Yamaha buys Line 6

AlanRatcliffe

We live in interesting times... ?

YAMAHA CORP to fully acquire Line 6 Inc
Friday, 20 Dec 2013 03:00am EST

YAMAHA CORP:Says it will establish a new subsidiary to merge with Line 6 Inc.Says Line 6 Inc will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the company after the merger. Says the acquisition procedures will be completed by the end of Jan. 2014.

Source: http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/7951.T/key-developments/article/2891556

From Line 6:

Line 6 to be Acquired by Yamaha Corporation

Yamaha Corporation’s acquisition of Line 6, Inc. creates a powerful force to drive innovation and inspire musicians.
CALABASAS, CA – 20.Dec 2013 - Yamaha Corporation and Line 6, Inc. today announced a definitive agreement for Yamaha to acquire Line 6, a leading manufacturer of innovative solutions for musicians. The acquisition expands Yamaha’s portfolio of modeling guitar processing products as well as pro-audio equipment, and offers new and exciting opportunities for accelerated growth for both companies.
Line 6 products have been at the cutting edge of digital audio development for musicians and audio professionals since the company pioneered the digital modeling guitar amplifier in 1996. Line 6 continues to deliver innovation and excellence across its industry-leading portfolio, including POD® multi-effect processors, digital effects, guitar amplifiers, modeling guitars, a range of professional instrument and microphone digital wireless systems, digital live sound mixers, speakers, as well as iOS interfaces.
Under the terms of the agreement, Yamaha will operate Line 6 as a wholly owned subsidiary to fully realize the compelling opportunities for the two brands with Line 6’s operations continuing as before and its management team remaining in place.
“I am very happy that Line 6, which has been creating innovative products and creating new market opportunities consistently over its history, will become a member of the Yamaha group. We look forward to accelerating our growth strategy by pursuing the beneficial effects from both companies and by utilizing Line 6’s core brand power centered on guitarists that is so highly regarded worldwide as well as its unique technology, planning and development capabilities” said Mr. Takuya Nakata, President of Yamaha Corporation.
“For over 30 years of developing products, and even further back to my earliest memories as a developing musician, Yamaha has been the brand for which I have always had the most respect,” said Line 6 co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Marcus Ryle. “Yamaha has consistently set the standard in our industry for quality and innovation, and I am very proud for Line 6 to now be a part of this incredible legacy.”
"Yamaha’s acquisition of Line 6 will help accelerate the realization of our vision to drive innovation for musicians across the globe,” said Line 6 CEO and President Paul Foeckler. “We’re proud that Yamaha recognizes the innovation and value in our people, IP and processes and we’re excited about the opportunities ahead to expand our reach”
Outline of agreement

Based on the resolutions adopted by the Line 6 board of directors on December 19 and the Yamaha board of directors on December 20, a definitive agreement has been executed regarding the acquisition of all of the capital stock of Line 6.
Yamaha will acquire all of the capital stock of Line 6 owned by the founders, venture funds and employees.
The transaction is expected to be completed during January 2014 after receipt of customary regulatory approvals.

Wells Fargo Securities, LLC served as financial advisor to Line 6, Inc. and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to Line 6, Inc.

Keira-WitherKay

Just read that yamaha has just bought the line 6 company ......

Not sure to what extent yamaha will get involved but i seldom have seen a bad yamaha product , their electronic gear is legendary for being top studio quality so with a mother company like yamaha , line 6 may benefit greatly

but time will tell

AlanRatcliffe

Keira WitherKay wrote: Just read that yamaha has just bought the line 6 company ......

Yes. If you'd looked, you could have read it here too. ? I've merged the two topics...

their electronic gear is legendary for being top studio quality

I got put off their electronics years ago: the local backup was terrible (even post Tradelius) and Yamaha have always done things their own way, from their own part numbers for simple electronic parts and reverse polarity on power supplies to things that made them incompatible with other gear (sometimes catastrophically - ask me). The part number thing meant that if a part was needed chances were good you'd have to wait anywhere from six months to a year (or, in some cases, two) for a replacement. If the part was unavailable from Yamaha, you were stuffed...

I've been told that backup is better now, but I still lean more to the Roland gear for safeties sake. Roland have had them on the back foot for synths since Yamaha phased out the DX's and they lost a lot of ground in the pro audio market - only recently clawing their way back at the budget end of the market with things like the MG series. They still have the home keyboards and often come up with some great products like the the Pacifica and silent guitars, THR amps, etc., but they are not the global behemoth in the music industry they once were - IMO...

Keira-WitherKay

Alan , odd you sound so negative about yamaha .... The international site i read it on had nothing but praise for yamaha quality and did however mention yamaha might just take and develop the products it wants from line 6 and discontinue the rest .... But their tone was decidedly more positive ... Maybe yamaha service is better in europe and usa than here.... Anyway i must say personally from yamaha digital mixers to their classical guitars i have never found yamaha to be anything but top drawer ... And btw none of my yamaha products ever needed to be repaired so maybe i'm lucky ... Guess this gives em a foothold in the stompbox market (no pun intended) which yamaha have kinda neglected.... Anyway time will tell.......

sharonzaz

i seldom have seen a bad yamaha product

true but for the exception of their PA systems, shocking, just absolutely crappy stupid full of problems and sound wise just baaaaaaaad.

just about every OTHER product of yamaha that ive used is top notch.

AlanRatcliffe

Keira WitherKay wrote: Alan , odd you sound so negative about yamaha ....

Not really. Bad experiences'll do that to ya... It's not just me either - I know a few electronics workshops that won't touch Yamaha keyboards because they tend to pile up waiting for parts. As I said, I've been told things have improved lately, but my well was poisoned years ago.

But I still love their guitars (aside from the real cheap nylons, where other manufacturers offer better bang for buck) - I still miss my GD20 (although If I could get a Tak Hirade H8 I wouldn't). And yeah - a Yamaha MG mixer far outstrips a Behri or other cheapy mixer, but the brand doesn't feature much on the pro audio market any more - which may be more why they acquired L6 than the modelling amp thing - Line 6 have some pretty nifty patents in that area.

Still, it's early days yet and any conjecture about what is going to happen with L6 is exactly that - pure conjecture. No-one knows for sure what they are going to do yet.

Squonk

sharonzaz wrote:
i seldom have seen a bad yamaha product
true but for the exception of their PA systems, shocking, just absolutely crappy stupid full of problems and sound wise just baaaaaaaad.

just about every OTHER product of yamaha that ive used is top notch.

I have a Yamaha Stagepas 300 PA System and it's the bollocks!

Big-G

I actually think this news is a good thing, and hope it brings a boost to Line 6's future developments. It would be somewhat shortsighted of Yamaha to strip the company of its assets and tech, and bury the company, even if they intergrated this with their own products, as I think the Line6 products have a decent following that would be alienated by such action, and ultimately would cost Yamaha dearly in the long run.

I doubt this will be the case though, and I think that Yamaha will actually develop the company to go further, effectively bankrolling the development of new products under the Line 6 brand. At least this is what I'd hope for.

sharonzaz wrote: true but for the exception of their PA systems, shocking, just absolutely crappy stupid full of problems and sound wise just baaaaaaaad.

just about every OTHER product of yamaha that ive used is top notch.

For the past two years I've ran seven of the yamaha P2500s power amps with no hassles, and they've been used week in week out. Three of those amps have been in service even longer now, for around 4 to 5 years, without a single hickup, and they have proved to be the quietest (in terms of background noise) and most reliable amps I've ever used, and I've used a lot. They sound very decent, and whilst they may not be classed as serious 'Pro Audio', my experience of them would make me chose them over any other brand first. I've also been using two MG24 mixers, and had no issues other than one channels preamp becoming noisy. I suspect this was user error by one of my 'volunteers' causing the pre to overload, but again these desks are used week in week out at my church, and we really do use them to their fullest. Add to that a pair of R112 PA speakers again used for the past two and a half years, and I have to say my confidence in Yamaha has been greatly enhanced. Sure the R112's are not amazing PA speakers, and certainly don't fall into Pro Audio, but for the budget they fall into, I'm not sure there is much to compete with them out there? They've provided decent sound on a tight budget for my church's 'mobile' venue, and given me no reason to want to upgrade them (at least no more than normal GAS), and without spending big bucks, I'm not sure what could replace them?

Anyway, thats my experience and 2c worth.

Regards
G!

IceCreamMan

I love my Yamaha.......Tenere 660 mean machine of note... Lol

Not sure this buyout is a good thing to be honest...line 6 are making excellent kit and hope the big Y don't meddle with it....I suspect they will though ...

Time will tell, interesting development all round

sharonzaz

sorry, allow me to be a bit more specific, i meant their PA speakers, not their amp.
the amps are actually very decent.

on that subject, the MG mixers are just not matching up
in terms of sound, build and features, compared to an average behringer they have a huge shortfall, and the worst is the EQ detail.
again, IMO.