Ensoniq was founded in 1982 in Malvern, Pennsylvania, by engineers including Bob Yannes, Bruce Crockett, Charles Winterble, and Albert Charpentier, who had previously worked at Commodore International and contributed to projects like the SID chip. The company pioneered affordable digital music technology, launching the groundbreaking Mirage sampler in 1985, which brought professional-grade sampling to independent musicians at under $1,700. Building on this success, Ensoniq released innovative synthesizers and samplers throughout the 1980s and 1990s, establishing a reputation for combining power, flexibility, and gritty lo-fi sound character that remains influential.
