Members cobberdig Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 So the band i play in have a gig coming up in venue thats a bit larger than we would usually play. When i had a look at the venues website on the home page there was a message that said something like NOTICE TO PERFORMERS - ALL ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT/APPLIANCES USED ON SITE MUST BE TAGGED & TESTED FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN NON PERFORMANCE just curious to know if people come across this much, its the first time we've seen it and we been gigging about 4 years. so anyway i found a technician to tag and test 2 amp heads. it cost $10 each so its no skin off my nose. the only stuff about was minor one of amps is 30 odd years old and had no back on it so i had to organise a piece of mesh and screw it on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bengerm77 Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I have NEVER heard of that before. Curiosity bump. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mick8882003 Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Makes sense, its only a safety measure, on the flip side, ask them if they have an ecb on the mains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cobberdig Posted May 28, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 yeah it makes sense, as every place you go into has some form of oh&s policy, and they drummed it into us when i did metal work at tafe, just never come across it playing gigs. wonder if they have dance police also? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members victorcrane Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I've never heard of that before, but then a lot of the venues near me have such abysmal wiring that the building itself presents much more of a hazard to your amp than your amp could ever present to it. We should all demand electrical test certification from every promoter upon arrival at a venue, and also we should wear hard hats and high vis vests whilst performing. Oh and let's ban moshing. And the white stripes, let's ban them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BAXANDALL Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Always a good practice. You should have it done once a year or so just for your own safety. Of course, that's MHO. I hope the bigger gig went well for you guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Yasgurs Farm Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Always a good practice. You should have it done once a year or so just for your own safety. Of course, that's MHO.I am curious. What procedures or tests are done, specifically, when an item of electrical music equipment is tagged and tested? And what items should be tagged and tested? For example, should individual pedals be tested if they are connected via a power supply to AC power? Before I spend $10/item annually, I need to know what the test is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tinwhisker Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Always a good practice. You should have it done once a year or so just for your own safety. Of course, that's MHO.I hope the bigger gig went well for you guys. What testing is done and who does it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BAXANDALL Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I am curious. What procedures or tests are done, specifically, when an item of electrical music equipment is tagged and tested? And what items should be tagged and tested? For example, should individual pedals be tested if they are connected via a power supply to AC power? Before I spend $10/item annually, I need to know what the test is. Tagging and Testing originated in Australia as a means to ensure the safety of electrical equipment (I believe in the work place). However, testing of grounds (earth) and power supplies, transformers and the like is what I'm referring to. Relying on a fuse to solve an electrical issue is not the best practice when running gear that uses high amounts of electricity. You should have your gear checked occassionally by a pro to make sure that the electrical components are in good condition. I don't know how the tests are done myself. I'm not an electrician. However, I have my gear looked over by a professional technician about once a year. Wall warts or power supplies are very dangerous and should be visually inspected often at the very least. They should always be unplugged when not in use too. I know 2 families that have had house fires due to power supplies failing. Always watch out for twisted power cords and power supply cords too. Not smart. If you are in a gigging band and playing several times a week in places that hold crowds that your gear can endanger if improperly setup or possibly becoming a danger due to wear and tear you should consider it. Does that answer your question or were you just being funny? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mick8882003 Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I am curious. What procedures or tests are done, specifically, when an item of electrical music equipment is tagged and tested? And what items should be tagged and tested? For example, should individual pedals be tested if they are connected via a power supply to AC power? Before I spend $10/item annually, I need to know what the test is. They test for earth leakage as well as genral condition of the gear (frayed cords ect), never done it myself but I studied EE so I should have a good idea... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members csm Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I'd never heard of this a coupla months back until I was wandering around the Award-Session website to download a new copy of the mini-manual for my JD-10 preamp, and found a section on this very issue. I checked with my colleague Buffalo Bill Smith, who's been doing one or two gigs a week in London for at least twenty years, and (in his other identity as a reviewer for Blues In Britain magazine) attending at least one or two more. He said that not only had none of his bands ever been asked to show a test tag, but he'd never heard of any of the other bands on the circuit being asked, or any of the venues (mostly pubs/clubs) ever asking. I guess this only occurs when you get further up the food chain and work in theatres and ballrooms. Still: I need to get my old Super Reverb health-checked before we start gigging anyway, and maybe the tech who enbds up doing that job will be qualified to certify it when he's given it the all-clear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Faber Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I'm sure it's a good idea, but the places I get to play I'm usually more worried about the house mains killing me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tinwhisker Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I'm sure it's a good idea, but the places I get to play I'm usually more worried about the house mains killing me These are cheap and work for checking polarity/ground on U.S. voltage... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mick8882003 Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I'm sure it's a good idea, but the places I get to play I'm usually more worried about the house mains killing me Thats what an ECB is for... Edit: to give u a better idea it kills all power if it senses any power loss (ie through you), mandatory on new houses in aus, also a good idea near pools or ne where children roam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigfatmonkeyboy Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I have been making enquiries about signing my band up with some agencies, who all require our gear to be PAT tested (UK term for the same thing). Fortunately, my brother in law is an electrician, but he reckons its pretty worthless, as most venues are pretty poor at electrical safety, plus the stickers to show an item has been tested can be purchased in bulk from electrical wholesalers, by anyone... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tinwhisker Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Thats what an ECB is for... Edit: to give u a better idea it kills all power if it senses any power loss (ie through you), mandatory on new houses in aus, also a good idea near pools or ne where children roam. Over here that's called a GFCI Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupter This is a simple household outlet version: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mick8882003 Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 They are some freaky looking points Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Faber Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Thats what an ECB is for...Edit: to give u a better idea it kills all power if it senses any power loss (ie through you), mandatory on new houses in aus, also a good idea near pools or ne where children roam. Thanks, it's a bit unnerving to see sparks coming from the wall socket throughout the evening, as was the case last time we played out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cobberdig Posted May 28, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 thanx for all the replies its been an interesting little thread. yeah the tags he put on our amps are only valid for 6 months (for sake of reference im in australia) but like i said no skin off my nose a bit of routine maintenance and a once over is fine with me. another funny thing i made a call this afternoon to find out load in times, sound check etc and i get a text later on saying its 3.30pm (this is for 9 or 10pm start) so maybe i will text back in gest telling him we got 2 torque liners to unload better make it midday? or more realistic sorry we don't get off work til 5!... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metalheadUK Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 It's called "PAT" testing in the UK. Every bit of electrical gear used in a public place is supposed to be pat tested. I did actually have my JCM900 pat tested when I was gigging it a lot. No one has EVER checked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ajympt Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Its not a bad idea- I've been bit once and so was our singer/lead player by our own stuff one night at practice when something failed with a ground in all the crap we had hooked up- I just got stung a little but his face was numb and jaw ached for a long time- NOT COOL- electricity is not your friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cobberdig Posted May 28, 2008 Author Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 Its not a bad idea- I've been bit once and so was our singer/lead player by our own stuff one night at practice when something failed with a ground in all the crap we had hooked up- I just got stung a little but his face was numb and jaw ached for a long time- NOT COOL- electricity is not your friend. I've heard of that happening, the singer of a uk band i like got a charge in the mouth off a microphone at a show in the netherlands a few years back. it fkd him up bad apparently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 PAT testing isn't really worth the paper it's written on - all it does is prove the equipment was OK up to a year ago. But yes, it's supposed to be mandatory for using equipment in a public place. In the UK, items under 1 year old are assumed acceptable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BAXANDALL Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I've heard of that happening, the singer of a uk band i like got a charge in the mouth off a microphone at a show in the netherlands a few years back. it fkd him up bad apparently. It happened to my singer once during an outdoor gig. The weather was warm and dry. He was only zapped for a split second at 110v. We never did figure it out. He just kept the mic away from his mouth. Punk rock man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members budkingston Posted May 28, 2008 Members Share Posted May 28, 2008 I spent some time aboard US Naval ships and everything you brought aboard had to get tagged. This included electric razors, radios, and mini TV's. It was free, but it sure overworked the ship's electricians for the first few days of a cruise. I suspect that this is an often overlooked safety regulation, but as it is enforced more and more, eventually you are going to see near total enforcement. 20 years from now, most people won't remember when it wasn't done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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