Dave Rat (born 1962 as David Levine) is the founder of Rat Sound Systems Inc., a sound system designer, sound consultant and live sound engineer for many well-known artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Rage Against the Machine, The Offspring, and Blink 182.
Dave Rat writes articles for various professional sound magazines and has been asked to speak at sound conventions and events such as AES. He has designed speakers and sound equipment such as the MicroWedge, which is manufactured by Eastern Acoustic Works and is now a familiar monitor wedge on many worldwide tours.
Dave Rat wrote a column for Live Sound International magazine entitled, "Rat Tales" in the November 2006 issue and another in the May 2007 issue.
On May 22, 2006 Dave Rat started a blog entitled "Roadies In The Midst" on the Rat Sound Systems Inc. website chronicling his experiences as Front of House sound engineer for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on their Stadium Arcadium tour. He has acted as their Front of House (FOH) engineer for the past 19 years. The tour ended in August 2007. However, Dave continues to post entries discussing the adjustment back to normal life. He went back out as Front of House engineer for the Blink 182 Reunion Tour and likewise chronicles his exploits on that long-running arena and amphitheater tour in 2009. On May 15, 2011, Dave announced through his Twitter page that rehearsals were underway for the upcoming Red Hot Chili Peppers tour, which is expected to last two years.
In December 2005 Dave innovated a unique sound system design based on two side-by-side speaker systems that he called The Double Hung PA. The outer stereo speakers reproduced guitar, bass, toms and cymbals and the inner speakers reproduced vocals, kick and snare. Since no single instrument or vocal was sent to both systems, comb filtering and interference issues were avoided while system clarity was increased. Red Hot Chili Peppers toured with the Double Hung System for the duration of Stadium Arcadium tour. In July 2008, the Brazil based sound company Gabisom implemented the side-by-side PA concept for the Rock in Rio festival in Portugal and in 2009 Pennsylvania based sound company Clair Brothers, provided touring artists U2 with an in-the-round stadium sized sound system, based on the same double hung PA concept.
In 2009 Dave began working on a several steerable sub woofer array concepts which he implemented on the Blink 182 reunion tour. The Vortex, Slotfire and V-Fire configurations describe methods of arranging and delaying conventional sub woofers such that low frequency sound bleed onto stage is reduced and horizontal subwoofer coverage to the audience is steerable.
Dave announced on his blog on June 9, 2011 that he plans on spending the next two years on the road with the Red Hot Chili Peppers. He said he expects the tour to last through 2013 but prior to that he will be working with Soundgarden in July 2011 on their North America tour.
Dave is the holder of two patents. One is for the MicroWedge stage monitor design and the other is for the Rat Sniffer XLR cable tester.
Famous quotes containing the word rat:
“I am ashamed to see what a shallow village tale our so-called History is. How many times must we say Rome, and Paris, and Constantinople! What does Rome know of rat and lizard? What are Olympiads and Consulates to these neighboring systems of being? Nay, what food or experience or succor have they for the Esquimaux seal-hunter, or the Kanaka in his canoe, for the fisherman, the stevedore, the porter?”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)