The story
Founded by Hideo Matsushita in 1962, in Shinjuku.1
Audio-Technica was established in 1962 in the Shinjuku district of Tokyo, Japan, by Hideo Matsushita as a phonograph cartridge manufacturer. Its first products were the AT-1 and the higher-end AT-3 MM stereo phono cartridges. Business rapidly developed, with the company starting to deliver cartridges to domestic audio manufacturers, and Audio-Technica expanded into other fields. The headquarters and factory moved to the current address in Naruse, Machida, Tokyo in 1965. In 1966, a test record entitled Moving Pulse (AT-6601) was released to help prove Audio-Technica's quality. In 1967, the company made a technological advance, releasing the AT-35X as the first ‘VM’ type stereo cartridge. This design increased growth in global exports, and the patent was extended across Switzerland, Canada, the UK, US, and West Germany. In 1969, the company began exporting phono cartridges worldwide and launched the first microcassette recorders.
In 1972, Audio-Technica established its US arm in Fairlawn, Ohio, and started shipping VM phono cartridges to European manufacturers. In 1974, the company developed its first headphones, the AT-700 series, which launched the same year. In 1977, celebrating its 15-year anniversary, Audio-Technica released second-generation models of dynamic headphones in the ATH-3, ATH-4, and ATH-5. That same year, the company developed and released the dual moving-coil MC-type AT-34 stereo cartridge. The AT-800 series of microphones were introduced in 1978, moving Audio-Technica into the commercial microphones market, and in the same year, the UK establishment in Leeds began operation.
In the 1980s, with the growth in digital music formats threatening its core business of phonograph cartridges, Audio-Technica began a period of diversification. Employee suggestions were solicited, with sushi machines among the ideas selected for further development.
In 1984, Audio-Technica introduced the ASM50 Nigirikko, a nigiri-forming appliance for home kitchens, which incorporated a turn-table like mechanism to deposit the nigiri onto. The market success of this product led the company to develop a range of sushi machinery for commercial and industrial use. Audio-Technica remains one of the largest manufacturers of sushi machines globally today, with products marketed under the brand AUTEC.
In 1981, a moving-coil cartridge that used diamond, specifically the AT1000 featuring a diamond cantilever, was introduced. That same year, the now long-selling AT33E was released.
In 1986, the company developed RCA cables with high-purity copper produced from the continuous metal casting process, "Pure Copper Ohno Continuous Casting" (PCOCC), invented and developed between 1982 and 1985 by Atsumi Ohno. In the same year, the company launched the AT33ML/OCC phono cartridge, the first made with PCOCC materials. In 1987, the AT-OC9 was released. This is the original cartridge model from which today’s fourth-generation AT-OC9X series evolved. In 1988, another Audio-Technica subsidiary was founded in Taiwan.
In 1990s, Audio-Technica introduced several large-diaphragm condenser microphones for studio use: the AT4033 cardioid microphone in 1991, the AT4050 multi-pattern in 1995, and the AT4060 vacuum tube cardioid microphone in 1998. The AT895, a DSP-controlled five-element microphone array providing adaptive directional audio acquisition, was introduced in 1999. In 1996, the Southeast Asian establishment began operation in Singapore.
In 1993, founder Hideo Matsushita took the position of Audio-Technica’s chairman. His son, Kazuo Matsushita, became the company's president.
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From 2006 to 2007, Audio-Technica released its first earbuds and noise-cancelling headphones.
In 2008, the company celebrated its 20th anniversary of supplying microphones for US Presidential Debates, which it had been doing since 1988, and continues to do into the 21st century.
Since 2012, Audio-Technica has been releasing limited-edition headphones, debuting 11 limited-edition models between 2012 and 2023. For their 50th anniversary, the company celebrated at CES (Consumer Electronics Show) 2012, debuting five limited-edition products: the ATH-W3000ANV over-ear headphone, ATH-PRO700MK2ANV DJ headphones, the AT150ANV moving-coil phono cartridge, and the AT-TI15ANV solid titanium headshell.
The company's founder, Hideo Matsushita, passed away on March 5, 2013. He was 93 years old.
At the IFA Berlin Show in 2014, Audio-Technica launched five new pairs of headphones, three of which were sport orientated, and a new USB turntable, the LP120USBC, which allowed users to convert vinyl records into digital music files for playback on computers, phones, and tablets. Also in 2014, the company remastered its M-Series line of professional monitor headphones with four next-generation M-Series headphones: ATH-M20x, ATH-M30x, ATH-M40x, and ATH-M50x.
At the CES in 2017, the company released over 15 new headphones ranging from high-res to wireless and both. This included the Sound Reality series, which consisted of in-ears, over-ears, and over-ear wireless headphones (ATH-CKR100iS, ATH-CKR90iS, ATH-CKR70iS, ATH-DSR9BT, ATH-DSR7BT, and ATH-SR9). Also in 2017, Audio-Technica partnered with Audient to release the AT2035-Studio "Essential Studio Kit", which was a microphone, interface, and headphone bundle.
At CES 2019, Audio-Technica unveiled seven new turntables, which included the AT-LPW series featuring dark walnut or teak wood finishes, an updated AT-LP120 series still "aimed at DJs", and four new additions to the AT-LP60 series. At NAMM 2019, the company offered new mic bundles geared toward drummers and vocalists (PRO-DRUM4, PRO-DRUM7, ATM-DRUM4, and ATM-DRUM7). At IFA 2019, the company introduced its ATH-CKS5TW and ATH-CK3TW truly wireless in-ear headphones.
The company would released the ATH-CK3TW in 2020, which featured Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity and a compact design, to fairly positive reviews. That same year, Swedish speaker manufacturer Audio Pro Business joined Audio-Technica’s portfolio of distributed brands in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, and Spain.
In 2021, Audio-Technica continued to expand its product line, releasing the AT-BHA100 balanced headphone amplifier, the AT-DAC100 digital to analog converter, and the "affordable" AT2040 hypercardioid dynamic podcast microphone for podcasts, voice-overs, video conferencing. Also in 2021, Audio-Technica served as sponsor of the Relix Studio, the live streaming facility run by Relix magazine.
In March 2022, Audio-Technica Canada announces a multi-year agreement with the JUNO Awards to serve as the “Official Pro Audio Partner” for the program. In November 2022, for its 60th Anniversary, the company announce the AT-LP2022 manual belt-drive turntable, a limited-edition record player featuring a 30 mm thick, high-density clear acrylic chassis. That year, the company would also resurrect its Sound Burger portable turntable from the '80s, with the new model featuring Bluetooth connectivity and a built-in lithium-ion battery with USB-C charging. In January 2023, Audio-Technica announced that more Sound Burgers would be coming in the spring of that year.
At InfoComm 2023, the company showcased its range of integration solutions for commercial use, including its Engineered Sound Wireless system featuring wireless microphones for video- and web-conferencing as well as its ATND1061DAN ceiling array, which could be compatible with Microsoft Teams Rooms, Zoom Rooms, or AVer PTZ cameras depending on the system.
At the 2024 NAMM Show, Audio-Technica announced several big projects: the 3000 Series wireless in-ear monitor system, the AT2040USB hypercardioid dynamic USB microphone, the AT2020USB-XP cardioid condenser USB microphone, the ATH-M50xSTS StreamSet models, and limited-edition ATH-M50x wired and wireless headphones. In March 2024, the company announced its ATH-AWKG wooden high-fidelity headphones.
In 2026, the company announced two on-camera microphones designed for professional videographers and content creators, the ATV-SG1 and ATV-SG1LE, its first additions to this segment in 10 years.
From Wikipedia’s article on Audio-Technica, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4