The Hacker brothers Ron and Arthur were self taught, with no professional training. Their avid reading of technical information made them experts in the radio field. They started their own manufacturing company in 1927, in one room above their fathers grocery shop in Maidenhead. Because the brothers were aged 17 and 19 they used the name of their father, H. Hacker. The trade name adopted was "Dynatron", and the company name was later changed to "Dynatron Radio Ltd" in 1936.

Their philosophy from the start was to design and produce radios of the highest quality, incorporating all the latest technical advances. They aimed at the luxury end of the market, making sets of high specifications combined with beautiful cabinets. In 1934 they produced the "Ether Emperor" 17 valve radiogram, selling for 130 guineas - a serious amount of money in those days!

During the second world war they produced airborne guidance systems for the R.A.F. The company expanded from approximately 70 employees to 160 during this time, and due to demand the weekly production was raised to 57 hours.

The post-war period was difficult for Dynatron, due to markets conditions and shortage of materials. In 1954 the company was taken over by Ekco, both Hacker brothers being retained as joint managing directors. In 1959 the brothers parted company with Ekco and set up Hacker radio. Once again they aimed at the top end of the market, and gained an enviable reputation in the trade. Due to an increasingly competitive market and cheaper imports Hacker went into the hands of the receiver in May 1977.

Soon after the Hacker brothers left Dynatron, Ekco merged with Pye in December 1960. In 1967 Pye was absorbed by Philips, and in 1981 Philips sold Dynatron to Roberts Radio.

Arthur Hacker died in 1981 and Ron died three years later in 1984. What had started as their boyhood passions turned into serveral successful companies producing radios and televisions that eclipsed most of their competitors. The Dynatron museum is dedicated to the memory of the Hacker brothers and to the preservation of the Dynatron products they produced.

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