New Booth

[Foxinabox10]

Along with all the new equipment that I am requesting that my school purchase, I'm also designing a new booth and I figured what better place to pose the question: If you could have anything in a booth, what would you put storage wise and more.

My current plans include:

- (2) 45 Space Racks Built in for Wireless Mic Receivers, Equalizers, etc.
- (4) Intercom Plugs Underneath the Main Work Surface
- Code Lock Door to Gain Access to All Equipment
- Raised Up 18" with Storage Below Floor
- Drawers Along Back Wall and Gel Drawers on Side
- Jut Out From Main Work Surface for CD Player and Refrigerator Below (School Doesn't Know About the Fridge)

[AVGuyAndy]

Just a suggestion, you probably already know this though

If you are racking up the wireless receivers in a mounted rack like that, make sure you use splitters and combiners and all that good RF stuff, and put the antennas in front of the booth or something. RF level isn't going to be happy if you are going to use the antennas back of the units. What I think would be a good idea is to put 2 studio monitors in the booth to hook up to the control room or utility outputs on the mixer. Be sure to have some network drops put in as well as TV drops. (if your school has cable, or a network for that matter) Patch Panels in the booth. Dunno if patch panels are still used in lighting. One for sound would be good, espcially if you've got all your gear permanantly racked up. A phone would not be bad in the booth. If you wanted to get real fancy you could even hook it up to your sound mixer with one of these devices that give you the audio in/out from a phone line. A $120 rack for CDs would be a good investment. Beats the hell out of the stack of CDs for talent shows, which always gets lost, etc.

[Foxinabox10]

Yeah, I already accounted for the antennas and booth monitors. We already have tv and network drops in the area and a phone for that matter. I was planning on trying to get a computer installed in there for lighting plots, e-mail, and the like. I had drawers for the CD's and for cables and such.

[Sombra2]

yea, a computer is good. what i recommend to organize ithe booth well, depending on the type of computer i suggest looking into a rack shelf to put the computer on.

Also video wise a projector would be very good so you could hook up to the computer and have video or power point going out. and maybe check into getting some cctv and monitors for the stage and backstage.

[ship]

Probably not going to be able to do storage below it unless completely 100% fire proof. That's a code thing I remember.

[Foxinabox10]

Ship, if I have them install an access port in the floor so that we can access the wires that run under the booth, then they'll think it's solely for that and won't have to know about the storage. Just like they would be building a cabinet with electricity to it and no shelves for a refrigerator, but they don't know what it's for. It's all about telling them just enough.

Also, anyone have any suggestions on approaching the new principal. My thought is to e-mail him introducing myself and the problem and suggesting meeting with him in the space to walk through it and give him the list of equipment and supplies there.

[ship]

There is a bunch of stuff you can get away with. Seperate out doing your job in never buying only what is necessary in otherwise not doing your job in stocking replacement/emergency parts from that of telling people on thing, but out of rational for understanding, yes, there is a good reason not to, doing it anyway.

What those paying the bill will never know should have limited to no factor in what in this condition you are doing.

Heck, why not save money on flame proof paint out of your rational, and invest it's cost into something useful? So you have scenery that should be flame resistant but now is not. Instead you have budget to get other purposes done.


Are you getting some form of idea here? It's presented that I remember some form of national builidng code requirement that storage areas that you have access to are completely flame proof should they be used for accessable storage, and you say fine, I won't on paper, but what what those doing so don't know won't hurt anyone.

You not the contractors or administration are more responsible for playing by the rules than any contractor installing the stuff.

You need storage and thus will saccrifice compliance with some known rule based upon sound reasoning due to your need for storage.

That it might be a reason the theater burns down potentialy and kills people is not important. You need your storage. What others don't know won't hurt them.

Yes you can certainly have a access hole, and run wiring thru it as long as up to code. That you would still call it one thing so as they will do it for you, but you will risk other people's lives in you now having this secret storage space, does not speak well of you.

Please re-consider your need for storage in this area as compared to what's presented in why this might not be a good idea or why the contractors might not be otherwise willing to do so other than in being lied to in actual purpose.

[propmonkey]

whats so wrong with a frig?

[Foxinabox10]

Ship, I see where you're are coming from and I obviously did not think it all the way through. I see your point now and will reconsider.

Propmonkey, there isn't supposed to be food or drink in the auditorium, and the school would not under any circumstances pay for us to get a fridge, let alone allow it to be there, so it's just a cabinet, with a lock.

[Soundguydave]

Make the window of the booth with the option to open (for Audio) or at least have a good monitor system set up.