Help - venue dB limiters and liability

darius

I get that, but they’re also happy to take bookings for your raucous loud wedding parties and wait over a year to tell you there’s a low noise limit.

poopot

Sat in the garden having a coffee with the mrs… chatting about stuff, phone on the table, decibel meter running…

The 97.6 max was a chuckle from the mrs…

I think you may be onto a hiding to nothing with this venue!!!!!

Stratavarious

We have public liability insurance.. there are a couple of providers. £70/year for the band.

PAT testing can be done by any competent individual with the right equipment/knowledge.  Keep a record. You can get the stickers on rolls on Amazon.  I do it for us. But did a PAT course many years ago and do lots of electronic stuff and amp building. 

We DI everything through the desk and use an eDrum kit and IEMs when levels need to be fully controlled.  There is not much leeway in their level though.  My DSL can work in silent mode and its not too bad.. the digital mixer has cab sims which really help.

The chance is its all BS and none of it will be checked or working.

A visit to the venue probably in order to assess and plan.  The meter might be away from stage.  It is also for 3 seconds of sustained noise to trigger.. so transients like snares should not set it off but loud synth noises might,  could test it.   

A DJ with a £9 bluetooth speaker might be better option though.

paulmapp8306

Whistler said:

Given that above 85dB you should be wearing hearing protection, it seems a generous limit to me. The experts say that hearing damage starts to occur after about 45-50 minutes at a constant 95dB, so with a wedding set list that may stretch to twice that.

As for that meter, if your drummer is a hard hitter then he will be pumping out 110db+ all by himself. A band on top of that will probably push your sound to 120dB, measured 1 metre in front of the band. That will equate to 114dB 2 at metres, 108dB at 4 metres, 100 at 8 metres, 94dB at 16 metres. How far away from the meter will the band be? Probably not 16 metres. Maybe 4 metres, so you will need to learn to rehearse at a quarter of the usual intensity to keep below 95dB for 3 seconds.

What levels do you usually rehearse at? Have you ever measured the level? Apps such as SPL Meter are as accurate as hand-held SPL (sound pressure level) meters, so for your own hearing's sake as well as your audience's, get used to what levels you play at.

All deoends where thecsensor is....

95bd on the back wall if absolutely fine.  95db by the side of the stage by the pa cab isnt.

Distance, and materials of venue  (wood v carpet floor for instance) make a big difference.

p90fool

Just turn the gig down. 
One of our stipulations other than the size of the area we need is an electricity supply. If they can't manage that then they're not equipped for events. 

Danny1969

poopot said:

Sat in the garden having a coffee with the mrs… chatting about stuff, phone on the table, decibel meter running…

The 97.6 max was a chuckle from the mrs…

I think you may be onto a hiding to nothing with this venue!!!!!

Don't forget it's a log 10 scale so 80dB is 10 X 70 and 90dB is 100 X 70 

Rowby1

How about using an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) unit?It’ll stop damage to your gear at the very least.

mudslide73

p90fool said:

Just turn the gig down. 
One of our stipulations other than the size of the area we need is an electricity supply. If they can't manage that then they're not equipped for events. 

This is bang on. An extension lead out to the kitchen is the only way round it I'm afraid. Venues that can't have bands or deejays aren't going to get many bookings.

darius

Rowby1 said:

How about using an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) unit?It’ll stop damage to your gear at the very least.

It’s been suggested but
a. I don’t have one
b. If I need one I don’t want the gig. 

You’re local, it’s the Abbey Mills wedding venue. I’m going to take a wander down this week and take a look at the room and sensor placement. 

rze99

...It ain't rock n roll no more

mrkb

I just went into my soundproofed music room and clapped and cheered on my own. My eBay decibel meter read just over 95db and was about 3 meters away. You’d better hope only one person claps and cheers;)

darius

rze99 said:

...It ain't rock n roll no more

Well exactly. 

mrkb said:

I just went into my soundproofed music room and clapped and cheered on my own. My eBay decibel meter read just over 95db and was about 3 meters away. You’d better hope only one person claps and cheers;)

Engineering research at its finest.
I too have been playing with a phone app meter. I sneezed and hit 110….

paulmapp8306

Dont forget however, the meter isnt peak (or shouldnt be).  Its over 95 for a period.  3 seconds is quite usual.

Now, loud cheering will go on longer  a snare hit wont.

Again though, sound levels drop drastically with distance.   100db at 3 meters wont be 100db at 30 meters.

Hence location of mic, distance from stage  etc all make a difference.

Best bet, try it first if you can, duscuss options if its a problem etc.  Dont just dismiss it as it might not be an issue BUT if it is, just walk away at that point.

Cols

Rowby1 said:

How about using an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) unit?It’ll stop damage to your gear at the very least.

I have a UPS at work for lab equipment.  It’s bloody heavy.

Rowby1

You’re local, it’s the Abbey Mills wedding venue. I’m going to take a wander down this week and take a look at the room and sensor placement. 

It’s funny because 30 years ago I used to rehearse in that very building with a very loud band….

I have a UPS I use with my studio gear. I have no idea how well it would work with a full band and PA though….probably not practical in reality I suspect.

 I think placement of the mic in the room will be the deciding factor as others have said. On balance I’d be more inclined to turn the gig down than risk it. 

It’s a bit of a bummer really.

fretmeister

Get a flatbed truck and a generator.

And a PA system borrowed from Disaster Area.

They'll hear it all through the walls of the venue. Job done.

mudslide73

fretmeister said:

Get a flatbed truck and a generator.

And a PA system borrowed from Disaster Area.

They'll hear it all through the walls of the venue. Job done.

Another venue 37 miles away "...the band's public address system contravenes local strategic arms limitations treaties."

Trude

Ask to see the calibration certificate for the dB meter. If they can’t provide one, insist they disable it as the reading can’t be trusted.

Also, ask to see the PAT certificates for all equipment in the venue, as your safety and that of your band members is at stake!

fastonebaz

Yes we used an extension lead from another socket, no sound level issues to worry about then.  

jpfamps

The last gig I did where PAT was "mandatory" was in a quite posh West End hotel.

When setting up the gear I plugged our PA into a bank of 4 sockets and which promptly fell out of the wall!

We were then told to use a different bank of sockets of which only one worked.

Fortunatelyit was not a loud band and always us an RCD.