Editors Note: This is the first in a series of articles that is written by Brett Speer, our warehouse guru, about how he maintains our
audio inventory. He has some
really good insights, enjoy!
Like the
cars we drive or the planes we fly in, our equipment must be inspected, tested,
and maintained. We spend a lot of
money on our gear, and expect it to work for more than just a couple of
years. However, in most cases, without
proper maintenance, this will not be the case. In this article I will discuss some of the things that have
been passed on to me from others, and others things that I have figured out on my
own. Most of this is common sense,
and all of it easily doable, if you know what to look for.
Audio rental
houses can be quite a bit different in the scope of work they do (e.g.
corporate, touring, rental house, etc.), and therefore in the kind of equipment
they own, but are all the same in that they are all looking for the highest
return on their gear. We all know
our sound systems do not work on hopes and dreams, so we have to be proactive,
by trying to predict weak areas, and future problems, in order to stay a step ahead. So… here we go!
·
Speakers:
Sweeping, inspecting, rigging, testing.
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| Timeless Classic |
If you rent
to the general public, speakers should always be checked on return before the
customer leaves. This way if there
is any damage it can be addressed in a way that leaves no doubt in the
customer's mind that you did not cause the damage and try to blame them for
it. A standalone tone oscillator
will never steer you wrong, and by performing a basic sweep will know that:
2. There are no drivers out if you get the full
range of sound.
3. And, finally, if there is any distortion caused
from damaged
components even if they are still functioning.
If your
techs are the only ones using your speakers, you will be in better hands. However, I would recommend still giving
your speakers a sweep every 2 or 3 months, or at least a couple of times a year,
even if there are no reported problems.
Speakers are either working properly, meaning that they are emitting the
entire spectrum of sound they were created to pass, or they’re not. It’s
not that hard to tell which is which, making it easier to pin point the problem. However, just to muddy the waters a
little, older drivers can sound dramatically different than newer ones. Even though it may not technically be
“bad,” it is good practice to replace woofers that sound dramatically
different than the rest, so that in the field you are not having substantial
frequency variations from box to box.
Bad components are not the only thing you should be concerned about
though, the cabinet structure and integrity also affect the way a speaker
sounds. Un-tightened screws, broken
plastic parts, cracked wood, and loose crossover components can make a good
speaker sound bad; and at higher SPL levels instead of singing, these flaws
could cause your speakers to rattle and hum. Speaker rigging hardware is another component that needs to
be checked and inspected regularly.
From time to time rigging grids will get bent, or pinholes will become
obstructed by metal shards from the grid. If the grid gets twisted in such a way that the integrity is
compromised it should be replaced immediately, not only for the sake of you
expensive cabinet, which can be replaced, but also for the safety of anyone sitting
under your flown PA, who cannot be replaced. Taking a good
old-fashioned drill to an obstructed pinhole will get rid of that shard,
without compromising structure (as long as you’re not making the hole larger,
which would compromise safety.
Also, inspecting the grids for stress cracks, at high-tension points in your
hardware is very important. It
really doesn’t matter how good your box sounds, if it falls during a show, you
will probably never be invited back, no matter how great the mix was.
Gear
maintenance is a year round job! When
work slows down we take the time to take a closer look at our equipment. There are quite a few things we can do to make sure our rigs are ready to go
for the next rush of business.
Next post I
will share a few ideas about cable maintenance building and testing.
Brett Speer
Audio Technician
J&S Audio Visual
Show Services
