Denon VS-560 (1972)
The Denon VS-560 is a top-of-the-line floor-standing speaker system from 1972, originally priced at ¥63,000 per unit. It's a 3-way, 3-speaker bass reflex design built around Denon's "unique non-resonant enclosure" - a sandwich construction with a special vibration-absorbing material between layers. Denon claimed this greatly reduced enclosure resonance and mid/high-frequency intermodulation distortion. Each cabinet was made from 5 cm plywood and weighed a substantial 45 kg.
The driver lineup is unusual for the era. The 30 cm woofer cone is made of collagen fiber - animal skin treated chemically and fused with corn paper. Denon said this gave the cone appropriate internal resistance and suppressed resonance peaks and dips. The 12 cm midrange "squawker" uses the same collagen construction. The high frequencies go to a horn tweeter with a light metal diaphragm. The crossover switches between 2-channel (800 Hz to 1500 Hz) and 3-channel (800 Hz to 1500 Hz low/mid, 4 kHz to 8 kHz mid/high) operation, and the binding posts allow any wiring configuration up to tri-amping. Japanese auction listings for pulled crossovers note the high-grade construction, including oil capacitors and air-core coils. Each unit shipped with its own individual measurement data sheet.
On paper, the VS-560 is rated for 80W maximum input (program source). Frequency band is 35 Hz to 20,000 Hz, sensitivity is 93 dB/W/m, and impedance is 8 Ω. Dimensions are 477 mm wide, 767 mm high, and 450 mm deep.
Period sources indicate Denon designed the VS-560 with jazz, soul, blues, classical, and vocal reproduction in mind, and that in 1972 it was named among the 28 best jazz systems in the world. It's also described as the most musical of three Denon speaker variants, and Japanese jazz and blues collectors reportedly seek it out specifically. A Russian forum owner describes the sound as "neutral, detailed, very comfortable" with "airy treble, velvety bass, and very correct mids." The Japanese Audio-Collection database entry confirms the technical specifications and the non-resonant enclosure design.
Audio-Collection (audio-database.com) documents the VS-560's full specifications and its collagen-cone driver technology, noting it as a top-of-the-line Denon speaker system of the period.
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