Schaller GmbH
TypeGmbH (private limited company)
Industrymusical instrument hardware
Founded1945
Headquarters
Postbauer-Heng
,
Germany
OwnerDr. Lars Bünning (owner and CEO)[1]
Number of employees
about 100
Websiteschaller.info

Schaller GmbH is a German manufacturer of musical instrument hardware based in Postbauer-Heng near Nuremberg, Bavaria. It designs, produces and sells guitar tuners, bridges, tremolos, strap locks, and other accessories primarily for guitars. Schaller was founded in Feucht near Nuremberg in 1945 by Helmut Schaller as a radio repair shop. Since then, Schaller has developed into one of the most highly regarded suppliers for the music instrument industry. Dr. Lars Bünning has been the company's owner since 2009.

History

First Advertisement of Schaller for Pickups
First Advertisement of Schaller for Pickups

The Schaller company was founded in 1945 by Helmut Schaller (1923–1999). Helmut Schaller was a toolmaker and a radio master mechanic. His radio repair shop prospered in the 1950s. During that time, another department was formed, dedicated to the development of amplifiers and speakers, which turned out to be so successful that the entire company was restructured and renamed "Schaller Electronic". Echos and reverb devices were soon added to their portfolio.[2]

By 1953, Schaller had begun manufacturing electronic guitar components such as pickups and switches for Fred Wilfer's guitar company Framus in Bubenreuth, Bavaria.[3]

A couple of years later, other German guitar manufacturers such as Höfner, Hopf and Hoyer also became customers. By the 1960s, American guitar makers, including Fender, Gibson, C. F. Martin and Ovation, started to rely on Schaller products for their guitars and basses.[4][5][6][7][8][9]

Schaller M6 Machine Head
Schaller M6 Machine Head

At the same time, Schaller extended its portfolio to tremolos (1961), bridges (1962) and machine heads (1966). The "M6" tuning machine made a mark as the world's first fully enclosed and self-locking precision tuner.[10]

In 1968, Schaller moved about 15 kilometers from Feucht to Postbauer-Heng into a new site. A new production facility was set up in order to meet the rising demand for Schaller products.[11]

The product portfolio was constantly expanded in the 1970s. The "M4" bass tuners, various bridges, including the "TOM" bridges for Gibson guitars, and numerous other variants of pickups ("Golden 50", "S6", "T6" etc.) were added.[12]

In addition, Schaller was coming up with many product designs on its own. Renowned guitar makers therefore came in touch with Schaller and were convinced to equip their guitars with components from Schaller. In 1977, Floyd D. Rose[13] uttered the idea of a double-locking tremolo system. After a joint workshop (that lasted for about three months) Schaller was able to develop this novel tremolo. The first prototype was produced soon after.

Due to a lack of demand, at the beginning of the 1980s, the company ceased the production of loudspeakers, amplifiers and reverberators. The core business shifted to metal components for guitars. In 1981 a new product was designed and patented in this respect: the security lock,[14] a part that helps provide a secure connection between guitar and strap. It has been Schaller's most-sold product since then.

The product portfolio steadily expanded during the 1980s and 1990s. This came to a stop after both Helmut Schaller and his son René Schaller died (in 1999 resp. in 1998). Until the late 1990s violin accessories were added to the portfolio as well as cables, and even special spinning machines for strings and ball ends; however, the newly introduced products did not achieve the same success as the earlier guitar components.[15]

The era from 1999 to 2006 was a vital period for the company, since a community of heirs ran the company then. Grete Schaller (1926–2007), Helmut Schaller's widow, tried to lead the company without being able to generate new impetus, without providing ideas for new products, and without modernizing the production facility at Postbauer-Heng. This led to the company to stagnate.[16]

New Schaller

In August 2006, the Schaller company was legally and financially restructured. It was renamed to a limited liability company ("GmbH") by a partnership. Subsequently, Dr. Lars Bünning became managing director of the company in December 2006. In January 2009, Dr. Bünning took over the shares of the GmbH belonging to the Schaller family, and has since then acted as both owner and CEO. Further restructuring occurred after 2007.

Current Schaller products

Machine heads

  • GrandTune Series
  • M4 Series
  • M6 Series
  • F-Series
  • Da Vinci
  • BM Series
  • Lyra
  • Hauser

Bridges and tailpieces

  • Signum
  • Hannes
  • TOM- and 3D-bridges
  • STM and GTM Gibson Les Paul replacement bridges, and accompanying tailpiece

Tremolos

  • LockMeister
  • Schaller
  • Vintage series
  • SureClaw spring tensioner

Accessories

  • S-Locks
  • "Flagship" preamp
  • "Oyster" piezo pickup
  • Megaswitches
  • Covers and frames for pickups

The production of pickups by Schaller was discontinued in 2017.

The shift towards machine heads and metal hardware resulted in the company being renamed from "Schaller Electronic" to "Schaller GmbH". All Schaller products are manufactured in the Schaller factory in Postbauer-Heng. Schaller customers are both guitar manufacturers and musicians.

References

  1. ↑ schaller.info: Imprint
  2. ↑ "Why Top Guitar Makers Demand Schaller". The Music Trades: 80. October 1990.
  3. ↑ Hoyer, Christian (2007). Framus. Built in the Heart of Bavaria. The History of a German Musical Instrument Maker 1946-1977. Markneukirchen: Framus Warwick. pp. 67–73.
  4. ↑ "Why Top Guitar Makers Demand Schaller". The Music Trades: 82. October 1990.
  5. ↑ Hunter, Dave (2013). The Fender Stratocaster. The Life & Times of the World's Greatest Guitar. p. 219.
  6. ↑ Duchossior, A. R. (1991). The Fender Telecaster. The Detailed Story of America's Senior Solid Body Electric Guitar. Milwaukee. p. 23.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ↑ Bacon, Tony (2010). 60 Year of Fender. Six Decades of the Greatest Electric Guitars. p. 64.
  8. ↑ Ingram, Adrian (1997). The Gibson L5. p. 107.
  9. ↑ Boak, Richard Johnston and Dick (2009). Martin Guitars: A Technical Reference. Milwaukee. p. 13.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  10. ↑ "Trade Fair Review". Das Musikinstrument: 447. 1967.
  11. ↑ "Fabrikeinweihung der Firma Schaller". Musikhandel. 3: 115. 1968.
  12. ↑ "On Gibson bridges by Schaller". Das Musikinstrument: 1480. November 1977.
  13. ↑ Bacon, Tony (2000). Electric Guitars. The Illustrated Encyclopedia. San Diego. p. 226.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  14. ↑ German Patent Office: "Offenlegungsschrift", dated 11 May 1989; Nr.: DE 29 33 845 C2
  15. ↑ Schaller's official catalogue, dated 2005, still contains violin accessories and cables.
  16. ↑ Schaller's official product catalogue, dated 2005, p. 67: "Helmut Schaller's Vision"
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