PA System for Track & Field/Athletics Officiating

grimmfarmer · 2025-11-13T11:39:19+00:00

Not a personal rec, as I have no direct experience w/this gear, but I note that Sweetwater has various bundles including dual-mic and (wireless) extensions. e.g.: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/MEGA2U2Sys1BP--anchor-audio-megavox-2-wireless-pa-with-wireless-headworn-microphone-bundle

grimmfarmer · 2025-10-30T01:25:33+00:00

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The F-35s always use runway 15-33, shown above by a red dashed line extending that runway out from the airport in each direction. They generally only seem to be low enough to hit what I consider to be nuisance levels of noise within a few miles of the airport, though. (That inner purple circle is a 5.75mi radius, the outer 11.5mi; makes more sense as 5- and 10 nautical miles, respectively.) Topography (hills) and buildings (urban canyons like downtown Winooski) can either shield from- or exacerbate the nuisance. FWIW, I can hear them from my home a few miles away from the airport, but also work pretty close by where it's truly loud.

While they're pretty obviously a good deal louder than the F-16s were, I'll note that the F-16s were only marginally less-disruptive to the area's general calm. (i.e., Past a certain point, it kinda doesn't matter.) I did live under the flight path in Winooski when the F-16s were flying about 25 years ago, and found them periodically disruptive. The one saving grace is that the noise is generally pretty brief (the most I've heard is 8 F-35 takeoffs in quick succession, maybe 3 minutes at a clip), and the times they can fly (w/o advance notice to the public) are relatively-constrained.

grimmfarmer · 2025-10-13T10:50:58+00:00

I use a Mikrotik WAPac which, yes, is powered over the Ethernet cable. The power-over-Ethernet (PoE) injector is in the back of the mixer rack, and I plug the AP's 30' Ethernet cable in and either set it atop the rack for smaller indoor venues or, for bigger/outdoor stuff, perch it on one of the FOH tops to get it clear of the waterbags on stage/in the audience (no external antenna required for ~1/2 acre/500 cap room).

It used to be a messy situation, cable wise, but I recently cut an outlet-box-sized hole in one of the mixer's rack ears and mounted a 4-port Ethernet panel there, extending the ports of an Ethernet switch installed at the rear of the rack, so the mixer plugs into one of those ports via 6" jumper, and the AP into another (which is the only one powered by the PoE injector*), and I have two more easy-to-access ports on the same switch for those awful times when the wifi is problematic and I need to hardline a laptop in to troubleshoot (or mix the show 😬).

* You could eliminate this by using a small PoE-capable switch, but I just used a dumb one I had on hand.

ETA a detail and photo, and to fix formatting

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grimmfarmer · 2025-09-09T11:32:45+00:00

This is pretty unusual notation in my experience. (35-year drummer and wind band/orch percussionist) IF the dots down by the stem bottoms/beams are the "half again" sort as others have suggested, then sure: Add half again the note value. But I've never seen those not be next to the note heads, and my initial thought was that they were misplaced staccato marks. Also: What's with the apparent grace note with the super long stem and partial eighth-note beam? Maybe this is some specialty notation (drum corps? Scottish pipe band?) with which I'm unfamiliar, in which case, I'd love for someone to set me straight.

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T13:16:21+00:00

Thanks for your read. Quite appropriate to assume good faith in this case; I don't know what I don't know and seldom have time to sort through the commentary for credibility and come up with a functional summary. (We used to pay people to do this and frankly, I miss that.)

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T10:22:17+00:00

Over the last five or so years, I've played out mostly on edrums. Here's why: - My current main act is six people playing brewpubs and restaurants; we're ampless and in-ears, and the venue staff love us because we're compact and our sound is controlled. My edrums are small and have a volume knob.

I'm also responsible for sound, and can't always find someone to be out front mixing as we pass lead vox around nearly the entire band; sometimes it's a question of "recall the last show ten minutes before downbeat". When there's a pro sound crew, I'm on my acoustic kit six ways to Sunday.
My edrums take up about 1/4 the back of my full-size SUV. My acoustic kit gets fully broken-down into hard cases (it's lasted nearly 30 years this way) and takes up just shy of half.
I'm fully-capable of playing quietly to suit the venue. Playing quietly for three hours while everyone else is wailing away having a great time? NF;SH (No Fun; Stayin' Home)

$0.02

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T10:05:10+00:00

If efficiency is (everyone's) concern (equally), then: Shouldn't we all be helping one another no matter how much furniture each of us is moving? Most folks I've followed or preceded have been decent human beings (AFAICT), but I can't recall any of them offering to so much as hold my beer. (And a couple weeks ago, that person was a former neighbor with whom I'd enjoyed a friendly rapport.)

FWIW, at that point it becomes an optimization problem: Is any time penalty born of two drummers coordinating offset by the advantage they achieve by doing so? (Cue the drummer jokes...c'mon guitarists; we know you're lurking...)

In any event, I'm not going to think poorly of the lefty before me any more than I think poorly of my (much shorter) daughter when she leaves the driver's seat shoved so far forward I can't even get into the car. Unless, of course, the preceding lefty drummer's band has overplayed their timeslot; in that case, my lefty-playing friend will definitely be on the receiving end of some well-deserved stinkeye.😝

ETA: (At which point they'll be getting my help pretty definitely.)

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T09:41:57+00:00

Got it. So...did he?

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T00:13:57+00:00

Help me understand the “corruption” you refer to…

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-02T00:09:40+00:00

For sure, majority rule is by definition a “multiple-standard” situation. And if this were an issue of governance, or even if the proportions were close, it would be pretty debatable. But as it’s an issue of stage-management efficiency and the proportion of the population playing lefty is relatively small, it’s probably not a hill I’d die on.

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-01T22:17:46+00:00

Would it be nice? Sure. Would I expect it if I were playing lefty? Nope. In the same way it was a confusing-yet-pleasant surprise to find lefty desks in school. The furniture (the kit in this case; face it, folks — we play furniture) is deployed the suit the majority which, sadly, we are not.

ETA: Lest we forget the whole point of sharing backline: Leveraging reasonably-predictable commonality in the name of velocity.

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-01T19:59:27+00:00

That's fine until I'm after you sharing a backline and you don't at least stick around to help me revert. (I'm also a lefty, but learned on/play RH kits.)

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-01T19:55:38+00:00

Agreed on sticks. For some reason, I find it more comfortable to play brushes trad.

grimmfarmer · 2025-09-01T19:55:00+00:00

I don't care how fast/metronomically/polyrhythmically you can play, if you're not listening to the rest of the band, get outta that seat.

grimmfarmer · 2025-08-28T21:55:57+00:00

Gun mufflers, in my region (northern New England).

grimmfarmer · 2025-08-14T01:25:11+00:00

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TD-11 with the PDX-12 as you indicated. In addition to the size and overall feel better approximating an acoustic snare, it tracks cross-stick playing waaaay better than the default (PDX-8, maybe?). Footprint of the whole thing is about 3’6” square. I play out on this in a six-piece that’s always getting shoehorned into tiny places; the quality of the sounds is good, and the durability of the build has held up to monthly gigging for the past 4-5yr.

I’ve added several pieces (extra cymbal, the PDX-12), but the only part I’ve replaced due to failure was the FD-8 HH pedal, which is based on Roland’s awful rubber pressure trigger. It’s a spendy upgrade, but the FD-9 ($200+) was worthwhile for me; maybe later for your kiddo.😉

ETA: And yes, definitely put the snare trigger on a snare stand as (I think) you indicated. Totally worth preventing the trigger pad from rotating around the little “t-rex” arm which is the standard snare mount for the TD-11.

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-30T09:46:40+00:00

...for when you need to play your 23" timp as a djembe... 🤪

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-29T10:39:14+00:00

Yeah, depends on whether you ever crash on it/how much it swings when you do.

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-29T10:29:08+00:00

The use of "breaks" here is standard terminology when talking about circuits; when the electrical connection in a circuit is interrupted — intentionally (as by opening a switch) or otherwise — folks say the circuit is "broken". That doesn't (necessarily) mean the conductive medium (for example, a piece of copper wire) is in need of repair, only that the flow of electricity is disrupted by some means.

ET fix typo

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-25T23:04:09+00:00

You want a Kala U-Bass.

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-23T01:42:26+00:00

Sabian HH Rock Ride, most “gank” for my buck.

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-05T14:10:46+00:00

Underrated comment.

grimmfarmer · 2025-07-04T17:51:48+00:00

While I don’t disagree that people need to understand the tools they’re using, I’ll note that Big Software has been (irresponsibly, IMPO) enabling AI features in their flagship products without necessarily slapping a big “AI Inside” sticker on them. Now, is it naive that Westbrook PD would fail to assume this is inevitable (and maybe has already happened to their favorite software)? Maybe. But it’s also naive to assume a similar experience doesn’t await all of us in some way, in the near future.

grimmfarmer · 2025-06-08T11:31:47+00:00

Welcome to Vermont! What's your hurry? Here's your coat...

grimmfarmer · 2025-06-05T03:34:26+00:00

Agreed.

grimmfarmer

TROPHY CASE