This image-led hardback explores high-end audio as industrial design, not just as sound equipment.

It looks at why amplifiers, turntables, speakers, vacuum tubes, reel-to-reels, and complete hi-fi systems became objects of obsession for collectors, audiophiles, and design fans.

Gideon Schwartz traces the story from the 1950s through to the present day, following the evolution of top-of-the-line audio equipment and the continuing appeal of analogue technology.

The book is especially good on the relationship between performance and appearance, showing how technical ambition often produced some of the most distinctive product design of the last century.

Schwartz writes from deep inside the subject. He founded the ultra-high-end New York audio company Audioarts, and has built music systems for exacting clients across music, fashion, art, and the wider creative industries.

The result is a specialist reference book with broad visual appeal, suited to anyone interested in sound, collecting, analogue culture, or the design language of serious audio equipment.

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