HISTORY

In the very begining

Way back in 1997 was when John Cheadle and Steve Elford first met, and started discussing their ideas.  Steve had been experimenting with acoustics in hi-fi components at that time (as well as doing lots of electronic upgrades on friends hi-fi gear) whilst John was designing for AudioCom and Marston Audio. 

Vertex AQ was formed in 1999

After 2 years spent developing the technology, products and business ideas, Vertex AQ first started doing business in 1999 - we made our first few sales (the mk1 Jaya) towards the end of that year. 

The early years

We carried on developing our technology and products into a good range of support platforms, cables and mains filters.  We had ironed-out most of the business issues, and our products were very repeatable, robust and reliable.  We had secured a few more UK dealers and the orders were slowly, but consistently, trickling in. 

In 2002 we thought we ought to try out some hi-fi shows, and had just enough in our budget to afford 2 shows a year.  With small demo rooms, we plied our wares, and people came in, and genuinely liked what they heard - which was very encouraging! One visitor to our listening room in September 2003 was Paul Messenger (PM), who liked what he heard so much invited us over to his place to 'prove it'. 

This invite to PM's turned out to be a major break for us.  PM was stunned by our products and their unified approach to system problems - so he wrote a review for hi>fi+.  You can download this review (our first), called 'Just Like Busses', from the Review section of this website.  However, it didn't end there, PM also nominated us for a hi>fi+ product of the year award in 2004.  We got a nice framed picture and an award writeup (see Reviews again).

Between 1999 and 2005 Vertex AQ operated as a 'Sole Trader' under Steve Elford's name - but things soon went up another gear.

Incorporation

As a result of winning the hi>fi+ award at the end of 2004, business started increasing significantly, so during the early part of 2005 we decided to become an incorporated company. This puts the business on a firmer legal footing, reducing the personal liability of the business owners, but also offering more protection to customers too.

Continual development

Since 2005 we have continually increased our annual investment in the development of our technical principles and their applications to new products.  Our product range has expanded, with both higher performance products in our cable ranges (such as the HiRez interconnects) and support platforms.  Perhaps most significantly however, our mains products have taken a great leap forward with the introduction of the Taga distribution/filter block and the stunning Elbrus balanced PSU.  Please see products section for full details of these items.

WHAT WE ARE DOING NOW

Demand and Manufacturing

We are very pleased that our products are now constantly in demand.  We have had enjoyed outstanding press coverage (see reviews) in the last couple of years.  And their interest in what we do gets ever stronger.  We also have good dealers who understand how well the Vertex products work, and more importantly, how to use them to great effect in all maner of systems.  But finally, the demand for our products only comes from customers.  And we have a great many of those who have been completely blown away by the Vertex experience - just read the customer testimonials section and you'll see what we mean.

The core of our business is manufacturing, and every product in the range is hand-built.