John Paul D'Arcy, was an American electrical engineer and inventor closely associated with designing commercial
subwooferA subwoofer is a woofer, or a complete loudspeaker, which is dedicated to the reproduction of low-pitched audio frequencies known as the "bass". The typical frequency range for a subwoofer is about 20–200 Hz for consumer products, below 100 Hz for professional live sound, and below...
s and
laserA laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
s for
Photorefractive keratectomyPhotorefractive keratectomy and Laser-Assisted Sub-Epithelial Keratectomy are laser eye surgery procedures intended to correct a person's vision, reducing dependency on glasses or contact lenses. The first PRK procedure was performed in 1987 by Dr. Theo Seiler, then at the Free University...
.
He attended
Palos Verdes High SchoolPalos Verdes High School is one of three public high schools on the Palos Verdes Peninsula in Southern California, USA...
in Los Angeles County from 1972–1975, and graduated from
Northfield Mount HermonNorthfield Mount Hermon School, commonly referred to as NMH, is a co-educational independent boarding high school for students in grades 9–12...
preparatory school in 1976, before enrolling at
Brown UniversityBrown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,...
. He worked at A Broun Sound in
San Rafael, CaliforniaSan Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...
, reconing loudspeakers for the
Grateful DeadThe Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
before taking a position at Miller & Kreisel Sound Corporation (M&K), where he worked from 1980-1984. His contributions to the filter and amplifier scetions of their powered subwoofers (Models V-1B, V-2B, V-3B, VX-4 and VX-7), and to the development of the Satellite speakers (Models S-1B, S-2B, S-3B and SX-4) helped establish M&K as an early leader in the satellite/subwoofer market. M&K Executive Vice President Charles Back called D'Arcy "the best digital engineer we ever worked with.". He subsequently worked for Spectra Physics Corporation in
San Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
, designing lasers for supermarket scanners, and for VISX Corporation of San Jose where he developed lasers for optical surgery until his death. In the early 1990s, he served as a guest lecturer at
Stanford UniversityThe Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics.