Company History

Part 2

From Strength to Strength

During the '80s other new markets began to emerge. The concert and installed sound markets, formerly dominated by Altec and a handful of other systems manufacturers, were changing as the technology behind sound systems evolved. A new breed of audio designers were creating entire systems based around integrating choice components from different manufacturers. The opportunity to expand into those markets was clear.

"Prior to that time, we were probably considered more of a low-end amp manufacturer," Pat reflects, "so we decided to make a statement and create a very high-end amplifier that would appeal to the concert sound market." Adding to the challenge, the disco boom was going bust at around that time, and the market had become flooded with used high-end amps. The partners realized they had to build an amp that could appeal to the emerging installer market on both a practical as well as a performance level.

Thus the Series Three was born. It represented a significant technical advance for the company, combining such innovative features as convection cooling, step-linear output circuitry and removable channel modules into a low-profile package. But while Series Three gained acceptance and praise from high-end audio professionals, clearly this market had its limits. The partners realized their next product would need to compete in both performance and price. This led to the Series One, which incorporated the performance quality of the Series Three into an affordable, fan-cooled package. "We put the knobs on the back, mainly because it was cost-efficient," Pat explains, "but customers loved it because it kept their settings from being tampered with in the rack." They also recognized the value of multiple inputs, an industry first. "We kept seeing installers making 'pigtails' - adapters with XLR connectors, phone connectors, and bare wires - to work with the various inputs on different amp manufacturers' products. So we decided to put them all on, to make life easier for everyone." Again, the partners were watching, listening and learning, paying attention to their customers. The hunger for knowledge and pursuit of a higher standard continued to be a driving force.

The Movie Business

The developing cinema industry was a sleeping giant for the company. As the 1980s began, the movie industry had begun to awaken to the impact of audio on the audience's moviegoing experience. "The people from Dolby Labs approached us around 1981," Barry recalls. "They wanted to move into rack mounting amps, and we went into an OEM deal with them."

Thanks to Dolby's high-powered push into cinema, QSC's products found their way into movie theaters across the nation. It didn't take long for Dolby's customers to discover who was manufacturing those great sounding amps, and before long the company was being contacted directly. Again, the partners' ethics prevailed. "We had a deal with Dolby," Pat explains. "Rather than start selling directly to customers, we went to Dolby and asked permission."

The humble quest for knowledge also continued. As Barry explains, "we knew this was a very different environment, and we needed to learn the ground rules." The company joined the various cinema associations, slowly growing their recognition within the industry. "All along, we never made any big announcements or anything, and eventually we became so strong a presence that Dolby went from putting their name on our amps, to leaving the QSC name on it and offering it in their catalog - the Dolby processor with QSC amp. It became a de facto endorsement from Dolby."

Throughout the '80s, the company quietly built up the cinema side of the business. "None of the other amp manufacturers really understood the significance of the cinema market, and we never beat our chests about it," Barry recalls. "We were the only low-cost THX-approved amp for quite some time." Through the multiplex revolution, through Star Wars, through stereo, digital and surround, QSC gracefully and quietly rode each wave, fueling the company's growth into an industry powerhouse.

Breakthrough Technologies

Building on their reputation for innovation, the company's fervor to develop newer and better power amp technologies continued unabated. The 1988 debut of the EX Series introduced the industry to QSC's "open architecture" design philosophy, a technological and cooperative breakthrough that allowed the leading-edge fiber optic and digital computer control systems of other manufacturers to all interface and work together. Add to this the EX Series' unique design elements, such as its Thermal Management System, internal Peak Limiting, and a full range of powers up to 1600 Watts per channel.

The PowerLight Series, released in 1994, once again raised the bar. Incorporating QSC's patented PowerLight high-speed switching supply technology, the PowerLight virtually eliminated the need for a heavy power transformer, heralding a new era of lightweight, compact and super-efficient amplifier technology. With QSC's innovative PFC (Power Factor Correction) technology, which lowers AC current draw by as much as 40%, the company moved from strength to strength. The evolution of the DCA series firmly cemented QSC's name as the leader in cinema sound, while the highly acclaimed PowerLight 2, PLX and RMX lines brought a well-deserved reputation in touring and installed sound.

Manufacturing as an Art Form

The next big transition took place in the early '90s, as demand for the company's products threatened to outpace supply. In now-familiar tradition, the partners were consistently planning for the next phase of the company's success. Realizing again that there was always more to learn, expert manufacturing consultants were brought in to offer feedback.

"At that point it was suggested we needed to make a decision to increase our manufacturing capabilities or outsource," John remembers. After some discussion, the partners agreed it was time to expand. As Barry explains, "we realized we would never fully optimize our product designs if we didn't manufacture them ourselves. We had to intimately understand the cost and the process." Adds Pat, "there were quality considerations as well. Some of our designs required fairly sophisticated hand tuning that would take longer to explain than to do ourselves."

The logical step was to build a new manufacturing facility, and in 1993 a property in nearby Costa Mesa was procured. Needless to say, the move was not without some trepidation. "It was a scary leap, to be sure," Barry recalls. "But we knew it was the right move. We commissioned a task force, using internal and external teamwork to design the new factory." The result was a modern state-of-the-art 55,000 square foot facility capable of manufacturing over 500 units per day.

Their faith was confirmed that year with a 40% increase in sales. As Pat recalls, the move to the new factory was momentous on a number of levels. "This was the first time we had really planned and built the entire facility from scratch. Everything in it was new; prior to that it was all the product of legacy. Our earlier plant had been assembled a piece at a time - we'd put in a roller conveyer one year, a soldering station another year - as the need arose and budgets allowed. Barry had had the same desk for over 20 years, purchased at a second hand store in the 60's for $25. This was in many ways a new beginning."

The new factory offered a tremendous morale boost as well. "It raised our standards as a company, and everyone could feel it," John observes. Aside from simply pride, though, the new facility further raised the company's profile in the industry. Soon after moving into the new building, a deal was struck with JBL to create a line of private label amps for the company.

The manufacturing process continued to be refined, and as capacity grew so did the company's sales. In 1998, ground was broken for a new 81,000 square foot facility adjacent to the existing building.

Looking Forward

The inception of the digital age represented new challenges and new opportunities. The very fundamentals upon which the science of audio was built had changed, and the common thread connecting mixer, amp and speaker - the analog wire - was no longer the standard it once was. The growing complexities resulting from these new technologies inspired a sea of change within the audio industry, with many companies consolidating to provide compatibility within their systems.

Once again, QSC's strategy was to watch, listen and learn. As early as the mid 1980s, the company had begun to explore these nascent technologies and, at Barry's urging, invested in long-term research and development of DSP and networking technology. As Pat tells it, "we recognized that, while the technology wasn't quite there yet, ultimately networks were the future of sound systems."

The results of this research surfaced in the mid-1990s with the debut of QSControl, integrating remote monitoring, control and processing of amplification systems into a computer-based network. QSControl has quickly become an industry standard, found in some of the world's largest and most complex audio installations, including Las Vegas' Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino, Japan's famed Anzu Hall and the world's tallest buildings, the Petronas Towers in Malaysia.

Another breakthrough in advanced systems technology was the debut of QSC's RAVE (Routing Audio Via Ethernet) signal routing devices in 1998. Offering up to 64 channels of digital audio over a standard Ethernet network, RAVE's open system architecture has found its way into countless applications including the renowned Sydney Opera House and the massive Salt Lake City campus of the Church of the Latter Day Saints.

Forging deeper into complete systems integration, in 1999 QSC began their R&D foray into loudspeaker technology, spending several years meticulously refining their designs before debuting their ACE series speakers in 2001. Fueled by the immediate acceptance of the ACE series, the company moved aggressively forward to build on this success, rapidly establishing QSC as a leader in loudspeaker technology as well.

By 2005, QSC had indisputably arrived at the forefront of yet another phase of its evolution. From relatively modest beginnings, their loudspeaker line has evolved into one of the most wide-ranging, fastest growing and successful in the industry, and a new 42,000-square-foot facility was opened to house the growing division. From the ISIS WideLine, fast becoming the line array of choice among major touring companies worldwide, to the DCS Digital Cinema Series of two-way and three-way master quality systems; from the powerful yet compact AcousticDesign models to the versatile ModularDesign series in both self-powered and passive models, QSC has created a new standard in loudspeaker design. In just a few short years, the QSC logo has become as respected on the proscenium as it is in the rack.

The Non-Corporation

"Imported from Southern California" was one of QSC's early, tongue-in-cheek marketing mantras, and it's clear there has always been something distinctive about the company. "We came together as 60's California hippies who really wanted to do something different," Pat recalls. Even today, many of those 60's values still form the foundation of QSC's business ethics. A visit to the company's corporate offices provides an interesting study in contrasts - the sleek and modern environment could easily play host to three-piece suits, but is populated instead by T-shirts and cut-offs. As Barry puts it, "we're far more concerned with people's substance than with their fashion sense."

John agrees. "Other companies think if you make your employees dress in suits, you get results. We figure if they're dressed in shorts and T-shirts, then the respect they get is earned and genuine."

It is this focus on substance over style that has enabled the company to assemble a talent pool of creative minds that is unrivaled anywhere in the industry. "Part of what makes a strong brand is truly the caliber and quantity of really good people in the organization," Pat asserts. "The collective horsepower of any single department in this organization outstrips that of most entire companies,"

Spend some time at the company and it's clear this pride extends to every individual in the organization. There is an openness and an exchange of ideas in this company that is rare for a corporation of its size, where even non-management staff members are recognized for their talents, and their contributions are encouraged and rewarded.

Unlike many of their contemporaries, QSC has never been dominated by a single strong personality. Continuity and even-handedness has always triumphed over chest-beating and flashy marketing. "We've always been very demanding of ourselves," Barry observes. "In some companies you can hide away in your cubbyhole, but not here. We apply a very high standard to our products, our people, our service, even our customers."

The distribution of the decision-making process that began with Pat, Barry and John has evolved to become central to the company's core principles of operation. "There's a certain intellectual integrity that prevails throughout QSC's management," Barry observes. "When you're managing good people, you don't need to do their jobs for them. The value of their contribution to the process is clear, and is respected. We're all ruthlessly honest with each other - we allow the facts to lead where they may, and we accept decisions based on the reality of those facts. Occasionally it may take longer to make decisions, but the result is always positive. The best ideas always win."