David Manley

Recording/mastering engineer and designer of audiophile valve/tube equipment. Born 26 August 1939 in Cape Town, South Africa the son of a British Royal Engineer, David had an apprenticeship at the EMI Research, Engineering, Design & Development laboratories and eventually advanced into the EMI / Abbey Road classical recording division. Following a return to South Africa at the age of 19, he entered into a partnership at Ernest Fleischmann's studio and eventually took it over, renaming it to Manley van Niekerk Studios, Johannesburg. He designed all studio (tube) equipment and acoustics and soon operated several branches and a record pressing factory. David also took on the role of director-cameraman for many of his studio's commercial projects including numerous commercials and a year's episodes for the BBC "Survival" television series. In 1969 he sold his companies to Teal Records, sat on their board, then got involved with writing a weekly column for the newspaper and opening a hi-fi store out of his mansion home. David eventually moved his assets out of South Africa in the form of two sail boats and set up the "Vacuum Tube Logic" company in London, England. Together with his eldest son, Luke, he expanded into the USA and in 1987 founded Vacuum Tube Logic of America, Inc. Offshoot label ViTaL and the Manley Laboratories followed soon after "to showcase the sound of his recording equipment and demonstrate his minimalist live-to-2-track recording techniques. He built a 30' x 40' studio from the ground up, designed and built every element of the recording and playback / monitor chain." The label, masters and cutting lathe were sold to Giulio Cesare Ricci in 1994. In 1996 David decided to retire, bailed to France to live on a houseboat and got married a sixth time. In 2003 he co-founded the Parisian Marwan Manley Mastering studio. David Manley died of a heart attack on 26 December 2012 in a hospital near his home in Varrennes-Jarcy, France.