Company
Industrial Radio is an Australian company that manufactures the Industrial Radio Midi Bass, a hybrid electric bass guitar and MIDI controller.
At the heart of Industrial Radio is electronics engineer and music product designer Steve Chick. Steve Chick designed the technology of the Midi Bass in the late 1980's and licensed the system to various companies like Valley Arts Guitars, Wal Basses and, most notably, Peavey Electronics who got behind the product and generated the Peavey Midibase and Peavey Cyberbass. While all of the instruments that were manufactured by these companies had different names they all shared the same core MIDI technology. This overall design has often been referred to as the "Steve Chick midi bass".
In the pre-Industrial Radio years Steve Chick was optimistic that the MIDI bass technology would be implemented by bass manufacturers without he himself having to become a bass builder. However, over the years we realised that the only way we could make this system a mainstay of modern music technology is if we took complete control of the project from bass building to support to further development.
We are truly excited about the fact that after much preparation Industrial Radio is now ready to build this fantastic design. At last the Midi Bass has a real home.
Acknowledgements
Rick Chadwick
We would like to thank guru Rick Chadwick for his help. His vast experience in music production and knowledge of synthesis, sampling, sequencing and all things MIDI has been invaluable. Rick helped us to determine the core MIDI implementation for the Midi Bass in order to get the optimum performance from synths and samplers.
Brian Newcombe
Located in Vancouver, Canada, Brian Newcombe is a professional studio and concert bassist and a long time midi bass user. Brian has provided invaluable feedback regarding the overall Midi Bass design, especially in relation to his vast experience, both live and in the studio, addressing the practical needs of a midi bassist working in the professional environment.