October 2005 Reviewed by Vince Hanada	Infinity TSS-4000 Home-Theater Speaker System

Description Model: TSS-SAT4000 main and surround speaker Price: $549 USD each Dimensions: 23"H x 4.125"W x 4.375"D Weight: 12.7 pounds each Model: TSS-CENTER4000 center-channel speaker Price: $549 USD Dimensions: 23"W x 4.125"H x 4.375"D Weight: 12.7 pounds Model: TSS-SUB4000 subwoofer Price: $1249 USD Dimensions: 17.5"H x 17.25"W x 11.175"D Weight: 48 pounds System Price: $3994 USD

Description (cont'd) Warranty: Five years on speakers and subwoofer speaker components, three years on subwoofer electronics Features 0.75" MMD tweeter 3.25" Metal Matrix Diaphragm (MMD) woofers and midrange drivers 12" MMD woofer (TSS-SUB4000) Extruded-aluminum enclosures 400W amplifier (TSS-SUB4000) Room Adaptive Bass Optimization System (R.A.B.O.S) (TSS-SUB4000) Multiple mounting options Gold-plated binding posts

Infinity is one of the speaker brands under the umbrella of Harman International, a US-based high-end audio company. Well known for its extensive speaker line, Infinity has a home-theater speaker system for almost every budget. The system reviewed here, the TSS-4000 ($3994), is the top of Infinity’s Total Speaker Solutions series of narrow-profile speakers. With its many placement options, it seems to offer, as advertised, a total speaker solution.

The setup

The Infinity TSS-SAT4000 is a cylinder with a flat front face, on which the drivers are mounted. The enclosure is substantial -- you’d be forgiven if you thought it machined from a solid piece of aluminum. In its basic form, with the table stand and smallest extension collar, the speaker sits about 2’ high and 4" wide. The TSS-SAT4000 comes with two additional collars to increase its height by 4" or 8", if need be. There are also mounting brackets for hanging it on a wall. The optional FMK-4000 flush-mounting kit is available to turn the speaker into an in-wall, and the STAND-4000 kit to turn it into a floorstander. The TSS-SAT4000 has more placement options than any other speaker I’ve seen.

The front of the TSS-SAT4000 is filled with a vertical array of seven drivers. In the center, a 0.75" Metal Matrix Diaphragm (MMD) tweeter is recessed into a flared elliptical form that reportedly aids in providing broad, even dispersion of sound throughout the room. The tweeter crosses over at 3800Hz to two 3.5" MMD midrange drivers, one above and one below. These in turn cross over at 1000Hz to pairs of 3.5" MMD woofers. With its strong aluminum enclosure, minimal front baffle, and rounded rear, the TSS-SAT4000 seems to be evidence that the Infinity engineers have put a lot of effort into minimizing the distortion originating from the cabinet.

The TSS-SAT4000 comes in one color: platinum. Its front grille is platinum-colored metal as well, and took some effort to remove. Each speaker has a single pair of gold-plated binding posts. The overall high-tech appearance would be a good match for any flat-panel display.

The TSS-CENTER4000 center speaker is identical to the TSS-SAT4000 except that it’s designed for horizontal mounting. It, too, includes a wall-mounting bracket and a nifty, simple stand that allows the speaker to be tilted up 18 degrees or down 7 degrees.

The TSS-SUB4000 subwoofer is a single 12" MMD woofer in a narrow-profile box. The cone is side-mounted, with a large port on the upper rear of the enclosure. The 400W amplifier has controls for volume, low-pass filter on/off, and phase. There are left and right RCA inputs only; if you were planning to hook up the speakers to this sub, you’d be out of luck.

The most important adjustments on the TSS-SUB4000 are those for Infinity’s Room Adaptive Bass Optimization System (R.A.B.O.S.): three controls labeled Level, Width, and Frequency. R.A.B.O.S. is based on the principle that most rooms are far from perfect and often have low-frequency standing waves, which result in uneven bass response. With the R.A.B.O.S. test CD and sound-pressure meter, both supplied by Infinity, R.A.B.O.S. is essentially a parametric equalizer that allows you to find the worst bass peak and equalize it out. The Width control determines the range of the frequencies that need equalizing, Frequency determines where the bass peak is centered, and Level lets you match the bass peak with a valley to cancel out your room’s nasty boom.

Performance

With all of the TSS-4000’s placement options, I had a hard time figuring out how I wanted to set it up. I finally settled on using the largest (2’) STAND-4000 mounts to set the front left and right TSS-SAT4000s on the floor. I would have used these stands for the rear surround TSS-SAT4000s, but Infinity had sent only one pair of STAND-4000s. I therefore used the shortest mounts, then placed the surrounds atop 24"-high speaker stands. That way, all four TSS-SAT4000 tweeters were at exactly the same height. The TSS-CENTER4000 sat, angled up, on a low stand in the front of the room. I set the crossover on my receiver at 100Hz; the TSS-SAT4000s have little bass below this frequency.

The most difficult and most important part of setup was calibrating the TSS-SUB4000’s R.A.B.O.S. controls. This required using test tones from the included R.A.B.O.S. test CD and graphing the results on paper. I then adjusted the Width control (it resembles a slide rule) to match the frequency-response curve, which corresponded to my room’s bass hump. Once this was determined, I could determine the Level, Width, and Frequency, then dial these settings onto the R.A.B.O.S. controls. It took a few tries before I got the hang of it. When I did, I discovered a bass hump at 40Hz at a level of 4dB.

Once I’d gotten the sub dialed in, I could immediately tell whether all the effort was worth it by switching the R.A.B.O.S. equalizer in and out. Using the test tones, I could easily hear that the bass hump was attenuated, which made a noticeable difference when I watched DVDs with deep bass, such as The Phantom of the Opera (2004). I heard tighter bass with R.A.B.O.S. switched in, which in turn allowed me to crank up the sub’s volume. The TSS-SUB4000 is rated to play down to 20Hz. I found that it played loudly down to 25Hz or so in my room, but that’s plenty deep enough for most soundtracks.

The TSS-SAT4000 is based on Infinity’s highly acclaimed Prelude MTS speaker, and its high-end pedigree was evident. The high frequencies were extended yet never harsh. This speaker shone with music-driven soundtracks such as The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, which features an excellent music score with actor Seu Jorge singing David Bowie songs in Portuguese. The TSS-SAT4000 sounded clear and crisp with dialogue. Although it blended well with the TSS-SUB4000, I found the upper bass a bit thin, despite my best efforts.

Dialogue through the TSS-CENTER4000 was easily intelligible. Watching Million Dollar Baby, I never had to strain to hear voices clearly. With male dialogue, however, such as Clint Eastwood’s, the TSS-CENTER4000 lacked a bit of the forcefulness I’m used to hearing from the actor.

With identical speakers in all five positions, it was a good bet that the TSS-4000 system would have excellent timbral matching all around. With bullets flying everywhere in Team America: World Police, I wasn’t too busy ducking to notice that the transitions from front to rear were seamless. Although I usually prefer dipole or bipole speakers for the rear surrounds, this time I didn’t miss them much; the TSS-SAT4000’s wide-dispersion design provided good surround envelopment. In chapter 15 of Fight Club, the reverberation in the surrounds gave a good sense of the stark furnishings of the nightclub’s basement.

Comparison

Another home-theater speaker system I’m familiar with is Mirage’s OM-9-based array, which retailed for $3850 (it’s since been discontinued). This system comprises the OM-9 front speakers, OM-C2 center-channel, OM-R2 surrounds, and OM-200 subwoofer. The main difference between the Mirage OM and Infinity TSS-4000 systems is that the Mirage consists entirely of Omnipolar designs -- Mirage’s take on the bipolar concept. Omnipoles have opposing drivers operating in phase. The Infinity TSS-4000’s drivers are direct-radiating.

In nearly all aspects of home-theater performance, I preferred the sound from the Mirage OM system. The OM-9 tower speakers have adequate bass of their own; a good blend of mains and sub was easier to achieve than with the TSS-4000. With Omnipole speakers all around, the Mirage OM system gives a more realistic sense of space than the Infinity. For example, while watching chapter 29 of Star Wars -- Episode I: The Phantom Menace, the cavernous senate chamber sounded much larger through the Mirages than through the Infinitys. And male voices through the Mirage OM-C2 center-channel, such as Clint Eastwood’s in Million Dollar Baby, had more bass depth than through the Infinity TSS-CENTER4000.

The Infinity TSS-SUB4000, however, sounded much tighter than the Mirage OM-200 subwoofer. The R.A.B.O.S. equalizer helped during such scenes as the car crash in chapter 1 of Punch-Drunk Love. This smoothing of the bass could make or break an installation in your home, so don’t overlook the importance of this feature.

Conclusion

Although the Mirage OM system appealed more to me, I suspect most buyers of the Infinity TSS-4000 system will have criteria different from mine. The Infinity customer will likely be looking for a system that visually matches a flat-panel display, that doesn’t dominate a room, and that can be easily adapted to a living space. The Infinity TSS-4000 system has all of this and sounds great to boot, which makes it a must-audition for anyone looking for a versatile speaker system to go with their thin, flat, modern TV.

Manufacturer contact information:

Infinity Systems
205 Crossways Park Drive
Woodbury, NY 11797
Phone: (516) 674-4463

Website: www.infinitysystems.com

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