Would you like a hard Flightcase for your KAM Powerbar?

[Spirits High]

Following on from another thread it seems that a few of us have reached the terminal point of the original KAM soft zip up case for the Powerbar (or it's German freund).

I'm thinking that if there's enough interest we could approach a well known flightcase company to custom make them for us at a decent price.


If it's something you'd find useful then please show your interest on this thread and we'll see if it's worth it or not.

[Mark Wild]

I'm ready to order if Swan can sort us out a decent(ish) price :beer1:

[Spirits High]

I'm ready to order if Swan can sort us out a decent(ish) price :beer1:

Just had a very quick chat to Swanflight.

Yes, it's something they can do and the guesstimate cost was circa £80

I'm going to take a pic of the powerbar add dimensions etc and email it off to them and they'll come back with a proper costing.

[surround sounds]

Yes I am ok with this cause my zip as broken

[Shaun]

Count me in to. :)

[Spirits High]

I've just emailed Gav at Swanflight with pics etc and he's going to get back to me.

As soon as I know something so will you!

[Mark Wild]

Would there be anywhere to put the foot controller? Picky I know..........

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

Would there be anywhere to put the foot controller? Picky I know..........

Not at all - I hate buying cases without room for leads, brackets and the like.

I might be interested too, though my original case is pristine...;)

[Spirits High]

Would there be anywhere to put the foot controller? Picky I know..........

Not picky at all, it's a fair point.

Gav at Swan is going to come back with some options and we can go from there.

[Spirits High]

I've received an email from Swanflight and the case is now available via their website.

There's nowhere inside for the controller :(

Price is £125.92 :eek:

Here's the link
http://http://www.swanflight.com/lighting-flightcases-1/lighting-effects/kam-led-power-bar-flightcase.html

Or that doesn't seem to work
http://http://www.swanflight.com/lighting-flightcases-1/lighting-effects/kam-led-power-bar-flightcase.html


If that one's not working just search their site under lighting cases

[Excalibur]

Ahem. Old bloke shows off what Shaun told him. (http://www.swanflight.com/lighting-flightcases-1/lighting-effects/kam-led-power-bar-flightcase.html)You're welcome.

[Spirits High]

Ahem. Old bloke shows off what Shaun told him. (http://www.swanflight.com/lighting-flightcases-1/lighting-effects/kam-led-power-bar-flightcase.html)You're welcome.

Thanks "Old bloke" I'm on the ipad at the minute so not as techy as usual!

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

£125 is hardly 'about' £80 is it and why make something when part of it doesn't fit inside the case? I'll be sticking with my bag.

[Excalibur]

£125 is hardly 'about' £80 is it and why make something when part of it doesn't fit inside the case? I'll be sticking with my bag.

Glad you said that. I was thinking along those lines too.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

Glad you said that. I was thinking along those lines too.

You leave my bag alone! :D

[Shaun]

Not liking that it wont hold the controller too. I'll stick to the padded bag until it falls apart.

It'd be nice if there was a picture of the inside of the case too. The padded pag has padding inside that the powerbar fits snugly into. I'd expect the flightcase to be the same, but there are no images of the inside.

[Excalibur]

It'd be nice if there was a picture of the inside of the case too. The padded pag has padding inside that the powerbar fits snugly into. I'd expect the flightcase to be the same, but there are no images of the inside.

From how I read it, I'd expect that sort of "Egg Carton" foam. I do feel that a hike of about 50% from the "Ballpark" figure is a bit steep, especially as it could be deemed to be not wholly fit for purpose, if it doesn't hold the footswitch and cables.

I'm fortunate that my case is holding up well, so far, and a tripod bag should be easy and cheap to find, should I feel the urge to spend my hard earned.

[Mark Wild]

£125 is hardly 'about' £80 is it and why make something when part of it doesn't fit inside the case? I'll be sticking with my bag.

Agreed, shame really :)

[Spirits High]

£125 is hardly 'about' £80 is it and why make something when part of it doesn't fit inside the case? I'll be sticking with my bag.

My thoughts too. Think they've taken advantage a bit here possibly.


Not liking that it wont hold the controller too. I'll stick to the padded bag until it falls apart.

It'd be nice if there was a picture of the inside of the case too. The padded pag has padding inside that the powerbar fits snugly into. I'd expect the flightcase to be the same, but there are no images of the inside.

That is definitely a minus point and no inside picture makes it all a bit of a mystery


Agreed, shame really :)

I think at "around £80" these would have sold really well.

[Mark Wild]

I think at "around £80" these would have sold really well.

I'd have shelled out £100 WITH somewhere for the foot pedal, to have to separate the the unit from its foot controller is a bit kak and at £125? nah......

Worth a try though mate :beer1:

[Excalibur]

I'd have shelled out £100 WITH somewhere for the foot pedal
Ah. Then it seems Sir would be needing the optional foot pedal and power cable case, attractively priced at only £50, if purchased at the same time as the main one? :whistle: :D:D

[Spirits High]

Ah. Then it seems Sir would be needing the optional foot pedal and power cable case, attractively priced at only £50, if purchased at the same time as the main one? :whistle: :D:D

Are you on a wind up? Can't see that on their site :confused:

[Excalibur]

Are you on a wind up?
Is the Pope Catholic? Do bears live in the woods? It was an ( obviously failed ) attempt at humour, in the style of the type of assistant once regularly found in high class gents outfitters. Next time, I'll put a :Censored:great smilie next to it, or a big sign saying : JOKE.

[Spirits High]

I was confused because there was an email exchange with said case company and it is / was my fault that there was no place for the controller despite talking through online pics of the KAM case.

I also said that if it was nearer the£100 mark with somewhere for the controller then I have thought they would have sold really. The response to that was that the price on the website was the best price possible due to material, designand labour costs.

Hence me rhinking that they'd come up with something to do the job...........

Nevermind we'll roll on with battered cases.

[Excalibur]

Not what was hoped for in the title, but during Crazy K's thread about possible quasi powerbar creations, Arriba bags were linked to. I may easily be wrong, but I wonder if this (http://www.thomann.de/gb/arriba_cases_ac210_bag_1120x165x115mm.htm) would be a suitable soft case replacement for the original case? I'm not sure it fits, but if it did, it's way cheaper than the Swan hard case.

[Twinspin]

I dont have a powerbar or anything like that. But there is a flightcase company in Hull. Called Hi-Spec-Cases. they make really good flightcases and use Penn Elcom parts to make the cases. I know this company can make anything you want in terms of professional flightcases.

http://www.hi-speccases.co.uk/

Id have a word with these. Anyone local or know Hull they are based off Freightliner Road on the Brighton Street industrial estate near Hessle Road.

[DazzyD]

My thoughts too. Think they've taken advantage a bit here possibly.


...

I don't think they have taken advantage. They'd have taken advantage if everyone rushed to buy one at that price. However, I think they've really shot themselves in the foot instead. If they'd got the design right to hold the controller and leads and then priced it sub £100 then I think they'd have pulled off a masterstroke. As it is, they've designed a case that no-one wants or would be happy to pay for. Epic fail, imo!!


Not what was hoped for in the title, but during Crazy K's thread about possible quasi powerbar creations, Arriba bags were linked to. I may easily be wrong, but I wonder if this (http://www.thomann.de/gb/arriba_cases_ac210_bag_1120x165x115mm.htm) would be a suitable soft case replacement for the original case? I'm not sure it fits, but if it did, it's way cheaper than the Swan hard case.

Arriba make very high quality equipment cases and bags but, alas, a soft bag kind of negates the OP title of "Would you like a hard case for your KAM Powerbar?"


I dont have a powerbar or anything like that. But there is a flightcase company in Hull. Called Hi-Spec-Cases. they make really good flightcases and use Penn Elcom parts to make the cases. I know this company can make anything you want in terms of professional flightcases.

http://www.hi-speccases.co.uk/

Id have a word with these. Anyone local or know Hull they are based off Freightliner Road on the Brighton Street industrial estate near Hessle Road.

I'm sure there are a few case manufacturers out there who would be willing to do a deal on a bulk order of a custom case (or any product for that matter). I wonder what sort of buying power a few hundred DJs under the "MobileDiscoDirectory" banner would have?? (hint, hint!!) ;)

Actually, there's a thought. Some companies offer generous discounts for buying in bulk. In might be an idea to start a "I'm buying one of these - does anyone else want one so we can get a better price?" section for the forum. Some companies do price per unit reductions for buying as low as 2 of an item with bigger reductions the more you buy. In the current ecomonic climate, saving a few pounds here and there, on something you were going to buy anyway, would always be a welcome option!!

[Jiggles]

Thomann also make custom cases at good prices. Pop them an email too. [email protected]. You will need to give them your customer number to get the quote.

[Excalibur]

Arriba make very high quality equipment cases and bags but, alas, a soft bag kind of negates the OP title of "Would you like a hard case for your KAM Powerbar?"


Well spotted Sherlock. However, may I point out three things.
1) I said in my post that it was not what was asked for by the OP, and never alleged that it was.
2) I'd say a soft case which holds everything, at half the price of a hard case that doesn't hold everything, has a lot going for it.
3) The main reason for wanting a hard case wasn't for protection, it was more because the KAM offerings appear to have a limited life span. A hard case ought to last virtually indefinitely.

[DazzyD]

Well spotted Sherlock. However, may I point out three things.
1) I said in my post that it was not what was asked for by the OP, and never alleged that it was.
2) I'd say a soft case which holds everything, at half the price of a hard case that doesn't hold everything, has a lot going for it.
3) The main reason for wanting a hard case wasn't for protection, it was more because the KAM offerings appear to have a limited life span. A hard case ought to last virtually indefinitely.

Apologies for my earlier post, then, Peter. I was being a bit too pedantic with my comments (I was in that kind of mood earlier today). Personally, I only have one hard case which is the coffin-case that came with the PAR56 setup that I use. I use soft bags (a few from Arriba included) for everything else. Even my playout is soft-cased as the powered mixer-amp I use is way too big to hard-flightcase. So, for me at least, Arriba (and cases from other manufacturers) fit the bill of balancing protection with price. It's also a lot easier for me when I'm DJing for others and can just sling my playout case over my shoulder and hop on the bus to gigs (when I'm local and not being paid travel to the gig). I'm not saying that hard cases are not better but, from the way I work nowadays, they are not the best option for me.

Oh, and to give some idea of the build quality of some of these soft bags the laptop bag I'm using for my main playout (it holds my laptop, 2x external drives, 2x external sound card, controller, leads, audio leads, cooling stand, 3x mics with cables, headphones, pens, notebook, business cards, small toolkit, and various other bits and bobs) I acutally bought in 2001 for the princely sum of £80 and it's only just starting to show signs of wear and tear. Worth every penny but the only problem is I cdon't think I'll be able to replace it with anything close to it's quality or capacity. And as for the manufacturer - well, it's branded Dell and came with my first ever laptop. I've just adapted it a little to suit me and it's spot on!

[Excalibur]

Apologies for my earlier post, then, Peter.

Not necessary. :beer1:

I think the main point here, as you yourself stated, is the lack of a suitable hard case, especially when they have been approached by someone outlining the requirements, and pointing out the market for the right product at the right price. That would indeed appear to be a spectacular own goal.

As to the suitability of "soft" or "not hard" cases, two things. First, my Stairville case has a rigid frame, but soft shell. It appears to offer adequate protection to the bar,as long it's treated with some care and sense. I've not seen the KAM offering, but I'd expect it to be similar.

Anyone considering an arriba case, check carefully, cos I may not have linked to the most suitable case in the range. For some strange reason, the 180 appears to be longer than the 210.