BUSINESS
Who: Patrick Quilter, chairman and senior amplifier designer of QSC Audio Products.
What: Manufacturer of pro audio products.
Where: Costa Mesa, Calif.
When: Founded in July 1968 “on a very small scale and got serious” around 1973.
First gig: “We provided a PA system for a dingy cellar nightclub near the Golden Bear, a prestigious dive in Huntington Beach, Calif. It turned out to be an ‘unpaid gig,’ and due to our naiveté about purchase contracts and collateral, they even got to keep the PA system.”
I knew I wanted to do this when… “The Beach Boys and Beatles proved that ‘kids our own age’ could make hit records. Then when I first really listened to what Jimi Hendrix was doing, I figured there was no turning back. Of course, we all figured we were going to change the world (and we did, for better or for worse).”
Career low point: “One morning, well before my customary crack-of-noon awakening time, my partner Barry Andrews called and asked, ‘Uh, Pat, did you by any chance take all of our amplifiers home with you?’ Turns out someone cut through the roof, stole our entire retail inventory, and to add insult to injury, cherry-picked all the popular gauges of guitar strings from our Ernie Ball rack. “This episode helped push us out of retailing our own guitar amps and into focusing on general purpose rack-mount power amplifiers.”
Career high point: “Qualifying to install a complete new full-range sound system for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This was a major demonstration of our emerging full-system capability.
PERSONAL
Personal high point: “Having over 100 friends and relations come far and wide for a surprise 60th birthday party last year was pretty awesome.”
Least cool thing about my job: “As the senior founding member, I have many distractions that disrupt my ability to focus on design. Also, I must say that engineering software, as least as I know it, is very tiresome and distracting.”
Most cool thing about my job: “I had the good fortune to gain partners early on who are as interested in building the organization as I am in designing great equipment.”
Coolest toys that I’ve been using: “A cute little self-contained Zoom solid state recorder, with many hours of storage about the size of a classic condenser mic, which is just the ticket for recording jam sessions. I’m also enjoying my Apple MacBook Pro — it’s sleek, fun and seems to work quite painlessly.”
Beardless need not apply: ”In my spare time, I put on buckskins and head out into the wilderness with other like-minded ‘mountain men’ who enjoy a different kind of challenge — testing our skills against Mother Nature. It’s a little like amp designing, except that if you mess up, instead of getting shocked, you may be cold or hungry for a while.”
Listening to… “‘Hot Dance’ music from the late 1920s, just like those peppy songs in the old black and white cartoons on 1950’s TV shows. “
Last good movie I saw was: Cars.
My greatest fear is: “Losing my brain. (It’s my second favorite organ!)”
What really annoys me about concerts these days is: “Too loud and harsh! I got into the pro-audio business due to the excitement of musicians ‘going to 11,’ but we need to excite this physical response with full rich bass and clean up the typical cluttered midrange. The last time I saw the Rolling Stones, the harsh squawky sound did permanent damage to what’s left of my hearing. It’s silly to have to wear earplugs at a concert — what’s the point?”
Motto/favorite quote: “Injustice is relatively easy to bear. It’s justice that stings.”
