Mark Bass LM II pat test?

[ibanez]

Will doing a pat test on this amp without a cab plugged in damage it? Fussy venue, band getting rigs tested but I'm not there, so no cab plugged in.

[Jean-Luc Pickguard]

It'll be fine. Its only valve amps where you'd need to worry about this.

[Phil Starr]

I don't think there is an issue here either but you could ask the venue if their insurance will cover your amp if it is damaged by their tester.

 

We had a venue try to book us for a cancellation, they wanted public liability insurance (what you don't have your own?!) and PAT testing. We do have insurance but no PAT testing. When I said we wouldn't do the gig because we didn't have time and the expense for a one off gig made it uneconomic it suddenly wasn't a problem A lot of social clubs in particular are run by committees who are unrealistic about what a band can provide at the ridiculously low charges we ask.

[ibanez]

Thanks, both. It's a charity organisation, who are no doubt tied up in reams of paperwork. None of our other regular venues have ever required this. I have a bunch of stickers, but they want a certificate listing the kit, signed by the tester.

 

[BassmanPaul]

Maybe I'm a bit slow today but what is a PAT test? 

[NickA]

Portable Appliance Test.  Hence PAT test is, like PIN number, a misnomer. but everyone says it.  Checks electrical equipment that's connected to mains to ensure no-one will get a belt off it ...in theory.

 

The test...Checks the plug earth pin is connected to any exposed metalwork and checks there is no leakage from live or neutral to ground.

 

Venues and health and safety oiks think it makes electrical kit safe to use and that it's lethal otherwise.

 

I have a PAT machine and a roll of stickers and a log book of stuff tested.  Easily done, I'm m not convinced it's worth the fuss but easier to do it than convince a health a safety oik that it's a waste of time.

[Lozz196]

Yeah, in our sites it used to be everything once a year, now for stuff like fridges etc they say every 3 years as although portable not many people shift them around that often. 

[tauzero]

12 hours ago, NickA said:

Portable Appliance Test.  Hence PAT test is, like PIN number, a misnomer. but everyone says it.

 

To be pedantic, PAT stands for Portable Appliance Testing, so PAT test isn't the same RAS syndrome as PIN number (or ATM machine).

[Jakester]

This comes up a lot - a venue can insist you have your gear 'PAT-tested' as a condition of playing there, but it isn't a legal requirement on you to have it done and (other than making it a condition of allowing you to perform) no-one can force you to do it.

 

Employers are under an obligation to ensure the equipment that their employees use is safe under the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, but the Regs don't specify how an employer is to do that. PAT testing is one way of meeting that obligation, but not the only one. 

 

Venues use it as a short hand for ensuring equipment is electrically safe, but you don't have to have it done. By insisting on it, they are trying to push their own responsibilities on you to try and avoid liability if someone is injured by your equipment, but it misunderstands a) their wider duties and b) the relationship between the venue, you, the audience, and their own staff. 

 

I often ask for a copy of their own electrical inspection certificates if asked for PAT records and you'd be surprised how often they can't provide them....

 

You can also buy a portable appliance tester, do the competent person test (which is online) and then you can do your own, if you want.