robert morley Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hi all, I have started working as a caretaker in a school in Norfolk and I am sorry to say as with one or two other schools, The Lighting and Sound equipment is as old as I am. I was wondering if anyone on here could donate any lighting or sound equipment you no longer need to the school so we can at least try and update some of there things. Thomann (Germany) have already donated 17 LED par cans, But we could rearly do with, DMX Lighting Desk (The School has an old 16 channel Anolouge), 3 pin XLR's to conect the LED Cans, Par cans of any size, Speekers, a sub, Moving head/ Scanners, Disco Lights, Amps, Dimmers, Anything. We have already aproched quite a few large Companys with very none positive results which I do think is bad when a German company couldnt help enough ( I do understand the hard time ect but how much would a Couple of parcans or a sub have actualy cost CPC!) Anyway what we can offer in Return is that you will be named and thanked by The EDP newspaper in Norfolk along with local Radio, and the Sun Newspaper is going to publish a small coloum thanking all the companys/ people for there help. I know this is a big ask in the current times but even if you can just spair a few XLR cables that would help so much. Thanks in advance guys and girls. Rob. PS all donated equipment will be pat tested by me and any failed items will be Repaired, returned or distroyed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brainwave-generator Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Thomann (Germany) have already donated 17 LED par cans, But we could rearly do with, DMX Lighting Desk (The School has an old 16 channel Anolouge), 3 pin XLR's to conect the LED Cans, Par cans of any size, Speekers, a sub, Moving head/ Scanners, Disco Lights, Amps, Dimmers, Anything. I think if you put together a structured list of a spec that you want to achieve, you might find it easier to get people to fill the gaps. Listing all sorts of different things in no particular order looks like you just have a kit fetish and want to get a load of stuff and bung it up and see what happens. I think if you can design a lighting rig and a sound system suited to the space, spec what it NEEDS (you can't ask for free stuff that you don't need) and send out the list and see if people could donate anything on it. Just saying "send us whatever you've got" is unlikely to get any responses, people will put it on ebay, or just keep it in a dark corner of the warehouse in case on the off chance somebody asks for it in particular. We have already aproched quite a few large Companys with very none positive results which I do think is bad when a German company couldnt help enough ( I do understand the hard time ect but how much would a Couple of parcans or a sub have actualy cost CPC!) Anyway what we can offer in Return is that you will be named and thanked by The EDP newspaper in Norfolk along with local Radio, and the Sun Newspaper is going to publish a small coloum thanking all the companys/ people for there help. I know this is a big ask in the current times but even if you can just spair a few XLR cables that would help so much. If everyone who asked for some free par cans was just given them, who would they sell par cans to? They're not a charity, you cannot think they are stingey simply because they won't give you free stuff. There's nothing in it for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDD Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 We have already aproched quite a few large Companys with very none positive results which I do think is bad when a German company couldnt help enough ( I do understand the hard time ect but how much would a Couple of parcans or a sub have actualy cost CPC!)With respect, if every school in country asked CPC for a couple of free parcans or a sub, then it would cost CPC an awful lot of money. Being devils advocate, what makes your school any more deserving than any of the others with old equipment? I'm sure you can find some donations, but all I could offer is even more old equipment which it seems you don't need. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 Much as the kit may be "old" it is usually salvageable with some TLC and a few lamps and fuses, modern DMX stuff from China will not have a comparable life and will need constant replacements -which will not be quite compatible. Unless you have an examination class doing drama in some way, stick with what you have, but ensure that it is clean and functional. Lanterns deliver lots more light when the lenses and reflectors are cleaned possibly with soap and water! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LXbydesign Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Yep - I agree with PDD here. No disrespect, but what makes your school so different from 100's of other in the same situation? FYI I have around 12 Patt23 profiles and a couple of P123's available - most with 16 plugs on and lamped. A couple are not. All in VGC. Your welcome to make an offer for them but Im not giving them away . . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WiLL Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 I'm amazed you got something from Thomann, let alone 17 LED cans, bit of a score there, nice one. Be advised though, those old lanterns you have that look like they are made from pig iron and are painted a lovely shade of military green are probably still perfectly usable. I still see Strand 743's (the big 1k fresnels) 123's (the egg shaped 500w fresnels) being used in venues across the country. They not bad units, especially once they've been cleaned up, had their lenses and reflectors buffed back to a shine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.J.S Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Watch out with Thomanns cheaper LED Pars they start to fail within weeks. The cause is fuses go, so if you drop a colour is a case of stripping the units down to the base and replacing the inline fuses . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbuckley Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 No disrespect, but what makes your school so different from 100's of other in the same situation? By having a thing called a Robert that is willing to get off its ass and to have a go and try and make a difference. Well done that man, keep trying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Lewis Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 There are some free analogue dimmers going in the Blue Room classifieds.... OK - not DMX but they can be connected via a demultiplexer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Great care is needed with the School and Council's attitude to second hand kit. Us assuming that you are totally competent in routine repairs and PAT doesn't mean that the school or council will permit you to do repairs as technically it's probably beyond your remit as caretaker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 State schools get their resources based on size and role - so I actually find it a little strange that they need to rely on donations to equip themselves. It's even more strange when all the exam boards make it a requirement of the license that the schools resource their courses properly. If the equipment is not needed for a specific course they are taking, then it's enrichment and not essential. I find it a bit strange we're berating a company for not giving equipment away to a school. The very same school who probably have the CPC account to buy their consumable items and bits and pieces. You did really well getting Thomann to donate - but maybe they like the idea of doing more business with UK schools as an extra. CPC do business with UK schools and their core business (or at least, part of it). While I appreciate what Robert is trying to do, education is NOT a charity, and lack of investment is just indicative of the importance the school put on this area of work. I'm also a bit surprised the EDP have agreed to promote this one - they're usually quite negative on this kind of thing in Norfolk. Certainly they have been unsupportive of the similar issues of equipping a new school here just across the border into Suffolk. I could give you then names of dozens of Norfolk schools who would love to get freebies of this kind, some very worthy. North Walsham High School would love some more equipment, and it could be argued that a High School, with performing arts and music programmes running would benefit more than a junior school, who don't actually need it - but it's nice to have! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dosxuk Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 North Walsham High School would love some more equipment, and it could be argued that a High School, with performing arts and music programmes running would benefit more than a junior school, who don't actually need it - but it's nice to have! It would have been nice if there'd been some thought gone into what they did have. 5A dimmers all round. 15A IWBs and fixtures in the drama studio. 5A IWB (with no labelling) and fixtures in the school hall. School show comes round - ah we'll just borrow kit out of the drama studio... oh no we won't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ojc123 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Sorry, I have no spare equipment which I can let you have. State schools get their resources based on size and role - so I actually find it a little strange that they need to rely on donations to equip themselves. If the equipment is not needed for a specific course they are taking, then it's enrichment and not essential. If it's not essential the school doesn't necessarily fund it so the school relies on donations, profits from shows or the Parents' Association to fund its enrichment activities. I'm not sure how that's strange. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nb705 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 This may be a tad cynical, but with the EDP involved, perchance is either one of the students or staff related to an editor? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Adam Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 To the OP - well done for trying to make a difference. You obviously care about what you are doing. And therein lies the solution. If the children and parents care as much as you do about extra curricular drama activities, then good old fashioned fund raising is what will help you. Asking on these forums is one avenue, but if the kids really want some equipment, then they might have to do a lilttle hard work to get it. (bring and buy sales, car washes, bag packing at super markets etc) I agree with the above posts about servicing the old gear. Just keeping it clean and lamped / gelled makes a massive difference. Things like moving scanners, moving heads etc are all luxuary items. They are not needed to put on a simple school show - which is your next point of income. £5 a ticket for a school drama production will earn your school a lot of money. I wish you the best of luck with your venture. It will take patience and a lot of graft, but you could really make a decent drama club out of this- and thats what matters- not the gear. The equipment can come later, once you have a good team of students around you who care as much as you do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.