In the late 1960's Peter Miller witnessed the birth of the music synthesizer and soon became hooked on electronic music and the incredible machines that made it possible. In 1970 Peter started a small pro audio company and began working with local bands. He began doing contract repair service on Hammond organs for Sherman & Clay Co., followed by stint with Magic Music Machines, San Francisco's largest musical instrument repair company. After gaining a couple year's experience, Peter broke out on his own and founded CAE Sound.
From the beginning, the mission of CAE Sound was to help working musicians keep their gear alive. That mission is still in force today. CAE Sound is devoted to the service, repair, and restoration of new, used, and vintage musical instruments and gear. They specialize in the vacuum tube and solid-state electronics found in amplifiers, keyboards, effects, and custom accessories. For equipment used either on stage or in the recording studio, CAE Sound has provided parts and service for professional musicians around the world.
Over the years, as some manufacturers either went out of business or discontinued support for older equipment, CAE Sound stepped in to fill the gap by remanufacturing -- even fabricating -- the parts required to keep this vintage gear alive. The result is one of the most unique and comprehensive inventory of vintage equipment parts in the world -- many of which can be found nowhere else.
In addition to it's vintage equipment parts and service offerings, CAE Sound has recently been expanding into the design and manufacture of a variety of new musical gadgets. Some of these products include a replacement power amp module for the Fender Rhodes Suitcase Piano that offers lower distortion and cleaner sound, replacement sustain pedals and sustain rods for that same unit, and the "Jangletone" preamp, designed to give an electric guitar a warm acoustic character.
Having gotten it's start in 1970, CAE Sound is proud to have played a modest, and mostly unseen, role in rock 'n roll history. We don't work on stage, in front of the crowds. But we were there, behind the scene, providing the technical support that helped musicians create the sounds that defined the genre.
In 2004 the CAE Sound crew appeared incognito in an article appearing in Live Sound International magazine. The article (pdf) told the story of the mysterious and often unseen labors of the techicians that help perfomers keep their gear in good working order.
Joe used the Leslie Sound Effect on his guitar in the opening of the hit song Hotel California. To get the sound he wanted, Joe came to CAE Sound for custom hardware modifications.
Influenced by the LA music scene, Joe wanted to have a Leslie fitted with a JBL 2485 16 ohm HF Driver. In June, 1994, we built a Leslie Horn adaptor out of aluminum to connect the JBL Horn Driver with a 2 inch throat to the 3/4-inch diameter Leslie Treble Horn spindle. We consulted with the engineers at JBL and concluded that for the best transfer of power and lowest distortion we would have to make the throat as long as we could. It turned out to be about 13 inches long.
This was a huge mass to support inside the Leslie Speaker box. We fabricated special support brackets to secure the Driver during shipment from gig to gig. We delivered two Leslies in custom made road cases to the Shoreline Ampitheater.
The entire project was completed in one month.
Monday through Friday 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
closed 1:00 to 2:00 pm for lunch