Brodmann VC7 Loudspeakers by Mike Girardi

A Precision Instrument in the Creation of Sound

Within the past eight months, I have made significant changes to the electronics and the cabling in my reviewing system, akin to starting over with a blank slate.  The constants retained from the prior system include room treatment, component isolation, loudspeakers, and grounding devices.  The new components that I sourced with the help of Robert Neill, president of Worldwide Wholesales, include the Pink Faun 2.16 Ultra Streamer, Aires Cerat Kassandra Reference II DAC, Aries Cerat Impera Reference II preamp, Aries Cerat Essentia TriodeFet amplifier, and a full complement of Inakustik’s Reference cables.  It was a coincidence that Robert Neill carried the main system components I sought to source, including the Inakustik cabling.  Before making these significant changes, I had started down a new path with the superb Inakustik AC-4500 power conditioner, which was nominated by Clement Perry and won a 2023 Stereotimes MWC Publisher’s Choice Award. Based on a follow-up conversation with Robert Neill and the overall performance of the AC-4500 power conditioner and how consistent it sounded in my system, I then chose to build an entirely new system featuring Inakustik Reference cabling as sourced from Robert Neill, which has been an ear-opening endeavor, to say the least.  

I had planned on looking for another loudspeaker to compliment the Aries Cerat electronics better and had identified a few candidates. Brodmann was not on my list, mainly because I didn’t understand how they could achieve the lowest bass frequencies in such a small footprint.  I became aware of Brodmann loudspeakers from the 2024 Axpona YouTube show reports. Early in January the following year, I received a call from Robert Neill about the Brodmann VC7s loudspeakers he distributes and how he worked with Brodmann Acoustics directly for two years to refine the current design of VC7s just then hitting the states in January of this year.  The idea of a review came up after I spent two weeks researching everything I could find out about Brodmann Acoustics and the VC7s. I found the design approach used by Brodmann to be unique and fascinating.  I later learned about the details of recent design improvements implemented in the VC7s, which included moving the crossover point between the front-mounted pair of tweeters and quad of side-firing woofers from 2.5k Hz to 1.6k Hz, replacing the internal cabling with Inakustik 2405 speaker cabling (I have seen a photo of the cable harness and crossover), and allowing the internal cabling to hang freely instead of fixing the internal cabling to the cabinet’s inner wall.  The new VC7 loudspeakers are now in their 3rd iteration since first being introduced in 2008.

The unique design aspects of Brodmann loudspeakers cover the following areas of distinction:  a) the use of the Horn Resonator, b) the driver design, c) the lack of any damping material in the speaker enclosure, d) the crossover design and implementation, and e) the cabinet finish. 

The Horn Resonator, invented by Hans Deutsch, is used exclusively in Brodmann loudspeakers.  Brodmann has found many advantages to this approach compared to a bass reflex system or transmission line to improve bass response at low frequencies.  The Horn Resonator employs a physical effect that can be described as the “door slit effect.”  Frequency response directly correlates to how much the door slit is opened or closed.  As the gap recedes, the frequencies reduce to a point where only the lowest propagate through the slit to form a new spherical wavefront into the room.  The converse, however, is also true in that higher frequencies increase as the door slit opens. The net result is that the door slit functions as a low-pass filter, with the crossover frequency defined by the door slit gap (dimension).  The advantage over bass reflex systems is that the Horn Resonator linearly improves the bass instead of creating a single resonance peak at a defined frequency with corresponding roll-off.  

In the Brodmann VC series of loudspeakers, the system is built only to pass frequencies below 130Hz through the filter with a slope of 4.5dB per octave.  The energy developed inside the cabinet that helps produce the bass increases as frequency response decreases. The Horn Resonator design has evolved over 20 years and is currently in its third generation.  In this iteration, the Horn Resonator’s “compression panels” are mounted at a gap of 4mm from the cabinet body on both sides of the cabinet that runs full length.  The air between the board and the cabinet body acts like a driver with an acoustic mass, the same as the conventional driver. The air between the cabinet and the “compression panel” functions similarly to a driver. The board itself is not used as a resonator.  The base plate of the speaker also acts as a “compression panel” with the cabinet body set to a distance of approximately 4mm to the base plate. The main cabinet has a slit opening on both sides near the base plate with a shared opening on the bottom of the cabinet designed such (specifically for every speaker model) that frequencies below 130Hz can pass and support the bass.  This is the most unique application of fluid dynamics I’ve ever seen on any loudspeaker to achieve the lowest bass response. I found it one of the most significant advantages for Brodmann loudspeakers, paying off huge dividends in the VC7’s performance.

Brodmann designs and builds its drivers to maintain complete control of every detail of the in-house-built drivers.  Brodmann has tested every driver material and has found silk-dome to perform the best due to speed and acceleration. Brodmann uses 5″ woofers (two on each side of the cabinet) with extreme cone excursion and low mass, versus larger woofers that are slower and more difficult to control in acceleration. The woofer cone diaphragm is thick to reduce distortions and is based on hand-made paper reinforced with manila for increased elasticity and carbon fibers for strength and stability.  I found something very different when I removed the cabinet grills to inspect the woofers.  The distance between the two woofers was constant on all cabinet sides.

In contrast, the location of the two woofers with respect to the cabinet’s vertical center line was different when viewing the left and right sides of each cabinet, with the left and right speakers not being a mirror image of each other.  In my conversations with Bernd Gruhn, president of Brodmann, Bernd indicated that this offset woofer design was done to minimize room nodes which can directly affect bass response and imaging.  As applied to driver design, small drivers react much faster to the amplifier’s signal and typically are a more manageable load for the amplifier.  I found the incorporation of low-mass drivers in the VC7 to be the most significant advantage over my single-driver reference loudspeaker in how they convey the entire frequency spectrum.

In terms of cabinet damping material and crossover design, Brodmann decided to take the road less traveled. While the speaker cabinet is built as stiffly as possible (made from HDF), it is free of all damping material and its resulting colorations.  The lack of any damping material in the cabinet comes from Brodmann’s background in piano building and the speaker designer’s (Hans Deutsch) background in music.  In my discussions with Bernd, I learned that many of the Brodmann staff are active musicians. 

The crossover network used in the VC7 and all Brodmann loudspeakers are 1st order with 6dB roll-off per octave and consist of only the highest quality capacitors and resistors (air coil inductors have been eliminated in the VC7 recently) to minimize phase anomalies.  According to Hans Deutsch, “The main goal of conventional technology is the elimination of resonances by heavy damping and the flattening of the frequency curve using powerful crossover filtering. This pays surprisingly little attention to the sound itself. My approach is to use a speaker design as clean as possible, allowing to have the smallest number of components in the sound path – e.g., the most minimalistic crossover possible.”  Having the VC7 in my system for a month and a half and my experience with the sound of real musical instruments over the years (my wife and children have played a wide range of musical instruments that includes the piano, the full range of saxophones, and various stringed instruments), I concur with Hans Deutsch on all points stated above.    

Brodmann is well known for building the finest pianos with the most exquisite finishes.  The knowledge gained in building and finishing pianos is leveraged to build loudspeakers with the finest finishes.  Real wood veneer is hand-selected for each loudspeaker, with some finishes offered that cost as much as the loudspeaker itself. Semigloss, high gloss, and draped silk are some of the optional lacquer finishes offered, which directly factor into the purchase price. The review sample included the draped silk finish on Burl Maple veneer applied to the front panel and “compression panels” with the rest of the cabinet finished in high gloss white. Two fabric-covered full-height grills are supplied to cover the pair of woofers adjacent to the “compression panels.” The fit and finish of the VC7 are of the highest standards I’ve seen on any loudspeaker. 

The Brodmann VC7 loudspeaker is the top model in the Vienna Classic Series line. The Vienna Classic Line falls in the middle of the three loudspeaker Brodmann lines (Joseph Brodmann, Vienna Classic, and Festival Series).  Brodmann’s top model sells for over USD 400K. As you move up the Brodmann series of loudspeakers, the number of tweeters and side-firing woofers increases, and the size of the listening room is required for optimum performance.

In my 16-ft wide listening room that has a nearly open back wall to 1500 sq ft of first-floor living area, I finalized the location of the VC7s to be 87″ apart (tweeter center to tweeter center), 107″ from the tweeter to the listening position, 34″ from the back of the cabinet to the front wall, 52″ from the front edges of the cabinet to the side walls, and five degrees of toe in.  I used the supplied brass spikes and coupling disks to anchor each VC7 directly to a suspended wood floor with a pair of ½” diameter threaded steel rods meant to provide floor joist rigidity beneath each loudspeaker.  80% of the listening room floor is covered with carpet except an area that is 58″ from the front wall where the system equipment is located.  I also have six Stilpoints Aperatures on the front wall behind and between the loudspeakers, two GIK panels raised 10″ off the floor at the first side wall reflections, three GIK acoustic panels at the first reflection on the ceiling, two GIK acoustic panels directly behind the listening position, and one GIK acoustic panel in the only back corner location to treat the room acoustics. 

In this review, I will compare the performance of the Brodmann VC7 to my full-range single-driver reference loudspeaker.

Bringing Music to Life in my Listening Room

My digital-based system is rather complex, so I thought I would detail the main component chain from start to finish here: QSA Crystal Gold router, AfterDark Giesemann Reference SFP Optical Isolator(s) P1A with internal OCXO Clock, DR7T TFZ LPS powering the router and Pink Faun Ultra USB capacitors, Uptone Audio JS-2 LPS powering the AfterDark P1A optical isolation, Pink Faun 2.16 Ultra with Ultra USB card, Aries Cerat Kassandra Reference II DAC, Aries Cerat Impera Reference II preamplifier, Aries Cerat Essentia TriodeFET amplifier monoblocks, Inausktik Reference signal and power cables, and Cube Nenuphar loudspeakers.  

Following an extensive break-in of the Brodmann VC7 loudspeakers on a second system set of electronics that included 175 hours of playtime, the Brodmann VC7 loudspeakers were connected to my Aries Cerat reference system of electronics detailed above.  The Brodmann VC7s required over 500 hours of music to fully complete the break-in, with the bass response improving the most over time.  When the VC7s were first connected to the Aries Cerat reference system, it was like the break-in had started over again, which I found to be unexpected initially.  My initial impression of the VC7s while playing the album “Où vont les rêves” by Michel Jonasz, as texted to Bob Neill, was, “It’s a captivating, soulful, and romantic speaker that sounds so real which makes you think you are kissing a beautiful woman on her voluptuous lips”.  Compared to my longstanding reference, the VC7s excelled at rendering the natural tonality of different instruments and vocals with a deep saturation of color and life-like transparency. I later commented to Bob after he texted, “You’re funning!” was “Not funning … I really like how musical the VC7s are and the vocals are extradentary.” The intonation of Michel Jonaz’s voice as played through the VC7s reminded me of the time when I visited Paris with my wife back in the spring of 2000. 

What is not to love about the Brodmann VC7 loudspeakers?  They throw a wall-to-wall soundstage with tremendous depth; they image in 3D like no other loudspeaker I have heard; they are as coherent as my single driver reference; their layering and texturing are authentic, and their combination of drivers and crossover results in a seamless transition across all frequencies. They resolve micro and macro dynamic contrasts with ultra-low distortion (frequency, amplitude, time-based, phase, and inter-modulation); their timbral accuracy, tonality, and color are neutral in presentation. They resolve details in the upper midrange and high frequencies with ribbon-like clarity that my reference loudspeaker struggled with; they are masters at creating enormous spatial scaling with virtual tangibility; they score high in the WAF due to their small footprint yet provide a full range presentation which precludes the need for a subwoofer(s), and they draw you in for a complete emotional experience while bringing reproduced music to life. My single-driver reference loudspeakers sounded flat (2D vs. 3D), washed out in terms of color and image saturation in comparison, and less resolving of micro-dynamic detail.

I will try to describe in the paragraphs that follow what I experienced on various music pieces with which I am well familiar before the review of the Brodmann VC7s:

François Couturier, “Tarkovsky Quartet,” Nuit blanche, ECM, 24bit 96kHz   

Nuit blanche is the third release from the group founded by French pianist Francois Couturier, further developing the work that began in 2005 with Nostalghia – Song for Tarkovsky and continued on the album called Tarkovsky Quartet in 2009. From the outset, Couturier’s evocative compositions and arrangements established a context in which improvisation could flower, and both in concert and on record, the improvisational component of the music has expanded and deepened.  In Nuit Blanche, we have Francois Couturier on the piano, saxophonist Jean-Marc Larché, accordionist Jean-Louis Matinier and cellist Anja Lechner.   The musicians explore the texture of dreams and memory and continue to make oblique references to Andrey Tarkovsky.

Nick Lea of Jazz Views writes, “As one would imagine from the group’s name, taking their cue from the work of filmmaker Andrey Tarkovsky, the music retains a very visual approach to sound, with each piece creating an imagery that carries the listener along with the flow of the composition. Working from the same core principles in their previous releases, the quartet creates startling and occasionally stark beauty music. It draws its compositional frameworks from modern composition, baroque, and improvisation, with seven pieces freely improvised in the recording studio. These miniatures all turn under the three-minute mark and create a wonderful series of interlocking interludes that link the formally composed music seamlessly whilst retaining a life of their own and are ostensibly based around textures. In contrast, composed miniatures from the pen of Couturier also grace the set, emphasizing the melodic and harmonic content, with the delightful ‘Daydream’ and darkly hued ‘Nightdream.’

Playing Nuit blanche through the VC7s makes the texture of sound seem more distinct than ever before. I could grasp the instruments and their physicality, lending a new depth of focus to the powers of the musical imagination.  The imaging ability is the best I have heard in my listening room, spanning the last 22 years.  No speaker has had the color, warmth, and musicality of the VC7s.  The Brodmann VC7s accurately presented the full dynamic range in the Nuit blanche recording.  I heard a quietness on the Brodmann VC7s that conveyed audible information about the size, shape, and acoustical characteristics of the original recording space and the placement of the performers within it.  The advantages of using a pair of low-mass tweeters to cover the frequency range of 1.6k to 27kHz (producing a coherent and transparent sound), using low mass and high excursion woofers that integrated well with the “compression panels” (producing linear lower midrange and bass), and a minimalist crossover was demonstrated in my listening room.  The Brodmann VC7s excelled at reproducing the sound of a wide variety of instruments as they are precision instruments.

My baseline loudspeaker could not capture the instruments’ natural color, texture, transient response, frequency extension, resolve the micro dynamics, or render the recording environment on Nuit blanche.  There was a wealth of detail in the midrange and high frequencies obscured by my reference loudspeaker. It was like hearing Nuit Blanche for the first time on the VC7s.

Mirage, Nicolas Parent, Mirage, L’intermporel, 16 bit 44.1kHz  

“It’s with the piece “Doux mirage” (“Gentle mirage”) that two magicians, Vincent Segal, and Nicolas Parent, reveal to us their captivating and thrilling 3rd opus. Subtle whispers flow from the magical cello and enchanting guitar.  This new work’s deep, rich, and fascinating beauty lies in its elegant melodies: a pure delight for the ears and a celebration for the soul.  Nicolas achieves a remarkable symbiosis in a trio with his fellow travelers in which sounds rejoice in perfect harmony.  In this perfection, the guitar breathes, the double bass sings, and the joyful percussion flourishes through clever rhythmic exploration. Nicolas Parent, an authentic artist of sophisticated compositions, delights us again with his poetry, whose pure sound highlights a heightened minimalism”.  Nicolas Parent puts the best of himself on guitars, with sumptuous compositions, surrounded by Kentaro Suzuki on double bass, Guillaume Arbonville on percussion, and the cellist that everyone has been snatching up for years, namely Vincent Segal.” Thierry Docmac of Paris-Move writes “Mirage” is our reality, your reality, the reality of all those who love art, who have no boundaries in their hearts and souls. “Mirage” is an album as indispensable as it is helpful to our intellect and our ears. It is An album that opens the mind and allows it to rise. 

On the songs Mirage, Nicholas Parent, and Joy, it was easy to follow the three individual melodies of the drums, guitar, and double bass on the Brodmann. Throughout this album, the VC7s excelled at presenting stringed instruments most naturally. On the cut, “Songe d’automne,” I heard deeper bass, longer decays, and a realistic transient attach on all stringed instruments, with the bass response more linear than my reference. In my experience, I’ve found that you must get the bass right on the loudspeaker for the rest of the frequency range to integrate correctly. In the case of the VC7s, the bass response is the best I have heard without adding subwoofers.  Again, the imaging ability of the VC7 is not equal.

Arne Jansen, Anders Jormin, Uwe Steinmetz, The Pilgrimage, Traumton Records, 24bit 96kHz

“That these three musicians came together can only be described as a case of cosmic happenstance: On double bass we have Anders Jormin from Sweden, who is one of the most important bassists on the European jazz scene, with eight albums under his belt as bandleader of ECM, and an artistic CV jam-packed with tours and recordings with legends such as Elvin Jones, John Taylor, Albert Mangelsdorff, Joe Henderson, Lee Konitz and Kenny Wheeler. Berlin-based Arne Jansen, on guitar, has two “ECHO Jazz” awards to his name and has played with the Orchestra Baobab from Senegal as well as David Helbock, Sebastian Studnitzky and Jazzanova, and recently saw his duo recording with Nils Wülker climb to number 15 in the German pop charts. Saxophonist Uwe Steinmetz, who also lives in Berlin, has made a name for himself composing music for the NDR Big Band and the Fitzwilliam String Quartet, in addition to collaborating with the likes of Joe Maneri and Tord Gustavsen”.

The trio succeeds so brilliantly in stimulating resonance within the listener during “The Pilgrimage,” partly due to the unique nature of the compositions they play. Behind each piece lies a deeply personal story that reflects the cosmopolitan mindset of the three musicians.  They explore a constantly oscillating tension between jazz and classical music.

The VC7s threw a wall-to-wall soundstage with great depth and warmth in my listening room.  On the 1st cut, “La Peregrination,” the tonality of the saxophone was palatable, played with less strain, and had just the right amount of bite, which was pleasant to the ears.  The low notes on the guitar were reproduced with excellent extension and texture, having less overhang than my reference. I heard the voices of the artists in a way that was missing from my baseline loudspeaker.  The VC7s mere size beguiles one to think how well it reproduces extended bass at the level it does.  The VC7s always sounded composed and played without strain throughout “The Pilgrimage.”  My reference loudspeaker was flat and muted in color and texture in comparison.

Conclusion

The VC7s greatly exceed the performance of my previous reference, and I never thought I’d ever say that.  It comes down to design compromise, and I believe my previous reference has way more design compromises whereas the VC7s have none. My reference was no comparison to the efficiency, extension, force, transient attack, and variance achieved by the Brodmann VC7. They are the most authentic in imaging and timbre accuracy on percussion, woodwind, and stringed instruments that I have heard from any loudspeaker. The VC7s take an average recording when played on my baseline and transform it into an extraordinary recording that touches the soul.  

The Brodmann VC7s are loudspeakers that can be listened to for hours without stress and fatigue. They’ve delivered on all the promises and performed as advertised.  The design is next-level genius.

The Brodmann VC7 will get my vote for a Stereotimes Most Wanted Component award. I loved the VC7s so much that I purchased them as my new reference.  Highly recommended.

Specifications:

Price: The Brodmann VC7 loudspeaker: $22K for semigloss, $25.5K for piano black or white, $29.5K for standard veneer, and $34K for special veneers.
Loudspeaker Specifications:
Frequency Range: 25 – 27,000 Hz ±3 dB
Transitional Frequency Acoustical Active: 130 Hz – 4.5dB/octave
Transitional Frequency Electrical: 1.6k Hz – 5.7dB/octave
Operational Output: 1.1 W for 91 dB/m
Nominal Load: 180 W
Music Load: 360 W
Nominal Impedance: 4 Ohm
Dimensions (H x W x D): 1330 x 195 x 403 mm
Weight: 36.5 kg
Manufacturer’s Website: https://brodmann.at
The Brodmann VC7 loudspeaker is said to be a two-way speaker electrically but a three-way speaker acoustically.

Mike’s Associated Equipment
Digital Front End
Aries Cerat Kassandra II DAC
Pink Faun 2.16 Ultra with Ultra USB card and latest Roon-based beta software
DR7T TFZ LPS for QSA router and capacitor charge storage on Pink Faun Ultra USB card
QSA WIFI 6 Audio Grade Router – Crystal Gold 
AfterDark Giesemann Reference SFP Optical Isolator P1A with internal OCXO Clock
Uptone Audio JS-2 Power Supply for AfterDark P1A 

Amplification
Aries Cerat Impera Reference II preamplifier
Aries Cerat Essentia amplifier monoblocks
Ayon Audio Odin MK3 Build 4 SET amplifier   

Loudspeakers
Brodmann VC7 loudspeakers
Cube Audio Nenuphar loudspeakers

Cabling 
Inakustik AC-4005 Power Cable (20 amp)
Inakustik AC-4005 Power Cable (15 amp) x 5
Inakustik NF-2405 Air Pure Silver (RCA interconnect) x 2 
Inakustik LS-4005 Air Pure Silver (Single Wire) Speaker Cable
Inakustik USB-2405 Air Pure Silver
Revelation Audio Labs Parable CryoSilver™ Reference Umbilical Power Cord x 2
Synergistic Research Atmosphere High Definition Grounding cables x 4
Timbre Audio Cu Power Cable
Timbre Audio Silver Reference Power Cable
Wireworld Platinum Starlight 8 Twinax Ethernet x 3

Accessories
Inakustik AC-4500 Power Conditioner 
QSA Power Jitter Power Conditioner – Gold x 2
QSA 15 amp IEC Power Cord Adapter – Gold x 2
QSA 15 amp IEC Power Cord Adapter – Gold Red Top on Pink Faun 2.16 Ultra
Marigo Audio Lab L3 Platforms x 8
Marigo Audio Lab E3 Mystery Feet x 6 sets of 3
Marigo Audio Lab ZSD-31 and ZSD-41 SuperDots x 9 sets of 3
Marigo Audio Lab Window Tuning Dots
GIK Acoustics 4A Alpha Pro Series Bass Trap Diffusor/Absorber x 4 (side wall)
GIK Acoustics 242 Acoustic Panel x 4 (ceiling and corner)
Stillpoints Apertures x 6
HeartSound Holostages x 20
HeartSound Ground Boosters x 4
HeartSound AC Panel Booster x 4
Synergistic Research HFTs on loudspeakers, Wide Angle HFTs on wall
Synergistic Research Active Grounding Block SX
Synergistic Research UEF Black duplexes
Synergistic Research Purple fuse in Uptone Audio JS-2
LessLoss Blackbody ambient field conditioner x 2