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Established
in 1994 as primarily an amplifier specialist, Sonneteer have grown
into a cutting edge audio electronics design and development outfit.
Productwise it all started with the Campion
integrated amplifier.
With it's roots in a final year University
project. The founders, Remo Casadei and haider Bahrani had already
been in business as students puting on live shows. The few quids
they made from that was (with quite a lot extra) piled into a
new mad venture which was to be know as FTM Marketing Ltd. the
current mothership of Sonneteer. The name FTM comes from the music
days as that was called Fine Thang Musico. Dont ask!
The Campion went on to become a bit of legend in some circles
with rave reviews and a bit of a crowd following.Having established
this mark of quality the Sonneteer Alabaster, a more powerful
line integrated amplifier was launched late 1996 to even greater
acclaim than the Campion. Like a mature wine the Alabaster still
dazzles new markets winning Product of the Year 2006 Award from
Polish Hi-Fi i Muzyka magazine.
After the two integrated amplifiers Sonneteer launched the Sedley.
This is a high specification phono preamplifier
which offers load, gain and RIAA/IEC selection (without taking
the lid off) making it adaptable to just
about any cartridge on the market. Initial customer feedback has
been more than promising. Top class
reviews have also followed including ***** review from What Hi
Fi? and World Winner from Hi Fi World
and Best Buy of the Year 2005 Award from HiFi Review Magazine.
Analogue, analogue, analogue?
After 3 analogue products it was time to get the old digital electronics
notes out and the young men at FTM
launched their first CD player - The Byron. The Byron was their
first digital project and soon it became
Sonneteer’s top selling product. It along with the Dryden
DAC are both based on Multibit, Delta Sigma
technology with a little bit of Sonneteer analogue spice thrown
in.
Digital versatility!
Having caught the digital bug Sonneteer then went all the way
and became a force to be reckoned with in the
digital domain. The Brontë amplifier was launched as the
world’s first Class-T integrated amplifier (and it
still is). Soon after the Brontë CD player was added for
good measure. The Brontë has been exceptionally
well received by the critics including an editors product of the
year from Gramophone magazine and Best
Buy of the Year 2005 Award from HiFi Review Magazine. Rave reviews
from countries as far apart as the
Netherlands, Russia, Japan and Thailand and more recently on home
turf Hi-Fi+ have ranted more than
positively about the pair.
Create. Innovate. Big in Japan!
The 2004/2005 seasons proved to be a significant one for Sonneteer
with stunning new products:
Aimed at the top end of the market, the Orton integrated amplifier
is the most ambitious product from
Sonneteer to date. The Orton is the result of several years of
research and development and carries all the
hallmarks of a Sonneteer product with a few innovative features
built in (see separate specification sheet).
The Bard wireless range is Sonneteer’s latest creation.
This is a no-nonsense, no-compromise digital
wireless audio link system designed for audio use only. Now with
the Bard system, you can enjoy your highend
system anywhere in your own home. No FM noise, no compression.
The Bard systems have blown the critics away with the BardUSB
receiving a ***** review from What Hi
Fi? and Ultimate Guide to MP3 magazines. The BardOne has also
had stunning reviews in Gramophone
magazine and all three Bard systems each received a special prize
for product design in the Audio
Excellent Awards Japan 2006. British miniaturisation, Japanese
appreciation!
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