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47-724: Leading Technology, Inc., was founded by Pat Terrell and Rick Terrell. Pat had previously founded and ran Byte Shop Northwest —the Pacific Northwest operations of the Byte Shop computer retailer licensed from Paul Terrell —from 1976 until 1985, when it was acquired by PacTel Systems, a subsidiary of Pacific Telesis based in San Francisco , California. After being let go from Byte Shop Northwest in June 1986, Pat Terrell discussed founding Leading Technology upon learning that

94-426: A graphical user interface and file manager for DOS that was aimed at first-time users of personal computers. HyperDOS was mouse and keyboard driven and presented the user a number of index card -shaped buttons through which to perform various commands and view help files that taught the user aspects of personal computing, such as methods of installing software and maintenance the contents of their disks. HyperDOS

141-579: A record player and a wireless radio receiver were usually called radiograms or stereograms in British English , and consoles in American English . Very often these were designed as items of household furniture , with a large wooden cabinet on legs. These units were monaural, and featured a single integrated loudspeaker in the main body of the cabinet. The 1950s and 60s marked the transition from mono to stereophonic sound . Before

188-693: A fast-growing company distributor based in Beaverton, Oregon (not to be confused with the software company Microware ). Leading Technology's first attempts at selling desktop computers in 1985 proved unsuccessful due to the volatile pricing inherent to the IBM PC–compatible desktop market in the mid-1980s, so the company ditched these in favor of high-volume importing and selling of computer peripherals—mostly monitors—manufactured by companies in Korea such as Samsung , Hyundai , and GoldStar . By April 1987,

235-507: A former employee of his had founded a consumer electronics exporting company in Hong Kong, in which he promptly purchased a significant stake. His numerous business contacts earned while running Byte Shop Northwest combined with his newfound contacts in Hong Kong gave Terrell the idea to found an importer of computer products. In late 1985, he co-founded Leading Technology with his brother Rick, who had previously founded Microware Distributors,

282-576: A higher-tech look than most PCs! We figured we weren't just up against other PCs, then, but also stereo equipment, TVs and microwave ovens". As well as the paint job, the main case features rounded off edges with matching feet, emulating the look of contemporary home audio gear. The PC Partners received decent reviews in the computer press and allowed the company to grow to a peak employment of 350 people in 1992. PC Partners were primarily sold at warehouse club chains like Costco , Best Products , and Price Club , as well as electronics superstores. In 1992,

329-426: A lifelike soundstage that mono systems couldn't replicate. The transition from low-powered, high-distortion vacuum tubes to early solid-state transistors and later, to more reliable silicon transistors, marked significant milestones in the evolution of audio technology during this time. The necessity of having suitable separation of the speakers meant that the single cabinet designs evolved into three-box designs, and

376-497: A major national distributor as well as having its own chain of stores. Byte Shop Northwest dominated its geographical area and was acquired by Pacific Bell in 1985 when they elected to get into computer stores. He was portrayed by Brad William Henke in the biopic Jobs . After selling the Byte Store chain, Terrell convinced his friends Ivy and Kauffman of coin-operated video game company Exidy, Inc to design and build

423-404: A manufacturing operation to build its own proprietary BYT-8 Computer which was provided only to the Byte Shop stores. This gave both Byte Inc. and its Byte Shops a better profit margin than could be achieved by just distributing the computers of the other computer manufacturers at the time. In 1977, Terrell sold his chain of 58 Byte Shops to John Peers of Logical Machine Corporation . Many of

470-415: A mini component system, is a compact stereo system that is generally small enough to fit on an average shelf and sold with all necessary components packaged together. They may accept various media or connect to other systems. The systems are usually both small enough to fit on an average shelf (hence their name) and sold with all of their necessary components packaged together, if not outright integrated into

517-529: A percentage of their profits, and soon there were Byte Shops in Hayward , Santa Clara , San Jose , Palo Alto , Fresno , and Portland , Oregon . In March 1976, Terrell incorporated as Byte, Inc. and was one of the four big computer retailers, along with Dick Heisers, ("The Computer Store"), Peachtree in Atlanta, and Dick Brown. The Byte Shop was the first retailer of the original Apple I computer. At

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564-437: Is used to describe the playback equipment favored by audiophiles, which can be purchased from specialized retailers. This equipment can include turntables, digital-to-analog converters, equalization devices, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and techniques such as the optimization of room acoustics. Audiophiles also play music from diverse sources, including vinyl records, CDs, and lossless compressed digital audio files. Audiophiles debate

611-543: The Exidy Sorcerer to compete with the Apple II, Commodore PET and Tandy TRS-80 computers already in the marketplace. The Sorcerer was a modified S-100 bus based machine, but lacked the internal expansion system common to other S-100 systems. It made do with an S-100 expansion card-edge that could connect to an external S-100 expansion cage. The Sorcerer also featured an advanced (for the era) text display that

658-552: The KLH Model Eight were introduced in the 1960s, and followed in the late 1990s and early 2000s by table radios that offered AM/FM stereo reception and CD player functions, such as the Kloss Model 88 and Bose Wave radio. Audiophiles often prioritize high-quality music formats and specialized equipment over more convenient but lower quality options, such as MP3s or low-cost headphones. The term " high-end audio "

705-440: The 1950s and 60s when the term " hi-fi " emerged, highlighting sound accuracy and minimal distortion. Audio equipment evolved from large wooden cabinets to compact units. The 1970s introduced enhancements like quadraphonic sound and technologies like Dolby Pro Logic . This era also saw the rise of component-based stereo systems, and cassette decks too became a staple. Integrated systems, termed "music centers" gained popularity in

752-408: The 1950s, it was during the 1970s and 1980s that these component-based stereo systems became a household staple. During this era, aesthetically appealing but sometimes average-sounding pre-assembled systems were commonly sold. The 1970s saw the inclusion of a deck for playing cassette tapes in addition to the turntable and receiver components. The cassette deck was either a top-loading unit beside

799-506: The 1980s. Table systems and compact radio receivers emerged as entertainment devices, with some offering features like cassette players and CD functionalities. Audiophile systems prioritize high-quality music formats and specialized equipment like premium turntables, digital-to-analog converters, and other high-end devices, with some enthusiasts preferring the unique sound characteristics of vinyl records and vacuum tubes . Modern systems often emphasize home cinema applications to enhance

846-446: The Byte Shop chain of computer stores for 50 of my computers and the payment terms are COD. If you give me the parts on a net 30 day terms I can build and deliver the computers in that time frame, collect my money from Terrell at the Byte Shop and pay you." The credit manager called Paul Terrell and verified the validity of the purchase order. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak and their small team spent day and night building and testing

893-463: The appearance of a stacked component-based system) were popular during the 1980s. These typically included a record deck, tuner, dual cassette deck, amplifier and separate speakers. Some later midi systems also included a CD player in the main unit in addition to the turntable. The compact disc first appeared in the early 1980s, and because they were small, they were increasingly integrated into cheap all-in-one systems. As CD rapidly overtook vinyl in

940-482: The audio experience beyond standard TV speakers. Home audio dates back before electricity, to Edison's phonograph , a monaural , low fidelity sound reproduction format. Early electrical phonographs as well as many other audio formats started out as monaural formats. In addition to playing records on phonographs, consumers in the 1930s and 1940s listened to radio programs on separate radio receivers , often large wooden consoles. Home audio devices containing both

987-503: The audio output from a DVD player or Blu-ray player with a multi-channel power amplifier and anywhere from two speakers and a stereo power amp (for stereo sound) to a 5.1 channel amplifier and five or more surround sound speaker cabinets (with a surround sound system). Whether home cinema enthusiasts have a stereo set-up or a 5.1 channel surround system, they typically use at least one low-frequency subwoofer speaker cabinet to amplify low-frequency effects from movie soundtracks and reproduce

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1034-406: The company offered twenty distinct products and was soon to offer keyboards and modems as well. By September 1987, the company generated $ 1 million in sales per month. Leading Technology moved from an "unimposing" office in a Beaverton business park to cohabit a 77,000-square-foot building downtown with Rick Terrell's erstwhile active Microware in late September 1987. About 15,000 square feet of

1081-455: The company was acquired in full by VTech, who laid off 50 workers at Leading Technology and rebranded the company's offerings under VTech's own Laser brand. Remaining employees of Leading Technology were shortly after absorbed into VTech Computers International Limited, the subsidiary in charge of production of VTech's personal computers active from 1988 to 1997. The PC Partner brand name meanwhile appeared on some models of VTech's PC offerings in

1128-573: The computers and delivered to Terrell on time to pay his suppliers and have a profit left over for their celebration and next order. Terrell grew the enterprise from the first company-owned store in Mountain View, California into a chain of dealerships initially, and eventually into a franchise operation that reached from the United States to Japan. Byte, Inc. was not only involved in the expansion of its retail chain of stores but began

1175-450: The consumer retail space. In designing the flagship PC Partner, the company stressed aesthetics, coloring the computers in cool gray with purple and teal accents. William O'Neill, Leading Technology's vice president of sales, perceived the traditional beige box appearance of PCs as increasingly antiquated when compared to consumer appliances of the late 1980s and early 1990s. Said O'Neil: "We saw that we were competing with appliances that had

1222-450: The early 1990s, the addition of a bulky record player (common in midi-style systems) was discontinued. Resulting bookshelf-sized "mini" systems became more compact, which helped popularize the integrated hi-fi system. Digital Audio Tape (DAT) emerged in the mid-1980s and 1990s, envisioned as the next step after cassettes, just as CDs were seen as the successors to vinyl records. While DAT gained some traction in countries such as Japan and

1269-604: The first personal computer retailer shop. He helped popularize personal computing to the hobbyist and home computing markets, and was the first retailer to sell an Apple Computer , the Apple I . Paul Terrell started the Byte Shop in Mountain View, California in December 1975. By January, he was approached by individuals who wanted to open their own stores. He signed dealership agreements with them, whereby he would take

1316-453: The late 80's. Dolby Pro Logic is one of the oldest processors, creating four channels, and Dolby Pro Logic IIx is one of the newest, creating seven or eight discrete channels. Competing technologies have complicated the purchasing decisions of consumers. The term music centre came into common use when all-in-one integrated systems, also known as shelf stereos or mini component systems , became popular. " Midi "-style systems (mimicking

1363-536: The main box could become much smaller. By the beginning of the 1970s systems were starting to be made of plastic and other materials rather than wood. With the evolution of technology and the emergence of diverse home audio formats, younger audiences shifted from integrated systems and opted for expansive modular units or "component systems" comprising amplifiers, speakers, radios, turntables, and devices for tapes and later CDs. While audiophiles had been handpicking individual components to craft premium audio setups since

1410-414: The merits of analog vs. digital sound, and despite the digital age, vinyl records and vacuum tubes remain popular among audiophiles due to their unique sound characteristics. While many audiophile techniques are grounded in objective criteria, the perceived sound quality is subjective, leading to some techniques being based on pseudoscientific principles. Modern home cinema systems typically augment

1457-400: The mid-1990s. In 1997, VTech agreed to spin off VTech Computers International into an entirely separate company and exit the personal computer market. The resulting company was named PC Partner Limited (later PC Partner Global Limited), resurrecting the name of Leading Edge's budget PC line. Byte Shop Paul Terrell is an American businessman. In December 1975, he founded Byte Shop ,

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1504-465: The new building was dedicated to office space for Leading Technology, while another 35,000 was dedicated to warehousing and assembly of the company's products. By mid-1990, the company, which now employed 85 people from Beaverton, began selling PC-compatible computer systems again, albeit monitors remained their top-selling product—the company moving roughly 40,000 monitor units a month that year, compared to between 10,000 and 15,000 computer systems over

1551-471: The original Byte Shop dealers eventually became independent as the personal computer marketplace grew and became segmented by the various uses and applications the PC was developing. Hobby computer stores were becoming business centers and IBM was entering the market with a computer of its own which over time would become the standard in the industry. Byte Shops of Arizona became MicroAge Computers and developed into

1598-615: The popularity of streaming platforms such as Spotify and YouTube surpassing MP3 -centric platforms. These systems have shifted the traditional central stereo setup to multiple individual speaker units distributed across homes, all manageable through computer and mobile applications. Beginning approximately in the 1950s, a number of magazines devoted to hi-fi enthusiasts and aficionados seeking to assemble an ideal home audio system arose, such as High Fidelity , Audio , Gramophone , The Absolute Sound , Stereophile , and The Boston Audio Society Speaker . Among these, Stereo Review

1645-469: The same duration. Revenues grew from $ 60 million in revenue in 1989 to $ 200 million in 1990. After receiving a capital infusion worth between $ 9.5 million to $ 12.5 million in fall 1990, the company sold a 50-percent equity interest in the company to the Hong Kong–based VTech , who had manufactured some of the company's products. In November 1990, the company released HyperDOS,

1692-693: The same physical enclosure. Shelf stereos may accept different types of media. Many stereos come with or have the ability to connect to other systems. These can feature media inputs and external connections for radios , cassettes, CDs, MP3 players, Bluetooth devices, USB flash memory drives , Satellite radios and turntables. A table radio is a small, self-contained radio receiver used as an entertainment device. Most such receivers are limited to radio functions, though some have compact disc or audio cassette players and clock radio functions built in; some models also include shortwave or satellite radio functionality. High performance table radios such as

1739-527: The sonic realism of music playback in homes. This period was characterized by home audio enthusiasts emphasis on achieving the highest quality sound reproduction possible, and the term "hi-fi" became popular shorthand for this pursuit. By the early 1960s, stereo had become the new standard, offering listeners an immersive experience with left and right channels, as well as a phantom “center” channel. This two-channel system introduced concepts like imaging, left-right panning, three-dimensionality, and depth, creating

1786-495: The time Steve Jobs was planning to sell bare circuit boards for $ 40, but Terrell told him that he would be interested in the machine only if it came fully assembled, and promised to order 50 of the machines and pay $ 500 each on delivery. Jobs contacted Cramer Electronics to order the components he needed to assemble the Apple I Computer. When asked how he was going to pay for the parts, he replied, "I have this purchase order from

1833-415: The turntable or a front-loading unit mounted on a deeper front panel. Quadraphonic sound was released in 1970 and never gained much popularity. It was a four-channel reproduction system, which is considered to be the origin of surround sound . It was recorded on phonograph, tape, and a few CDs , and required a quadraphonic player for playback. Surround sound formats became available to consumers in

1880-425: The widespread adoption of stereo technology, the home audio landscape was dominated by mono systems. The term "hi-fi," an abbreviation for high fidelity, was coined during this era to describe audio systems that aimed to reproduce sound with high accuracy and minimal distortion. The vinyl LP became popular during the 1950s, and the availability of affordable components such as turntables, speakers and amplifiers enhanced

1927-567: Was capable of 64 characters per line, when most systems supported only 40 characters. The Sorcerer did not support sound, color, or in some respects, graphics, which seems at odds with the company's video game background; however, the characters it displayed were programmable by the user. The Sorcerer made its debut at the Long Beach Computer Show in April 1978 at $ 895 and generated a 4,000 unit back-log on introduction. The system

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1974-486: Was included with all of Leading Technology's computer systems but was also released as a standalone retail package that year. Version 2.0 of HyperDOS, released in April 1991, added sound playback, with prerecorded narration supplementing the on-screen text. Leading Edge subsequently re-launched their computer systems in earnest by establishing the PC Partner brand of low-cost desktops and laptops in 1991, their push into

2021-806: Was never very popular in North America, but found a following in Australia and Europe, notably the Netherlands where the Teleac (broadcaster) used the Exidy Sorcerer for the course Microprocessors. The main importer, Compudata later Tulip Computers , licensed the computer and sold it under their own name until 1983. Exidy licensed the Sorcerer computer and its software to a Texas-based startup called Dynasty Computer Corporation in 1979. It

2068-420: Was notable for its lab test reports, listening evaluations, and new equipment reviews by Julian Hirsch . Buying guides such as What Hi-Fi? focus on news and reviews of stereo speakers, TVs, amplifiers, headphones, soundbars, projectors, tablets and turntables. A modern home audio system can vary in complexity, but the following are common components found in many setups. The shelf stereo, also known as

2115-588: Was relabeled and sold by Dynasty as the Dynasty Smart-Alec. Paul Terrell started ComputerMania Inc. which was a chain of computer stores created with the purpose of renting computers and software. Computer Retailer Magazine did a feature article on the viability of renting computers and software to the public prior to the passing of legislation in Congress which outlawed the rental of software because of software piracy issues. Hardware rental, however,

2162-456: Was unaffected by this decision and continued to flourish into a multibillion-dollar industry. Home audio Home audio refer to audio consumer electronics designed for home entertainment, such as integrated systems like shelf stereos, as well as individual components like loudspeakers and surround sound receivers. The evolution of home audio began with Edison's phonograph , transitioning from monaural to stereophonic sound in

2209-420: Was used as a computer storage format, it didn't achieve widespread acceptance, mainly due to the dominance of CDs. MiniDisc was created for sound aficionados seeking a compact design with the ability to record, similar to cassettes, but its success was limited due to the appearance of writeable CD technology. Streaming music stereo, smart speakers , and wireless speakers emerged in the 1990s and 2000s with

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