Dang...that would've been a nice gig
- Thread starter seansy59
- Start date
I don't know what you presently have but as far as I can tell, you could have rented some additional gear. Other things would have to be taken into consideration....distance, cost of rental etc. to make it worth your while. Live sound is not all that difficult. A good Live Mixer 12-14 Channels with effects is a must, plus EQ, Microphone Stands and Mics (Of Course), High Output Subs and High powered tops that can project. These are the Basics.
Yeah, I have experience in it. Easy as pie. I was taught and helped with a live sound concert crew of 1,500 people every year for the past 4 years. They taught me everything from compressors, to fine tuning an EQ, feedback elimination, and using a mixer. I have a Behringer 24 channel that would've covered it fine, and 5 mics, 2 wireless, and 3 stands. But subs and tops would've been a problem. I would've had to rent 2 18" subs and 2 15" tops for the size and amount of people, along with 2-3 monitors, a snake cable. Along with that, a crossover and amps if it wasn't powered. Then comes into play, I only have a SUV. :| So, a Uhaul would've added into the cost. Rentals in my area are high, so $500-$600 for rentals, maybe more, then $100 approx for a Uhaul. Just doesn't leave enough green for the amount of hauling, setting up, and time to prepare.
Depends .. if f you had the time and are looking to expand your base, it still may be worth it as long as you stay in the black. Things like this are great PR material, both in the paper and on the web. Maybe you could work out something with Mix .. he's a NJite and has the speaker systems (subs/tops/monitors).
My question to you is this. How much was the gig paying? Maybe if you gave them a break down on all you would need to do the gig and the cost for renting the extra gear needed. Once you gave them that then that might have changed their minds and looked at spending more. It sounds like to me they had a set budget in mind and aren't willing to go above that.
If you could have shown them why you were the right person to do the gig they might have spent some more money for you to be the person to do the gig. You also could have looked at maybe another DJ friend to help you with the gig that has the additional gear that would help to get the job done right and you 2 work out a deal with each other. I know some that I could look to and see if they would help out and we both get paid.
One of my friends has a pair of Tour X speakers along with 2 Peavey speakers. I have 2 Yamaha DSR 115 tops and 2 DSR 118 subs along with 2 Yamaha S 215 speakers and a QSC 2450 amp. He has a van and so do I to get all the gear there we would need. What I'm suggesting is there are ways to get around situations if you just think it through.
If you could have shown them why you were the right person to do the gig they might have spent some more money for you to be the person to do the gig. You also could have looked at maybe another DJ friend to help you with the gig that has the additional gear that would help to get the job done right and you 2 work out a deal with each other. I know some that I could look to and see if they would help out and we both get paid.
One of my friends has a pair of Tour X speakers along with 2 Peavey speakers. I have 2 Yamaha DSR 115 tops and 2 DSR 118 subs along with 2 Yamaha S 215 speakers and a QSC 2450 amp. He has a van and so do I to get all the gear there we would need. What I'm suggesting is there are ways to get around situations if you just think it through.
Sadly I turned down the gig already, she has moved on. Their was 3 other emails I did not post. One of them was about budget. $800 was her max, $1,000 was tops......
It would be too much to rent for what I need (or borrow). Subs, tops, amps, crossover, snake cable, monitors, cables, transportation/vehicle. This is the 3rd time I was asked to do live sound for a band and turned it down, in the past year.. I guess this has taught me a lesson. Time to start buying some more PA and live sound equipment when I got the cash from gigs. It seems like it would pay off. It's funny because I never though of doing live sound, even though I have the experience for it. I always thought of JUST DJing. In this world though, I guess you have to be flexible with what you can provide.......
Thanks for the offer guys! But, this gig had to be sealed closed and deleted......
I don't blame you for turning that one down. Especially at that price and you don't have the gear to do it with. If you had the gear it might have been worth it and just may have gotten you more business.
As I said, finding a partner (whether for sound, lighting or other) is another route to explore. Keep Mix (or any other NJ based folks) in mind. Many have gear, sometimes spare, that could go for decent price and may allow the occasional larger event.
That's what the NJDJNA that I joined is good for also but I certainly couldn't get anyone of them to help out for what that client wanted spend.
Not for two guys with guitars...
but this lady wanted a full blown band PA for vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, and mics for the drums.
You need to be WELL versed in adding FX, EQing individual channels, and compressor limiters on several inputs.
That's WAY beyond "all that difficult".
I would also assume the band would need monitors, which is a whole other world.
And all for what.....$800 ?
You would be taking the chance of really messing up the gig...
without ever making enough money to break even.
After working as a musician in lots of venues and with several different artists with hundreds of sound companies, I can count on one hand the number of times we actually had a sound company that knew what they were doing.
Shoulda taken the cash.
Live sound is definitely tough. If you do the same group over and over, you can work it out. What's tough is the festivals or even church picnics that have 4-6 "acts" and they are changing them up to the minute of performance. I've started scaling back on my live sound gear. Sold off my 24 channel A&H mixer, my 16ch Presonus digital mixer. I still have a 16ch Soundcraft for the few I still do and can supplement it with the small A&H I bought. The Yorkville Unity speakers/subs I have and my amp rack are the next to go ...
I find that to be upside down. It is generally the musicians, their managers, their agents, or their clients who are responsible for the problems by setting unrealistic budgets and expectations, giving inaccurate information, and inserting to many middle men in the chain.
The blame does not go to a sound company if they can not solve your $4,500 problem on an $800 budget.
Big surprise, you see it differently. Actually, on the gigs I was referring to, its none of those you mentioned who provide sound. That would be the show promoter. Occasionally, we'd have good sound people but that was the exception, not the norm.
Based on the OP's comments, my guess is the band is either a garage or bar band (the email in the jpg attached) and they did only say 200-250 guests expected. A huge board and tons of floor monitors aren't required. For a 4 or 5 piece, even a single monitor mix or set of good sidefills should be plenty sufficient. The original inquiry said it was a welcome home event for soldiers returning from Iraq. No reason to over-complicate things. There was money on the table and the decision was made by the OP to leave it there. Personally, I would've taken it and made it work.
Our company does outdoor community festivals every weekend for most of the Spring, Summer, and Fall months.
These are multi-day festivals, with 5 or 6 bands a day, usually in a tent.
We turn over the stage, sound check, and start the next band in 15 to 30 minutes.
It only takes the boss one song to get the band sounding good.
That is why we are the only company many of these bands work with,
that is why most of these festivals hire us exclusively...
and why my boss was voted best sound engineer in the local Music Awards every year since it started.
We make it look easy, but only because it's "what we do"...
and we know what we are doing.
It's not a job for the inexperienced.
These are multi-day festivals, with 5 or 6 bands a day, usually in a tent.
We turn over the stage, sound check, and start the next band in 15 to 30 minutes.
It only takes the boss one song to get the band sounding good.
That is why we are the only company many of these bands work with,
that is why most of these festivals hire us exclusively...
and why my boss was voted best sound engineer in the local Music Awards every year since it started.
We make it look easy, but only because it's "what we do"...
and we know what we are doing.
It's not a job for the inexperienced.
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Out of curiosity, do you guys pickup many of the Opry acts who work in that area? Seems we went a million times to York. Sounds was usually pretty good in the area, except when it was some skimpy, radio DJ who'd be the promoter. I never could understand how it was we had to travel 700+ miles to get a gig.
From what I saw the op never said how many people were expected to attend the event. That would make a big difference in what would be needed to do the event. Depending on the size of the crowd expected to attend she just might have needed a live sound company to do the event instead of a DJ. One that has the right equipment and that knows what they are doing to get the job done right. You don't want to take the gig just to make some money and then screw things up making your company look bad. In this business we call such people gig whores.
The op needs to give us more info before we pass judgement on if he should have taken the gig or not.
The op needs to give us more info before we pass judgement on if he should have taken the gig or not.
