Eoin's life behind a mixing desk started when he was about 13, after getting a 3 channel mixing desk for Christmas one year, which was used to mix a band in a garage. By the next year there was a LEM 12 channel console and a 200 Watt PA to play with, and also a company name! AMP Sound Systems was brought into this world by a very young, spotty-faced, long-haired, entrepreneurial spirit who commonly answered to the name Eoin O'Grady.

Over the next couple of years, the extent of Eoin's knowledge changed from “how to plug a mic in” to “how to do a damn good job mixing a live band”. Very experienced and knowledgeable engineers realised Eoin's potential and very soon had him mixing shows for them. It soon became very clear that when you learn from the best, you will not settle for anything less than the best. Eoin kept an open ear to everything, and learned from every little mistake or experiment.

By the time Mr. O'Grady was 18, he had done himself and AMP Sound Systems proud, by proving to be an excellent sound engineer for all sorts of bands and musical theatre. The compliments would fly towards mix-position, where a very young man was just thinking “how can I make this sound better next time”.

At this stage, the contents of his bedroom consisted of a bed, a desk with a computer, racks and racks of EQ's, effects, radio mics, amps, XLR leads, speakers etc. The rig was nearly comparable to some of the bigger hire companies in Dublin! Any money earned went straight back into new equipment, constantly improving and upgrading the rig.

Jump forward another year and suddenly “the boy who liked noise” is now a man, who is classed by quite a few as one of Ireland's best live sound engineers – with his list of experience now including 2 international tours and work with famous acts such as Bell X1, Mundy, Brendan O'Shea, Paddy Casey, Eimear Quinn, Hazel O'Conner, Luan Parle, Mary Coughlan, Clive Barnes, ShazOye, the 2FM Sessions and many many more. Large musicals were also taken on during the year, and crisp, clear sound was reproduced every night without fail thanks to the experience he had gained when much younger.

Obviously in between international tours and big budget musicals there were many Battle of the Bands, weddings, and general small scale pub gigs which were great for experience and self esteem, as artists continued to sing praise for the man behind the desk: Mr. Eoin O'Grady.

Be part of this story by heading to

www.ampsoundsystems.com

where you can book Eoin O'Grady as your sound engineer to experience the great sound for yourself!