Bel Canto Design, Ltd. is a Minneapolis-area maker of high-fidelity audio components, founded in 1991 by John Stronczer. Its products are designed and built in Minneapolis, where a small team assembles, tests, and boxes each unit. The company describes its engineering approach as combining analog and digital design to preserve the audio signal and reproduce recorded music.
MarantzFor nearly 70 years, Marantz has designed and made high-fidelity audio equipment, from amplifiers to home-theater components, with a distinctive blend of artisanal craftsmanship and modern networked sound. Founded around Saul Marantz’s pioneering work in Hi-Fi amplification, the brand has maintained a manufacturing home at Shirakawa Audio Works since 2002 and now operates under Harman International.CARLSBAD, CA
McIntosh Laboratory, IncFounded by Frank McIntosh in 1949, McIntosh Laboratory crafts high-end home audio systems and has designed and handcrafted its products at its Binghamton, New York factory since 1951. The company is recognized for its illuminated blue Watt output meters, enduring product designs, and a place in music history that includes powering Woodstock and the Grateful Dead’s “Wall of Sound.”BINGHAMTON, NY
Bache AudioBache Audio is a small Brooklyn company that handcrafts high-fidelity speakers and single-ended amplifiers, an effort that began when founder Greg Belman built audio equipment for his own listening. Its designs favor wide-band drivers, quasi-coaxial alignment, and straightforward circuitry, while custom finishes and made-to-order builds let listeners tailor speakers to their rooms. A Brooklyn listening room offers customers the chance to hear the speakers before buying.BROOKLYN, NY
Antipodes AudioFounded in Auckland in 2004 by Mark and Sonia Jenkins, Antipodes Audio makes specialised digital audio source components for high-end music systems. The New Zealand company moved to Ōtaki on the Kapiti Coast in 2020 and remains solely owned and actively run by its original founders. Its eight-person team distributes digital audio sources through partners in 40 countries, while its newer Oladra brand extends the company’s work into the ultra-high-end market.New York, NY