An Opportunity
Eventually he walked across the driveway and applied at Intersonics, landing a job where his unconventional approach to invention was embraced wholeheartedly by company president Roy Whymark.
In addition to his work for NASA, while there Danley invented the Servodrive subwoofer, and with the blessing of Whymark, an audiophile himself, finally had the opportunity to start up a loudspeaker company as a division of Intersonics.
Hearing Servodrive in action on the massive Michael Jackson and U2 tours of the time remains a highlight. “What we did with high intensity acoustics, it was interesting and fun, but sound is what I love.”
Although profitable, Servodrive was tolerated more than encouraged, Danley says, recalling a near collision between visiting NASA representatives and metal rockers Manowar. “They were in their rock and roll clothes and the NASA guys literally plastered their backs against the wall so Manowar could walk by. It was classic, but I knew it wasn’t going to go over well.”
The 1986 Challenger shuttle disaster was the beginning of the end, he says, and in the years that followed, budget cuts and the growing influence of competitor Jet Propulsion Laboratory over decisions concerning what research would be done, and by whom, greatly diminished Intersonics’ role.
And as the NASA contracts dried up, Danley was forced to absorb some personal shocks as well – both the death of his father and the disintegration of his marriage, which left him solely responsible for the care of his two young daughters and threw into stark relief the importance of finding a home for his next inventions that would allow him to fully capitalize on their potential.
Opening Doors
He transitioned to serve as chief designer at Sound Physics Labs (SPL) in Chicago, and when that company faltered, decided to license inventions such as the Synergy Horn and Tapped Horn to a pro audio manufacturer.
Soon, however, another option presented itself via Mike Hedden – owner of SPL’s biggest distributor. When he floated the idea of forming DSL, Danley jumped at the opportunity.
“When Mike called and said, ‘how’s the speaker business sound?’ I thought it sounded pretty good. But most importantly he’s genuine; what he says, he does, and that’s a wonderful thing.”
While Hedden had never manufactured loudspeakers before, he brings a wealth of business acumen to his role as president of DSL, which allows Danley to focus exclusively on R&D. Since 2005, DSL has grown exponentially and now counts the likes of IMAX, Cirque du Soleil and major educational, sporting and worship facilities worldwide among its clients.