Our Story

Every musician knows the feeling of needing and wanting to practice more but not having the time. For Agapitus (Augi) Lye it was more than that. 

Augi was an accomplished musician (see bio) and an engineering student at the University of Florida. He had just purchased a new cello and didn’t have the 3-5 hours a day required to properly play-in(de-damping) his new instrument. It would take years of such practice, before the instrument’s tone would mature.

At just such a moment Augi's engineering mind went to work. He had a working knowledge of acoustical physics and engineering. He also understood that newly finished instruments need to be played in-order to achieve a mature tone and older instruments need to be played regularly to maintain that mature tone. He was determined to combine his engineering skills with his passion for music.

Out of his ingenuity and determination Augi developed the first, rudimentary design of what is now the ToneRite.  Fellow musicians and other professionals familiar with the cello were shocked by the tonal improvement that had occurred during the month it had been out of the shop. Upon learning of the technology that transformed the cello from good to unbelievable, they urged Augi to pursue a patent.

Over the course of the next few years in shops around the world. Test after test has proved that the ToneRite works brilliantly! In repeated tests instruments sounded better. The spectrograph affirmed that it worked. Musicians and fellow makers heard the difference in sound quality in as little as 1 hour after. Sales of instruments that were treated skyrocketed and clientele increased. 
    
On November 1, 2007 at the Violin Society of America’s annual convention held in Wilmington, Delaware. The ToneRite was introduced to the world and is now distributed world wide.

Currently, ToneRite is conducting research in collaboration with numerous luthiers from around the world to bring together tradition and technology for the sole purpose of advancing the field of acoustic physics.  

Patent Pending