Thanks for the responses! I don't have a sketch of my
layout at the moment (on a different computer), but I really like the idea of a shorter counter for lighting. I'm thinking two thirds of the booth will have kitchen height counters with drafting chairs - with supporting legs on each end and maybe two "halfway" legs splitting the difference. Then the lighting
desk will sit somewhat lower (because my LBOs won't ever stand to run lights and ultimately need to see over the PC).
Then I think I'll place the sound board a little closer to the center of the
house - possibly centering it on the counter; that way I have room to move the lighting computer in case I have to run both lights and sound.
From the responses, I think building a counter myself (pretty good at carpentry, and my MC offered to help) and covering it with
laminate or
Masonite for a smooth, professional feeling workspace. For the back, I think I might create a 2" trough with 4" holes drilled every few feet - that way I can feed cables up from where, but I can also run cables between the rack, sound PC, sound board,
Clear-Com control
unit, and lighting PC with anything laying across the actual
desk.
Definitely getting some a handful of Littlelites because of how fantastic they are.
Jay, I've somewhat nixed the idea of a back
platform because very rarely is there anyone in the booth except for the
mixer and
LBO (SM sits at a station on
stage) - however, I think I'll go completely black - I hate looking at something brighter in the booth and having to wait for my eyes to adjust when I look back at the
stage.
My amps are currently located on
stage - with an output feed running from the board to the
stage/amps then up to the speakers...however, I do get a hum that is noticeable only during straight shows - and it's worsened when my lights (especially my
FOH wash) is at any
level other then full. So any fades from BO to, say, 75% produce a delicious hum that grows and lingers in the background. Over the loudness of musicals, it's not noticeable, but quiet shows/events are bothersome.
A friend of mine said I have a
ground loop issue and that the amps and the board should be on the same
circuit. He suggested that I have my electrician run a dedicated
line from the same
circuit/
breaker the board is on down to the amps and
plug them into that source to eliminate the hum. Is it the best solution? Or would I be better off moving my amps up to the booth and running
wire to my speakers (~80')?