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PA Hire in Tuscany....any recommendations?


tonyf
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Morning all,

We've had a request from the best man of a wedding we did last year to do his up and coming nuptuals which next September in Tuscany. He really wants us to be there so we're looking at the practicalities of how we'll all get there and do the gig.

Several options available. Firstly, hire a large van, drive across there. Upside? Our own gear. Downsides? It's a bloody long way (1200 odd miles from Sweet Home Wolverhampton), we'll be knackered when we get there and with all the travel costs and accommodation, it's not exactly the cheapest anyway.

The other option we're looking at is flights out there and then hiring PA/backline locally. Upside? No worries about setups/break downs and less time away from home on the "roadtrip". Downsides? Potential grief travelling with instruments and less time away from home on the "roadtrip".

So. Here's the question. Has anyone hired PA/backline in Northern Italy, Tuscany in particular? Any pointers/recommendations?

Cheers
Tony

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I think the most reliable thing you can do is drive there in a van. It would be a massive risk assuming someone else can supply equipment and so many things can go wrong.

If it's paying well then it could be an exciting road trip ! If not, i'd be inclined to wonder if it was worth the hassle.

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I didn't hire the P.A/backline or have anything to do with the stage so no use there, but I think you have to determine what the budget is, first and foremost and there is no cheap way to do this.

If you travel down in a hired van with own gear, I'd be thinking... off the top of my head, no change from anywhere near £1k.

If you hire in and get flights, I'd guess £1k is not going to go far either

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[quote name='Machines' timestamp='1467722671' post='3085621']
I think the most reliable thing you can do is drive there in a van. It would be a massive risk assuming someone else can supply equipment and so many things can go wrong.

If it's paying well then it could be an exciting road trip ! If not, i'd be inclined to wonder if it was worth the hassle.
[/quote]

Taking the "driving in a van" route is an option but it's a long way with a load of gear to keep safe and secure on the overnights as well as making sure we arrived in a state to actually play after 2-3 days on the road. Plus the complexity of hiring a van that's big enough for the six of us PLUS gear, getting foreign insurance cover and permission from the hire company to take it across the channel.

In terms of hire, we'd obviously make sure whoever we used were professional, reliable and had decent gear. We ain't planning on using someone's karoke rig. lol

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[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1467722793' post='3085623']
I didn't hire the P.A/backline or have anything to do with the stage so no use there, but I think you have to determine what the budget is, first and foremost and there is no cheap way to do this.

If you travel down in a hired van with own gear, I'd be thinking... off the top of my head, no change from anywhere near £1k.

If you hire in and get flights, I'd guess £1k is not going to go far either
[/quote]

True. Having done some initial "back of the fag packet" calculations, the costs on the two options ain't that far apart from each other. It's just which suits us and the client better.

Doing a road trip would be fun but the practicalities of balancing the days away from wives, families and jobs may well factor quite highly. lol

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Find a good road guy or a good mate, pay him to drive a (somewhat smaller) van there and back (show him a good time while your'e there) and fly in yourselves for the setup/gigtake/down/however long you want to be there.
Best of both worlds. Sure, you've still got the overnight issue but that's solveable if you don't try and cut corners on the accommodation. Plus no one knows what's in the plain van anyway., and you get to load all your stuff in it yourselves so you know you've got everything. Fly with instruments if you like.
Just make sure you insure it properly.

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Big place, Tuscany. Roughly whereabouts will the wedding be?

Yes, I have a reason for asking! I may know the right person to help.

Makes quite a difference whether it's north of Pisa as opposed to south of Arezzo. A bit like north of Lincoln as opposed to south of Watford. :)

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[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1467726085' post='3085647']
Big place, Tuscany. Roughly whereabouts will the wedding be?

Yes, I have a reason for asking! I may know the right person to help.

Makes quite a difference whether it's north of Pisa as opposed to south of Arezzo. A bit like north of Lincoln as opposed to south of Watford. :)
[/quote]

Sorry. Was a bit vague. The potential location seems to be about 50 to 60 km SE of Pisa.

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Hmmmm. Sounds like Volterra or San Gimignano.

I know an English sound engineer (and bassist!) who spends chunks of the year at his second home in Umbria, so he'd be about 100km away. Probably too far, but I'll ask him if he knows anyone who can help.

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[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1467728161' post='3085670']
Hmmmm. Sounds like Volterra or San Gimignano.

I know an English sound engineer (and bassist!) who spends chunks of the year at his second home in Umbria, so he'd be about 100km away. Probably too far, but I'll ask him if he knows anyone who can help.
[/quote]

That'd be brilliant, thanks Happy Jack. Feel free to drop me a PM if there's anything you need to know.

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You still need a budget... have they given you any idea how much they'll spend..?

Tbh.. unless your band is worth £1500 a gig... best you just attend in person as a guest..and he books cheaper locally
as that is what he will probably paying for flights for plus gear hire and poss hotels..?

And if you hire a van... and do 2000kms, with foreign cover. tolls, crossing fuel, mileage etc etc and a day and half each way driving..which means
2 stops overs on the combined trip..??.
And that is probably with no fee added..?
Nice idea but all getting a tad silly...and not cheap.

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[quote name='Phil Starr' timestamp='1467903161' post='3087201']
Don't they make all our PA and bass gear in Italy? RCF, Markbass....

I'd have thought there wouldn't be too great a problem hiring gear there.
[/quote]


There wont be..so much, depends what you can spend.

3k to 6k in the U.K with Engr from £350 to £500 depending on kit etc etc ... Assume Italian prices are much the same..
so you still need backline and kit.
And then you have travel and accomodation.

The friend might be keen to do this for free... but unless he is a very good friends of the rest of the band...the issue of
3 days work/travel needs costing.

Friends on mine did this for a party in a ski resort..they stayed there a week admittedly.. and the cost was £10k.
fortunately the guy paying didn't think it was much of a problem

Until this project gets a budget, it is a non starter, IMO :lol:

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