Sennheiser

Fritz Sennheiser founded the Laboratorium Wennebostel (Labor W) in June 1945. Wennebostel had previously been home to the Institute for High Frequency Technology and Electroacoustics of the Hanover Technical University, which had been relocated from Hanover to the "Villa Hausmann"[5] due to damage from World War II. Following the war, most of the institute's employees returned home; only seven from the region and the Berlin-born Fritz Sennheiser remained in Wennebostel. Fritz Sennheiser then decided to set up a craft business with his own savings. Initially, the young company produced measuring instruments for Siemens.[6]

In 1945, Siemens commissioned the laboratory to build a microphone for an Austrian supplier who could no longer produce one themselves. This later evolved into the MD 1, which was launched in 1946. That same year, the company started developing its own original microphone: The MD 2 expanded the brand's portfolio in 1947.[7]

The MD 82, the first shotgun microphone, was produced in 1956.[8]

In 1957, Labor W introduced a wireless microphone system for professional television use, developed in cooperation with NDR, a public radio and television broadcaster in northern Germany. The wireless microphone system was marketed with Telefunken from 1958 and was known as “Microport".[9]

The company was renamed "Sennheiser electronic" in 1958.[8]

In 1960, Sennheiser introduced the dynamic microphone MD 421, which is still being produced and sold today.[10]

Sennheiser, by its own account, was the largest specialist company for microphones in Germany in 1965.[11]

In 1968, Sennheiser launched the HD 414, the world's first open headphones.[12]

In 1971, the MD441 was introduced; the model goes on to become a microphone classic.[13]

Sound became spatial in 1974: The MKE 2002 stereo microphone enabled binaural audio recordings according to the dummy head principle.[14]

At the end of the seventies, the first microport multi-channel receiver and the development of a compander system contributed to a significant improvement in wireless microphone technology.

In 1982, Dr. Fritz Sennheiser passed down the management of the company to his son Dr. Jörg Sennheiser.[15]

In 1988, under the management of Jörg Sennheiser, the internationalization of the family business began: The first sales subsidiary, Sennheiser France, was founded.[16] During internationalization, seven additional subsidiaries were founded worldwide by the mid-1990s.

In 1988, the HD 25 headphones also entered the market. Originally conceived as pure monitoring headphones, they were also used as high-class, in-flight headphones on board the Concorde, before going on to conquer DJ booths the world over.[17]

Sennheiser took over the Berlin studio microphone manufacturer Georg Neumann in 1991, integrating its microphone production into Sennheiser’s own factory in Wennebostel.[18]

In 1991, the Orpheus electrostatic headphones also entered the market. The limited-edition model would go on to be considered the best headphones in the world for decades.[19]

In 1996, Sennheiser changed its legal form to GmbH & Co. KG.[20] Jörg Sennheiser joined the newly created supervisory board. The company management was initially handed over to a managing director and later to an equal leadership team.[21]

In 1998, the evolution microphone series was launched. A year later, the evolution wireless microphone series followed.[22]

In 2000, the MKH 800 became the first studio condenser microphone that could cover the entire frequency range of the new digital audio formats with just one converter system. Sennheiser supported the world exhibition in Hannover, EXPO 2000, as "Product Partner for Professional Sound". Almost one million attendees visited the Sennheiser booth.

In 2003, Sennheiser founded a joint venture with the Danish company, William-Demant-Holding, a specialist in hearing aids, diagnostic technology and personal communication. Sennheiser Communications A/S was founded.[23]

In 2005, Sennheiser acquired the speaker manufacturer Klein + Hummel.[24]

In 2006, Sennheiser opened further sales subsidiaries in Russia and the Nordic region with offices in Denmark, Norway, Finland, and Sweden.

Daniel Sennheiser, grandson of the founder, joined the company in 2008, followed by his brother Dr. Andreas Sennheiser in 2010. Both are shareholders of the company.[25]

In 2009, Sennheiser presented the HD 800, a new high-end reference headphone.[26] In 2012, the Digital 9000 digital radio microphone system was introduced.[27] According to the company, it was the only digital wireless UHF microphone system in the world that could operate without data reduction.

The first model of the MOMENTUM headphone series was launched in 2012.[28]

On July 1, 2013, Daniel Sennheiser and Andreas Sennheiser were promoted to the position of CEO responsible for Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co. KG.[29]

In 2014 Sennheiser founded the new subsidiary "Sennheiser Streaming Technology GmbH (SST)", which develops streaming solutions for software and hardware.[30]

In 2019 Sennheiser acquired a majority stake in Dear Reality, a company that specializes in spatial audio algorithms and VR/AR audio software.[31]

In 2021, Sennheiser sold its consumer audio division to the Swiss based hearing aid manufacturer Sonova Group.[32]

Sennheiser is headquartered in the municipality of Wedemark, Germany (near Hannover). Its United States headquarters is located in Old Lyme, Connecticut. The company has factories in Wennebostel (Wedemark, near Hannover); Tullamore, Ireland (since 1990); Albuquerque, New Mexico (since 2000) and in Brașov, Romania (since 2019).[33] Some consumer products are made in China. Sennheiser's R&D facilities are located in Germany, Switzerland and Singapore.

Sennheiser has a total of 21 sales subsidiaries and trading partners and is active in more than 50 countries.[34] Besides, the company opened its first Sennheiser store in 2016 to make products accessible to customers. In 2016 there was a temporary store in New York.[35]

Sennheiser has a total of four research and development sites in Germany, Switzerland, the US and Singapore. In addition, the Innovation Campus in Wennebostel opened in 2015 with 7,000 square meters of space.[53] According to Sennheiser, the company invested a total of 60.5 million euros in research and development in 2018.[54]

The AMBEO technology program is supposed to cover immersive audio products and activities from recording through processing and mixing to playback. According to the company, the technology is applicable in areas such as realistic live concert broadcasts, sports broadcasting, 3D recordings, exhibition installations, VR/AR/XR applications and 3D audio for the home.[55]

Sennheiser has been recording 9.1 music since 2010 and has developed an upmix algorithm that generates 9.1 music from conventional stereo recordings. The AMBEO Music Blueprints provide information about the recording, mixing and playback of live music in 3D audio.[56] The first AMBEO product to be introduced in 2016 was the AMBEO VR Mic for professional VR/AR/XR sound recording.[57] Sennheiser created the first augmented audio listening accessory for Magic Leap’s AR/VR goggles, the AMBEO AR One.[58]