Bob Heil - Knowledge

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and ring tweeters, all driven by McIntosh amplifiers. He said, "That made a huge difference. It was like a big 'hi-fi' system. No one was putting radial horns into PA systems, they were just doing speakers in columns, like the Vocalmaster. The horns are what give the system intelligibility — you can

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The show was a success and the Grateful Dead asked Heil, his crew, and his sound system to join them on the road. Heil's setup became a template for modern concert touring sound systems and the 'Heil' brand became ubiquitous in venues across the US. In 1978, Heil published a "Practical Guide for

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In the late 1980s, Heil Sound entered the home theater movement that was becoming popular in the United States. His company was one of the first to design and install Custom Home theater systems, with over 3,000 audio/video systems installed as of 2010. Heil installed the very first

31: 251:. He experimented with live sound systems and became the technician at venues around St. Louis, from auditoriums to bowling alleys. Large sound systems at the time were comparatively weak and primitive. (In 1965, for example, 310:

Heil, one of the two organists on the Mighty Wurlitzer in the Fox, had been given the large discarded loudspeakers that the theatre had recently replaced with new ones, and he had built them into a new sound system using the

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In the late 1980s, Heil Sound became one of the first American companies to create and install home theaters. Heil has lectured at major electronic conventions and taught classes and has won numerous awards and honors.

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system, anything that leaked in from the monitors would be canceled out. As a result, we could get these things incredibly loud before they would feed back. That's one of the things that Jerry Garcia really loved."

205:. He learned how to tune and voice the thousands of pipes in the Wurlitzer, which taught him how to listen and dissect discrete tones, an important skill throughout his several careers. He was a student of organist 347:

theater sound protocol, helped with the rewiring, and Heil created an electronic crossover in the console to control speaker output. As well as the PA system that night, Heil also supplied the band with

713:. He was the first manufacturer to be invited into the Hall. On December 20, 2014, Heil was awarded an Honorary Doctoral Degree in Music and Technology from the University of Missouri. 796:

Oral History, Bob Heil reflects on the night he provided sound equipment for the Grateful Dead when their equipment was suddenly unavailable, and the many opportunities that followed.

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with Quadrophenia, the PA was enormous. I think we had on each side six to eight 15-inch speaker bins, six to eight radial horns, and about a dozen tweeters. We could get about 110

500:'s Barnstorm Tour. Frampton frequently used a Heil Talk Box after receiving one as a Christmas present from Heil in 1974, and it can be prominently heard on his 1975 album 429:

to 115dB on that stage before feedback. And the Who loved it, man, because it was loud, and they loved loud." Heil toured with other major acts of the 1970s, including

399:. They had been experiencing a difficult start to their US tour, and Heil brought a more refined and powerful version of his sound system to their shows. "We did the 395:

reported that a small Midwest sound system purveyor had snagged the position. Shortly after the article was published, Heil received a call from the management of

130:(October 5, 1940 – February 28, 2024) was an American sound and radio engineer who created the template for modern rock sound systems. He founded the company 671: 1219: 891: 666:

From the 1980s, Heil won several awards and honors. He was the "International Amateur Radio Operator of the Year" in 1982, an award which had been held by

543:. He developed his HC series microphones for amateur radio communication. Heil Sound was also an early installer of large satellite dishes for radio. 1312: 356:, Peter Kimble and John Lloyd, knew all the Dead songs — they were big fans. So that night they moved the PA, set it up and mixed the show." 240:, playing the instruments six nights a week. After having played the organ for eight years, in 1966 he opened a professional music shop in 532:

market. Heil worked on fixing problems in the industry involving poorly transmitted and received audio. He applied science learned from

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tour for a year and a half, across the US, to Europe and back here again." The tour created a bond between Heil and Who guitarist

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Heil lived with his wife, Sarah Benton, in Metro-East St. Louis. He has two daughters and one stepson. He continued to play the

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on the market which could reliably be used on high-level rock stages. The Heil Talk Box was developed in 1973 and was built for

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LP. According to Heil, "We set up two 15-channel Midas consoles together, put speakers in four corners and we were able to fly

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musician at a young age, performing at various local restaurants from the age of 14. At 15, he became house player for the

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Heil worked as a teacher and lecturer, often appearing at major electronic and satellite conventions. He taught classes at

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problems, a small second microphone taped behind each main microphone. "We would run the microphones out of phase from the

1307: 1181: 284: 198: 966: 1223: 895: 457:, and manufactured a variety of microphones for professional use, as well as gear for Amateur Radio enthusiasts. 1342: 324:

actually understand the lyrics." His stack riggings resulted in an unusual frequency range from below 200

1347: 303:. The police also detained most of the Dead's sound system. George Bales, a stage hand at Fox Theater, gave 292: 694: 540: 507: 454: 162: 367:, something that nobody had been doing yet. Since they were out of phase with the microphones and the 679: 596: 798:

Interview date January 20, 2007, NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Oral History Library

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In his early twenties, Heil began designing and building theater pipe organ installations in the

291:. For the tour they were using a sound system run and developed by their sound engineer, "Bear" 169:, and manufactured microphones and satellite dishes for broadcasters and live sound engineers. 1337: 1156: 340: 422: 299:, and had been arrested on February 1 for leaving the state to be at a Grateful Dead show in 644: 1302: 1297: 655: 391: 70: 244:, to deal in Hammond organs, and it was originally his ambition to teach piano and organ. 8: 1256: 670:

the year before. He was later awarded the 1989 "USA Satellite Dealer of the Year" by the

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Heil's phone number, and Heil arranged to provide the band with the necessary equipment.

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Bob Heil was born in 1940 in St. Louis to Bob Heil and LaVerna (nee Bills), and lived in

142:. He was also a musician, and played the Wurlizter organ in concert halls and theatres. 51: 1270: 1210: 812: 702: 636: 408: 809: – Effects unit that allows musicians to modify the sound of a musical instrument 1131: 994: 794: 737: 643:'s 100,000 watt 5085 kHz shortwave frequency each Saturday at 8pm central time ( 241: 217: 182: 178: 135: 1237: 852: 295:. Owsley, who had a pending drug charge, was under orders not to leave the state of 675: 632: 608: 604: 502: 336: 320: 1242: 517: 492:. The device blended the sound of voice and guitar. It was the first high-powered 469: 697:

to put up a display of his historically important gear, which included the first

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at the Fox Theater in St Louis, and had a classic car collection, chiefly of 50s

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also available). Heil's program was discontinued when WTWW's music programming

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Concert Sound" which "became a field guide for techies and roadies worldwide".

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and played the Wurlitzer organ in concert halls and restaurants for 12 years.

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Vocalmaster PA system plugged into the baseball park's announcement system.)

256: 221: 213: 190: 166: 806: 1220:"The Night that Modern Live Sound Was Born: Bob Heil and the Grateful Dead" 892:"The Night that Modern Live Sound Was Born: Bob Heil and the Grateful Dead" 741: 706: 533: 413: 304: 260: 1185: 970: 693:

for Innovator of the Year in 2007. Also in 2007, he was invited into the

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In May 2011, Heil became the host of a live weekly Ham Radio Netcast "

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he had envisioned for the live tour after the release of their

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A-4 speaker cabinets. He replaced the 15-inch speakers with

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in 1966 and built touring sound systems for bands such as

619:. He published five books on music and sound technology. 581: 344: 672:

Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association

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