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Locking up gear

S

standupbassman

Jul 7, 2009
79
0
#1
I've been asked to be part of the tech crew at my high school for next year and the 4 of us were talking about what we wanted to do yesterday and we all agreed that we needed a way to lock of the sound board in the auditorium. Ideally we would be able to leave it set up and ready to go and just have a case of some sort that we could put over the board to lock it up. If there's room for additional stuff (wireless mic recievers, DVD player etc.) that would be a huge plus too!
The board is a 32 channel Mackie. I don't know the exact model but it is vary similar to the 3204 VLZ3.
Does anyone know of anything that would do this?
 
#3
Having had gear stolen out of my school when I went there, there is no way in hell I'd ever leave ANY of my gear at a high school. If the school provides it, they can figure out a way to lock it up.
 
#4
The reason that we're looking for a way of looking it up is so i don't have to bring any of my own stuff there.

The school already has an ATA case... Are there any ATA cases where I can keep everything plugged in and locked up at the same time? I don't want to plug everything in everytime i use it.
 
#5
Yes, you need a case with a doghouse on it. They are usually custom-built, and probably run in the range of $500.

console-mackie-SR40-8-2.jpg


console-mackie-SR40-8.jpg
 
#7
Hi.

standupbassman said:
Are there any ATA cases where I can keep everything plugged in and locked up at the same time? I don't want to plug everything in everytime i use it.
Click to expand...

The doghouse Munji posted is one option, not too difficult to make either.

As far as dedicated mixing desk ATA cases go, I don't think I've ever seen one without an access hatch of some kind. If there isn't one, cutting it and attaching a hinge isn't rocket surgery either.
The standard procedure after the soundcheckand between the sets in any bar venue is to close the lid to prevent tampering and spills. At least over here.

Regards
Sam
 
#8
Since we at a high school, I'm sure the shop teacxher could help out here, starting with Munjibunga's pic. Keep it in-house, keep it cheap. Cheap is easier to sell to whoever is in charge of spending..
 
#9
A doghouse case is great, but you need a mult (multi pin interlocking system) if you want to be able to leave everything plugged in. That will leave you with just one connection to deal with when you case the board.
There are also roller top desk style cabinets that might be a bit better in a situation where the console never moves, with space for a console on top, racks underneath, and open channel for snakes and patch cables
To run. When not in use you just close up the cabinet and can lock it up, I've typically seen these in houses of worship. Not cheap, but neither is a mult system and the mult system is a bit more fragile (it's not that hard to bend pins when trying to seat the connection if you don't line it up correctly).
 
#12
First off, I'd like to say you guys rock!

The rollertop desk is exactly the kind of thing that we are looking for. Not what we're looking to spend but I've talked to my shop teacher about it and he made it sound pretty easy so that's probably what will be done, unless someone knows of a 6ft wide version of the Raxxes.

Also, we can't rackmount our wireless mic system, and we rarely have them set up. It would be nice not to have to worry about setting them up everyday for musicals, plays, etc. I think shelves would be more useful.

Thank you!
 
#13
"...Also, we can't rackmount our wireless mic system, and we rarely have them set up. It would be nice not to have to worry about setting them up everyday for musicals, plays, etc. I think shelves would be more useful."

Why can't you rackmount the wireless mic system? You might need to add power/antenna distribution and remote antennas (which is a good idea anyway). PLus if you use TORX or even the security TORX screws to rackmount, even if someone gets into the cabinet it will be harder for them to remove/steal anything.

If you're looking for something 6' wide I don't think I'd go with a roll top. Without some kind of center support I think it would sag unless you went with some kind of heavy duty roll-up garage door or pickup truck tonneau cover. I'd probably go with some 3/4" plywood panels that lock on with hasps & padlocks and can be completely removed when you want to use the rig.
 

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