High fidelity is the high-quality reproduction of sound. It is popular with audiophiles and home audio enthusiasts. Ideally, high-fidelity equipment has inaudible noise and distortion, and a flat frequency response within the human hearing range.
An audiophile is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound reproduction. An audiophile seeks to reproduce the sound of a piece of recorded music or a live musical performance, typically inside closed headphones, In-ear monitors, open headphones in a quiet listening space, or a room with good acoustics.
Marantz is a company that develops and sells high-end audio products. The company was founded in New York, but is now based in Japan.
PS Audio is an American company specializing in high-fidelity audio components equipment for audiophiles and the sound recording industry. It currently produces audio amplifiers, preamplifiers, power related products, digital-to-analog converters, streaming audio, music management software and cables.
Naim Audio is a British hi-fi manufacturer based in Wiltshire, United Kingdom. The company was founded in 1973. Following a 2011 merger with French loudspeaker manufacturer Focal, Naim is owned by VerVent Audio Group, a French company.
Roksan is a British manufacturer of high fidelity audio products for domestic use, based in Rayleigh, Essex. It is best known for its influential and innovative design for hi-fi equipment, and in particular its Xerxes platform for playing LP records.
Musical Fidelity is a British producer of high-end audio equipment focusing on streaming music players, and its core product range of amplifiers of various types. Other products have included headphones, Digital-Analog Converters (DACs), CD players, Bluetooth Receivers, ‘all-in-one systems’. Founded in the United Kingdom in 1982, they are known for their unusual industrial design, Nuvistor tube use and Class-AB amplifiers.
Meridian Audio is a consumer audio and home theatre equipment manufacturer based in the United Kingdom. Bob Stuart and Allen Boothroyd founded the company in 1977 under the name Boothroyd-Stuart. In 1985 the company released a CD player under the brand name, Meridian. The company also created the lossless compression format Meridian Lossless Packing in 1998 and the lossy Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) format in 2014.
Audio Partnership Plc is a British manufacturer of hi-fi, home cinema and home automation products, which was founded in 1994.
The International Audio Group (IAG) is a Chinese manufacturer of consumer and professional audio & HiFi components. It is based in Shenzhen in China. It is owned and run by twin brothers Bernard and Michael Chang.
A&R Cambridge Ltd (Arcam) is a British manufacturer of hi-fi equipment based in the Cambridge Innovation Park, Waterbeach, Cambridgeshire, England. It was established in 1976 by science and engineering students from the University of Cambridge. Since July 2017, it has been a part of South Korean company Samsung Electronics through its American subsidiary Harman International Industries.
Luxman is a brand name of Japanese Luxman Corporation (ラックスマン株式会社), a company that manufactures luxury audio components. Luxman produces a variety of high-end audio products which include turntables, amplifiers, receivers, tape decks, CD players and speakers
Fisher Electronics was an American company specialising in the field of hi-fi electronics. The company and the name was bought by Japanese electronics conglomerate Sanyo in 1975.
Technics is a Japanese brand name of the Panasonic Corporation for audio equipment. Since 1965 under the brand name, Panasonic has produced a variety of hi-fi products, such as turntables, amplifiers, receivers, tape decks, CD players and speakers for sale in various countries. It was conceived as a line of high-end audio equipment to compete against brands such as Nakamichi.
Pro-Ject Audio Systems is a manufacturer of audiophile equipment, founded in 1991 by Heinz Lichtenegger and located in Mistelbach, Austria. Pro-Ject Audio Systems designs the products in Austria and produces them in Europe. It produces a range of audio equipment including a family of turntables, which are often quoted as reference entry-level models. Pro-Ject Audio System also manufactures a range of micro hi-fi components such as Amps, CD Transports, Phono Stages, Streaming Devices, Loudspeakers and more. Today, Pro-Ject Audio Systems ship into more than 80 countries world-wide. Since 2015 Pro-Ject has released limited edition turntables in cooperation with the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Metallica, Hans Theessink, Parov Stelar, and the Vienna Philharmonic.
John Alexander Westlake is a British–Czech Hi Fi designer.
The Naim NAIT is an integrated amplifier from the British hi-fi manufacturer, Naim Audio. The original NAIT is one of the most recognisable pieces of hi-fi equipment ever made. Hi-fi critic Lucio Cadeddu recognised its legendary status, referring to it as "one of the most controversial and famous integrated amps in the history of HiFi".
Naim Audio is a specialist British manufacturer of high-end audio amplifiers well known for their self described qualities of "pace, rhythm and timing".
The NAD 3020 is a stereo integrated amplifier by NAD Electronics, considered to be one of the most important components in the history of high fidelity audio. Launched in 1978, this highly affordable product delivered a good quality sound, which acquired a reputation as an audiophile amplifier of exceptional value. By 1998, the NAD 3020 had become the most well known and best-selling audio amplifier in history.
Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) is a lossy audio compression format, which is used to transfer high-quality audio to a smartphone or audio device. The tech was launched in 2014 by Meridian Audio, and is now owned and licensed by MQA Ltd. MQA is a proprietary system and requires licensing fees to use.
