Напольная акустика — Brodmann VC 7

The VC 7 is the bigger of two Vienna Classic towers from Brodmann Acoustics in Vienna, a brand linked to a piano workshop with more than two centuries of history. For about ten years it was the company's reference loudspeaker until the JB 175 of the Joseph Brodmann series took over that role. In the US the pair was priced from USD 22,000 in semigloss up to USD 34,000 for special veneers.

Key specs that matter

Electrically the VC 7 is a two-way speaker, while acoustically it works as a three-way system. Two front-mounted silk dome tweeters cover 1.6 kHz to 27 kHz, and four side-firing 5-inch woofers use hand-made paper cones reinforced with manila and carbon fibres. Brodmann quotes 25 Hz to 27,000 Hz within plus or minus 3 dB and says 1.1 W produces 91 dB at 1 m. Nominal impedance is 4 ohm, with a nominal load of 180 W and a music load of 360 W. The cabinet is 1330 mm high, 195 mm wide and 403 mm deep and weighs 36.5 kg.

Engineering and use context

Bass is handled by the horn resonator arrangement of Hans Deutsch, with two compression panels mounted 4 mm from the cabinet body. Frequencies below 130 Hz pass through this acoustic filter with a 4.5 dB per octave slope, so no reflex port is involved. The electrical crossover is first order with few components, and a revision moved its point down from 2.5 kHz. The enclosure is built from HDF without internal damping, and each unit receives hand-selected real wood veneer. Finishes include semigloss, high gloss and draped silk lacquer. Internal wiring uses Inakustik 2405 speaker cable. The line itself came to Brodmann from Bösendorfer when Yamaha bought that piano maker, and all drive units are designed and produced by Brodmann. Omitting damping material is meant to avoid internal bass resonances. The later JB 175 was developed directly from the VC 7 and keeps the same acoustic filter and electrical crossover point.

Pairing

This low-impedance design needs an amplifier that keeps its output into low impedance with steady current, ideally a solid-state design. Given the high efficiency, output power in the stated load range mainly provides headroom. The height and the side-firing woofers suggest a space somewhat larger than 20 m2 with room beside each cabinet.

Alternatives

The Brodmann VC 2 is the compact tower in the Vienna Classic series, with an 8 ohm rating and a narrower 168 mm front.