About Sonus faberOur history

Sonus faber history

A legacy of craftsmanship, tradition, and innovation
in musical design and technology.

Origins

Early days

The Sonus faber story began with a singular goal: to create a speaker system of superior musical quality out of natural materials and design.

From this dream, a pair of passionate audiophiles developed the Snail Project — a loudspeaker that could embody the essence, spirit, and voice of music. With only ten prototypes, crafted entirely of different types of wood, the Snail took inspiration from Leonardo Da Vinci’s sketchbooks.

Finding beauty in symmetry, a pair of satellite speakers extended from the Snail’s central unit in an all-in-one design that immediately garnered attention for both its visual and sonic brilliance. WIth its unique creativity, the Snail Project formed the prologue in the ever-evolving Sonus faber story.

Crafting High-End audio equipment

The Snail Project validated the belief that a sound system must not only faithfully reproduce music, but it must match the audio experience with a refined aesthetic. This tenet laid the foundation for the next four decades of acoustic artisanship.

1983-1992

building a legacy

The first Sonus faber artisan workshop was built on the hills of Vicenza in 1983. 
From its inception, Sonus faber was born out of a passion for faithfully reproducing music through both sonic and visual beauty.
Sonus faber’s first product: Parva.
Natural materials, treated and assembled by the hands of expert craftsmen, have been part of our DNA throughout our evolution. The first Sonus faber creations, made of solid walnut wood and leather, garnered international attention, and paved a path forward that has always remained faithful to our origins.
Minima, Electa and Electa Amator, and Parva.

1993 - 2003

our design takes shape

The next decade marked the first turning point for Sonus faber, as we began to embrace not only natural materials but also the shape of classic hand-crafted instruments.
Wood. A natural material for a natural sound.
Grounded in an intensive study of Italian luthiers (Italian violin makers), techniques focused on the development of our signature lute-shaped designs. Drawing inspiration from Italian legends such as Andrea Amati, crafter of the oldest-surviving violin, and Antonio Stradivari, who is universally acknowledged as history’s greatest violin maker, the lute shape is at the heart of our traditions.
Perfecting the lute shape.
Sonus faber introduced Guarneri Homage, the first ever high-fidelity speaker with a cabinet structure inspired by the lute. Named for Giuseppe Guarneri, a luthier of the Golden Age of violin-making, it gave birth to one of our most iconic reference points.
Guarneri Homage, Stradivari Homage, Amati Homage
At the end of this decade, the Sonus faber headquarters moved to Arcugnano into the current violin-shaped building, uniquely designed to create a space that would inspire our creations.
Sonus faber headquarters in Arcugnano.
Designed by the renowned Studio Albanese, a Vicenza-based architecture studio, the original space had no concrete walls inside — only transparent divisions to let natural light seep into every space. Built on a belief in the power of the natural flow of energy, our new home embraced the philosophy of Natural Sound.

2004 - 2013

researching our way forward

Sonus faber's design continues to evolve through the expansion of the research and development department. Die cast aluminum, now a key material in Sonus faber audio equipment thanks to its strength and durability, was incorporated for the first time in this decade.
Details of die cast aluminum.
Additionally, with new technological advancements in driver design, internal structure solutions, and crossover implementations, Sonus faber affirms its authority in the world of high-end audio equipment with the first generation of Aida. Named for Giuseppe Verdi’s operatic masterpiece, Aida was the first speaker entirely designed and engineered by the current R&D team.
Unveiling new drivers and the first generation of Aida.
At the foundation of the Design Lab are our skilled technicians with a passion for artistry. From the initial stages of our designers’ creative development to the final measurements taken by our acoustic engineers, our Lab was founded under the principle that every phase of creation should take place under the same roof.

2014 - 2023

branching out

While maintaining a home base in Vicenza, Italy, Sonus faber looks to the future through global connectedness. In addition to expanding product categories through the inclusion of custom installation and active loudspeakers, Sonus faber developed new partnerships in the automotive and marine industries, bringing our values and artistry to a wider audience and strengthening our authority in the luxury world.
Through our first automotive partnership with collaboration on the Pagani Huayra, the Sonus faber and Pagani Research and Development teams worked together to assemble and tune each individual car sound system by hand.
Pagani Huayra’s premium high-end audio system.
A partnership with Maserati furthered our commitment to Italian luxury and performance through our collaboration on the Maserati Gran Turismo, Grecale, and MC20. We then brought our Natural Sound to the sea through collaboration with Wally yachts.
Sonus faber’s elegance fuses with Maserati’s power.
Additionally, since 2014, Sonus faber exclusively began designing our own drivers.
While we had previously relied on standard models produced by prestigious manufacturers, we shifted to an original design in every part of the driver, including the membranes, baskets, and magnets. In this way, we make sure that every part of our design adheres to our signature philosophy.

HAVE YOU HEARD?

Immerse yourself in a world of Sonus faber listening, by subscribing to our newsletter.

Subscribe

Sonus faber is present in over 50 countries worldwide.
Find your closest store.

Sonus faber SPA

Via Antonio Meucci, 10
36057 – Arcugnano (Vicenza) Italy

Social
Sonus faber
  • P.I. 08764320019
  • © 2024 Sonus faber