how to deal with power

[gcdj]

i dont know about you guys but power surges are a regular occurence for me and im pretty sure i have figured out it is my smoke machine beacause mabye one out of 10 times i hit it all the music shuts down and i have to quit out of my soft ware than start it up again. any suggestions on how to make sure this doesnt happen. ill put a list of what im running off my power boards.

2x 12inch powered speakers

2x cd turntable and 1 mixer

1x fog machine

4x led lighting

1xstrobe

1x laptop

1x hard drive

2x lasers (50mw i think)

how many outlets do you think i should be using?

[Jaz]

had the exact same problem mate accept mine was when i turned on my strobe it would cut my other stuff off

solution

run all your music gear (Decks, Amp,mixer,computer.speakers,etc) off 1 power board

and all lighting n effect of another power board (preferably off 2 wall sockets (1 powerboard plugged into the wall, the other plugged into the next wall socket) it all just puts less stress on your powderboards,wall sockets,adapters,extension leads etc)

im just running a 6 slot powerboard for my music gear, and a 4 slot switchable powerboard for my lighting (each slot has spereate on/off switches so i can change my lighting and effect as i please, very useful)

just some tips for ya

[SourceRaver]

Jaz has pretty much nailed it but I would add the following advice:

1) Use two 10 amp wall plugs minimum. but dont be afraid to use more (ie two for the audio gear as long as they are on the same circuit ie side by side on the wall).

2) For your lighting gear, look for a different circuit (sometimes on a different wall or even different room). If the your strobe cases the speakers to 'click', you know your on the same circuit as the audio gear.

3) Always do a stress test before the gig. Turn everything on and see what happens. Better to find a power problem before the gig than during.

In most cases its usually the strobe that causes the problem. Most larger strobes need more power than a 10 amp circuit can supply.

[gcdj]

cheers for advice

[Hobberz]

Just to add to what DJaz said about the seperate powerboards, that is a great idea but I would be inclined to use surge protected powerboards instead of your standard run of the mill ones. You may spend 80 bucks on 2 decent powerboards but its alot better than a power surge fucking thousands of dollars worth of gear.

But thats just my 2 cents

[Jaz]

Just to add to what DJaz said about the seperate powerboards, that is a great idea but I would be inclined to use surge protected powerboards instead of your standard run of the mill ones. You may spend 80 bucks on 2 decent powerboards but its alot better than a power surge fucking thousands of dollars worth of gear.

But thats just my 2 cents

i forgot to add it to my advise, but yeh i am using Surge protected boards these days they are like 5 bucks more then normal 1's

[ruggs]

i have the exact same problem! stupid fog machine haha

[FabDJ]

Yep a fogger tripped my powerboard.

Crawling around on the floor checking power boards in deadly silence does not create a good impression arse out, head under the table.

[Backagain]

WTF- I thought this was about social power and purpose-ifying others to serve me.

[andythemusician]

Usual...

Sound on one circuit.

Lighting on another circuit.

Fog machine, if it would cause the lighting circuit to overload, on another circuit.

Strobe - if it is a high powered one (say 1500w+) then think about putting it on another circuit, unless you only have less than 900w of power drain with the rest of the lights.

[Ravni]

tip guys i fried my mixer due to a power surge, u can get really good boards these days, I got one from the cable chick which has a insurance policy attached to it, so if u get a malfunction due to power surge they will cover gear up to 25 grand ... so they say

[eggssell]

ive heard they honour the insurances but it has to be only those things connected to it.

i looked around when trying to sort my ground loop hum. and was told if i had my laptop into my powersurge board and it did something that then fried my mixer which was on another board (as was recommended when trying to sort the hum) then the warranty wouldnt cover the mixer. of course i could have bought two protectors and then id be right and the sales guy would have been happy...

[AndrewKeebs]

Actually I am looking for a last years music competition review videos. I had tried for it in yahoo 7, particularly I looking for last year music competition on tv.

[dim]

Actually I am looking for a last years music competition review videos. I had tried for it in yahoo 7, particularly I looking for last year music competition on tv.

that's the wierdest comment i ever saw, and i write a lot of shit myself.

wrong thread maybe mate?

[Cupe]

more like a bot

[dim]

WTF is a bot?

to me it's purt and curvy and looks great in a mini.

[Cupe]

spambot.

they automatically post bullshit

[MickyG]

Hi Guys

I have had same problem in old halls and spoke with a sparky, He informs me that the cheap power boards are rated at 2400w (10amps) but the cut out switch will often heat up and cause to drop out well below the rated output - his solution was as to do as you have described above split the power between circuits and use piggyback leads or a GOOD brand 15amp power board(clip-seal make a top one often found on construction sites $80-$100.

Run your sound gear through a power conditioner - I use a UPS power backup (including surge protect and conditioner(also knocks out ground loop hum))$150.00 That way when the power goes out you don't have the reset problems for mixer cpu decks.

[DJ__PHANTOM_SHADOW]

had the exact same problem mate accept mine was when i turned on my strobe it would cut my other stuff off

solution

run all your music gear (Decks, Amp,mixer,computer.speakers,etc) off 1 power board

and all lighting n effect of another power board (preferably off 2 wall sockets (1 powerboard plugged into the wall, the other plugged into the next wall socket) it all just puts less stress on your powderboards,wall sockets,adapters,extension leads etc)

im just running a 6 slot powerboard for my music gear, and a 4 slot switchable powerboard for my lighting (each slot has spereate on/off switches so i can change my lighting and effect as i please, very useful)

just some tips for ya

Well Said and with +20 years off and on, TIPS like the one above are GOLD... DJ PHANTOM SHADOW