Etsuro Nakamichi
Encyclopedia
Etsuro Nakamichi was a Japan
ese engineer and founder of Nakamichi Corporation
, a high-end audio
electronics
company based in Tokyo
in Japan
. The company is most famous for its very high quality sounding cassette decks.
ese Navy doing sonar research. After the war he started Nakamichi Research by researching in electromagnetism, magnetic recording, acoustics and communications.
The company he founded initially designed and developed portable radios, tone arms, speakers and communications equipment. With the development of magnetic tape in 1951, Nakamichi felt his company could develop and refine the technology of recording heads. Within a few years his company developed an open-reel tape recorder, and in 1957 the Japanese public was introduced to an open reel recorder under the FIDELA brand name.
The company he founded subsequently went on to develop some of the world's best cassette deck
s, including the world's first 3-head cassette deck. At one point in the mid 1960s the company manufactured tape decks for a number of foreign companies including Ampex
, Harman Kardon
and Motorola
. His company was also the first to license Dolby-B Noise Reduction
from Dolby Laboratories in 1969.
The Foundation was dedicated to the promotion and encouragement of baroque and other fine forms of classical music, in accordance with Etsuro's will.
, his brother Niro joined and the two brothers worked to develop the company.
In 2001, Niro Nakamichi, designer of many of the historic tape decks, started a new company, Mechanical Research Corporation, which introduced ultra high end audio amplifiers, preamplifiers, and an integrated amplifier, called "engines." The products featured innovative designs and addressed issues of mechanical isolation, as well as presenting a unique appearance [2]. Soon thereafter, however, the "engine" products were no longer promoted and a line of home theater products was introduced. The company was renamed Niro Corporation.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese engineer and founder of Nakamichi Corporation
Nakamichi
is an historic Japanese high end audio company most famous for its innovative and very high quality audio cassette decks.In 1972, Nakamichi launched its first Nakamichi-brand products, home audio gear that included the world's first three-head cassette deck...
, a high-end audio
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
electronics
Electronics
Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
company based in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. The company is most famous for its very high quality sounding cassette decks.
Nakamichi's Life
Etsuro Nakamichi founded Nakamichi Research in 1948. Brother of Niro Nakamichi he was an acoustic engineering officer in the JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese Navy doing sonar research. After the war he started Nakamichi Research by researching in electromagnetism, magnetic recording, acoustics and communications.
The company he founded initially designed and developed portable radios, tone arms, speakers and communications equipment. With the development of magnetic tape in 1951, Nakamichi felt his company could develop and refine the technology of recording heads. Within a few years his company developed an open-reel tape recorder, and in 1957 the Japanese public was introduced to an open reel recorder under the FIDELA brand name.
The company he founded subsequently went on to develop some of the world's best cassette deck
Cassette deck
A cassette deck is a type of tape recorder for playing or recording audio compact cassettes. A deck was formerly distinguished from a recorder as being part of a stereo component system, while a recorder had a self-contained power amplifier...
s, including the world's first 3-head cassette deck. At one point in the mid 1960s the company manufactured tape decks for a number of foreign companies including Ampex
Ampex
Ampex is an American electronics company founded in 1944 by Alexander M. Poniatoff. The name AMPEX is an acronym, created by its founder, which stands for Alexander M. Poniatoff Excellence...
, Harman Kardon
Harman Kardon
harman/kardon is a division of Harman International Industries and manufactures home and car audio equipment.Founded in 1953 by Dr. Sidney Harman and Bernard Kardon — two men with a deep interest in music and the arts — the company helped create the high-fidelity audio industry. Their first product...
and Motorola
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was eventually divided into two independent public companies, Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions on January 4, 2011, after losing $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009...
. His company was also the first to license Dolby-B Noise Reduction
Dolby noise reduction system
Dolby NR is the name given to a series of noise reduction systems developed by Dolby Laboratories for use in analog magnetic tape recording. The first was Dolby A, a professional broadband noise reduction for recording studios in 1966, but the best-known is Dolby B , a sliding band system for the...
from Dolby Laboratories in 1969.
Etsuro Nakamichi Foundation
Shortly after Etsuro's passing, a foundation was made in his name.The Foundation was dedicated to the promotion and encouragement of baroque and other fine forms of classical music, in accordance with Etsuro's will.
Takeshi Nakamichi
Etsuro's only son Takeshi Nakamichi joined Nakamichi Corporation in April 1972. Takeshi is currently the President / Representative Director of Nakamichi Corporation.Niro Nakamichi
After Etsuro Nakamichi founded NakamichiNakamichi
is an historic Japanese high end audio company most famous for its innovative and very high quality audio cassette decks.In 1972, Nakamichi launched its first Nakamichi-brand products, home audio gear that included the world's first three-head cassette deck...
, his brother Niro joined and the two brothers worked to develop the company.
In 2001, Niro Nakamichi, designer of many of the historic tape decks, started a new company, Mechanical Research Corporation, which introduced ultra high end audio amplifiers, preamplifiers, and an integrated amplifier, called "engines." The products featured innovative designs and addressed issues of mechanical isolation, as well as presenting a unique appearance [2]. Soon thereafter, however, the "engine" products were no longer promoted and a line of home theater products was introduced. The company was renamed Niro Corporation.