“I wasn’t trying to build a brand. I was trying to protect musicians.”

Long before in-ear monitors were standard on every stage, Dr. Michael Santucci was trying to solve a quieter problem. As an audiologist with a deep love for music, he saw firsthand how many musicians were losing their connection to the art they loved—through preventable hearing loss.

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This segment offers a rare glimpse into a parallel origin story. Not one driven by tour demands or technical flash, but by a sincere effort to make live performance safer. From filtered earplugs to early balanced armature designs, Santucci’s work planted seeds that still shape the industry today.

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His approach was different. His impact is undeniable.

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_{Full Video Transcript below:‍}

_{My name is Dr. Michael Santucci. I am an audiologist. And, uh, my start came from my, I came from a family of musicians. My dad had his own big band, and all my family, my sisters and I played multiple instruments and the house was always full of sound.}

_{And as I got older, I wasn't playing much after high school, but I was working, I, I became an audiologistand I was not working in the music industry, but started to realize that there were musicians having problems with their hearing friends of mine.}

_{And they'd say, Hey man, could you give us some earplugs or something that work? And I'd say, did you try foam?}

_{Yeah. Have you ever tried foam? And I play brass instruments and I put the foam in. I go, that's horrible.}

_{They go, yeah, we can't play with that. So I tried to develop an earplug with a filter in it just 'cause I knew it would let more high end in. And then a couple years later, I see this thing called an in ear monitor by a company, FutureSonics.}

_{And he contacts me and says, I see you're into hearing conservation. So am I. And I'm using these in ears. So I saw the technology and I thought it was really cool. And then I got to the show and heard the drum kit in the back of the PA. And I go, it's really loud up here still. And so why don't you close that hole?}

_{And then when I tried closing it, those round diaphragms, I realized, don't sound good if they don't have the air moving both sides of it. So I decided to go with a balanced armature speaker.}

_{And actually, I created the first in ear monitor with a balanced armature in 1992 called the  ProPhonic IV of a long deceased single driver.}

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