Rolling a small PA round a festival site

[Stuart91]

I was talking to some folks who are throwing some ideas around for a youth festival that's taking place later on in the summer.

 

One possibility is having a portable PA that is mounted on some sort of bogie or wagon, so that it can be rolled around to different spots on the site. The PA itself won't be particularly huge - probably consisting of something like 2 x SRM450, a Folio-esque mixer, CD player/iPod and some radio mic receivers. However we'll also need a generator to power it all.

 

A few challenges:

The site is fairly bumpy - so it'll need to be mounted on proper inflatable tyres - flightcase castors won't cut it

There are a few hills as well, so I'm concerned that the whole thing would become insanely heavy and very difficult to move.

 

I'm curious if anyone out there has seen or tried something like this in the past. Did it work? How did you get on? What did you use to wheel everything around?

[cedd]

Box trailer? Gives you somewhere dry to sit inside and store all your kit and to engineer from. The A frame to fasten your generator to and then run out satelite speakers.

[mal421]

What are your reasons for considering having a transportable PA System ? Is cost precluding having more than 1 system ? You have already identified some problem areas regarding moving the system now add a field full of people. Also you have identified power as a problem area , I wouldn't run any of my kit off of a small portable petrol generator ( This has been discussed before ) , if that is your plan . As an aside imagine the H&S implications of carrying a container full of petrol through an event full of children and young people . Is a small battery operated system possible ? It would solve a lot of problems .

Imagine you have just struggled to move the system across the field, set it up and it doesn't work because something as come adrift . You spend time sorting the problem then you have to move the whole system again and maybe have a similar problem . What will happen to your timetable ? Not to mention any stick you may get from the punters . Your are talking about moving equipment that isn't designed to be moved as a complete system .

Here in Somerset we have our annual carnival season and your problem is very similar to what the carnival clubs have to overcome . The clubs tend to mount systems like yours on a pickup truck or similar complete with gennie using lots of wood and load straps . However they then drive them very slowly along smooth roads that are clear of people and other traffic and not bumpy fields .

I am not trying to wet on your fireworks , I just think what suggested is fraught with problems . Personally I would use a number of PA systems and try to use the fewest generators , maybe even plan the event site around the power distribution .

I hope I have been some help .

[Simon Lewis]

Something like this?http://www.jblpro.com/pressroom/Rugby/VT-Rugby_small.jpg

[pisquee]

You seem to have started your own risk assessment in your post, thinking of the obstacles you face, this is going to need to be a motorised vehicle, as using man power is going to be too risky. (You've identified some problems and risks, you now need to minimise them)

IF you do go with this route, instead of multiple systems, have equipment racked in a shock absorbent rack, have everything strapped down, so it doesn't rock and yank a cable, or fall from the vehicle onto someone.

[Bryson]

You want a Gator for that.

[back_ache]

I was talking to some folks who are throwing some ideas around for a youth festival that's taking place later on in the summer.

 

One possibility is having a portable PA that is mounted on some sort of bogie or wagon, so that it can be rolled around to different spots on the site. The PA itself won't be particularly huge - probably consisting of something like 2 x SRM450, a Folio-esque mixer, CD player/iPod and some radio mic receivers. However we'll also need a generator to power it all.

 

A few challenges:

The site is fairly bumpy - so it'll need to be mounted on proper inflatable tyres - flightcase castors won't cut it

There are a few hills as well, so I'm concerned that the whole thing would become insanely heavy and very difficult to move.

 

I'm curious if anyone out there has seen or tried something like this in the past. Did it work? How did you get on? What did you use to wheel everything around?

 

how about making a mobile stage that you could tow with a 4x4?

 

for example you could get a trailor that would normally be used for a car transporting, cover it with steel deck and then using steel deck and scaff accesorys to add safety rails and somthing to contain your genny and PA.

 

it goes without saying you need need someone to build it for you despite using off the shelf bits and it would need to be seriously over-engineered.

 

you also require a really good quality generator.

[Stuart91]

Thanks for all the replies so far.

 

There is a reason for one rolling PA rather than several permanent ones. The idea is that this "event" will spring up spontaneously wherever people are gathering.

 

Vehicular access is tricky - I think we could get away with something quad bike sized but not a full vehicle. Of course, having a quad bike nipping around would give rise to a whole new range of risks, especially given that most festival goers won't be expecting vehicles or paying attention.

 

One possibility might be to split the load - so we have a smaller wagon with generator and mixer etc. and then run speakers (which could be carried by individuals).

 

My hunch is that the overall idea won't go ahead, but it doesn't hurt to explore all the possibilities.

[Bryson]

I wasn't kidding about the Gator. The get used on all sorts of Festivals and will prove to worth it's weight in Gold during the setup of the event. Get one.

[Stuart91]

I wasn't kidding about the Gator. The get used on all sorts of Festivals and will prove to worth it's weight in Gold during the setup of the event. Get one.

 

Might be nice to have the folks behind this project pay for a Gator, which we can then use during the setup etc. From the looks of the six wheeled one, I reckon I could get the gear I need on the flatbed behind, although there's still the challenge of making sure that it stays there.

 

I'm pretty unfamiliar with these types of vehicles - is there any kind of training required before we let people loose on them? I know, for instance, that if the answer to my questions had been "hire a forklift" we'd need a trained operator - are Gators et al any different?

[saturnx21]

Vehicular access is tricky - I think we could get away with something quad bike sized but not a full vehicle. Of course, having a quad bike nipping around would give rise to a whole new range of risks, especially given that most festival goers won't be expecting vehicles or paying attention.

 

I know you have said "Vehicular access is tricky" And I have not seen the site (nor have I tried it!) so I don't know if this idea would work but, would you not be better with a tractor and a large farm trailer as these tend to have large inflated tyres and would cope with uneven ground much better. Also I would think that a large slow moving object like a tractor is less likely to run people over than something small like a quad bike.

[Pete McCrea]

From your requirement to be spontaneous and happen where people gather, it sounds like your after trying to get it to fit on to a 4 wheel hand trolley like the ones you see at garden centres for putting your plants in. Get two or three people on the trolley and you might be able to push it round the site. If you can get it down to unpowered cabs, driven from an integrated mixer amp you might stand a good chance of making it fit to two trolleys.

 

Tractors and trailers whilst spot on for the job, would probably destroy the ambience and spontanayity.

[niall]

My hunch is that the overall idea won't go ahead, but it doesn't hurt to explore all the possibilities.

 

In fairness, we are hoping that we don't have to go down this route at all!

[Bryson]

I wasn't kidding about the Gator. The get used on all sorts of Festivals and will prove to worth it's weight in Gold during the setup of the event. Get one.

 

Might be nice to have the folks behind this project pay for a Gator, which we can then use during the setup etc. From the looks of the six wheeled one, I reckon I could get the gear I need on the flatbed behind, although there's still the challenge of making sure that it stays there.

Ratchet straps - problem solved.

 

 

 

I'm pretty unfamiliar with these types of vehicles - is there any kind of training required before we let people loose on them? I know, for instance, that if the answer to my questions had been "hire a forklift" we'd need a trained operator - are Gators et al any different?

AFAIK, it's just a "normal" driving license, but I'm sure the Hire company will be able to advise as to requirements.

[themadhippy]

sounds like a job for the canford audio tricycle