DEI Holdings is the US parent company of several brands of consumer audio electronics and vehicle security/remote start systems. DEI Holdings is owned by New York City and Boston-based private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners.

History

The company that became DEI Holdings was founded by future US Representative

Darrell Issa Darrell Edward Issa ( ; born November 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for California's 50th congressional district since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served ...

and his wife Kathy in 1982 as

Directed Electronics Directed Electronics, Inc., often abbreviated DEI, is a Orlando, Florida-based producer of car security products, including Viper car alarms and accessories. It is a subsidiary of VOXX Automotive, which is owned by VOXX International. History D ...

, with Darrell Issa serving as the first CEO. In 2000, Darrell Issa was elected to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

, and Jim Minarik replaced him as CEO. In 2004, the firm bought speaker company Definitive Technology; in 2006, it bought

Polk Audio Polk Audio is an American manufacturer of audio products best known for its home and automobile speakers. The company also produces a wide range of other audio products, such as amplifiers and FM tuners. The company's headquarters are in San Die ...

. In 2008, the companies adapted a holding company strategy, and their parent became DEI Holdings, Inc. In 2011, the company was bought by private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners. In April 2013, the company combined Polk, Definitive Technology and the Boom Movement brands into a new division called Sound United. In August 2016, Kevin Duffy was named the company's CEO, replacing retiring CEO Jim Minarik. In March 2017, the Sound United audio division acquired YS consumer electronics company D+M Group, whose various brands included Denon, HEOS by Denon, Marantz and Boston Acoustics. At the time, D+M was the world's largest supplier of audio/video receivers. In October 2020 Sound United LLC acquired

Bowers & Wilkins Bowers & Wilkins, commonly known as B&W, is a British company that produces consumer and professional loudspeakers and headphones. B&W was founded in 1966 by John Bowers in Worthing, West Sussex, England. In October 2020, B&W was acquired b ...

. In March 2021 Sound United LLC acquired Australia's leading importer and distributor of home entertainment systems QualiFi Pty Ltd. QualiFi Pty Ltd was the Australian importer and distributor for Blustream, Denon, Elan, Forte, Furman, HEOS, Jamo, Klipsch, Marantz, Niles, Stealth Acoustics, Sunfire, Thorens and Xantech brands of high-quality Home Entertainment components and systems. QualiFi was based in Mount Waverley, Victoria and incorporates a service department for the servicing and repair of all products distributed by them. In April 2022 Sound United got acquired by

Masimo Masimo Corporation is a global medical technology company that develops, manufactures, and markets a variety of noninvasive patient monitoring technologies, hospital automation solutions, home monitoring devices, ventilation solutions, and consu ...

Brands

DEI's former Sound United organization as audio electronics division has now become the consumer audio part of Masimo including Denon, Marantz,

Boston Acoustics Boston Acoustics was an American manufacturer of home and mobile audio equipment founded in 1979. The company produced speakers for home, custom/architectural, and car audio. History Advent veterans Andy Kotsatos (known as Andy Pettit) and Fr ...

HEOS by Denon is a Japanese electronics company started in 1910 by Frederick Whitney Horn, an American entrepreneur. Denon produced the first cylinder audio media in Japan and players to play them. Decades later, Denon was involved in the early stages of de ...

(under

D+M Group D+M Group, formerly known as DMGlobal and D&M Holdings, was a Japanese corporation that owned several audio and video brands. It was formed in 2002 from the merger of Denon and Marantz. It had acquired several other companies since that time. Pr ...

, Definitive Technology and

References

External links

* {{Official website Audio equipment manufacturers of the United States Companies based in San Diego Electronics companies established in 2008 Loudspeaker manufacturers Vehicle security systems