sandall

I really, really wouldn't be using MDF for a surface that will abrade & kick up dust.

Looks a useful addition to the toolbox - if you can get your head round the labelling!!

First question is do they actually need 16 channels (the bars are 4, 8, 16, 18 or 20 channel)? Or indeed do they need a controller at all, or would the supplied remote cover their needs?. In Simon & Garfunkel days it was basically on or off, so presumably they just need faces & colour washes.

(Slightly OT) Apparently wearable (electric) lighting has been around since the first production of "Iolanthe" at the new Savoy Theatre in 1882, where the principal fairies (hence "Fairy lights") had small lamps sewn into their coronets & costumes. The dry cell had just been invented in Germany, but wasn't patented till several years later, so presumably they had to dance with jars of liquid acid buried in their costumes.No DMX to worry about though.

Even more impressed :)

Didn't that mean you only got feedback on one side of the aisle?

Back in the days when the BBC was hiring back many of the technical staff it had "let go", the situation seemed to be that they issued their standard T&C's, but if you didn't like them you countered with your own, which (if they wanted you enough) they would then accept. No first-hand experience of this, as I only went back inside once (all my other contracts were for delivery of completed programmes at agreed prices, & IIRC contained very little in the way of T&C's).

That's pretty impressive... Presumably the projection goes right down to the floor?

Unlike Paul I have always charged an hourly rate & put that on the quote. I usually make sure that I provide most of the gear as well (sometimes with a bit of sub-hire thrown in). I do have a rate-card, but those who want everything itemised find that they get charged for all the cables, stands, etc. that usually get thrown in for free!!. If it's long-distance I will factor-in travel-time and/or mileage, but if it's local I don't usually bother. I don't do overnights. The only exceptions (apart from "mates' rates") to a non-negotiable hourly rate are the office-based jobs (consultancy & project management) where I will work out an overall fee or charge a percentage of the budget, reckoning that I can more than cover my fee by getting a better deal out of the chosen supplier(s) than the client could manage (sorry chaps, it's a hard old world). I've been quite lucky thus far, as all the projects & gigs I've done since I "gave up" the day-job has come by word-of-mouth (the fliers & cards I had printed are all still in their boxes), but for reasons beyond my control this year has been a bit dire.

The big problem with projection behind the action is the image being washed out by light from FoH bouncing off the stage (lighting faces is easy - sorting out where the light goes afterwards is the clever bit). This means using more 2-point & side lighting, & rules out any low-angle stuff coming straight in from FoH. Alistair's hanging solution is a good one, but if you have the space behind the screen then back-projection wins hands-down (& also removes the no-go zone near the screen). A local church got talked into buying one of the ultra short throw things (at 3x the list price, because it came in a box with a speaker!!) to project onto the plastered wall behind the altar - it looks horrible!

All's well that ends well then :) All sounds very familiar, apart from the ramp....

Ultra short throw projection can be great, but you need a really, really, flat & smooth surface (forget roller screens) if you don't want to see blemishes. I've only used them in low-expectation situations, but I suspect that definition at the top could be a bit iffy, especially with cheaper models.

Slide show??? Back to the OP - as with the laptop-sound question, there are lots of ways of attenuating a signal, none of them a "right" way; everyone will have a method, that works for them.

Ingenious though :)

It's a notional 100:1 (probably nearer 50:1 for practical purposes) step-down, so maybe a bit of experimentation with your box of transformers? Or something like a 68k to 1k resistive pad, with a 1:1 transformer on the end.

Yes, those are the ones I have. I think they worked out at about £12 each if you bought a Tx & several Rxs. Rock-solid through several brick walls, but I'm not sure how they would get on in a venue full of 2.4GHz hotspots. E2A: Hadn't noticed these ones now have a built-in battery - could be a game-changer (or possibly another thing to bite you :()

Presumably the little generic cigar-tube receivers could be run from 4x NiMH AA batteries instead of the supplied 5V wall-wart?? They are (were?) sold in multi-packs with 1x Tx & several x Rx.

You have had a great deal of advice here, much of it excellent & to the point (some rather less so), but having been involved with quite a few school projects over the years I am going to make five predictions - 1. All your research will be have been in vain, as the school will buy something totally unsuitable from the local music shop, because the music dept. has an account there & "they've always given us a good deal". 2. The totally arbitrary 100m figure will keep coming down till it matches the reality of what has been bought. 3. Everyone will agree that the stage needs a dedicated IP-rated, RCD protected, power supply, but it won't have been budgeted for, so you will end up with (unprotected) trailing cables for years to come. 4. The acoustics of your "shed" will be awful (ok, I stole this one from other people). 5. You were the one who accepted the poisoned chalice, so if it goes pear-shaped it will all have been your fault, but if it all works brilliantly you will be trampled underfoot by those claiming the credit.

They aren't, but Chris is.....

As you say, this is not your area of expertise, so I think your first port of call has to be your nearest sound hire shops, i.e. the people who supply for your local fetes & small festivals, to see what they would suggest as a hire. (I see djw1981 has just beaten me to it on this one) A problem you will meet on the BR is that to some people £10k would be a big spend, while to others it would be chicken-feed. Also, while some responders will have carefully read through your posts word-by-word, others may just throw in suggestions for stuff they like, regardless of whether it might be appropriate for your particular situation.

That sounds quite along way from Montreal.....

It looks like one of my local authority clients has found a novel way of regulating its cash-flow. Invoices get to the customer, & are signed off, as normal, but the payments people appear to have a really aggressive spam-filter, that looks for anything containing the word "invoice" & promptly bins it

That's a lot of baggage to hang on one ad .......

He paid for them in euros, so from where you are you might need a boat :)

I would be (pleasantly) surprised to find T-nuts available in 3/8" BSW, rather than just metric sizes, but if you know a source..........