About Optum Audio
Where Engineering Meets the Stage
Most audio consultants come from one direction — either they're engineers who learned music, or musicians who learned gear. At Optum Audio, those two worlds have been converging for over thirty years. The result is a company that speaks both languages fluently, and builds systems that reflect it.
Our Story
Built on a Simple Observation
Optum Audio was founded on a straightforward observation: most working bands are leaving performance quality and efficiency on the table — not because they lack talent, but because they're working with rented, generic equipment and borrowed technical solutions that were never designed for their specific show. The technology to do better exists. What's been missing is someone who knows how to apply it.
Optum Audio started as an audio consulting firm serving the greater Washington, DC area, designing and building professional recording studios for companies and artists throughout the region. That work built a deep foundation in acoustics, signal architecture, and custom system integration. As those relationships with local bands deepened, the focus evolved naturally toward the stage — designing and building custom performance rigs that give working musicians the same level of intentional engineering that had previously been reserved for the recording studio.
Today, Optum Audio serves regional bands and performing artists across Maryland, DC, and Virginia, with consulting and software services that extend nationally. Our ideal client is an established band ready to take the next step — to stop renting generic equipment and start performing with a system that is purpose-built for their music, their workflow, and their show.
The Founder
Steve Davis — Founder & Lead Engineer
Photo: Amy Hood Captures
Steve Davis brings an uncommon combination of credentials to Optum Audio: a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from The Johns Hopkins University, a Master Certificate in Music Production and Guitar from Berklee College of Music, and more than thirty years of hands-on experience at the intersection of hardware, software, and music.
His engineering career has spanned electromagnetic/antenna interference research, telecommunications, and large-scale commercial IT systems across industries including banking, healthcare, and automotive. He was co-founder of Cereplex, a hospital infection control technology startup that was acquired by Premier, Inc. — an experience that sharpened his ability to design, implement, and manage complex, reliable systems under real-world constraints.
After the Cereplex acquisition, Steve turned his full attention to music and music production, channeling decades of technical expertise into a field he had loved since picking up a guitar in the third grade (thanks mom and dad). He earned a Master Certificate in Music Production and Guitar from Berklee College of Music, where he received a scholarship from legendary producer and musician Don Was. He designed and built recording studios for businesses and artists across the DC area, then applied that same systems-engineering discipline to live performance — designing custom rigs, control systems, and software tools for working bands.
Steve is currently the lead guitarist and engineer for the Washington, DC-area band Hush Trip, which means every system Optum Audio builds is informed by someone who has stood on that stage, held that guitar, and felt the difference between a rig that works and a rig that performs.
Our Philosophy
Technology Should Serve the Music
The best performance system is one you never have to think about on stage. Every cable, every patch change, every signal path should be so well-designed and so well-integrated that it simply disappears, leaving you free to do the one thing that actually matters: play.
That's what drives every decision at Optum Audio. We believe that working musicians deserve the same level of technical intentionality that major touring acts take for granted — and that with the right design, the right build, and the right integration, that level of performance is absolutely within reach for a regional band playing the clubs and theaters of the mid-Atlantic.
We don't sell gear. We don't rent equipment. We design, build, and support complete performance systems — and we stay with our clients as their shows grow, their setlists evolve, and their ambitions expand. Because a great rig isn't a product. It's a relationship.
Ready to talk about your rig?
Every system we build starts with a conversation. Tell us about your band, your show, and your goals — and let's explore what we can build together.
Optum Audio is headquartered in Maryland and serves the greater Washington DC area with consulting and software services available nationally.