Our R-60 console, which was the next in line for Audioarts, was of major significance for us in that it was a surface mount design. It was the first piece of equipment we made using surface mount technology. We went and bought the machines and learned how to use them.

There’s a bit of a story there. Gary and I went to a trade show in Boston to look at some other kinds of equipment to use the old lead parts to build consoles with, because we had a lot of those; we couldn’t find any anywhere. So we went out to dinner at a nice Italian restaurant that night, and we looked at each other and said, “Are we at the wrong show? Where’s all this equipment?” And then the light bulb went off. Times have changed. People don’t use those anymore! So then and there we decided to buy surface mount. So that’s what he did.

That year was also the year we came out with our first digital console, the D-500. We had a very cool little ad at the time about “resistance is futile,” with a play on the Borg theme.