Noel Lee (executive)
| Noel Lee | |
|---|---|
| Born |
December 25, 1948 San Francisco, California United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater |
San Francisco City College California Polytechnic State University |
| Occupation | CEO of Monster Inc. |
Noel Lee (born December 25, 1948) is the current CEO of Monster Inc. Lee graduated from California Polytechnic State University with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, before doing work in laser fusion for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. He quit his engineering job in 1974 to play drums for a country rock band. After the band separated, he founded Monster Cable Products in 1979 based on loudspeaker cables he invented and manufactured in his garage.
Lee's audio cables met resistance at first, because most audio cabling at the time was zip cord provided by audio vendors for free. Sales improved as retailers witnessed audio demonstrations and saw that his Monster-branded cables offered better profit margins than other electronics products. Lee is credited with building the Monster business and shaping today’s audio components market.
Noel Lee was born in San Francisco, California on December 25, 1948 to Chein-San and Sarah Lee. His parents named him "Noel" because he was born on Christmas Day. His father worked for China's Central News Agency and Lee had four sisters. Lee's parents moved to San Francisco around the same time the Communist party took power.
Lee took an interest in music as a child; he described himself as having a more diverse taste in music than other kids his age. Lee's senior project was an effort to improve the quality of audio from electronics. According to Lee, his High School experiences were "rough" due to the level of discrimination against Asian-Americans at the time. Lee attended San Francisco City College, then California Polytechnic State University, where he earned a degree in mechanical engineering in 1971.
Noel Lee's first job out of college was as a laser fusion design engineer at a government-run nuclear research center called the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. On nights and weekends he played drums for an Asian country rock cover band called Asian Wood and worked on his home audio equipment.
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