Brenell Engineering Ltd. was a British company in operation from 1947 to 1984 who manufactured audio electronics, in particular professional quality
reel-to-reel
Reel-to-reel audio tape recording, also called open-reel recording, is magnetic tape audio recording in which the recording tape is spooled between reels. To prepare for use, the ''supply reel'' (or ''feed reel'') containing the tape is plac ...
tape decks.
History
The company was founded in 1947 by Robert Hahn and Peter Glazer, as a small
precision engineering company based in Northington Street,
Clerkenwell
Clerkenwell () is an area of central London, England.
Clerkenwell was an ancient parish from the mediaeval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington.
The well after which it was named was redisco ...
. In 1953, the company produced its first tape recorder, a "
do-it-yourself
"Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and semi ...
" unit marketed under the ''Soundesign'' name. Brenell became a leading manufacturer of tape decks, including multi-track studio machines.
After a series of financial setbacks, the company was formally dissolved in January 1984.
All of
The Beatles had Brenell tape recorders installed in their homes. These were used to make tape loops and other recordings that eventually found their way onto several Beatles recordings, such as "
Tomorrow Never Knows".
Other users include
Darren Allison, producer of
The Divine Comedy and
Spiritualized.
References
Brenelltape.co.uk- Web site giving historical overview of Brenell and Soundcraft products
Manufacturers of professional audio equipment
Audio equipment manufacturers of the United Kingdom
Defunct manufacturing companies of England
Electronics industry in London
Manufacturing companies based in London
1947 establishments in England
1984 disestablishments in England
British companies disestablished in 1984
British companies established in 1947
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