A tangelo is a delicious citrus fruit. Tangelo Audio is a manufacturer of audio equipment for the professional and consumer markets. We are based in Nova Scotia, Canada.
For music producers who want the edge, Tangelo Audio provides exciting audio effects and mastering tools that will elevate your tracks and mixes above the competition by adding clarity and punch to your sound.
Company History and Summary
Tangelo Audio was established in 2020 and partnered with Synclavier Digital to design the Synclavier Regen desktop synth. Tangelo handled the hardware and mechanical design, and Synclavier brought the software and DSP engine. Following the success of Regen, Tangelo and Synclavier collaborated on several further projects.
Tangelo Audio is led by Craig Phillips, an electronics engineer from England. From a young age, Craig had a keen interest in electronics and a passion for audio. He graduated from Essex University with a degree in Electronic Systems Engineering, and spent many years working across the UK electronics industry in a variety of fields: embedded hardware and software, DSP programming, business database systems, and mobile applications.
Tangelo Audio’s pro market products are tools to help music producers create something special. Our designs straddle the line between analogue and digital audio, often melding the two disciplines within a single product.
A great deal of work goes into every Tangelo Audio product: circuits are simulated, prototyped, tested, listened to, and refined many times over. Mechanical design is carefully considered, not only for appearance but for usability. Software is honed for efficiency and maintainability.
Craig’s design ethos is to keep things as simple as possible for a given goal. Superfluous circuit blocks mean more components that can fail or add distortion, so we use the right topology to get the job done — choosing from the very best of discrete and integrated components available.
Tangelo Audio stands behind its products with a no-quibble return period and a sector-leading warranty. We sell direct globally through our webstore and through selected dealers. We aim to provide excellent customer support, so you can enjoy using our products as much as we enjoy making them.
What’s So Special About Tangelo Audio
Attention to Quality
We source high-quality enclosures and components. A great meal is the marriage of a great recipe, quality ingredients, and a skilled chef — the same is true of audio equipment. To build Tangelo Audio products, we use high-quality enclosures and electronic components throughout.
Sensible Hardware Design
Every product starts with a unique or interesting idea — there’s no point doing what’s already been done. Each design is first proven in simulation, then refined through several iterations on the workbench, where we test, measure, and listen, honing the initial concept as close to perfection as we can.
Our circuit design ethos is to keep things as simple as possible for a given goal. To avoid cluttering the audio path, we use as few gain stages as possible. If a component or circuit block can serve multiple functions, that’s prefered, so long as it doesn’t compromise fidelity; to retain the purity of the audio signal, fewer stages often equates to lower noise and distortion.
We take a practical approach to component choice: where a discrete stage is right, we use discrete components; where an integrated op-amp suits the circuit, we select one with the specs we need. So many brilliant engineers work at chip manufacturers like Texas Instruments and Analog Devices that ignoring their work in favor of all-discrete designs would be a disservice to the circuit.
Once a design matures, we evaluate components rigorously — this can mean auditioning 4 different op-amps or 10 different transistors until we find the one that performs best in that particular circuit.
Anyone who has designed circuits knows there are trade-offs: one approach might excel at CMRR but underperform on THD; another might be more power-hungry but quieter. Every designer has their own preferences, and the right call can vary by product and use case. Broadly speaking, we prioritize low noise and high dynamic range above all else, even where that means sacrificing other attributes.
Where two approaches perform similarly, we choose the one that uses fewer components or costs less — and pass that saving on to you.
Customer Comes First
- Every design decision is made from the perspective of the end user. What functions are needed, where switches should sit, what materials to use — all are considered through the lens of the person who’s going to live with the equipment day to day.
- We offer a 3-year warranty on all our products. Simply put, if something goes wrong within 3 years of purchase, ship it back to us with proof of purchase, and we’ll repair it and send it back. If parts are unavailable for a complete repair, you’ll have the option of a credit toward another similar product.
- We offer a 2-week no-quibble return policy on products purchased direct. If you find within 2 weeks of receiving your product that it isn’t right for you, you can return it — provided it’s undamaged — for a full refund.
- Our products aren’t budget, and they aren’t unobtainium either: they’re high-end, distinctive offerings priced sensibly, reflecting real R&D and BOM costs rather than a boutique markup.
- We manufacture in small batches and are creative in how we source components to manage costs. Low overheads mean that value gets passed straight on to you.
Versatility Baked-In
We design products to be used and loved for years to come — which means they need to be both reliable and versatile.
- ZEST, for example, can be used as a send effect, a mixing insert, or a mastering tool.
- LINK can be used standalone or chained together, expanding wherever your setup requires it.
- A product currently in development can be configured for desktop use or 19″ rack use.