Sweetwater's relationship with Alesis runs back to their early days, when this innovative company first began to provide entry-level musicians with the kind of gear that leveled the ground between modest home-recording rigs and professional studio systems. Many of the staff at Sweetwater began with small project studios, which is one of the reasons we've always appreciated this company. Today, Alesis makes everything from studio monitors to electronic drum sets, all furthering their ongoing legacy.
To understand what makes Alesis such an important music gear manufacturer, it's important to go back to the early '80s, when they began using innovative semiconductor chip technology to bring down the cost of popular types of studio equipment. In fact, they really hit their stride with the introduction of the MidiVerb, the first professional 16-bit effects processor that cost less than $1000. They followed that up with a series of affordable drum machines and synthesizers.
From there, the transition to studio gear was a natural next step, and Alesis released some mixers and studio monitors. In 1991, Alesis had the breakthrough that made them a household name: the ADAT. Featuring a price tag less than a tenth of an average contemporary digital recorder, the ADAT even used cheap Super VHS tapes, bringing full-scale recording to a much wider audience than ever. It would not be an understatement to say that the Alesis ADAT kicked off the project studio era and began the home-recording revolution that completely reshaped the industry.
Ten years after the release of the ADAT, Alesis joined the inMusic group and began expanding the scope of their products. That's when their focus on electronic percussion took off. While we were still outfitting plenty of Sweetwater customers with highly successful digital recording systems, such as the HD24 and MasterLink, the legacy of the legendary DM5 drum module (introduced in '95) had kicked off Alesis's digital drum and percussion line. These eventually grew into Alesis's popular full-scale electronic drum kits.
What's next for Alesis? The staff at Sweetwater has seen Alesis go in several directions over the years, and we're always excited to see what they come up with next. Whether that's an innovative solution for iOS recording, a powerful new MIDI controller, or the next wave of digital percussion instruments, we're sure to see the quality and consistency Sweetwater has come to expect from Alesis.
