Library Person

Dave Smith

American engineer, founder of Sequential, designer of the Prophet-5, and driving force behind the MIDI specification.

Type
Person
Subjects
Instruments Technology

Dave Smith (1950–2022) founded Sequential Circuits in San Jose in 1974, designing the Prophet-5 — the first fully programmable polyphonic synthesizer — in 1978. He was the driving force behind the MIDI specification in 1981, coining the acronym itself, and later commissioned Dave Rossum to design the 2140 filter for Sequential’s instruments. After Sequential Circuits closed in 1987, Smith continued building synthesizers as Dave Smith Instruments from 2002, eventually reclaiming and rebranding back to the Sequential name in 2018.

Works in the Library

  • Dave Smith ORGANIZATION

    Sequential

    Dave Smith's synthesizer company, founded 1974 as Sequential Circuits, maker of the Prophet-5 and driving force behind MIDI.

    INSTRUMENTS TECHNOLOGY