The VR-4 Gen III is a two-piece stacking monitor speaker system using the world's finest drivers, crossover parts, and internal wiring. The engineering target was to design a system with the ability to replicate live music, yet fit into any room and budget. Imaging and sound stage depth are state-of-the-art due to our proprietary Ambience Retrieval System ^tm and Global Axis Integration Network ^tm. Power handling and dynamic range are beyond that of other systems in this size and price category due to the use of heroic drivers. We use comparisons to live musical instruments to benchmark our speaker designs, and the VR-4 Gen III sounds spookily like a live musical performance! If you are interested in owning the finest speaker in the world at its price, you will want the VR-4 Gen III. Great for music or movies!






Our benchmark reference speaker for the new VR-4 Special Edition was our VR-7MKII, a speaker thought to be nearly "perfect" by those lucky enough to have afforded them. Although the VR-7 is still our flagship and is the pinnacle of our technology, the new VR-4 is clearly a world beater and should have no trouble asserting it's superiority out in the marketplace! In several comparison shootouts with speakers selling for $22,000, the VR-4 Special Edition came out on top, according to several of our dealers. NOTE: The Special Edition model replaces the VR-4 Gen III, now discontinued.








TREBLE SYSTEM

Due to new developments in transducer design, VSA has announced a highly improved version of their classic VR-4 Gen III model. The new Special Edition model utilizes a new dual-ring radiator, an extraordinary breakthrough in tweeter technology from Denmark. This new "dual-ring" design eliminates the tradeoff between low mass and rigidity, i.e., the problematical diaphragm flex causing distortion. This new tweeter operates from 500Hz to 40,000 cycles per second, with negligible distortion. In fact, it sounds more like a ribbon than a dome tweeter, but power handling and dispersion characteristics are state-of-the-art, correcting the problems found in flimsy ribbons. Although it is trite to say that this new tweeter will allow you to hear things in your recordings that you have never noticed, that is the only way to properly describe the sensation of hearing the Special Edition for the first time! Clarity is achieved not by excess treble energy or amplification of harmonics, but by dramatic reduction in distortion and phase shift. In fact, the VR-4 Special Edition is both highly detailed yet extremely lush, quite a paradox! This performance has not been duplicated by any other speaker in our experience.



MIDRANGE SYSTEM

In addition to this new world-class tweeter, the composite-coned midrange has been upgraded by VSA, with improvements in the mechanical parts leading to far lower coloration. The Aerogel cone is composed of carbon powder, Kevlar threads, cellulose acetate pulp, and a liquid binder similar to ceramic materials when dry. This cone is extremely light but rigid, eliminating the "fog" heard in paper or polypropylene cones; however, since the cone is internally damped with the fibrous tangle, there is no harsh ringing common to ceramic or metal midrange cones! To complete the transparency, costly Hovland capacitors are used in the midrange and tweeter circuits, greatly sweetening the sound quality. Although extremely expensive, the Hovland solid foil capacitors are worth their weight in gold!





WOOFER SYSTEM

Twin 9" woven-filament carbon fiber woofers reproduce the bottom octaves with authority and delicate clarity, using a modified triple-chambered transmission-line to achieve response flat to 20Hz. If you seek deep, powerful bass but also want tight control of each bass note, you have found the right speaker. Our hybrid bass loading system utilizes a 7" wide flared vent, front-loaded to allow close placement to a wall in small rooms without boom or coloration.



AMBIENCE SYSTEM



In order to duplicate the depth and air space of the concert hall, we have developed a dipolar rear tweeter and ambience derivation circuit. The Dimension Control can compensate for any acoustic condition and/or room placement and can switch off the Ambience if desired.

CABINET

The elegant two-piece stacking cabinet is built to the highest level of quality, and includes a new bracing system that allows incredible transparency, with a total elimination of coloration! Both the midrange/treble module and the woofer module are made from MDF and have a 2" thick front baffle and 1" thick walls and interlocking cross bracing. The internal damping layer consists of 1" thick foam rubber and felt and is combined with Dacron stuffing to control bass resonance, eliminating boom and coloration that mar other designs. Incredibly transparent!




INPUTS

Standard are twin sets of Cardas binding posts with gold plating, suitable for bi-wiring.















AVAILABLE FINISHES AND OPTIONS

The standard finish is a cloth wrap with hardwood end caps available in light or dark red cherry. Available at extra cost and lead-time are black ash end caps.

System Type:	Dynamic-driver four-way system using a triple-chambered transmission line and two-piece stacking enclosure system to eliminate resonance and ensure correct imaging focus.
Size:	46" high, 6" wide at top of the M/T module, and 11" at bottom, including the sub; both 20" deep.
Weight:	Woofer module: 91 lbs. M/T module: 44lbs; total in shipping cartons: 160lbs. each.
Woofer Tuning:	The triple-chambered transmission line is a hybrid design composed of three separate chambers coupled to the room by a tuned vent at 20Hz. The chamber filling is acoustic foam and Dacron. The 7"-wide flared vent tube extends bass response without the "one note bass" problem found in other ported systems. Dynamic range is incredible due to the large amount of low frequency air movement.
Cabinet and Bracing:	Separating the woofer enclosure from the midrange/tweeter units provides a very high level of isolation and clarity. A two-inch thick front baffle provides exceptional vibration control and image solidity, while one-inch MDF fiberboard with interlocking bracing system provides exceptional rigidity and freedom from boxy colorations typical at this price range. The internal damping consists of 1" thick acoustic foam/felt lining and internal Dacron stuffing to eliminate cavity resonance.
Driver Complement:	2-9" woven carbon-filament woofers, 1-6" composite cone midrange driver, 1-Dual-ring radiator, 1-1" rear firing ambience tweeter with fabric dome and transmission-line loading. All drivers use our proprietary Advanced Motor System with low distortion design.
Crossover:	Acoustic fourth order, at 150Hz and 2.6kHz. Optimized for flat off-axis response and phase consistency over a wide Global Axis. Very high quality parts are used, including capacitors by Solen, custom inductors that can handle up to 1500 watts before saturation, and Analysis Plus internal wire. Binding posts are double sets of Cardas with rhodium and gold plate over brass.
Ambience Driver:	1" treated fabric dome with Wave Guide and transmission-line rear wave loading. Ambience circuit uses Dimensional Control (effects level) to compensate for room acoustics and soundstage depth. Provides a Global Axis polar response pattern to simulate live musical reproduction.
Frequency Response:	16Hz to 40kHz, +/- 3dB; +/- 1dB in midband
Sensitivity & Impedance:	89dB/1w/1m at 6 ohms nominal, 3 ohms @ 20Hz..
Power Handling:	2,000 watts r.m.s. peak, 300 w.p.c. continuous music
Wire Connection:	Bi-wiring is recommended; the Cardas binding posts take 0.25" spade lugs or bananas.
Warranty:	Ten years Parts and Labor, excluding burned voice coils due to amp clipping.
Price:	$5950.00pr US
Finishes:	Standard finish is Black or Light Gray cloth wrap with Light Maple, Dark Cherry, African Hazelwood or Black Ash end caps.