Arion Company Information

John Seliski started Arion in 1965 with the research and development of

products for the audio visual field. At the time, John owned and operated a company called Minnesota Audio Visual. He hired two people exclusively for the purpose of designing new audio visual products. As the products and marketing began, the Arion division of Minnesota Audio Visual Company slowly began to grow, acquired a full time staff and completely broke away in 1967.The first product introduced was the Arion Slide/Tape Synchronizer. In the early sixties, synchronizers were unreliable, bulky external components used with a tape recorder. Arion’s Slide/Tape Synchronizer was only

slightly larger than a pack of cigarettes and you could count on it to work every time. This first product was a huge success and The Arion name soon became synonymous with quality and reliability.

John’s next project was to find a way to better control multiple projectors. In an industry obsessed with tones and punched tape, Arion developed the first digital signal that could reliably be recorded and played back on standard audio tape. The Command Performer made its debut in 1966. It was the first digital multi-projector control system in the industry. Arion had established a precedent and laid the groundwork for the multi-image industry. This innovative development of products continued through the 70s with the first computer-calibrated dissolver. A partnership with 3M Company made this the largest selling dissolver of the era with many still in use today. Arion also introduced the first Electronic Memory Programmer.

Arion introduced Mate-Trac™ to the AV industry in the 1980s. Mouths fell open as Arion salespeople fast-forwarded an audio tape, pressed play and the projectors obediently marched to their proper positions. Mate-Trac™ has become a world-wide standard for slide shows. Impressed with the advanced designs and products coming from Arion, Eastman Kodak partnered with Arion. This partnership resulted in over 55,000 two-projector systems sold world-wide.

All performance and price barriers were broken in the 90s when Arion introduced its Mirage dissolve controls. Professional performance was now possible for the dissolve slide show market. Arion continues to provide the same level of quality product and support that the company was built upon. Arion continues to introduce new products that provide innovative presentation solutions at affordable prices and while making it more creative and easier than ever before.