We’ve got a covid postponed wedding gig coming up and we’ve just been hit by the venue’s ‘rider’ rules and Do’s and Dont’s.
PAT test certificates. Nope.
Public Liability Insurance. Nope.
and the potentially gig killing…
You will connect to our Sound limited power, which will cut off if 95dB for 3secs.
Experience and help needed.
PAT testing - I can probably and probably should get this sorted through local friends.
Liability - how do you insure an amateur weekend warrior non professional band? All the websites assume you’re a professional entity. None of us are in the MU. Any advice? Assume I have no knowledge.
95dB - This sounds low to me. We’re a loud rock band. I think we’re screwed.
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Ebay mark7777_1
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But you'll find that some equipment insurers also offer PL cover as an add-on.
It's actually pretty cheap, and if you ever need to claim on it, worth every penny.
95db is low - IIRC that's about the same as a drill (not a road drill!).
The snare could trigger that on it's own.
I’m so bored I might as well be listening to Pink Floyd
As for that meter, if your drummer is a hard hitter then he will be pumping out 110db+ all by himself. A band on top of that will probably push your sound to 120dB, measured 1 metre in front of the band. That will equate to 114dB 2 at metres, 108dB at 4 metres, 100 at 8 metres, 94dB at 16 metres. How far away from the meter will the band be? Probably not 16 metres. Maybe 4 metres, so you will need to learn to rehearse at a quarter of the usual intensity to keep below 95dB for 3 seconds.
What levels do you usually rehearse at? Have you ever measured the level? Apps such as SPL Meter are as accurate as hand-held SPL (sound pressure level) meters, so for your own hearing's sake as well as your audience's, get used to what levels you play at.
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No idea
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I think an acoustic gig and vocals could hit 95dB
Re insurance and PAT testing. The last time that was a stipulation, we sorted it all, and on arrival no one gave a shit if we had it or not.
2 lovely valve amps subjected to power cuts?
Not much of a party is it?
I've played in acoustic bands which had trouble with limiters set as low as that...
The problem (other than the massive annoyance of suddenly losing everything other than the drums mid-song) isn't actually with valve amps - no amp of any quality that it wouldn't just fail anyway will be damaged by having the power cut off - it's just the same as turning off the amp without using the standby switch, which is fine. The issue is with digital equipment, including some modern mixers etc. I would definitely not risk anything like that if there's a likelihood of a sudden power cutout.
Basically limiters are the wrong application for level sensing equipment. The only worthwhile solution is to bypass them - either with an extension cable from somewhere which is not controlled by it, or a massive industrial uninterruptible power supply - and use it for guidance only.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
PLI
Again, completely normal for hotel / wedding / corp work. You can get a single day for about £28 or a year for around £78
Noise limiter
You learn to work around these. The actual dB limit isn't all the information you need, you need to know the weighting as A and C are different depending on the frequency. Over the years i've done all kinds of things from using an inline pad between their mic and the meter if the mic is external, which a lot of older ones are, to using a small UPS for the FOH desk and a huge one for the band. Sadly the large HP 3.2KW I had fell off the loading trolly and smashed so we have resorted to bribing people since and running the band off a cooker socket or similar when the venue has a limiter.
Valve amps aren't particularly prone to problems from power failure. Modern class D is more of a problem as inrush current components can need a reset time and anything with a shutdown procedure like a digital desk will certainly need a steady supply, I still have a UPS on ours.
If you do this kind of work all the time then you tend to get geared up for it as the money is generally very good. If this is a one off though you might just wanna swerve it
The management of the venue were obviously very sensitive to the fact they had this sound meter and the issues it may cause, plus the fact it may result in them losing some very lucrative expensive wedding bookings. The bass player in my band on the night in question made a comment about the absurdity of it all on our Facebook page. Within a couple of minutes a member of the management team from the venue came over asking us to take the post down or they would sue us for libellous comments!!!
I felt sorry for the wedding party as the venue were very sneaky and didn’t tell them about the sound meter when they booked. I even think the couple involved went after the venue for compensation.
https://i.imgur.com/SioAxr3.jpg
Filling the microphone hole with paper or lots of hairspray can help in a pinch!
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I’m quite happy to play to light limit and deal with a grumpy bar manager giving me the thumbs down all night. But not an automated power cut.
It’s not just the venue being arsey. If they’re in a residential area, it’s a common precondition for having a live music licence to soothe the locals.