Remote Show Control with a Laptop

Speaker Systems

After working with this setup awhile, it became obvious to me that I was going to need my own speaker system. While buying your own speaker system is an additional investment, it also gives you distinct advantages...all you have to worry about is having a place to plug into; you carry just the connectors and cables you need; and you have a predictable set of equipment every show.

A DJ friend of mine sent me to a local music store he trusted. The guy there helped me out, and I settled on the Fender Passport speaker system. (Yes, this is the same Fender that makes the guitars.)  This is one slick unit -- it snaps together into a large suitcase arrangement, has plenty of inputs for different mikes and sound, and also has an option for an integrated wireless microphone. I bought the larger, 250 watt version, the wireless mike setup, and some speaker stands.

There are other options out there...Anchor Audio systems are very well-regarded, as are Fostek.  I’ve seen the Fender, Anchor, and Fostek systems in use at tradeshows, and they all sounded good and filled up quite a big area.

One of the positive changes since I first started this webpage is that this subject, among others, has been under considerable discussion online. Go to www.themagiccafe.com and look under the “F/X” topic for a lot of good discussion on speaker systems and what choices you have.

Here are links to the various systems:

Fender Passport: www.fender.com
Search for “passport” on their site.

Anchor Audio:  www.anchoraudio.com
This is an annoying website; the system usually used for large areas is the Liberty series.  Plow through their stuff and look for “Sound Systems.”