SME founder Alastair Robertson-Aikman was also a passionate music-loving audiophile with a relentless desire to improve the reproduction of phonograph records. Not satisfied with what was currently available on the market, Alastair designed and machined, for his own personal use, a high-performance tonearm. After receiving an enthusiastic response to the tonearms sonic qualities from both friends and industry experts, Alastair decided to produce it commercially. By late 1959, production had reached 25 units per week, with demand continually exceeding availability.