Sony’s Gaming Audio Products Set To Take a Leap Forward With Audeze Acquisition
Sony Interactive Entertainment, the arm that handles the gaming and the Playstation brand for Sony, has just announced the acquisition of Audeze.
A name that should be familiar to most of us, Audeze has produced outstanding planar magnetic headphones over the years with the likes of the LCD-2, LCD-i4, CRBN Electrostatic and more. The brand has also dipped its finger into the gaming market in recent years with the LCD-GX, Penrose and Maxwell gaming headsets, so the company should be well-suited to work together with Sony Interactive Entertainment to develop excellent audio gear for gamers.
Before you panic about losing an audiophile brand, Sony Interactive Entertainment has stated that Audeze will continue to operate independently and even continue to develop multi-platform products, which means the headphones will still play nice with other platforms like Xbox. However, it’s almost a given that Audeze will soon release Playstation-branded or exclusive products thanks to the acquisition.
Hideaki Nishino, Senior Vice President, Platform Experience at Sony Interactive Entertainment, told StereoNet:
“Audeze is a premier brand for headphones, and this acquisition highlights Sony Interactive’s focus on innovation and providing the best audio experience to PlayStation players. We’re excited to bring Audeze’s expertise into the PlayStation ecosystem, building on the great strides we’ve made with PlayStation 5’s Tempest 3D AudioTech and the Pulse 3D wireless headset.”
Something worth taking note of is that Sony Interactive Entertainment announced two new gaming audio products a few days ago, the Pulse Explore earbuds and the Pulse Elite headset. Both products will come with planar magnetic drivers, which seems like this deal has been a while in the making and that Audeze had a part in these two products. We reached out to Sony Interactive Entertainment for clarification and the company has confirmed that Audeze was involved in the planar magnetic drivers in both the Pulse Elite and Pulse Explore.
Terms of the acquisition, including the cost, were not disclosed. However, Sankar Thiagasamudram, CEO at Audeze, did note that:
“Sony Interactive provides Audeze with a unique opportunity to scale our business, as we continue with our mission to deliver best-in-class headphones to recording professionals, audiophiles, and gamers.”
We’ll certainly be looking forward to seeing how Playstation’s gaming audio offerings will turn out!
Visit Sony for more information
Cheryl Tan
After diving down the custom IEMs rabbit hole since she was 18, Cheryl has embarked on a long journey trying out as many audio products as possible ever since. She’s still waiting for the day a company can create a pair of true wireless earbuds that sound just as good as wired earphones.
Posted in: Headphones | Industry
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