JOHN ROGERS INVENTOR OF THE RINGMAT PASSES AWAY
Russ Andrews has contacted us with this obituary for John Rogers of Ringmat Developments.
John Rogers, inventor of the Ringmat and managing director of the QR Group, passed away on 21st March 2025 at the age of 83 at his home in Feizor, near Austwick, North Yorkshire.
JOHN ROGERS OBITUARY
Born in Chingford, Essex, on 8th October 1941, John was an avid music lover and sound reproduction enthusiast from an early age, although this wasn’t to be his first career. John was a determined and disciplined man who revelled in resolving complex problems, whether in international accountancy or in trying to improve the reproduction of recorded music. His professional background enabled him to bring a fresh perspective to problems, to help overcome inherent issues, which was evident from the success of his Ringmat products.
FROM ACCOUNTANCY TO HIFI AND MUSIC
After attending Bancrofts School he qualified as a chartered accountant, which led to a very successful career, becoming the youngest partner in Coopers and Lybrand (now PriceWaterhouseCoopers), one of the world’s largest accountancy practices. But it was a love of music and sound reproduction that would cause a dramatic change of career. This passion can be traced back to childhood, when, at the age of eight his family acquired a radiogram. John wanted the music to be heard around the house, and so, bypassing their parents, an elder brother purchased two further sets of speakers. As John was the smallest member of the family it was his job to crawl under the floor boards, passing up the cable through the floor for his brother to connect to the speakers. Thus began a lifelong interest in music and HiFi.
In 1982 he left accountancy and founded Quality Records Group and opened Brentwood Music Centre in Essex, selling records and was also one of the first retailers to sell CDs. Almost immediately, a range of high-end HiFi was added, including DNM products and Denis Morecroft became a good friend, with both men constantly looking for ways to improve the quality of sound reproduction.
RINGMAT DEVELOPMENTS
It was a collaboration with Morecroft that led to the development of the Ringmat – the first LP record support specifically designed to generate an accurate, low distortion signal, creating a new standard in LP sound quality. Ringmat Developments was founded in 1992 and John continued to innovate, launching the CD Statmat and the Vivacity AR Anti Resonance Platforms.
RINGMAT FEET, DOMES AND CABLES
Over the next 30 years or so other Ringmat products were developed, including the Ringmat Support System, Ringmat Feet and Domes, together with Ringmat Audiophile Cables. All the products were well reviewed, including by those who admitted to initial scepticism. During this time there was also much exchange of ideas, information and co-operation between John and Russ Andrews, a fellow passionate believer in improving music reproduction. As John’s health deteriorated, he was delighted that Russ Andrews took over the production and sales of Ringmat products.
One of John’s admirers sums up what many thought of the man: “John’s genius for getting the best out of HiFi equipment has given me, and no doubt many others, lots and lots of pleasure over the years and will continue to do so, hopefully, for many more to come. I think that John’s achievements in the world of HiFi have been quite extraordinary – he was such an original thinker and then had the practical skills to make his ideas become real.”
He is survived by his wife, Angela, their son and daughter, three grandchildren and one infant great-granddaughter.
HiFi PiG Says: Our condolences to John’s family and the Russ Andrews team.
