New England’s Largest Regional Full Production Company
Audio Spectrum was started by Rafael Jaimes in 1986 as a small business originating in the basement of his home in Roslindale, MA. Fast forward nearly 36 years later and Audio Spectrum is now headquartered in a 40,000 sq. ft. facility in Randolph, MA, becoming the Boston metro area’s premier audio and visual reinforcement solutions company. As a live events production company specializing in lighting, audio, special effects, video, staging, and backline, Audio Spectrum’s resources and experience provide clients with a vast array of solutions in the creation of their events.
With Rafael still at the helm, Audio Spectrum remains family owned and operated, with his son Luis serving as business manager. Luis has been involved with the family business since he was tall enough to grab a microphone off the shelf. Without relying on his father’s efforts Luis established himself at Northeastern University graduating with a degree in economics. Following graduation, Luis worked at Bay State Financial (BSF), honing his skills in real world economics and bringing together the practical business knowledge he learned from his father with his collegiate studies. “My father had been eager to get me involved in the family business since I was very young, and I had done just that for many years. I was fortunate in that sense, because I really enjoy live event work, but I wanted to find my own way,” Luis says.
When offered a promotion after a couple of years at BSF, Luis came to a crossroads. “I had to make a decision that would determine the course of my life. Do I want to continue down this path or get back into the family business?” The family won out.
“My father started the business primarily as an audio company and then branched into staging in the ‘90s and a bit into lighting,” says Luis. “When I came on board in 2014, I was involved in all aspects of operations, but my primary duty was to take artist riders and put together estimates and proposals. I realized there was a huge need, and opportunity, to get into LED video. Looking at the requests coming across my desk and the amount of sub rentals we were doing to fill the need, it made good financial sense to take the plunge.”
Growth Through Acquisition
As the business started to grow in the early ‘90s, Rafael purchased a building that was a couple thousand square feet. By the end of the ‘90s, the need for a larger warehouse necessitated the purchase of a 5,000 sq. ft. facility, which Audio Spectrum operated out of until 2015.
When Rafael purchased the current space that Audio Spectrum operates from, “Our business grew exponentially from that point,” says Luis. This was due in part to the acquisition of Rainbow Productions’ lighting department in 2018. Hollis “Jib” Clark, a principal operator with Rainbow, came on board at that time as well. “He has been a huge part of our growth with his industry experience of over 40 years as well as the transition of his clientele into our fold.”
In June 2021, Audio Spectrum finalized the acquisition of East Coast Lighting & Production Services Inc. (ECLPS), a long-time industry pioneer and regional leader founded in 1972 and based in Warwick, RI.. ECLPS’ Operations Manager Nathan Almeida and several key team members are now working with Audio Spectrum in their Randolph, MA location. “I am really excited about working with Nate and particularly excited about one of their major clients, Live Nation New England,” comments Luis.
Since its creation, Audio Spectrum has primarily been a regional company catering to the live music industry, accumulating some touring clients and an occasional foray to the West Coast and Florida. “We do have a niche with the Latino market specifically. My father has had a relationship with a lot of Latin artists for decades now. A vast majority of our business is in New York City. That market is much larger with many venues compared to the Boston metro area.”
Moving Ahead
Like most businesses can attest, the most difficult challenge in the company’s history has been navigating through the uncertainty brought by Covid-19. “We were fortunate that the company was in a good financial position when the pandemic hit,” admits Luis. “We were able to hold onto our core team, including some employees that have been with us for over 20 years. Getting through the pandemic without a lot of the staff we were forced to let go was difficult, but we survived with some income stream.”
Coming back in 2021 was equally as arduous. They had to manage the acquisition of ECLPS, incorporate new processes and rebuild their team while they met with a sudden intense wave of projects. “We went from 110% in early 2020 to zero and immediately started back at 500% in June of 2021,” Luis notes. “Working around the shortages of staff and vital support items to get back into the swing of things and back on track has been a real challenge.”
The Audio Spectrum team is meeting the demands. “We have always provided exceptional service and our core team of experienced and knowledgeable engineers in all our departments paves the way,” comments Luis. “The ability now to provide, audio, lighting, rigging, staging, and backline gives us the advantage of being a full-service production company. Since we are able to look at the entire event internally, we are not blindsided by any unforeseen miscommunications. Couple that with a fairly large and up-to-date inventory in every department, it is easy to see that the reputation my father built for this company is still intact and thriving.”
With some difficult and challenging times behind them, Rafael, Luis, and the whole Audio Spectrum team is optimistic about the continued growth of the company that started in a basement nearly 36 years ago and has become the largest full service live events production company in New England. The future surely seems bright.
Project Focus: Going All Out for Gusttavo Lima
Recently, Audio Spectrum demonstrated the full strength of how their company meets the needs of today’s artists by providing versatile solutions, experienced technicians, and a huge inventory for a major headliner.
Gusttavo Lima is one of Brazil’s popular hit-making singer/songwriters. His team originally wanted to stage a small event in the U.S., but at “the 11th hour” the project increased to a major stadium-sized production called Buteco in Boston at Fitchburg Municipal Airport in Fitchburg, MA. Audio Spectrum fulfilled the team’s design specifications providing audio, lighting, video, rigging, staging, special effects, and backline for the show, which competed with an active runway behind the stage. “They wanted to make it a huge spectacle, live stream it, and do a DVD recording. We only had a few weeks to prepare, and the final design wasn’t solidified until a week out when we got finalized sign-offs,” Luis explains. “Documentation and changes were coming from their designers in Brazil, and we worked with their Lighting Director, Cosmo Wilson as he translated their vision into a finalized plot.”
Wilson was contacted by his old friend Sasio Lima (no relation) about the August festival appearance in Boston which Lima was doing mid-tour. Says Wilson, “Sasio is a very dear old friend of mine, and I always visit with him when I’m in Brazil. His company LPL does Gusttavo’s tours.” LPL initially wanted Wilson to design the show, but his commitments prevented him from giving it his full attention. A joint coalition was formed where LPL would do most of the heavy lifting, drafting, and design with input from Wilson, who would operate and act as lighting director.
LPL’s and Wilson’s design required hundreds of lighting fixtures from Audio Spectrum’s inventory of manufacturers such as Robe, Elation, Martin, and German Light Products. At one point in the design process, more than 400 LED audience blinders were requested, but after exhausting all avenues the units were simply not available given the logistical difficulties of sourcing them. Luis and the team at Audio Spectrum then suggested PAR64s as a replacement. “We hung pre-rig vertically and used the PAR64s as blinders,” Luis explains. “We framed the LED screens on the scaffold towers. Cosmo loved the idea and it wound up looking pretty cool.”
“Part of the show occurred during daylight hours, so the PARs were a great add,” says Wilson, explaining that he designed the show with sunshine in mind. “The challenge was the international communications along with the time zone delay of arrival of information. And you know there is never enough time but we always make the time. Luis’ crew worked their asses off and the show came together without a hitch. They were really great.”
Learn more about Audio Spectrum at www.audiospectrum.com