Stranger High Fidelity is a brand new, bespoke high-end audio retail service run by Cameron Jenkins, founder and owner of independent label Stranger Records. Jenkins’ production, engineering, songwriting and musician credits include albums by The Verve, John Cale, The Charlatans, Everything But The Girl, Lemon Jelly and Badly Drawn Boy among others, and he has been nominated for two Mercury Prizes, a Latin Grammy, a BRIT award and a MOBO. His label Stranger Records was the first home of Lana del Rey, and has since gained an international reputation as an incubator of exciting new talent.
“Stranger High Fidelity is all about how to communicate music in the best possible way,” says Jenkins, who has been at the forefront of a rapidly changing music industry and has a deep-rooted knowledge of how music is created and enjoyed. Having spent many years in the control rooms of the great recording studios of the world, he now wants to share his wealth of experience with customers of home hi-fi.
“It’s an idea I’ve been harbouring for a while,” he explains. “I kept thinking, what if you could buy a hi-fi system from people who are actually making music, with the opportunity to audition the system in the setting where music is being recorded, mixed and mastered?”
Jenkins has his own space at Real World Studios in Box, Wiltshire, near the city of Bath. “I’m inviting customers to come, by appointment, and spend some quality time listening to a selection of systems which I feel give the most direct and satisfying musical experience, as the artist, producer and engineer intended.”
“I’ve hand-picked a few of my favourite hi-fi brands and products to create stunning, immersive audio systems. The focus is on superb engineering, elegant aesthetics and, above all, flawless musicality. This is truly exceptional hi-fi that you won’t find on every high street but which you really, really ought to hear.”
The brands, which span both home and professional audio, include (but are not limited to) Bricasti, Clearaudio, DS Audio, Furutech, Kerr Acoustic, MBL, Roon, Townshend Audio and Trinnov Audio.
Stranger High Fidelity will also offer a level of service that you won’t find on any high street. Jenkins will be working with top audio engineers, acoustic experts and a range of pro set-up tools to ensure a level of performance in the customer’s home that a record producer would expect in a professional studio.
Special events are being planned for 2021. “We have a fabulous venue – one of the world’s great recording studios. We have some very exciting musicians and artists. And we have some incredible systems we can’t wait to share with you.”