Loudspeakers by Bösendorfer

Musical sounds are formed by a complex blending of the fundamental tone, formants and overtones. The formants are primarily responsible for voice recognition because they determine the timbre; their frequencies remaining constant even when the overall tone changes. This basic musical principle, along with the consideration of high pulse dynamics, makes music come to life.

In the expert opinion of leading acousticians, the critical parameters for authentic sound reproduction include extremely low levels of modulation distortion in frequency, amplitude, pulse, time-base, phase and inter-modulation - loudspeakers that function three-dimensionally, as only Bösendorfer's do, satisfy these requirements. These parameters are especially important for reproduction of tones such as vibratos, violin tones or the human voice, which are themselves a kind of frequency modulation. Additional modulation caused by electronic intervention oruse of filters only leads to a distortion and misrepresentation of the original sound.

Since Bösendorfer loudspeakers were designed without losing sight of this 'law of tonality', they are capable of reproducing live music of every genre with incredible accuracy. In this way, sound quality, recording quality and musical expression can all be heard to their full advantage.

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The Principle Behind the Culture of Sound

Both the listening experience and the three-dimensional reproduction of sound have played critical roles in the construction of Bösendorfer loudspeakers. Indeed the very complexity of the interrelations between the sound and the parameters which form it have convinced us to delegate a relatively minor role to technology, which, with its tendency to over-complexity and information overload often becomes impossible to control.

What remains as the sole measure is the listening experience, the quality of the room acoustics and the price-less practical experience of Bösendorfer's best and brightest acousticians. Even Bösendorfer pianos, which are essentially acoustic active vibrating works of art producing extraordinarily beautiful sound, are still constructed by Bösendorfer's master craftsmen using criteria of the highest culture of sound and tuned by ear alone, as they have been for over 175 years.

The Acoustic Active Principle

The core of the Acoustic Active Principle is to view the loudspeaker cabinet as a vibrating, resonant body, allowing the creation of a three-dimensional, transparent, true-to-life sound. This goes against conventional concepts and techniques of loudspeaker construction, whose overriding goal is to suppress all vibrations and resonances, with no regard for the overall sound, while delicate tones are simply 'corrected' by powerful frequency filters.

Bösendorfer's approach, however, creates a sound stage that comes significantly closer to a live experience than is possible with conventional loudspeaker systems. This is accomplished by utilizing an enlarged diaphragm surface area, which at no additional weight is able to adapt bass projection extremely well to the listening room. Acoustic Sound Boards, heirs in spirit to the Horn Resonator, have a unique form which guarantees, a multitude of resonances spread across the entire bass frequency range.

Bösendorfer not only employs patented technologies derived from acoustics research in its loudspeaker production, but also draws on its well of experience with naturally vibrating components which they have collected in their 175 years of piano craftsmanship.

The Principle of Active Vibration

The foundation for a truly three-dimensional listening experience is the optimal reproduction of bass tones. Bösendorfer accomplishes this by use of a unique construction: the further development of the Horn Resonator.

The new construction uses the rear sound field of the bass drivers along with the air mass in the Horn Resonator and the Acoustic Sound Boards to create a diaphragm. The principle applied states that only actively vibrating components are capable of causing vibration in other media, and only in harmony with the frequencies. The extremely low level of bass range distortion thereby created forms the basis for a completely natural, authentic sound. To further support this sound, the bass tones are allowed to run as high and the treble tones as low as possible. This ensures that the abrupt cut-off of frequencies and resulting modulation distortions are kept to an absolute minimum. That's why Bösendorfer only uses premium quality diaphragm technology along with the specially-designed voice coils and mounts.

The Constructive Principle

The unique shape and construction of Bösendorfer loudspeaker cabinets along with the implementation of special materials which function as acoustically absorbent vibrating components work together as sound dampers. In this way Bösendorfer loudspeakers are able to avoid using additional - imbalanced or non-linear - damping material. The result is extraordinary sound reproduction.

Bösendorfer's philosophy begins with the creation and development of the tone, striving as much as possible to achieve the desire frequency response in acoustic pressure and phase. Whenever the use of filters is unavoidable, Bösendorfer always employs these of the smallest size and highest quality available. Careful tuning of the bass drivers/mid-range speakers and treble speakers also follows the Acoustic Active principle, always using resistors smaller than the impedance of the tones, so as not to discolour them. This is what allows Bösendorfer loudspeaker's three-dimensional, true-to-life, living sound to attain the level of the original performance

Loudspeakers by Bösendorfer

Applying their 175-year experience in piano construction, Bösendorfer has now created a line of loudspeakers using a new design, radically different from those of the past. Going against the usual conventions of loudspeaker construction, Bösendorfer 's loudspeaker case is created as a living, resonating body rather than a 'dead' shell. This creates a sound stage which comes significantly closer to the live experience than is achievable by conventional loudspeaker systems.

In order to guarantee this quality standard Bösendorfer has carried out countless tests before selecting the ideal speaker Cables and having them custom-tuned to our system.Of course Bösendorfer also provides support for the set-up and placement of the speakers, so that the extraordinary musical sound characteristics of Bösendorfer loudspeakers may come alive in your living room.The development of the HornResonator as well as its heirs in spirit, Acoustic Sound Boards ,are all methods patented by the well-known acoustice researcher Han Deutsch.

Series 2 £3395 to £7525 per pair depending on finish

WALL from £2015 per pair

CENTRE from £1020 ea

available finishes:
Black/Ivory
Satin Black
Piano Black
High gloss white
Swaroski Crystal
Veneer with piano black and Special custom finishes to order. Go to speaker page for sample veneers.

Franz Liszt - 27th January 1879

Johannes Brahms

Tori Amos

Tony Bennett
Abdullah Ibrahim
Leonard Bernstein
Michael Jones
Dave Brubeck
Jack Lemmon
Richard Branson
Jeong-Won Kim
Johannes Brahms
Billy Joel
Pablo Casals
Janice Ian
Peter Gabriel
Aaron Mendelssohn
Richard Gere
Lionel Richie
Oscar Peterson
Dustin Hoffmann
Antonin Dvorák
Michael Jackson
Quincy Jones
Frank Zappa

André Previn
Dudley Moore
Bob Seger
Stevie Wonder
Anton Rubinstein
Charles Aznavour
Tori Amos
ABBA
Paul Anka
Doris Adam
Geri Allen
Wolfgang
Ambros
Vangelis
Roberta Flack
George Harrison
Steve Jobs
Herbert von Karajan
Yehudi Menuhin
Freddie Ravel - Al Jarreau Band
McCoy Tyner
Richard Wagner
Peter Ustinov