Tom Hidley

Tom Hidley (May 27, 1931 – May 2, 2025) was an American recording studio designer and audio engineer whose companies have been responsible for the design of hundreds of professional studios worldwide since 1965. He coined the term "bass trap" and is credited with a number of recording studio design innovations, including soffit-mounted monitor speakers and sliding glass doors between live and isolation rooms.

Life and career

Background and early career As a teenager, Hidley spent long hours playing the saxophone, clarinet, and flute until ordered by his physician to cease after suffering a physical breakdown. Turning to other music-related activities, Hidley began working at loudspeaker and tape-machine companies while recording at clubs after-hours. By 1956, he was working for JBL Loudspeaker Co. and performing audio engineering at custom installations, including installations in the homes of Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Lucille Ball, and Danny Kaye.

In 1959, Madman Muntz hired Hidley to assist with the development of the first car stereo. Among the first to own a Muntz car stereo was Sinatra and through Sinatra's purchase, Hidley became known to Sinatra associate Val Valentin, who invited Hildley to assist in the building of the MGM/Verve recording studios in New York in 1962. Two years later, Phil Ramone hired Hidley to be the audio technical manager of A & R Recording in Midtown Manhattan. Ami Hadani was also employed there at the time. In 1965, both Hidley and Hadani left A & R, moved to Los Angeles, and founded TTG Studios.

Westlake Audio and Eastlake Audio

While at Record Plant, Hidley also began selling professional audio equipment system packages from the garage of his home in Westlake Village, which is next to Thousand Oaks, California. He named his company Westlake Audio. In 1971, Hidley partnered with Glenn Phoenix and Paul Ford to open Westlake Audio on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles. Westlake specialized in selling complete recording studio packages, including not only the design and construction of a studio space but all of the related pro audio equipment. That included a line of Hidley-designed speakers. Westlake was highly influential in standardizing acoustic design in the recording industry, with prospective studio clients commonly seeking out "Westlake rooms." Sierra Audio, a sister company to Kent Duncan's Burbank recording studio Kendun Recorders, was formed to represent Eastlake Audio in the Western Hemisphere, South America, and the Pacific.

Hidley Designs In 1980, Hidley sold Eastlake Audio and moved to Hawaii with the intent to retire,

Later life and death In 2005, Hidley and his wife moved to Australia on his four-year retirement visa.