What is an acceptable level of backup for suppliers?

[Excalibur]

Inspired by the high jinks between Benny and his tog friend. We were taking Good Gig, Bad Gig too far off topic there, so let's have a new thread. It's not restricted to our good friends the Photographers, it encompasses all suppliers at all functions.

Let's have your tales of when the wheels fell off, and we can discuss what constitutes adequate backup.

I had an " interesting " gig once with a rodeo bull included. The Bull was installed, plugged in, switched on, and all the power went off in our part of the venue!! :eek: I'm fairly sure it was an earth leakage fault tripping the system.

The client was not a happy bunny, and the night was going downhill fast, but the Bull Handlers had backup. Off they went for a generator, brought it back, fired it up outside, and ran a cable in. Crisis averted. Only way they could have done better would have been to have the genny in the van before they left for the gig.

Over to you folks, what have you seen?

[ppentertainments]

Singer who had a dodgy xlr lead - and no spare.
He was using a passive setup, jack leads etc so couldn't even 'steal' one from anywhere else.
Venue didn't have one, but I had about 6 spare in total in the van. As he was a bit of a :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored: and thought he was the be all and end all to the wedding, I made him sweat until a few minutes before he started till one 'appeared'.

Did I get a thank you and some paper with the queens head on, gracing my hand afterward ? - nope, he just dumped the lead in a corner.

Almost as bad a when there was a DJ in a different room to me who asked to borrow a mic because he never brings one and was amazed at the groom asking for one to make a speech. Had a cheapo I lent him, didn't realise he finished an hour before me and had disappeared with said microphone by the time I finished :mad::mad:

[Nakatomi]

I remember doing a joint 40th birthday party when an exasperated photobooth operator came in to ask me to see if anyone had a DSLR with them. I quirked 'oh what happened to your backup camera?' only to be met with a death stare from him. They ended up giving the customer a full refund.

My own backup has only ever needed to be brought into action once & resulted in only a very slight loss in music. The main playout locked up in an audio loop during 'Get Lucky' (therefore nobody was dancing) & the backup brought quickly in. I wouldn't care but it was a gig where Mike from Phase One was there as a guest with his family. I dunno if anybody even noticed cos it was during buffet time I think. That Micron booth doesn't lend itself to hosting two laptops :cry:

[Daryll]

we had a singer at my local club , well a singer minus microphone :daft: , I had a night off , so I offered for a lift back to my place ( only half a mile), a SM58 (wired) and a 10m XLR , she of course agreed , got a few pints out of it , but I thought it common sense to bring a back up mic , if I had not have been there , there would have been a deathly silence.....:confused:

Daryll

[rth_discos]

My attitude towards backup has been "if this failed, can the party continue".

So, for example, I have 2 x Evox 8. That means, if one fails, the other continues. There's still music. Plus, if I'm doing an all-day wedding, I also have a pair of Maui 5 with me. If I had a passive system, I'd be taking a second amp with me.

My mixer is probably the biggest "risk" as everything runs through that. So I have a small usb soundcard that has a mic input on it, that can get me through the night if need be.

I also take 2 x wired mics and 2 x playout laptops (I even have the backup laptop playing the first dance at the same time as the main one, just in case).

Lighting is less important. As I have 2 of each fixture, if one fails, it's not the end of the world.

Equally, any cables can be easily swapped, as I carry plenty of spare XLRs and IEC cables. I also have some spare 4 ways and extension cables.

On reflection, one thing I don't have is a second *very long* extension cable (50m).

One thing I've considered, is a battery powered speaker to leave in the van. In the highly unlikely event of a complete power cut, I'd get a good 3 hours off the laptop battery, and I've got battery powered uplighters that I can set to sound to light. How much of a hero would I be to also have a battery powered speaker ready to go...

But the logistics (ensuring it's charged etc) along with the very slim risk of this happening means I've not yet executed this. Probably something I should consider for marquee weddings, when the power is at greater risk of failing...

[Imagine]

My attitude towards backup has been "if this failed, can the party continue".

My attitude exactly (which incidentally is why I purchased the Maui 28s over and above the new DB system which is a single point of failure)



My mixer is probably the biggest "risk" as everything runs through that. So I have a small usb soundcard that has a mic input on it, that can get me through the night if need be.

I had this conversation a while ago. I have a Denon MC6000 in one flight case, and a VMS4.1 in another, both connected via a little Berhinger mixer into the PA. That said, now I have the Maui's with the Bluetooth capability, I'm looking into ways of doing that in an efficient way should the main laptop/mixer fail (i.e. beam the VDJ output from laptop 2 direct to Bluetooth just to keep things going).


One thing I've considered, is a battery powered speaker to leave in the van. In the highly unlikely event of a complete power cut, I'd get a good 3 hours off the laptop battery, and I've got battery powered uplighters that I can set to sound to light. How much of a hero would I be to also have a battery powered speaker ready to go...

Yup - me too. In fact I had one bride and groom so paranoid a little while ago about the power going that I took along a UPS battery just to keep things ticking over should the worse happen.

And then it occurred to me....a power cut killing my output is the least of their problems in that scenario. The bar will stop functioning (electric tills and pumps) :)

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I've got all the main components covered so that unless there's multiple simultaneous failures, the show can go on.

Touch wood the only time I've ever had an issue was with a first dance file that somehow became corrupted - it played but VERRRRY SLOWLY (nothing to d with the controller btw) and all distorted, it was really weird and had worked when I test ran it. Quick fade over to backup mac which was also playing it and all was fine.

Saturday was a new one: I was meant to be off but a pal asked if I'd cover his wedding because his dad is very ill. It's 5 minutes up the road and I want to help him out so I agree.

I get there and set up in plenty of time, they have a million different things going on including love letters, sparkly dancefloor and mood lighting so I put a smaller light rig up so as not to be OTT and head off to get changed.


That's strange: I definitely packed my trousers.

A quick call home to my wife and I discover they've fallen out of my bag - she doesn't drive so I ordered a taxi to bring them up. £10 down before I'd bought a can of juice :D

I COULD have made light of the situation and done the gig in a shirt and jeans but, to me, that wouldn't have been acceptable even though it was just a cover gig.

I'm trying to think of a way I could have a shirt and trousers stashed in the car incase it ever happens again because it's very rare I'm as close as I was on Saturday.

[rth_discos]

I'm trying to think of a way I could have a shirt and trousers stashed in the car incase it ever happens again because it's very rare I'm as close as I was on Saturday.

I always take a second shirt with me - just in case I spill something down it.

I probably should buy a cheapo suit of eBay (if anyone wants a cheap suite, a second hand one on eBay can be picked up for about £20-£30), and leave it in the van in a bag behind/under one of the seats, so that I've always got an "outfit" with me. I already leave a spare pair of cufflinks in the van.

I've started getting a bit obsessed about being "perfect" and it's starting to make me quite nervous at every gig now, especially the all day ones. I hate any form of microphone signal drop out etc, even though that's often something that's out of my control. I hate the idea of anything going wrong, and spend the whole day fretting something is going to stop working. It's only the last 6 months this has really started happening, and I'm not sure what's caused it.

[mattydj50]

My attitude exactly (which incidentally is why I purchased the Maui 28s over and above the new DB system which is a single point of failure)


I had this conversation a while ago. I have a Denon MC6000 in one flight case, and a VMS4.1 in another, both connected via a little Berhinger mixer into the PA. That said, now I have the Maui's with the Bluetooth capability, I'm looking into ways of doing that in an efficient way should the main laptop/mixer fail (i.e. beam the VDJ output from laptop 2 direct to Bluetooth just to keep things going).



Yup - me too. In fact I had one bride and groom so paranoid a little while ago about the power going that I took along a UPS battery just to keep things ticking over should the worse happen.

And then it occurred to me....a power cut killing my output is the least of their problems in that scenario. The bar will stop functioning (electric tills and pumps) :)

That happened one night to me. Power cut at the venue, everything went off while buffet was being eaten. Bar kept going selling bottles etc. only and manually calculating costs. Watching young bar staff working out the cost of two pints at £3.50 a pint by using the calculator on their phone's made me smile.

The venue had a pair of battery computer speakers into which I connected my laptop and stuck a Grandmaster CD in the slot. After 2 hours there was no sign of power coming back (whole village was out) so we called it a night at 11. Venue agreed a refund and some compensation with the B&G even though it was not their fault.

We packed away by the lights of 3 cars which we had strategically placed shining through the windows.


One New Year's Eve I was not required by the hotel. They had decided they were having a Sinatra tribute act who would also provide music through the meal and after his spot. He travelled from Swansea, arrived at 4pm, set up and sound checked. All good so far. Come the big introduction, his mini disc player with all three backing tracks on failed, with no back up. The management panicked. He sang 3 songs without music but it was not good. Apparently someone suggested ringing me to see if I could help, but I had got a gig at a golf club 30 miles away. Had I been there I could have dashed home for my karaoke discs in which there were many Sinatra tracks. When the functions manager told the boss that I was elsewhere, he went into melt down.

By chance I had to pass the venue on the way home and called in for a facility break. Though it was too late, they were glad to see me and made sure that I have been there every year since, with no problems I am pleased to say.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

I mentioned it on here years ago when it happened but I was doing a wedding at a large venue around 5 minutes drive away from my house when I lived in Hampshire. It was in the early days I guess and I'd only been out as a full timer for around 3 years but even back then, backup was very important to me.

I'd been to the venue in the morning and sound checked everything and it was all fine.
At the time, I was using a Crown XLS602 amplifier to run the full range JBL's and another Peavey amplifier to run the Peavey bass bins (yes, I know I could have linked them both together and it is something I did do but on this occasion I didn't).

I remember returning to the venue at 7.00pm for a 7.30pm start, saying hello to the Bride & Groom (they were friends of a friend) and also chatting with the Best Man (who I also knew and he'd also been a DJ in the past). I got behind the set up and firstly switched the Peavey amplifier on...... It didn't do anything!!??
I checked the connections and all seemed ok. I swapped the power lead over and still nothing? I wasn't panicking as yet, just bemused as to what was happening.
Then I smelt a burning smell and looked at the back of the amp and realised that it must have blown and had gone to the equipment dump in the sky.

"No problem" I thought.... I still had the Crown amplifier and time on my hands before I started so I moved the Peavey out from under the decks and put it under a table behind me....swapped connections about and linked the JBL's to the Peavey's. It was a large venue, hence why I took 2 amplifiers but the Crown would still do the job ok on its own......or so I thought....

When I turned the Crown on, it lit up and then went straight off again...... "Oh, come on....you're having a laugh!!!" I shouted. The Best Man stood there and asked if everything was ok..... I was getting increasingly flustered by now and had around 15 minutes before I was due to start.....

I didn't want to take any chances so I grabbed the van keys and said to him "I'll be back in 10 minutes"........As I was on my way out, the Bride came over and asked if all was ok..... "It should be" I shouted as I tried to get out of there as quick as I could...."I think a spike in the electrics or something has blown my amplifier up.....I won't be long".

As I said, luckily I was only a 5 minute drive to my house so I got there as quick as I could. I ran into the house and my wife wasn't expecting me "Everything ok?" she asked....."Nope!" I replied and I went to the spare room, grabbed the DB Technologies Actives and got back to the venue as soon as I could.

Luckily, everything turned out fine although I did feel a bit silly having a large stack of speakers either side of me with the majority of them turned off. I placed the DB's on top of the JBL's and it looked like a box system. Anybody that would have known about sound and stuff would have sussed out what had happened.
The DB's were only 400 watts each but they did the trick although I pushed them quite hard (I still have them, especially for back up).

The Crown amplifier survived. I took it to a repairers and they told me what I'd originally thought.....the board inside had been fried due to a spike somewhere.
The Peavey amplifier didn't make it. It was beyond repair. It was a 3000 watt amplifier (bloody heavy thing) that I'd bought second hand for £100.00 and it lasted me about 2 years.

If I'd have had the money back then, I'd have bought 2 sets of Mackie's. That particular occasion scared the crap out of me. I think if you're going to have backup, it needs to be as good as, if not the same as what you usually use.

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I always take a second shirt with me - just in case I spill something down it.

I probably should buy a cheapo suit of eBay (if anyone wants a cheap suite, a second hand one on eBay can be picked up for about £20-£30), and leave it in the van in a bag behind/under one of the seats, so that I've always got an "outfit" with me. I already leave a spare pair of cufflinks in the van.

I've started getting a bit obsessed about being "perfect" and it's starting to make me quite nervous at every gig now, especially the all day ones. I hate any form of microphone signal drop out etc, even though that's often something that's out of my control. I hate the idea of anything going wrong, and spend the whole day fretting something is going to stop working. It's only the last 6 months this has really started happening, and I'm not sure what's caused it.

I never eat at gigs and only ever drink water so spilling something isn't a huge concern. Genuinely the only thing I've ever forgot any other time was my backup MacBook charger which I managed to get through the night without - I'm always super conscious of making sure that bag (which has my charges, spare mic, some spare cables, change of clothes, camera, paperwork etc..) has everything in it, I'm not quite sure how the trousers managed to fall out of it but you can guarantee it'll be the last time it happens.

[rth_discos]

the only thing I've ever forgot any other time was my backup MacBook charger.

Both chargers are hard wired in to my controller case. And then I have further chargers at home for use when sorting our playlists etc.

As for the spare shirt, the majority of my work is all day weddings, so not only is there usually 12 hours of performance time but also at least one meal during that time. But I don't eat during evening only gigs.

[Steven]

I had this conversation a while ago. I have a Denon MC6000 in one flight case, and a VMS4.1 in another, both connected via a little Berhinger mixer into the PA. That said, now I have the Maui's with the Bluetooth capability, I'm looking into ways of doing that in an efficient way should the main laptop/mixer fail (i.e. beam the VDJ output from laptop 2 direct to Bluetooth just to keep things going).




This is Exactly what i do when i use the Maui's. Works well and if you wire it correctly then it plays out of both speakers too.

I have spare Laptop, 3 hard drives with me in total plus those on the laptop obviously,
Few spare usb cables. loads of RCA cables plus adapters. Also have a handy Stereo mini jack to XLR for worst case scenario. spare laptop charger, and the usual plenty of IECs and XLRs.

if i could fit it in my controller case id love to put my media operator BT back in as that is one hell of a backup device, USB, SD Line in x4 mic input multiple outputs.

[yourdj]

I probably should buy a cheapo suit of eBay (if anyone wants a cheap suite, a second hand one on eBay can be picked up for about £20-£30)

Whats your size, I have a number of suits that I don't use anymore. nice slim fit ones, 38 inch chest 34 inch waist. Your better off having trousers and waistcoat though, depending on your figure (some people just look a lot better in a suit). :)

[rth_discos]

Whats your size, I have a number of suits that I don't use anymore. nice slim fit ones, 38 inch chest 34 inch waist. Your better off having trousers and waistcoat though, depending on your figure (some people just look a lot better in a suit). :)

How funny, we match sizes exactly!

I did try the waistcoat once and didn't feel comfortable with it, but have looked in to a 3 piece suit, as that can look really nice (and good for winter), plus gives me the flexibility of waistcoat and/or suit jacket.

[Imagine]

Your better off having trousers and waistcoat though, depending on your figure (some people just look a lot better in a suit). :)

For the second time this year - I agree with Toby (I must be coming down with something :( ).
I tend to roll with a waistcoat as opposed to a full blown whistle - I just don't feel comfortable in a jacket personally.

Also - WE ARE NOT GUESTS so shouldn't try to match too closely with them. Whilst I don't advocate the jeans and t-shirt look at a wedding (although I've done that at the bride's request in the past), I feel DJs are starting to try to look like they're actually guests at the wedding with the 3-piece suits these days.

[yourdj]

For the second time this year - I agree with Toby (I must be coming down with something :( ).
I tend to roll with a waistcoat as opposed to a full blown whistle - I just don't feel comfortable in a jacket personally.

Also - WE ARE NOT GUESTS so shouldn't try to match too closely with them. Whilst I don't advocate the jeans and t-shirt look at a wedding (although I've done that at the bride's request in the past), I feel DJs are starting to try to look like they're actually guests at the wedding with the 3-piece suits these days.

I think this is a running joke? i am not too bad really in my 'opinions' (sense of humour) these days?

I agree. I have opted for the tweed waist coat in the last few years and have a jacket for the winter/more formal events, but mainly use just trousers and waist coat. i have seen a number of DJ's in black 3 pieces & dicky bows and also a photographer (even on the hottest day of the year). I have thought that all of them, do stand out, look smart and dignified but look a bit silly personally (all of them are advocates of the American MC thing)? Fine for a masonic event or black tie party, but even then i would not want to look like everyone else, or even worse upstage the client (although I do look especially nice in a white dress). :)

My main DJ Martin looks amazing in an open neck shirted suit, add a tie and he looks a bit gimpy, so I guess sits up to the individual really. Some guys can easily pull of chinos, a decent shirt and smart shoes and looks even better or suit that vs a suit. I am possibly one of those people and I would go that route, but play in a lot of older venues with more mid range clients, but may consider it for the more uber cool clients that i occasionally get assuming that I get back to my yoga classes and long walks!! :)

A post from Toby would not be right without a photo or two. I have changed this now actually to a lighter tweed one and aways wear a tie now!! The shirt is tighter and a light grey colour (works well together). I bought the jacket years back and thought it a bit over the top, but it fits in perfectly now with the dandy type dress these days. This suit is for sale btw (below). i have the jacket too.

18389

I had better get back on topic or I will be in trouble.

I have back up everything! I am a little paranoid and have never had any total failures as a result. My biggest mess up was when I bought a new MacBook in my first year. I had no clue about specs and it crashed on first dance. I had no back up then but ran the night on iTUNES and it went pretty well considering. i had a set of CDJ's but they were in the car and I had only just switched to digital so carried on regardless. I was able to use Itch after first dance, but it took ages to load each track!!

I have seen some horror stories, but can't actually think of any at the moment. i can't believe a photographer without a back up camera, even a cheaper model!! I know photography kit is expensive, but it does fail or lock up as it has tons of moving mechanical parts! It's amazing what kit people don't bring with them. I had a casino say the other week ' can you turn the lights back up I can't deal cards'. i said (in a friendly manner) 'sorry I am used to casinos having their own table lights'.

[ppentertainments]

Also - WE ARE NOT GUESTS so shouldn't try to match too closely with them. Whilst I don't advocate the jeans and t-shirt look at a wedding (although I've done that at the bride's request in the past), I feel DJs are starting to try to look like they're actually guests at the wedding with the 3-piece suits these days.
I think that is because a lot of DJ's seem to genuinely believe they are part of the wedding, with many also believing they become 'friends' with their Brides and Grooms.

[yourdj]

I think that is because a lot of DJ's seem to genuinely believe they are part of the wedding, with many also believing they become 'friends' with their Brides and Grooms.

Some clients I have had dinner with (but most i have 2 x 1-2 hour long meetings with) so in many respects we do become acquaintances and although some couples are so nice and welcoming I always try and keep that supplier/client relationship regardless of how well we get to know each other. Getting to know someone (as first name terms and catch up) has massive benefits, especially as a wedding MC, but i never fool myself and think i am their friend. Actually, I have missed out on so many post wedding actual friendships, but I am a miserable git and prefer the company of my wife, dogs and kids (in that order). ;)

And another photo (with my newer suit) - the one and only time I have taken a selphy with a B&G. They had a kiosk printing thing and i wanted to test it out. One example of a couple I had spent some time planning with and got on very well with, but would not consider them my 'friends'. :)

18390

Mark - I have had to edit every photo tonight, i don't ever remember having to edit one, so I think it must have had a resizing thing on it. I remember at least 8 years back the images came out massive and then it changed and fitted the images in properly automatically? I don't fancy resizing any images that I may have of my set up unless i duplicate them as most are 1000 size which is not a very big size as they are mostly web ones. Can you not do it on the size of the image, e.g. 1mb limit? Thanks btw for your work, much appreciated, :)

[Marc J]

Mark - I have had to edit every photo tonight, i don't ever remember having to edit one, so I think it must have had a resizing thing on it. I remember at least 8 years back the images came out massive and then it changed and fitted the images in properly automatically? I don't fancy resizing any images that I may have of my set up unless i duplicate them as most are 1000 size which is not a very big size as they are mostly web ones. Can you not do it on the size of the image, e.g. 1mb limit? Thanks btw for your work, much appreciated, :)

It's Marc :p

I've just checked, and the maximum image dimensions for image attachments (bmp / gif / jpg / png) is 800 x 600, and maximum file size is about 1Mb. As far as I know that's what it's always been set at, but perhaps the checking didn't work before and now it does?

You'd need to ask an Admin (not me) to change these settings if you think they're a little low. Limits can be set as dimension limits and / or file size, it doesn't have to be both.

[Excalibur]

Also - WE ARE NOT GUESTS

Absolutely.


You know what we are, don't you?


Entertainers. With a capital E.


I think that is because a lot of DJ's seem to genuinely believe they are part of the wedding, with many also believing they become 'friends' with their Brides and Grooms.

In essence, you're right Chris. As with so many things, it's all a matter of degree.

[yourdj]

It's Marc :p

I've just checked, and the maximum image dimensions for image attachments (bmp / gif / jpg / png) is 800 x 600, and maximum file size is about 1Mb. As far as I know that's what it's always been set at, but perhaps the checking didn't work before and now it does?

You'd need to ask an Admin (not me) to change these settings if you think they're a little low. Limits can be set as dimension limits and / or file size, it doesn't have to be both.

OK thanks Marc

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I think that is because a lot of DJ's seem to genuinely believe they are part of the wedding, with many also believing they become 'friends' with their Brides and Grooms.

I wear trousers, black shirt and a purple sparkly tie - if I was cutting around in a suit or waist coat - I wouldn't look like one of the guests and you don't want that.

[DJColsie]

Just a personal thing, but I dress as if I were a guest, so as not to stand out.

So for parties generally shirt, trousers and shoes.

Weddings and Xmas parties lounge suit with open necked shirt.

Black tie affairs, dress suit and bow tie.

[ukpartydj]

I once forgot a belt, had to make do with a tie and wearing my suit jacket all night!

Photobooths seem to have the most issues in my opinion. I've seen 2 that have failed to work correctly and not had backup so have either taken photos manually or not printed photos.

With my LED dancefloor for ages I was concerned about not having a back up controller/ power supply but I was a bit reluctant to pay £1200 for a spare! Luckily earlier this year they released a basic controller for £500 so I sleep much better now!

[yourdj]

I once forgot a belt, had to make do with a tie and wearing my suit jacket all night!

Photobooths seem to have the most issues in my opinion.
With my LED dancefloor for ages I was concerned about not having a back up controller/ power supply but I was a bit reluctant to pay £1200 for a spare! Luckily earlier this year they released a basic controller for £500 so I sleep much better now!

Gaffer tape belt then?

Its amazing how many key Photo Booth suppliers only have one printer (I have asked them). Worse still one set of paper and spare ink. You should hope they have a spare camera and also lights etc too. As you have said the printers are very expensive, but if this was my business, I would definitely have 2 of them. Having said that I have a Photo Booth and only have a couple of speed lights to replace my d-lite strobe. Need to look at getting another one if its booked more often. :)

[ukpartydj]

Gaffer tape belt then?

Its amazing how many key Photo Booth suppliers only have one printer (I have asked them). Worse still one set of paper and spare ink. You should hope they have a spare camera and also lights etc too. As you have said the printers are very expensive, but if this was my business, I would definitely have 2 of them. Having said that I have a Photo Booth and only have a couple of speed lights to replace my d-lite strobe. Need to look at getting another one if its booked more often. :)

I'll have you know I've joined the magtape crew and therefore wouldn't dare have such an inferior emergancy belt!

No idea why as a photo booth supplier you wouldn't go out with at least one spare roll of paper and ink. What's just as bad as not having a backup is not having a clue how to problem solve! A lot of the time there is a workaround but some people I've come across just freeze up and cannot think straight when something doesn't go as planned.

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I'll have you know I've joined the magtape crew and therefore wouldn't dare have such an inferior emergancy belt!

No idea why as a photo booth supplier you wouldn't go out with at least one spare roll of paper and ink. What's just as bad as not having a backup is not having a clue how to problem solve! A lot of the time there is a workaround but some people I've come across just freeze up and cannot think straight when something doesn't go as planned.

I'd imagine it's the same as the DJs who go out with no backup of their playout system or speakers - cheapness, laziness, not giving a :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored: about their clients or a combination of all three.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

As I mentioned in my (rather long) latest 'Good Gig / Bad Gig' review, I had an issue at the weekend with one of Mackie's for the first time since I bought them 7 or so years ago. It was on Friday night at a wedding right at the beginning when I was playing background music (I'd just started actually).
Whether it's travelling near on 200 miles down to Hampshire for a function or 5 minutes up the road, I ALWAYS take back up. It is a pain in the backside sometimes when you're loading the van up with extra equipment and 99.9% of the time it isn't needed but it's that 0.1% chance of something going wrong that worries me and makes it worthwhile doing.

I drove back home after the wedding and had around 2 hours kip before searching the web for local repair companies and spent Saturday looking for somewhere that could fix the speaker because I have another journey down to Hampshire this weekend for another wedding, again for friends.

On Friday, the DB Technologies came in handy. Access to the room was simple so it was a case of nipping outside, grabbing a speaker and swapping it over. Yes, they were mis-matched but that didn't bother me at the time. The DB Tech's aren't as powerful as the Mackie's either but not by much and it did the job which is what back up is all about. I am not the calmest person and stress head could be my middle name but I was fine once I was up and running again. It took all of 5 minutes and the customer was none the wiser. I told them what had happened at the end of the night and they said "I didn't even notice!".

The Mackie has been looked at but won't be ready for this weekend so I took the day off yesterday and set up the system using the Crown XLS802 and JBL's. I ran it for 6 hours to make sure it was all ok as I haven't used it for a few years now. It appeared to be fine. I also tested the back up Warrior amp too which I have yet to use since I bought it 4 years ago and that was fine too. I did this because the back up DB Tech's will be used as the main speakers for the weekend and so I will need to take the JBL's and amps as back up for those. It goes to show that back up is worth its weight in gold because if I didn't have it, I'd have struggled and would be tearing my hair out, trying to get something else sorted.

If any new starter's are reading this thread, take note. Back up is one of the most important things in this business.
Imagine yourself as a customer and you go to a festival or something. You pay a lot of money for the pleasure and something happens during the event with the sound and they have no back up. You'd be gutted! I bet the sound people at large events are very apprehensive and have back up ready in case. We should be no different.

[sweetie]

I'm an advocate of using gear that's newish or recently purchased and therefore less likely to fail. I've even sold gear and replaced it with like for like, similar to people who upgrade their car every year or two. Also having it in warranty is handy and keeps the second hand value higher.

[Excalibur]

I'm an advocate of using gear that's newish or recently purchased and therefore less likely to fail.

Ever heard of " The Bathtub Curve"? :) I've had a brand new mixer die twenty minutes into its first gig, speakers thirty minutes, and probably more if I think carefully.