Radial Engineering has announced the acquisition of Jensen Transformers, joining the Radial group of companies that includes Reamp, Tonebone, Primacoustic and Hafler.
Radial president Peter Janis states, “Jensen is one of the true gems of our industry. I first heard about Jensen transformers in 1981 and when we started Radial, it was on the top of our list. We launched the Radial JDI in 1996—the J standing for Jensen, and today, it continues to be the world’s best-selling professional passive direct box around the globe.
“When Jensen became available,” he continues, “we felt that the brand was simply too important to the industry and our long-term health to end up being purchased by a multi-national and made offshore.”
According to Bill Whitlock, former owner and president of Jensen Transformers, “After 25 years and my recent turning 70, I felt the time had come for Jensen to be passed along to a younger generation. And after much discussion, I felt that Peter would be the ideal candidate to take the company on and build it for the future. Peter’s company Radial has been tied at the hip with Jensen since 1992 and has been the biggest user of Jensen transformers for years. It only made sense that he take the reins.”
Jensen Transformers is celebrating its 40th anniversary, founded by audio pioneer Deane Jensen in 1974 when he changed the way transformers were designed and built for real-world audio. His analog circuit design skills gave him a deep understanding of how transformers interact with surrounding circuitry. Using the best available materials and winding techniques, he enhanced performance by paying close attention to phase response and extending bandwidth, delivering a result marked by exceptional sonic clarity and transparency.
Whitlock acquired the company upon Jensen’s untimely death in 1989 and continued with further refinements in production uniformity and long-term reliability, also expanding the company into areas such as video through the ISO-MAX product range.
“So far, we have invested a significant amount of money to stabilize delivery and have made a commitment that Jensen be run at arm’s length,” Janis notes. “Radial will continue to purchase transformers as it has in the past, as an OEM customer, and Jensen will continue to work with its growing customer base both on the OEM side and as a solution provider for the AV contractor, home theater installer and professional audio engineer.”
Jensen Transformers general manager Dave Hill adds, “Over the past months, we have begun to understand Peter’s way of doing business and it’s very exciting. We have just extended our lease—keeping the company in its home in Chatsworth (CA), purchasing two more high-precision Meteor numerical winders, increasing our raw parts inventory, adding more computer power to streamline our processes, and we’re currently hiring more staff to increase production. Peter is absolutely committed to upholding the Jensen brand and quality that we have strived to build. These are very exciting times.”
Whitlock plans to stay on with the company, assisting on the technical side and working in R&D to develop new products. “There are so many areas that we have yet to explore, and with the business side now off my plate, I look forward to focusing on my true love of engineering,” he says.