Audio-Technica

Audio-Technica Corporation is a Japanese company that designs and manufactures professional wired and wireless microphones, headphones, phonographic magnetic cartridges, and other audio equipment. Audio-Technica was established in 1962 in Tokyo, Japan by Hideo Matsushita as a phonograph cartridge manufacturer. Its first products were the AT-1 and the AT-3 MM stereo phono cartridges. Business rapidly developed and Audio-Technica expanded into other fields.

In 1965, the company received an award from the Agency of Industrial Science and Technology for its AT-1001 tone arm package.

In 1969, the company began exporting phono cartridges world wide and launched the first microcassette recorders.

In 1972, Audio-Technica established its US arm in Akron, Ohio and started shipping VM phono cartridges to European manufacturers.

In 1974, the company's first headphones are launched, the AT-700 series.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Audio-Technica microphones and cartridges received numerous awards.

In 1992, the AT4033 condenser microphone is chosen the best microphone of 1991 at the Audio Engineering Society convention.

Audio-Technica was one of the earliest manufacturers of headset microphones for stage use, starting in 1990.

Audio-Technica has been supplying all the microphones for the Grammy Awards for the last 10 years as well as completely kitting out TV shows like the American version of Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductions, as well as the Olympic and winter Olympic games in 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2012. In 2008, the company celebrated the 20th anniversary of supplying microphones for US Presidential Debates

For their 50th anniversary, Audio-Technica celebrated at Consumer Electronics Show 2012, debuting their AT-LP1240-USB USB DJ Turntable and ATH-CKS55i. Their booth also featured a dubstep dance video, "Audio 911", by dancer Marquese "Nonstop" Scott produced by video production company The DVI Group.

One of their most famous products was a battery-operated, portable record player called Mister Disc that was sold in the U.S. in the early 1980s.

In 2005, Audio-Technica developed "Uniguard", a method for making microphones resistant to radio frequency interference from cell phones, Bluetooth devices, wireless computer networks and walkie-talkies. 13 patents were involved in bringing the feature to fruition, as company engineers modified many different elements of microphone construction and operation. Over 50 existing Audio-Technica microphone models have been upgraded with the new RFI-resistant technology.

www.audio-technica.com