Soundtracs

Soundtracs grew out of Soundout Laboratories, a Surrey company making disco mixers and PA equipment. The key figure was John Stadius, an electronics engineering graduate from the University of Surrey who redesigned Soundout's product line and steered it toward studio consoles. In 1982, the rebranded Soundtracs produced the CM4400 — their first digitally controlled analog console — and it immediately disrupted the market by offering a serious 28-input large-format desk for under £18,000.

Through the late 1980s and 1990s, Soundtracs produced increasingly ambitious consoles — the IL series (£60,000+), the Quartz, the Solitaire, and the flagship Jade, which was used by Leftfield to mix their landmark album Leftism. The company also pioneered affordable large-format digital consoles with the DPC-II ($200,000 — a fraction of competing digital desks).

In 2002, Soundtracs was purchased and rebranded as DiGiCo — which went on to become one of the dominant live digital console manufacturers. John Stadius continued as lead designer. DiGiCo was later combined with Allen & Heath and Calrec to form the Audiotonix Group. The DNA of every DiGiCo console traces back to a Surrey shed making disco mixers.