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Daniel Pidgeon, chief executive officer of McIntosh Group, commented, "Gaining access to Bose's expertise as a pioneer in automotive audio will help us accelerate our presence and deliver solutions that match our reputation and performance standards."
The Companies
Industry heavyweight Bose is one of the best-known brands in audio. Its Model 901 speaker remains an iconic design, though the company is now best known as the market leader in noise-cancelling headphones. Founded in 1964, the company is based in Framingham, Massachusetts, and MIT—yes, the university—is the majority shareholder thanks to a donation by the company founder, Dr. Amar Bose. However MIT does not actively participate in the company's management.
McIntosh Laboratory was founded in Silver Spring, Maryland, in 1949 by Frank McIntosh, but later moved its main office to Binghamton, New York, where it remains today. Early on, McIntosh was praised for its innovative amplifier designs, such as the unity coupled transformer, which produces high power with low distortion.
The company provided sound systems for the 1969 Woodstock music festival and several presidential inaugurations.
Sonus faber is famous for making high-end audio equipment by hand, especially loudspeakers. It was started in 1983 by Franco Serblin in Arcugnano, Italy and is renowned for its handcrafted designs that embody Italian craftsmanship.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed—an industry standard for acquisitions.
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