BUSINESS
Who: Founders/Owners: Linda Arink (“she”) and Dennis Bohn (“he”).
What: An audio tools manufacturer.
Where: Mukilteo, WA
(20 miles north of Seattle).
When founded: 1981.
Number of products in catalog: More than 100.
Current clients include: 311, Joe Nichols, Tom Petty, Brittania Row Productions, among others.
Recent company highlights: Our most popular product is the C4 Quad Compressor, four-channel compressor/limiter. You can get it in software form as a plug-in that works with Digidesign live consoles, or as C4 hardware. The G4 Quad Gate/Ducker/Expander is a compliment to the C4. Recent tours using Rane live sound products include Tom Petty, Pearl Jam, Incubus, Joe Nichols, Heart, Queensryche and Scissor Sisters.
The TTM 56 DJ mixer will go on display with the Grandmaster Flash portion of the Smithsonian’s Hip Hop exhibit planned for the near future.
Claims to fame: Acoustic Guitar Player’s Choice Award (twice); DJ Tech Awards (twice); Electronic Musician Editors’ Choice Award (three times); Pro Audio Review Excellence Award (three times); among others.
People might be surprised to know: 15% of Rane employees have worked at Rane for 20 years or more; Rane built custom headphone amplifiers for IBM for use by the U.S. Army in 1984; and Rane designed the first THX-certified EQ for home cinema in 1991 upon request by LucasFilm.
People might want to salute… CEO George Sheppard, who was a U.S. Navy Lieutenant Naval Flight Officer flying the RA5-C Vigilante reconnaissance aircraft from the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk during the Vietnam War; but just as important is the fact that he was a 1958 Duncan Yo-Yo champion runner-up in Seattle.
Degrees of separation: Arink is in fact only two degrees of separation from Kevin Bacon. She did a radio ad with an actor who did a movie with Bacon. [Ed. Note: Now everyone reading this is a mere three degrees of separation from Bacon.]
PERSONAL
The Fams…
He said: “Wife Pat Tolle, a professional artist; daughters Koshtra (photographer) and Kira (script supervisor); Mojo, the 15-year-old cat; and Cisco Cheeseburger, the seven-year-old beagle.
She said: “Husband Bruce Arink, a guitarist; daughter Megan (high schooler); Snorky the cat (would spend all day flushing the toilet if we let him).
If I could tell my younger self one thing, it would be…
He said: “Master the fundamentals, then all things follow.”
She said: “Most of the stuff you worry about happening never happens, so quit worrying so much.”
Best part about my job is…
He said: “Not having a boss.”
She said: “Getting to be part of turning an idea into a product that people want. I love the tangible results of our work.”
Biggest drag about my job is…
He said AND she said: “Government interference, regulations and taxation.”
If and when I get on vacation, you’ll find me…
He said: “Sailing the Caribbean on the luxury yacht Sea Cloud II.”
She said: “Disneyland in the winter; Alaska on a cruise ship in the summer.”
My pet peeve about live concerts is…
He said: “Too loud, too crowded, too much hassle.”
She said: “People behind you telling you to sit down when you want to be up and dancing. Come on, it’s a concert!”
The CD in my car right now is…
He said: “Grace Slick, Manhole.”
She said: “Chris Daughtry, Daughtry.”
If I could have lunch with any person living or dead, it would be…
He said: “Thomas Paine… but if he was busy, then Ayn Rand.”
She said: “John Lennon.”
Words to live by:
He said: “If you get to it and you canNOT do it? Well, there you jolly well are, aren’t you?”
She said: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”
