May 2010 » strymon

May 07 2010

Strymon’s newest member: Ethan Tufts – Marketing Director

Posted by Terry

We here at Strymon are fortunate to have teamed up with the best and brightest engineers. We want to make cool gear with great people.

That’s why we’re excited to announce our newest and exclusive addition to our top notch team – Ethan Tufts. Let’s just say that Ethan has a spectrum of talent. He knows what it takes.

We decided to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves through a series of questions. Here is a glimpse of who we are:

Ethan Tufts – Marketing Guru
	# of guitars you own? Just a few. I usually stick with my el cheapo Fender Toronado and my Gibson J-30 acoustic. Your favorite gear that you constantly use? Two Gibson Echoplex Digital Pro’s for live looping. I also use the crap out of Line 6 POD Farm. # of dogs you’ve rescued Two doggies from Los Angeles shelters, Edison and Emma. How old were you when you made your first song? First song, or first good song? I recorded several hundred terrible vocal and casio keyboard ideas when I was 10. My first not entirely terrible song came about when I was 16. Who are 3 people / bands who have highly influenced you in music? Radiohead, especially during the OK Computer era. Fugazi and Drive Like Jehu are also pretty big influences. What was the first CD you ever bought? Pretty sure it was either Public Enemy Fear of a Black Planet or Yes 90125. How much are you willing to pay for a awesome t-shirt? I like my shirts cheap. Dumpy thrift stores is how I roll. # of cars you’ve owned? I must get bored too easily. In the last 17 years I’ve owned 17 cars!
Terry Burton – Design Engineer
	Your main ax? Gibson SG Standard (Natural Burst) What was your first job? I was SUPER lucky. When I was 16 the owner of a small music repair shop in Ventura, CA gave me a job as a technician fixing Guitar Amps, Keyboards, Mixers, etc. If you could eat one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be? Tacos Your favorite movie? Episode IV. Ok, now come on, what is really your favorite movie? Ok, even more nerdy: TRON. # of times you’ve dropped and broken cups? Too many, I’ve lost count. Out of a set of my favorite tumblers only 1 remains, and it is chipped. Many cups died to bring us this information. Your occupation in an alternate universe? Artist or male underwear model Strange pets you happen to own? My wife and I have 2 hamsters: Oskar & Polly. Top 3 people you look up to? Bob Moog, Albert Einstein, Gregg "the analog guru" Stock
Gregg Stock – Senior Analog Engineer
	What was your first guitar? First guitar was a el cheapo steel string acoustic. First electric was a wine colored Les Paul Custom. Top 3 concerts you’ve been to? Kiss in the Paramount theater 1974 Led Zeppelin in the King Dome 1977 Van Halen opening for Black Sabbath in the Arena 1978 What was your first invention? When I was about 8, I wanted to make a wrist watch voice recorder with a loop of wire and a hover craft out of a vacuum cleaner. Needless to say, those projects are still on the drawing board. # of baseball games you’ve attended (estimate)? I’ve been to about 400 games at every possible level for the 11/12 year old group and at least 1000 from t-ball to college. I still have not seen my oldest play professionally. How long are you going to wear that USC sweater? Sweatshirt, real men don’t wear sweaters. As long as it is one piece. An engineer never throws out a fully functional item of clothing – ever. This was the problem that plagued aerospace engineers in the 60′s and 70′s. Their polyester wouldn’t wear out and were forced to wear it for waaaay too long. Favorite Southpark episode? Imagination Land How many subwoofers do you have in your living room entertainment system? Four 15" so far. Favorite all-time flick? This is Spinal Tap
Pete Celi – DSP Algorithm Genius
	How do you pronounce your last name? Sounds like Chelly – it’s Sicilian – arrivederci Favorite horror flick? Does Young Frankenstein count? Actually, the one that freaked me out the most is The Exorcist. Most random job you’ve ever had? I worked a temp job for the board-game maker Parker Brothers where I sorted thousands of little plastic game pieces into giant bins labeled GOOD and BAD. # of times Tammie said to you, "What?" Due to my tendency to mumble, the answer is in the tens of thousands. Seriously. Favorite quote from which movie? “Where is pancakes house?” from the movie Fargo. Current favorite amp? Vox hand-wired AC15. Highly recommended. Your best cocktail drink? I make a mean Bloody Mary, and get many requests for Margaritas. Cheers!
Dave Fruehling – Firmware Architect Genius
	What was your first science project? The classic Volcano project. Baking soda, vinegar and food color. I got in trouble for staining the carpet. # of countries you’ve visited? Thirteen that I recall. Guitar you’re most ashamed of having owned? An Ibanez RG550. Sounds like nice guitar, right? It was florescent nuclear yellow. If you could rescue one person from the office during an earthquake, who would it be? Terry, he’s the nice one. Well maybe Gregg, he’s the clever one. Possibly Ethan, he’s the talented one. No, definitely Pete; he’s the accountant. Do you believe in the devil? Yes, he lives in South Park. Worst ever movie you’ve seen? Just saw it recently, Midgets vs Mascots. *# of times you’ve seen CaddyShack?* Let’s just say it’s on par with what I shot the last time I played a round of golf.