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[Mike Monte]

Hi All

Still working on finding a trailer. If that works out I will likely start with a single 828 as that seems to be the obvious choice for a 2x18.

In the meantime, I ponied up and ordered a Qu16.

I own/use a QU-16 and QU-24.....   Since you are used to a Mixwizard (of which I have two in my inventory) you will have little trouble transitioning to a QU. 

[Mike Monte]

Patrick, we travel with a full size pickup with a cap, and due to the fact I like to use road cases for a lot of gear, there probably isn't room for a 828 at the moment and 2 1x18 might fit better. I am seriously considering getting a 5x8ish trailer though so I am trying not to let size dictate this too much. The worst part of the truck is lifting to the gate height so a trailer would be a dream come true for that reason alone. Budget is flexible and I am willing to wait to afford the right gear. I can find used KW181's for $1k ish locally if that's any indication of my budget.

From a business standpoint I would not opt to buy a trailer unless there is no other way to carry a rig that will cover 80% of your gigs.
I use a 2006 Ford Expedition (with a carrier...similar to: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200622234_200622234   ) to transport sound gear for 80-90% of my sound gigs.  I rent a trailer for the larger gigs and pass the cost of the trailer onto the client.
Parking (and double-parking) a vehicle plus trailer can be a pain...
When I entered the sound-for-hire business I wanted to do the venture with the highest profit margin...I had set aside funds to purchase a trailer (Wells Cargo, with brakes, etc) but found that I would not need a trailer for most of my work...
 

[Rick Powell]

From a business standpoint I would not opt to buy a trailer unless there is no other way to carry a rig that will cover 80% of your gigs.
I use a 2006 Ford Expedition (with a carrier...similar to: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200622234_200622234   ) to transport sound gear for 80-90% of my sound gigs.  I rent a trailer for the larger gigs and pass the cost of the trailer onto the client.
Parking (and double-parking) a vehicle plus trailer can be a pain...
When I entered the sound-for-hire business I wanted to do the venture with the highest profit margin...I had set aside funds to purchase a trailer (Wells Cargo, with brakes, etc) but found that I would not need a trailer for most of my work...

I dunno, there are plenty of providers that find trailers to work best from a business standpoint. I have done both...consider this. I had a Ford E250 that was bursting at the seams with our equipment. When the motor blew (and not worth fixing from a financial standpoint) I was faced with getting a new trailer for $3k that costs less than $50 a year to plate and insure and with far more extra space and headroom than my previous van, or a van that I'd be lucky to find a good working one for that price, costs $500 a year to plate and insure, needs oil changes and other maintenance, and unless I got a box van or one of those new tall vans I can't stand up inside it. Parking and maneuvering a trailer is the only downside, if you have a tow worthy vehicle already (that is a "sunk cost" and you are using for other purposes besides the sound equipment) I will bet the trailer is cheaper all around for most at the lounge level. This is a whole nother thread though, and if money was no object I'd be driving an extended length Sprinter.

[Rob Gow]

Hi All

Still working on finding a trailer. If that works out I will likely start with a single 828 as that seems to be the obvious choice for a 2x18.

In the meantime, I ponied up and ordered a Qu16.

Good luck with the trailer. It has been my best investment to date. I originally figured that a 5x 8 would work. Then I realized my truss was in 10' sections so I looked at a 5x10 trailer that would fit my needs. When I was talking to the salesman I asked how much a V-Nose would cost and it was $200 extra. He said for the same $200 I could just make the trailer 5x12 which would give me a bit of room for expansion.

For me, the number one feature or spec was that it had to fit inside my garage. That way I'm able to leave it loaded between gigs. So I had to go new, with the 5x12 and no roof vent. That gave me the clearance. Keeping it in the garage saves a good hour at the beginning and the end of a gig since I don't have to unload it. It keeps it out of the 95F and the -31F. Plus having it stored outside is a security risk. In my town everyone has a disc grinder and could steal it if they wanted to. If they REALLY wanted to they could drive a truck through my garage door and then take it from there as well. But that's immaterial.

The nice thing about ordering new is that I was able to add features like 2 rows of E-Track at specific heights that work for my gear. I also ordered a threshold plate that covers the space between the trailer floor and the ramp door when it's down. The ramp door makes it so I'm a one man operation, no help needed but it is appreciated.

Makes life a lot easier. Springs vs torsion was a long debate. I went with springs. The only thing I would do different is to get dual axles instead of a single axle, but at the time money was an object and where did it end



I too have a love of roadcases and everything straps down nicely.

I can haul:
2 LS800p's
2 Unity15's
4 YX12's
1 YX15
1 NX750p
4 Martin Minimac Profiles in a trunk
4 a chauvet Intimidator Spot Duos in a trunk
20 wash lights (Blizzard 3NX & Fab5's)
Truss stands
2 lengths of 8' 11"x2" triangle aluminum truss
Mic stands, mics, distro, feeder cable, backdrop and even a couple guitars, etc. Etc.   

[Jeff Lelko]

Van versus trailer - either one will work if you make it work for you.  I've opted for the van route over the past decade and have no complaints.  In a standard wheelbase utility van (mine is a Chevy Express 1500) you get a little over 4ft x 9ft of clear storage, so enough for your basic SoS rig or small corporate event.  What I've also done with my van is build custom racks over the wheel wells to hold my speaker stands, mic stands, cable ramps, utility ramp, generic SOOW, and miscellaneous lighting stand parts.  This makes a HUGE difference in the amount of gear you can haul since the fiddly things aren't taking up room that could better be filled by a road case or loudspeaker.

A few downsides to the van worth considering though - no ramp built into the back door, so you'll either have to supply your own (which is what I did) or lift everything in and out.  For my average sound or light rig I only have a handful of single items over 100 pounds in weight, so not a big deal in my case, whereas if you're using 200+pound speakers this really isn't a great option.  You also don't have a lot of vertical stacking capability.  Again, for a basic SoS rig you probably don't need that but even lifting anything around 80 pounds inside the back of the van is hard since you can't stand up all the way.  Trailers don't have this problem and you can stack to the ceiling provided you can secure everything properly.  As Rob also mentioned, trussing is really a nonstarter in the back of a van for all but the smallest kits.  I put mine on a roof rack. 

All of that said, I still love just driving a van!  It's so much easier navigating inner city streets and one-way loading areas.  When I eventually graduate to a larger sound system I'll have no choice but to get a trailer, but until then I'm happy with my van!  I rent a Budget Truck for the small percentage of jobs that need more equipment than what my van can haul.  Good luck!

[Stephen Kirby]

I had a ramp trailer when I was playing and bringing sound gear a lot.  It was a boon.  Probably saved 30-45 minutes at each end of load in/load out by being able to just roll stuff in and run a strap across it.  Hobbling around inside my E150 is a pain.

Now that I'm not doing as much I've sold the trailer and built floor plates for the van so I have a perfectly flat surface to roll things around on.  And gotten a folding wheelchair ramp.  I actually find it easier to use the side door of the van instead of the back as there isn't as much going in and out hunched over.  Beginning to keep my eye out for another trailer though.  Sure was nice.

[Rick Powell]

I had a ramp trailer when I was playing and bringing sound gear a lot.  It was a boon.  Probably saved 30-45 minutes at each end of load in/load out by being able to just roll stuff in and run a strap across it.  Hobbling around inside my E150 is a pain.

Now that I'm not doing as much I've sold the trailer and built floor plates for the van so I have a perfectly flat surface to roll things around on.  And gotten a folding wheelchair ramp.  I actually find it easier to use the side door of the van instead of the back as there isn't as much going in and out hunched over.  Beginning to keep my eye out for another trailer though.  Sure was nice.

Yes, we used the side door of the van to tilt our subs in, worked a lot better than tilting them in the back and having to push them all the way to the front. By the time we got rid of the van, it was chock full of speakers, lighting stands and trusses, and all the other pieces plus my bass rig, and we had to methodically place each piece in a certain position and order to fit.

[Brian_Henry]

I don't have a van but do have a full size pickup. Lifting road cases into it really sucks.
I have a lot of experience with trailers from hauling race cars so maneuvering a 5x10 will be no problem and being able to roll stuff in will be fantastic on the back. Plus, I would be able to pull it with our SUV rather than the truck so the rig won't be too long.  I'd rather not trade the truck for a van because I use it for a number of other purposes.

[Brian_Henry]

Now that I have moved to the QU16, does this render my DRPA2 useless (I know some of you will say it was useless already)? I had previously been using it as an AFS failsafe (since I mix from stage) and its PEQ to store my system tuning curve.  I could theoretically use the LR mix PEQ for this purpose and use the LR GEQ for venue corrections.

[Rob Gow]

I have a digital mixer, and one of the nice features is being able to save a different scene for the various halls etc that we play at.

[ProSoundWeb Community]