Sonoma Acoustics LLC announced today at CanJam and the Rocky Mountain Audio Festival (RMAF), being held at the Denver Marriott Tech Center, October 7-9, 2016, that it would begin selling its Model One (M1) Headphone System initially in the US, UK and Japan. The price for the entire system, which includes headphones and USB DAC/Energizer, is $4,995 in the US and £4,595 in the UK. Pricing in Japan has yet to be finalized pending the choice of distributor.
“We are taking our time and being very careful in ramping up production,” said David Kawakami, GM, Sonoma Acoustics. “We’re acutely aware that the M1 has to deliver on the promise of the Sonoma name, which basically means it has to deliver unprecedented hi-res performance. “
To achieve that aim, the M1 system uses state-of-the-art components. Where no suitable component could be found, custom solutions were developed. Particular attention was paid to the choice of materials to ensure unprecedented levels of comfort. Key to the overall high performance of the M1 system was the choice of a revolutionary new electrostatic driver technology.
The M1 is the first headphone system in the world to incorporate the High-Precision Electrostatic Laminate (HPEL) transducer developed and manufactured by Warwick Audio Technologies Ltd. (WAT) in the UK. “WAT has supported us every step of the way in the development of the M1,” commented Kawakami. “In fact, their CTO, Dan Anagnos, is actually inspecting and testing 100% of our initial production run to make sure the HPEL has been implemented in an optimal way.”
“We’re very happy that the hi-res pioneers at Sonoma Acoustics saw the potential of the HPEL transducer and are now making it available to audiophiles,” said Dr. Mike Grant, Executive Chairman of WAT. “We think the M1 will usher in a whole new age of electrostatic headphones.”
