I was an early adopter of the VR4 back in 1996. The Vortex Screen was their predecessor and supposedly the VR4 was a better version of that speaker. This according to Albert himself.
I’m hoping to tap into the collective knowledge here.
I recently came into possession of a complete Vortex Screen Transparency speaker system, designed by Albert Von Schweikert, and I’m curious how many people here remember or have experience with this project.
From what I understand, this was a very limited production (only 88 systems worldwide), originally engineered for high-end custom installations, with placement behind projection screens in mind. What really caught my attention is the level of engineering — adjustable rear voicing for tweeter and midrange, sealed cabinets, and a design philosophy clearly aimed at natural timbre and realism, especially for jazz, vocals, and acoustic music.
I’ve also come across references to these speakers being advertised internationally and even outperforming a much more expensive ($15k) speaker in a published comparison at the time, which surprised me given how little they seem to come up today.
Interestingly, this particular system is New Old Stock (never installed or driven), which makes me wonder how many unused examples are even left, if any.
For those familiar with Von Schweikert or Vortex history:
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How were these regarded when they were released?
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Were they more common in custom theater installs than in two-channel systems?
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Does anyone here have firsthand listening experience with the Screen Transparency models?
I’d love to hear thoughts, memories, or context from people who were around when these were introduced.