Meet our Digital Hardware Engineer, Brian Wachtman!

Brian is responsible for the hardware design and qualification of the low voltage, high-speed stuff like DSP, microprocessors, memory, ethernet, and more. From working with our team of expert engineers during the design phase to creating the schematics and physically laying out the circuit boards. Brian’s work in running simulations to verify and improve signal integrity and testing the final product are critical to the overall function of our Connect Series amplifiers.

Find out how Brian cut his teeth in engineering and what motivates him to elevate LEA products above the competition.

What drew you into your specific field of work?

[BW] My Dad was an early adopter of PCs and my brother was big into car stereos, so I spent a lot of time playing with both in High School. That led me to an EE degree from Purdue, and when I got an offer to work for a great amplifier company in Elkhart, IN, I couldn’t say no. I started working on high power audio amplifiers the day after I graduated from college.

Why is your job important to LEA?

[BW] My primary responsibility for the Connect Series of amplifiers is the Audio, Routing, and Control module (we call is the ARC). It’s the part of the amp that has the DSP, the Microprocessor, the networking interfaces, and Dante (the version with Dante is called the DARC). The ARC module is responsible for serving up the web UI for controlling the amplifier, for all the audio processing, and for Dante in and out of the amplifier.

What is your background in the industry?

[BW] As I said, I got my BSEE from Purdue in 2000, and started working on amplifiers the next day. At Crown I worked on a few aftermarket high power amps for cars, which was really fun. When people asked what I did for a living, I would tell them, “you know those cars that drive by late at night with the radio so loud it wakes up your whole house? I do that.” Kids were impressed; adults, not so much.

After working in aftermarket car audio for a few years, I worked on OEM audio amplifiers and got peek into what automotive quality means. Then I moved into pro audio amplifiers. I helped develop a custom modulator chip with a major IC manufacturer and worked on every part of amplifier design. About 5 years ago, I moved solely to the digital side and had a great mentor at Crown, Tom Monroe. I learned a great deal about digital hardware design, included layout best practices for maximizing signal integrity and minimizing EMC.

How has your background prepared you to help LEA be successful?

[BW] I’ve been working in the audio industry for almost 20 years, so I’ve seen what it takes to develop high quality, high-reliability audio amplifiers. Even better, everyone on the team has been working together for several years, so we all have a good idea of where we should each focus to maximize our group efficiency. That part has made it feel less like a startup. The whole team was already familiar with each other, so we could hit the ground running.

There are certainly challenges to being a startup, but there are benefits too. We’re not tied to bad ideas that we have to drag along because of some corporate mandate. We get to evaluate things based on whether they help us succeed.

What do you like about audio technology?

[BW] Audio is an important part of everyday life, and I really enjoy getting to play with audio every day. In every design cycle, I’m always the first guy trying to hook speakers to a prototype amplifier, before any measurements are taken. Sure, we need to measure it, but first, let’s see how it sounds!

What is the most exciting thing about joining LEA?

[BW] The most exciting thing about LEA was the idea of getting to do something new. It’s was a fresh start on an amplifier. We got to sit down and decide where we wanted to go and how we wanted to get there.

Early on, we spent a lot of time talking to people in the industry, to get a better understanding of what’s important to them. That’s not something engineers get to do very often.

What are your personal hobbies?

[BW] Outside of work, If I’m not coaching my kids’ soccer teams, or working on cars, or woodworking, I’m hopefully mountain biking or making my kids go kayaking.

What’s your vision for the future of LEA?

[BW] I think if we can continue to focus on delivering what the customer needs, when they need it, the sky’s the limit.

In one sentence, sum up what makes audio or audio tech so important.

[BW] Music is such an important part of life, so the easier, cheaper, and faster we can make it to install and use, the better off we’ll be.

If you have any questions about our Connect Series digital hardware design, feel free to leave a comment for Brian below or reach out to us on our social media channels.