history

Brian took the toy piano, and the subsequent repair - and most importantly the modification - led to the idea of a completely new electronic, small hand-held piano-type instrument.
The prototype was shown to Bert, who suggested something along the lines of - (expletives omitted!) -
'don't just sit there, make some more' !.

.... The 'potential repairman' was a chap named Brian Jarvis. Brian; along with Bert Coleman (managing director), and Bert's brother Ted Coleman (artwork and finances); had formed a company in 1967 under the name D Ü BREQ.
The company was built on the broadcast and filming industry, with their particular expertise being in the field of DUBing and RECording - hence the name D Ü BREQ. (The umlaut and Q in the name was added to make the logo more interesting).

The idea of this completely new business venture would not only need the inventive genius of Brian, but one of the most important aspects of any new product - marketing. There was little doubt that the new Stylophone had potential, but it would need Bert to get the product across to the masses.
What better way than television!.

Saturday nights on TV during these years were a time for variety shows, and one person - Rolf Harris - together with his support troupe The Young Generation, were the backbone of these early-evening entertainment shows.
A glance by Bert to the cover of the Radio Times - featuring Rolf on the front cover - set marketing bells ringing, and put his PR skills to the test. Despite several failed telephone calls, Bert finally managed to get into Rolf's rehearsal studio, and the new Stylophone was shown to him. From this initial contact, Rolf was said to be very impressed with the new instrument, and played with the unit for some time.
It had initially been arranged that the Stylophone would be introduced to the public on ITV's David Frost Show, but circumstances led to the unveiling being delayed. A subsequent 'phone call from Rolf to the Stylophone makers led to the instrument making its' debut on Rolf's own BBCTV Saturday Show.
One major problem however, was that at this early stage - only one Stylophone was in existence!. For the TV appearance, the 3 chaps at Dubreq had to make by hand a further 6 units so that 'The Young Generation' could play along with Rolf!.

The Rolf Harris connection had been made . . .

The nationwide TV coverage; on Rolf's show and a number of other programs; led to the Stylophone becoming very popular. In the early days, the Stylophone was only available by mail order, and each unit was hand made.
The original cost of 8 pounds 18 shillings and sixpence each in the late 60's is quite amazing when compared to today's money - the equivalent of £95.00 !.

Extra staff would be required - together with larger premises - in order to meet the overwhelming demand. Staff numbers would eventually grow to around 75 during their full production era, with a move from their little basement premises to a proper factory setup in Cricklewood, London, which would become 'Dübreq House'.

The major success would bring the inevitable copies - and copyright infringements - from abroad. (Some examples / explanations can be found on the HK page). The problem was to be solved through the courts with UK government backing. This same government however would inadvertantly take away the good work it had previously done.
During the late 60's/ early 70's the British piano industry was greatly affected from cheap keyboard inports. In their bid to address the problem, a 33% tax was placed on electronic organs - with the Stylophone apparantly falling within this catagory!. The men at Dubreq were not amused to say the least, and refused to accept it, leading to a court case.
The Young Generation were to make what perhaps is their strangest appearance - as musicians at the court case to demonstrate that the British-made invention was a true instrument!. They lost the case!!. (But won later on appeal) :-)

The whole affair increased the profile of the Stylophone even further, and sales increased.

The story of the Stylophone is one of great success, but the initial gamble of the 3 main instigators in Brian Jarvis, Bert Coleman and Ted Coleman cannot be under-estimated. This was a venture into the unknown, and virtually all their resources - both financial and work time - went into this product. Had it failed, it could have meant near ruin for all of them business-wise. Fortunately for us, we now have happy, nostalgic memories of a small innovative instrument, that truly did go on to become the Greatest little instrument of the century' !

In the early days, it became obvious the Stylophone was destined to be become a great seller, and this in itself brought about problems. The components used on the board contained relatively expensive transistors, which had to specially selected for the job. Also, each resistor used to control the tone of every key used non-standard values, again making the board more expensive to build. With the high number of components used, it was very easy to mix them up - especially the note resistors - which could lead to very odd sounds, and an instrument totally out of scale!.

David Muir was head of science at Midhurst Grammar Shool when he was recruited in 1967.
David's hobby at this time was electronics, and he was already designing audio equipment, such as radios and amplifiers. His knowledge and expertise would be a valuable asset to the Dubreq team.
David would go on to design the 350S, and the PianoMate.

The re-design of the circuit was in the hands of David Muir, who would not only greatly reduce the number of components that were required in the early Stylos, but also introduce a major move forward in circuit board design and assembly.... the keyboard resistor block.
This would cut down assembly time and testing significantly.
A very interesting point to note is that boards and components were sent out to 'home-workers', who would assemble the components to the board as 'piece-work', and then send them back to the factory to be flow-soldered and tested. David Muir's son Simon remembers carrying out some of this piece-work as a youngster... around 100 boards assembled at home for the grand sum of £7.00 !