The Nexo family is mourning the loss of one of its sons, the talented young loudspeaker designer Matthias Larrieu, who lost his life in a car accident in June, writes Ginny Goudy. In his six years at Nexo, Matthias left a truly impressive mark. A core member of the design team that brought the company's flagship STM Series modular line array into existence, he was also instrumental in the development of other ground-breaking Nexo products, notably the 45°N-12 inline stage monitor and the hugely popular RS subbass cabinets.
His last project for Nexo was the STM M28 compact line array, which, in its first year on the market, is already set to become one of the company's best-selling PA systems.
Nexo's gentle giant, Matthias balanced his genius with great kindness and amiability. This most sociable of engineers liked nothing better than explaining the intricacies of his work to potential users from all over the world, and seeing the light in their eyes when they understood just what he had achieved. His enthusiasm made him widely loved by both colleagues and customers. Nexo director François Deffarges remembers the young Matthias, then aged just 23, putting perspective on the scale of an R&D challenge - "But François, if you can see the mountain, it is no longer an obstacle!"
Most engineers would take decades to achieve what Matthias did in his short life. With his many patents shaping future sound reinforcement technology, his real legacy can already be found on concert stages around the world, bringing music and pleasure to hundreds of thousands of people.
