11/21/2025
Statement from Sensaphonics Founder Michael Santucci, AuD on the Passing of Mead C. Killion
“I am deeply saddened by the loss of my friend, mentor, and one of audiology’s true visionaries, Mead Killion. Mead was more than an innovator. He fundamentally reshaped how we understand, measure, and protect hearing, and his influence on my own career and on the formation of Sensaphonics is profound and enduring.
I first worked with Mead in 1989, when Sensaphonics served as a beta tester for the musician earplug he created, a product that remains the most accurate earplug for musicians to this day. That experience changed the trajectory of my professional life. Writing about the technology led to my first publications and gave me the foundation to start my musicians’ hearing clinic, finally with a tool that provided meaningful protection without compromising fidelity.
Mead continued to champion my work and push the industry forward in every interaction we had. He offered guidance during the design of my first in-ear monitor, the ProPhonic IV, in 1992, and later developed the probe-tube measurement device that allowed us to quantify exactly how loud musicians were listening to their IEMs, a breakthrough that shaped modern safe-listening practices.
Sensaphonics exists in large part because of Mead’s brilliance, generosity, and unwavering belief that hearing conservation for musicians was both possible and essential. We are indebted to him for his contributions to our company and to our field.
Beyond his remarkable technical achievements, Mead led with kindness, curiosity, and an infectious passion for learning. He inspired generations of audiologists, engineers, students, and clinicians, myself included. His legacy is woven into every safe-listening standard we follow today and into every musician whose hearing has been protected because of his work.
I will miss his guidance, his stories, his humor, and his friendship. But his impact lives on in the countless people whose lives and careers were shaped by his brilliance and humanity.
On behalf of Sensaphonics, we extend our deepest condolences to Gail and the entire Killion family. Mead’s legacy is forever etched into the fabric of our industry, and into the work we do every day.” — Dr. Michael Santucci, AuD, Founder, Sensaphonics