Stuck...

[ed_]

Hmmm... right back! I was referring to Irish prices. It's well documented that things are more expensive over here (some call it the 'Paddy Tax').

 

So your hire of £80 against an £850 piece of kit means you were either paying well over the odds for the hire, or the item you bought instead of hiring was a LOT cheaper than the kit you hired.

 

I'm not going to talk any more pricing in public, but a) the item is EXACTLY the same and b) the hire price of £80/week represents a 30% discount from theatre rates from an Irish market leading theatre hire co., and anywhere between 40 and 60% discount from Irish corporate rates based on a 3 day week. An abnormally highly priced item, I'll agree.

 

My point is that prevailing market conditions made it sensible for me to buy that kit - and that, at the end of the day, is how you should determine whether to buy an item or keep hiring it.

[Bobbsy]

This is drifting OT and I may split this soon, but it's getting interesting...

 

In the TV/broadcast area, the "normal" hire price for equipment is 1% of the purchase cost per day, a week being 4 times the day rate and a month being 3 times the weekly rate. Obviously there were variations on this but it was "close enough for budgeting".

 

This works out to be pretty close to Ynot's numbers.

 

Bob

[dbuckley]

When I've looked at other peoples numbers, for stuff that is tough it seems to be about a 20 week payback, and stuff that is fragile must less. Intercom stations seem to be the shortest payback at under ten weeks.

 

Not a million miles from 1% per day...

[pete LD]

Back on topic, Ish....

And apart from getting so angry at your posts because your attitude sucks!

I am a freelance prod LX, and like you when I was 16/17 started a disco with a friend. I spent the money I made on my paper round on lights and he built up the audio side. I remember spending over £30 on a Par 56 with lamp, now I would spend less than £15 on the same product. This is because I now have better understanding of where to buy things from and have contacts. I also spent a long time debating what type of plug to use (I know its not related to sound but bare with me!) I chose 5amp because the local theatre had just changed to 15 and that ment I could get lots of free 5a plugs. Fantastic!. No. As one of the main places I hired to I then had to make 15>5A converters so I could plug my lights in. I had then had to spend the money on the 15A plug and the 5 a socket and make it! Just to save money!. I have since upgraded to 16A because I started to do more out door events.

What that ramble is trying to say is that you don’t know where your gona end up in a few years, and what your kit will need to do. You could end up wasting money on kit that only gets used on your "regular"(4 times a year) (glad you don’t run a "regular” bus service) theatre shows which you might not be doing in a year as it may clash with some other collage show.

I also have loads of, I cant think of a word so "crap" laying about my workshop that I bought in my teens that has had little use and properly never will as its cheep unbranded rubbish!

I am also shocked at the news that Rob is less than a month older than me! I would listen to his advice and looking back I think I would have been better off working before buying!!

So my bit of advice on what to do with your £800, buy a good soldering iron, 100m of good mic cable, a load of GOOD XLRs, and learn to solder! It’s rewarding, it’s a skill and it’s useful in the industry!!

And one other thing, try not to P*** people off on here as you seem to be doing, They are the people you will be working with in a few years!.

Pete (sorry if I rambled, Its late but I have the "been working late all week so cant sleep till 5am" problem!!

[themadhippy]

Dont waste your cash on kit,buy a good bed,

[mal421]

A couple of points that rang my alarm bells are the 'free storage and use of a van' . From my experience things that are free tend to disappear as quickly as they appear . Also they tend to give a false idea of how much you should charge or how much profit is being made .

If you must buy kit go for quality not quantity and buy what you will use most . The more kit you have the greater your storage and transport needs especially when you are relying upon the good will of others for both . Once you get into the realms of hire you are essentially providing a type of 'insurance' and those who are paying you to 'make themselves heard' will not be best pleased if your kit is not up to the job .

At the age of 16 I doubt if you have done any pressure shows yet . You may have a high opinion of your ability etc. but when you get to work with a wizzened old pro who has been giging for years , they may not be much of a technician but they know what they want from a PA system and they know when things are not working as they expect and it is no point in trying to baffle them with science because they have heard it many times before .

[JimWebber]

A couple of points that rang my alarm bells are the 'free storage and use of a van' . From my experience things that are free tend to disappear as quickly as they appear . Also they tend to give a false idea of how much you should charge or how much profit is being made...

 

Especially when these kind, helpful people realise that you are getting rich off of their generosity....

 

 

Jim