Marantz LS-7V (circa 1990)
Little is documented about the Marantz LS-7V, a compact two-way bookshelf speaker that appears to date from around 1990. That year is attached to its original price of ¥30,000 for a pair, so it is not a confirmed production date. What the record shows is a small sealed-box design with an anti-magnetic (EIAJ) construction, which makes it suitable for placement near a television. It paired a 10 cm cone woofer with a 2.5 cm dome tweeter, crossed over at 1250 Hz. Rated input was 40W nominal / 80W maximum, sensitivity was 84 dB/W/m, and impedance was 6Ω. Frequency response spanned 60 Hz to 22,000 Hz.
The engineering details suggest Marantz took the compact format seriously. The woofer used an alnico magnet in a jar-shaped yoke. The company claimed this resisted magnetic modulation from voice-coil current and preserved alnico's low-distortion character. It was mounted in a thick aluminum die-cast frame. The tweeter's diaphragm was hand-painted twice with an acrylic damping agent, and a dummy balancer with twisted flexible lead was used to improve large-amplitude behavior. The enclosure was high-density particle board finished in North American walnut veneer, with R-shaped walnut corner trim. The crossover network was split between woofer and tweeter sections to prevent driver interference, using large OFC-wire choke coils and sound-grade capacitors. The cabinet measured just 128 × 204 × 163 mm and weighed 3.0 kg.
One surviving Yahoo auction listing for a pair described them as in very good condition with no conspicuous damage, and noted excellent oscillation board and edge condition. That suggests the foam or rubber surrounds on these units can survive well when stored properly. No user reviews, market pricing, or lineup positioning information has surfaced. The only available sources are the Japanese Audio Database and audio-heritage.jp entries. A YouTube title suggests the LS-7V may have been the successor to the Marantz LS-5A, but this claim is unverified in the available documentation.
Known Specifications
- Type: 2-way, 2-speaker, sealed bookshelf, anti-magnetic design
- Drivers: 10 cm cone woofer, 2.5 cm dome tweeter
- Crossover: 1250 Hz
- Impedance: 6 Ω
- Rated / max input: 40W / 80W
- Sensitivity: 84 dB/W/m
- Frequency range: 60 Hz – 22,000 Hz
- Dimensions: 128 W × 204 H × 163 D mm
- Weight: 3.0 kg
- Original price: ¥30,000 per pair (circa 1990)
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