of a rugged miniature motor assembly, which is controlled and powered by a Cat 5 cable.
The TIME Mini 2 is the smallest of the new offerings with an exterior diameter of 5.75" with a 2.5" full-range driver. The TIME Mini 5.1 and 5.3 models both have an exterior diameter of 7.5" with 5" woofers and dome tweeters.
Power and control for the automation function of up to eight speakers is provided through an integrated control unit. This makes it possible to use the system in a stereo, 5.1, 6.1 or 7.1 configurations depending on the application. Speaker deployment is triggered by an audio sensing feature, through a contact closure or through IR remote commands.
In order to make the speakers as compact as possible, and thereby less conspicuous when hidden in the ceiling, all of the new models use smaller drivers than the current TIME series and therefore require an integrated subwoofer for full frequency response. The control unit doubles as a dedicated subwoofer amplifier providing 150W of power to an 8" in-wall subwoofer. The unit has pre-amp level connections for both stereo left and right inputs as well as an LFE input for home theatre applications.
(Jim Evans)
