Is hiring a PA in Sydney any different to anywhere else?   Mostly not, but compared to other Australian cities & other countries, the conventions & pricing may vary.   This article is intended to give some specific advice for those organizing events here in Sydney.

So What Type of PA System Do I Need?

There’s Three main things to work out:

• Application
• Power Requirements
• Quality
• Environment

Application (What’s the PA For?)

Different applications might include:

• Vocal PA.  This type of system is designed primarily for amplifying speech & perhaps some background music.   This is probably the simplest type of PA.  It may include as little as a microphone, mixer, amplifier & speakers.  Power requirements are modest.

• Foreground Dance Music & Speech PA.  This type of PA may require sub speakers designed to handle bass frequencies.  The power requirements increase quite a bit from a vocal PA.

• Live Music PA.  This is the most complicated system.   It may also require multiple microphones, direct input devices (DI boxes), foldback monitors (so singers can hear themselves), a mixer with foldback sends, processors such as compressors, limiters & special effects.  Power requirements increase dramatically especially for live music with drums & bass guitar.

Power Requirements

Amplifiers & speakers are rated in watts (RMS not Peak).  It’s often useful to work out the power requirement in watts-per-person in the audience.

Quality

In PA equipment quality generally relates to performance & reliability. The quality of equipment you need really depends on your application. If the system is for say home use at a party then you may not need to be as fussy as if it was for a large event with paying customers.   The main question to ask is – if this equipment failed or sounded poor, what’s the worst that could happen?   If the application is critical then It may be worth considering a backup plan which includes having some extra stand-by equipment.

Most hire companies have reasonably good quality equipment.   The budget equipment tends not to last well in a challenging hire environment.  When purchasing PA equipment there’s a big difference in price between quality brands & budget brands but this is not as true for hire prices.

Environment

This is something often overlooked.   The acoustical properties of a room can have a dramatic effect on the performance of a PA system. In a highly reverberant room you may want to consider speakers with narrow dispersion or a distributed speaker system.   For a particularly wide or large room you may consider multiple front of house speakers.

An outdoor PA system doesn’t have this problem but can require significantly more power.  Weather conditions may also be a factor.   Most PA equipment is not waterproof & electrical hazards can exist in wet conditions.

Dry Hire or Production Hire

There are basically two types of hire.   Dry Hire (or Driveway Hire) is where a customer hires, picks up & operates the equipment themselves.    Production Hire is where the supplier delivers, sets up & usually operates the equipment.

Dry Hire Advantages

• Usually lowest cost.
• Very flexible (can hire equipment at short notice & use it anytime during the hire period)

Dry Hire Disadvantages

• The user is responsible for working out exactly what they need for their event although the hire company will normally be happy to give some guidance.
• The user needs to organise pick-up, transport, set-up & return.
• May not have access to an experienced operator.

Production Hire Advantages

• Includes an experienced operator using a familiar standard system.
• Dry Hire companies need to allow for damage or loss from inexperienced, careless or dishonest customers. Production Hire companies however look after the equipment themselves while in use & therefore offer a discount or better grade equipment.

Production Hire Disdvantages

• Generally higher cost since it includes an operator as well.
• Less flexibility (have to book in specific dates & times in advance)

How Much Should I Pay?

Whilst reasonable sized PA systems are supplied without sub speakers, in my opinion they don’t quite deliver the same quality of sound for dance music or live music with drums & bass.   You can see that as live music systems start to get larger production hire starts to become more cost competitive.

Where Can I Hire PA Equipment?

Around Sydney there are plenty of places to hire PA equipment for your event.   Different sources include:

Geographically there’s more of the specialist PA & DJ hire companies in Sydney’s inner suburbs especially around Parramatta Rd.   If you’re in the far North or North West like Hornsby or The Hills District your choice is a bit more limited.   Of course the general equipment hire & party hire companies are found in just about every suburb.

Equipment Pickup & Return Considerations

Picking up equipment sounds simple but there’s a few factors to consider.

• Opening Hours – Most hire companies are open Monday to Friday and part or all of Saturday. Some close around 1PM.   I’m not aware of any open Sunday though there could be some.
• If you’re picking up equipment for a Saturday or Sunday event remember that Saturday morning a peak time for most hire companies so allow extra time.
• If transporting equipment in your car it may be worth throwing in some towels or blankets as packing to prevent your car getting damaged.
• Equipment can be heavy so for safety secure this well in your car.  Seatbelts can be useful for this.
• Sunday Hire.  The convention is that if you pick up on a Saturday & the company is not open on a Sunday, then you just pay for the one day.
• Multiple day hire.   Often a discount of up to 50% is given for extra days of hire.
• Equipment Return.  Returning equipment on a weekday can be a problem if you work normal business hours so perhaps plan for someone else to return.  Always check the agreement to see what time equipment is due back else late fees may apply.

Checklist for Typical PA Applications