Hoping to put on a beach party or similar. Very small.

PA will consist of around 2 KWs RMS and and extra 1 KW RMS of sub to enhance bass and take strain of main speakers.

No lighting. Onyl other stuff to power is DJ equipemnt such as CDJs and synths and such.

I was thinking generator but there so noisey and expensive. But then I know nothing about this from an angle of power. Ive always just plugged into a wall socket.

Any advice appreciated.

The small cheap generators may be noisy but you can always run an extension cable and tuck it out of the way behind a wall or something similar. You can also hire much quieter generators which just give out a noise a bit like a car idling.

You could also think about a battery powered inverter but you would need quite a few batteries to power a 2kW system for any length of time.

James.

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JRP Music - Audio Mastering and Restoration.
http://www.jrpmusic.net

I DJed recently on a small PA powered from batteries which had been charged from solar power. Unfortunately the Decks wouldn't work from the same power supply because they needed to have proper AC. I think he managed to run the little CDJs from it though. It was certainly a capable system, no idea of the power output though, we ran it fairly quite but it had some welly.

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http://soundcloud.com/richie-royale
http://www.mixcrate.com/richieroyale

Definitely generator; as James says you can hire quiet ones and with a reasonable extension cable and careful siting, it won't be a problem. I used to do a regular concert gig with an ordinary diesel generator which was not the quietest you can get, and we put it behind a wall of whatever we could grab on site - once it was just a wheelbarrow. This is a wind band, so not loud music and not continuous, but it was never a problem in 8 years of doing the gig. If it's disco music you won't hear it at all, and even if you do when the music isn't playing, so what?

Propane generators are perfect for this kind of application.

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Gear List: reverse only.

A "2kW" PA system will not pull anything like 10amps so batteries/inverter might be a solution (can you get the batteries charged somewhere nearby, offsite and rotate them?)

But however you get 230V remember that generator, inverter or grid it is just as lethal, especially near (SALT!) water....Dan M might like to offer his guidance re earthing etc?

Dave.

Hey guys thanks so much for replies.

Since I wrote on here ive had some info first hand for a mobile DJ that does a similar thing. (Im in Cyprus at mo and this is where im thinking of setting this up.)

They use a genrator with sucess. I am interested in a battery powered system too though. I suppose the cheapest options would do.

These mobile DJs had this cool little LED light show that was better than nothing but must have pulled hardly no power at all. Suppose making a start is the first thing to do and build from there. More just mentioning lights as opposed trying to complicate things.

Trouble with generators, is that the cheap ones are not good, and the good ones not cheap.....

What you really want is a 'super silenced entertainment grade' machine of about 4 - 6KVa capacity (they really don't come smaller then that) and you want it in diesel (MUCH safer then petrol, and more reliable), what you can probably afford does not come close to this.....

The usual sort of building site or cheap petrol machines are utterly lousy for PA service (quite apart from being bloody loud).

IMHO the compromise position is to get a name brand machine with inverter or at least AVR voltage regulation. The go to brand for this stuff is Honda, with the EU30IS being highly regarded (Quiet, reliable and with excellent regulation, but is is petrol).

Hire is always an option, but ignore tool hire places, they never know of what they speak in this matter. A proper generator hire place will be able to advise on correct earthing and other safety requirements.

I would reiterate that the output from any of these machines is just as potentially lethal as the output from the mains, and that working outside, possibly around water (especially salt water) increases the risk significantly, a read of BS7671 (The section dealing with below 6KVa might be worthwhile).

LED lighting can be low power, but it adds up, and don't forget that it also adds to your power distribution headaches.

Regards. Dan.

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Audiophiles use phono leads because they are unbalanced people!

Dan sorry for late reply. Thanks for the info, appreciated.