Industry Premium audio | Area served Worldwide | |
Founded July 2013 in New York City, United States Founders Jonathan Levine (CEO) & Vicki Gross Headquarters New York City, United States Key people Vicki Gross, Drew Stone Briggs | ||
Master & Dynamic is a New York-based audio company. Founded in 2013, Master & Dynamic designs and manufactures headphones, earphones, and audio accessories.
Master & Dynamic is geared towards the creative community. Its boom microphone was developed in conjunction with the open space work collective, NeueHouse. They have collaborated with designers and artists such as Proenza Schouler and Poggy, among others, and the company sponsors the arts program at Harlem Village Academies, a public charter school in Harlem. The company also provides resources for musicians through their "In-Residence" program, which allows artists access to an in-house recording studio in addition to coverage on the company's blog, The 10,000.
History
Master & Dynamic was founded by Jonathan Levine and Vicki Gross. Levine had previously launched two consumer product companies, and when his teenage son was unable to find headphones that appealed to him, Levine realized there was an opportunity in the market. He partnered with Gross to establish Master & Dynamic in 2013. He subsequently came across a pair of 1940s headphones at a Washington, DC museum, and because they had been built with durable materials such as leather and metal, they remained intact. Levine then hired Swedish industrial designer Mårten Wallby and together they designed Master & Dynamic's first headphones and earphones. They were constructed with long lasting materials such as stainless steel, heavy grain leather, forged and machined anodized aluminum and woven copper cable.
Marketed as "sound tools for creative minds," Master & Dynamic launched in May 2014 with an initial product line composed of two headphone models and one earphone. The initial reviews from media outlets including CNET, Wired, and Digital Audio News focused on the quality of the design, sound, and build of the earphones and headphones.
Drew Stone Briggs was named chief product officer of Master & Dynamic in 2014. Formerly a senior mechanical engineer at Bose, Briggs led the development of an earphone constructed with solid brass and 8 mm titanium-coated custom drivers. The first run sold out within three days of its November 2015 release, and a second run sold out after positive reviews were published. Master & Dynamic's first wireless headphone was released in December. Wired wrote in December 2015 "there is no better wireless headphone."
In 2014, Master & Dynamic announced that they had teamed with Neuehouse, a multi-disciplnary co-working collective, to develop a noise-isolating microphone for use in open offices and other environments. Working directly with the collective's membership, Master & Dynamic released the final product, a boom mic, in January 2015. They have partnered with Zero Halliburton on an audio toolkit, and the New York-based fashion house Proenza Schouler on a collection of 3 limited-edition headphones. Two hundred of each design were produced.
In November 2015 the company added vegan alcantara headphones. As of May 2016, the Master & Dynamic product line included wireless, over ear and on ear headphones and several earphones.
Master & Dynamic collaborates with artists through In-Residence, a program which launched in September 2015. Artists create new music for the program, which is then promoted through Master & Dynamic's platforms and communities. The musicians are photographed by Erik Madigan Heck, Master & Dynamic's resident creative director, and featured on the company's blog, The 10,000. Access to a recording studio located at Master & Dynamic's New York office is available to In-Residence artists, as well as other musicians.
The company has provided financial support for the Harlem Village Academies arts and music education programs since 2013. Contributions from Master & Dynamic have established HVA High’s foundational art program, which offers 2D and 3D art classes within the high school. Master & Dynamic headphones were provided to allow students to work independently and in small groups in their music classes.