Re: gig spam and question about playing outdoors

[Todd Pafford <galen@erols.com>]

On Wed, 18 Jul 2001, Dave Trenkel wrote:
> One thing to keep in mind is that under direct sunlight, most LED and
> LCD displays are pretty much unreadable. If you depend on being able
> to read the displays of your effects, synths, etc., make sure you're
> in some shade.

Also, while we're on the sunlight issue, keep in mind temperature.  
Electronics have a hard time with heat as resistance in a circuit 
increases 
as temperature does.   The hot summer sun beating down on the metal case 
of 
one gizmo can be bad enough, but the sun beating down on the case of a 
rack 
full of gizmos can be a nightmare.  So, seek shade, invest in big fans (on 
a 
different power circuit than the rack, of course), or better yet do both.

One other thing I've had problems with in the past is that if you're 
playing 
on the ground instead of a stage ground loops can become a real problem.  
They manifest as a hum that just won't go away and gets worse with volume. 
 
So, if this is an issue, elevate your pedal board, amp, rack off the 
ground 
with an insulating material; i.e. wood blocks, wooden chairs work well for 
amps.  I actually saw a guitarist about to toss his amp once because of a 
mysterious hum.  His drummer strolled over and lifted his distortion pedal 
off the grass and viola. 

>
> Good luck on the gig!

I'll second this.  I love playing outdoors; birds singing along, trees 
overhead, blue sky, cool breezes, etc.  Just don't let a hot rack or 
humming 
pedal ruin it for you.

Have fun,
Todd