Westone Audio and Etymotic acquired by Fidelity Collective — new ownership, familiar faces
Both brands closed under Fidelity Collective on May 15. CEO is Sam Roney (Dekoni, Grell, Dark Matter Audio Labs), COO is Tal Kocen — who previously worked directly with both Westone and Etymotic. Gary Boyer stays on as EVP, so there’s actual continuity here rather than a clean-slate corporate takeover.
The stated plan: rebuild Dallas sales ops, re-establish Chicago engineering and lab facilities, invest in R&D. They’re framing it as “startup energy applied to legacy brands” rather than a pivot or rebrand.
Etymotic’s ER4 remains one of the most referenced IEMs for accuracy and isolation. Westone’s custom monitor lineage is deep in the pro musician world. Whether this acquisition actually produces something worth talking about depends on execution — but at least the people involved know what these brands actually are.
More product announcements expected in the coming months.