To comment on a few things noted...
If you are writing a gear list and the one company is supplying all the gear, it can be assumed that the company is capable of working out what connectors need to be on the ends to suit THEIR gear and so saying a 20m
speaker cable and a 10m mic cable ought to be adequate. For your iPod input say something like 1x cable to adapt 3.5mm stereo
TRS to
mixer inputs - that makes the
mixer input end their problem to work out...
Basically specify what matters and assume (stupidly or otherwise) that the company is capable of working the rest out when connecting their stuff together.
Note that all of the numbers being tossed around for effects of
current are for a healthy adult. People with existing heart conditions and other ailments are more vulnerable and will have lower thresholds. This is why RCDs in hospitals are 10mA devices not the 30mA devices used more generally.
I disagree that an inverter and battery supply is an unwise choice. As always it depends on the load amongst other things, but because of the battery you have the ability to take peaks better than with a generator in many ways.
In contrast a generator (particularly if the audio load is the only load) is liable to have it's supply characteristics vary with the load, affecting
voltage sure but also potentially affecting the frequency stability of the supply, especially in small generators and even more so in cheap generators. (This has to do with back emfs and other such fun)
If you are to use a generator, do ensure you have the thing fuelled before you start, it's embarrassing otherwise. Chances are if you get the generator to start it will behave, but I've lost count of the number of times I've had issues with generators...
Agreed that if you are causing a
current of any significant magnitude to flow by metering Active - Earth then your
meter needs to be divided into small pieces and disposed of thoughtfully. Note also that you need to be used a
meter appropriately rated for the fault
voltage potential - in this case I believe you would need a Cat IV rated
meter.
The
current draw for your rig will depend a lot on the character of the music being reproduced - simply
bass needs more
juice. With an analog voltmeter and not much residual load, you would be able to watch the
voltage drop in time with the kick drum beats if they are amplified...
If you go for the long cable route, then you would be very well advised to ensure the feed is
RCD protected. Running over cables causes non visible damage to the internal structure of the cable which affects things like the
insulation resistance - this can become BAD. Has it happened before? Sure Is it good? No. Now I won't explicitly say it but
power cable is probably going to survive temporary
point loading better than audio
multicore or dread the thought fibre (which for most fibre will die there and then and be non field reterminable - some of the milspec stuff will survive but may sustain internal damage that causes attenuation of the signal.)
And in the food for thought department for competent professionals, the Australian Standard for Temporary
Power (Shows & Carnivals, AS3002:2008) throws this curler:
AS3002:2008 Clause 3.2 said:
... Earthing of the generator frame, or
equipotential bonding
system, by use of an electrode or stake is not required and not recommended.
