Tannoy - A Short History - Tannoy KINGDOM ROYAL Manual

TANNOY - A SHORT HISTORY

In the early days of broadcasting, radio
sets needed both low and high voltage
DC power that had to be supplied by
batteries. The lead acid batteries used
in the radio sets of the time needed
regular recharging.
In London, in 1926, Guy R. Fountain
perfected a new type of electrical
rectifier with the aim of designing a
charger more suitable for use in the
house. His rectifier consisted of two
dissimilar metals held in a special
electrolyte solution. One metal was
Tantalum and the other an alloy of
Lead. So successful was this invention
that Guy Fountain founded a British
Company called Tannoy (a contraction
of the words 'Tantalum' and 'Alloy').
Tannoy soon became internationally
known and highly regarded in all
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aspects of sound reproduction.
Moving coil loudspeakers with DC
energised magnets began Tannoy's
continued success in the field of
loudspeaker technology. A discrete
two-way loudspeaker system followed
in 1933 and shortly after a range of
microphones and loudspeakers capable
of high power handling.
Tannoy has always been at the forefront
of the communications revolution,
developing its own equipment and
production technology. The company
built a fund of knowledge and experience
that has proved invaluable in the
development of loudspeakers for a truly
wide range of applications. The now
famous Tannoy Dual Concentric™
principle was created and developed
under Guy Fountain's direction around
1950. It is highly regarded by music
enthusiasts, and recording and broadcast
studios because of its unique properties
in faithfully reproducing sound to a very
high quality standard.