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A Long Strange Trip

A Long Strange Trip of Audio Innovation Contributes to a Sound Future

Meyer Sound and the Grateful Dead + Dead & Company share a decades-long legacy for audio innovation and, more recently, environmentally-conscious values in pursuit of the best possible audience experience.

The Dead’s legendary sound engineer, Owsley “Bear” Stanley, first tapped audio pioneer John Meyer to create acoustic solutions for the band’s legendary “Wall of Sound” system in the 1970s. Building on that success, Meyer went on to establish Meyer Sound in 1979. The early days of exploring sound with Bear gave rise to a significant relationship with both the band and its production company, UltraSound LLC.

From the Wall of Sound to today’s PANTHER large-format line array loudspeaker system, featured on this summer’s Dead & Co Final Tour, innovation has been at the heart of Meyer Sound audio solutions. Part of our ongoing commitment includes keeping sustainability at the forefront of everything we do.

Meyer Sound, recognized as a Green Business by the California Green Business Network since 2016, manufactures at its Berkeley, CA headquarters, where technological innovation, rigorous engineering, precision manufacturing, and extensive customer support are the company’s hallmarks. The new PANTHER system is a highly compact, exceptionally powerful solution that requires less trucks for touring, resulting in a measurable reduction in a tour’s carbon footprint.

Meyer Sound is honored to support nonprofit Sound Future and their initiatives that bring cutting-edge, climate-conscious innovation into live events. To mark our first collaboration, Meyer Sound and Sound Future have partnered to provide Meyer Sound audio solutions for the Final Tour VIP experience. Together, we share a vision of the future where gathering does good.

It’s been a long, strange trip since the early days, but the Dead’s lasting passion for impeccable sound – and for creating the best audience experience – makes them forever part of the Meyer Sound DNA.

  • The Grateful Dead’s famed Wall of Sound. July 21, 1974 at the Hollywood Bowl.The Grateful Dead’s famed Wall of Sound. July 21, 1974 at the Hollywood Bowl.Photo: © Ron Rakow/Retro Photo Archive
  • John and Helen Meyer established Meyer Sound in 1979.John and Helen Meyer established Meyer Sound in 1979.
  • The Grateful Dead at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA (1983)The Grateful Dead at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA (1983)
  • The Grateful Dead continually provided sound innovation—here with Dead’s sound engineer Dan Healey, Don Pearson of UltraSound, and John Meyer.The Grateful Dead continually provided sound innovation—here with Dead’s sound engineer Dan Healey, Don Pearson of UltraSound, and John Meyer.Photo: Susana Millman
  • Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart has had a long partnership with Meyer Sound, extending beyond the Grateful Dead to include solo touring and work with the Buddhist Gyoto Monks.Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart has had a long partnership with Meyer Sound, extending beyond the Grateful Dead to include solo touring and work with the Buddhist Gyoto Monks.
  • The Grateful Dead “Fare Thee Well” mini-tour at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA (2015)The Grateful Dead “Fare Thee Well” mini-tour at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, CA (2015)Photo: Jay Blakesberg
  • Dead & Company Tour Director and FOH Engineer, Derek FeatherstoneDead & Company Tour Director and FOH Engineer, Derek Featherstone
  • Mickey Hart, Helen Meyer, John Meyer, Bobby Weir, and Derek Featherstone. Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA (2019)Mickey Hart, Helen Meyer, John Meyer, Bobby Weir, and Derek Featherstone. Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA (2019)
  • Dead & Company 2022 Summer TourDead & Company 2022 Summer Tour
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Green TouringGreen TouringApril 13, 2022With the introduction of the PANTHER large-format linear line array loudspeaker — the company’s first product designed and engineered from conception to completion with sustainability as a primary goal — Meyer Sound has redoubled its longstanding corporate commitment to green touring. PANTHER was designed for a reduced carbon footprint in manufacturing, transport, and operation, and Meyer Sound’s continuing focus on sustainability carries through to all future product development, campus facilities, technical support initiatives, and education programs.
Dead & Company Summer 2022 TourDead & Company Summer 2022 TourJune 22, 2022Dead & Company is back on the road for their 2022 Summer Tour which kicked off in mid-June at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. As they carry on the Grateful Dead tradition of using the latest innovations in sound reinforcement, the tour is powered by a system featuring Meyer Sound’s new PANTHER large-format linear line array loudspeaker.
Dead & Company 2021 TourDead & Company 2021 TourSeptember 15, 2021Dead & Company’s highly anticipated shed and stadium tour is rolling into autumn, with more than 30 concerts scheduled between the August 16 launch in Raleigh, North Carolina and the grand finale on Halloween weekend. Following a decades-long tradition established by the Grateful Dead, this latest iteration of the legendary jam band is touring with audio production anchored by a Meyer Sound LEO system provided by UltraSound.
Summer Webinar Program to Wrap with Grateful Dead RoundtableSummer Webinar Program to Wrap with Grateful Dead RoundtableAugust 4, 2020Meyer Sound’s Summer Webinar Program will wrap with a final “Festival Friday” roundtable session featuring the decades-long sonic explorations of Meyer Sound with the Grateful Dead and their related bands. The roundtable includes special guest Derek Featherstone, UltraSound CEO and FOH mixing engineer for Dead and Company, Meyer Sound President & CEO John Meyer, and Bob McCarthy, Meyer Sound Director of System Optimization.
Peak Energy Efficiency and Zero Waste at “Recycled” Berkeley CampusPeak Energy Efficiency and Zero Waste at “Recycled” Berkeley CampusApril 16, 2019Meyer Sound has announced a renewed commitment to further reduce energy consumption, cut manufacturing waste to zero, and provide more incentives for employees to reduce their personal carbon footprints.
Meyer Sound Founder Returns to Monterey Festival’s 50th CelebrationMeyer Sound Founder Returns to Monterey Festival’s 50th CelebrationJune 26, 2017In June of 1967, a young John Meyer traveled from Berkeley to a festival site in Monterey where he supervised set-up of the on-stage amplifier systems he had designed – in a last-minute rush – for a relatively obscure blues-rock guitarist named Steve Miller. Fifty years later to the day, Meyer returned to Monterey, this time confident in knowing an entire commemorative festival would be heard through a LEO Family linear reinforcement system designed and built by his company, Meyer Sound.
Dead & Company Celebrate the Summer of Love’s 50thDead & Company Celebrate the Summer of Love’s 50thJune 8, 2017San Francisco’s fabled “Summer of Love” captured the world’s imagination 50 years ago, and what better way to celebrate this golden anniversary than at a Grateful Dead concert? True, the original moniker was formally retired after the Fare Thee Well concerts of 2015, but fortunately three founding band members along with a noteworthy trio of new recruits are caravanning nationwide as Dead & Company, again filling large outdoor venues with throngs of gyrating Deadhead faithful.
The Grateful Dead Bids 'Fare Thee Well' with LEOThe Grateful Dead Bids “Fare Thee Well” with LEOJuly 3, 2015Fifty years after forming their band at a Palo Alto music store, the surviving founders of the Grateful Dead kicked off their end-of-an-era Fare Thee Well mini-tour at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. with a Meyer Sound LEO linear large-scale sound reinforcement system driving a quadraphonic surround setup.

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Middle: Jorit Pfleiderer, contest winnerMiddle: Jorit Pfleiderer, contest winner
Jorit Pfleiderer's studioJorit Pfleiderer’s studio
Jorit Pfleiderer's studioJorit Pfleiderer’s studio

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