The Sound & Light Hire Company Supplying Sound, Lighting & Stage for Birthday Party in Surrey

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Things have been so busy here and the Sound & Light Hire Company that we haven’t had time to tell you about a celebration we supplied equipment and event services to back in March. We were tasked to provide the sound, lighting, and stage for a joint 30th and 60th birthday celebration of a mother and daughter.

So without further ado, let’s tell you all about it!

Surrey Event Company Designs and Delivers Ultimate Birthday Party 

As mentioned above, we were contacted by a private client concerning a joint birthday celebration at Surrey venue whereby we are the preferred supplier for all manner of event production services, namely sound, lighting, and stage hire. After being passed on their details by the venue, we immediately got in touch with the individual client to set up an initial chat and a site visit.

We arrived on-site and got to work straight away on securing the exclusive use of one of the “wings” of this prestigious venue, which our generous venue partner kindly offered without any quibbles. By doing so, we gained the freedom of the entire space so that we could work on setting up (and disassembling) equipment unencumbered by the presence of other guests. In case you were wondering what we mean, the venue in question offers hotel accommodation as part of their multifaceted operations.

The premise for this birthday celebration was simple but elegant. Much like the singer Sam Sparro, this party was going to be dominated by a “Black and Gold” theme. One we’d worked out the finer details of the brief with the client, it was time to go away on work on creating a completely bespoke proposal for the client.

Our in-house design team got to work straight away and provided the client with a 3D render of the venue to visualise how our technical equipment and design choices would look when in place. She was thrilled with what she saw and gave us the go-ahead to get to work organising the logistical and technical aspects of pulling it off.

Surrey Stage Hire For Joint Birthday Party

Once the morning of the party rolled around, it was time for the hard work to start! We started by setting up the drapes which were to be hung up around the perimeter of the grand hall. We used lightweight black and gold clothes, unsurprisingly, to match the theme given to us by the client. We then completed the overall look of the venue by placing LED-lit furniture, such as cubes and poseur tables strategically across the grand dining hall, ready to be turned on and set to gold colour once the guests began to arrive.

While the brief included all aspects of event production, our primary emphasis was on the sound, lighting, and indeed the stage elements of this party. Our primary focus after making those nice preparatory touches to the venue was to get to work constructing the stage.

In terms of the stage we provided, the client opted for our suggestion of a 6m x 4m stage hire package, which had been tweaked to include 1m legs to elevate the booked live band well above the ground. Our bandstand-style stage comes complete with handrails, steps, and the legs mentioned above. Our stage crew had certainly eaten their Weetabix on this particular morning as they managed to erect the stage in under an hour, even though there were added customisations required to accommodate the additional height of the stage.

Once the stage was nearing completion, the focus then turned to erecting the truss structures upon which the lighting fixtures would be rigged.

Event Company in Surrey Provides Lighting Hire for Birthday Party 

As touched on, the next stage was setting up all of the lighting equipment for the evening’s entertainment. Once we have erected a stage-based truss, we started adding the lights. What we supplied was an iteration of our live band lighting hire package, with a few extras. We started with eight Showtec M800 Tour PAR cans to wash the stage in a range of colours, but then we also added a couple of moving head fixtures, and Equinox Revolution disco lights, a couple of lasers, and a smoke machine to help bring the best out of the lighting equipment.

As mentioned, the live band were going to be followed by a DJ, so we needed to have lighting equipment capable of showing off both set of entertainers. There are nuanced differences between the two, with DJs having a strong preference for lasers over more traditional stage lighting options. Since we had all angles covered, there were certainly no complaints from either entertainment act!

Dotted around the rest of the venue, we supplied wireless LED uplighters to set the mood and ambience for the evening. In case you hadn’t already guessed, the colour for these uplighters was a suave shade of gold, very much in keeping with the theme! We ran these from the outdoor entrance of the wing of the venue sectioned off for us, right through the foyer, and into the grand hall where the main festivities were taking place.

Finally, we set up a variety of pin spots around the room to beam sharp beams of gold light against the back drapes and black table dressings.

While the lighting technicians were busy setting up all of these fixtures, our sound engineers were working just as hard setting up all of the sound requirements for the live band and DJ.

Sound & Light Hire Company Provide Sound Equipment Hire for Surrey Party

While the stage and lights were crucial, there wouldn’t have been much of an event without us providing top-of-the-range sound equipment for hire. Concerning the sound requirements, they actually started outside of the main hall.

As highlighted above, there was an entrance foyer where the birthday guests arrived, checked in their coats and accessories, and grabbed a glass of bubbly before making their way into the grand hall. The client requested that we had some form of sound equipment in there along with the uplighters to get guests in the party spirit! “No problem!” we replied.

We set up a couple of EV ZLX 12P active PA speakers that played a phone-based playlist chosen by the event host. The client said the small but very powerful speakers helped to get guests in the foyer in the right mood for the evening and helped to invoke the spirit of the planned festivities. The desired effect was achieved with the help of the golden glow coming from the ensemble uplighter lighting arrangement.

Next, as you might not be surprised to learn, our focus was very much turned to the stage. Again, we had to cater for two distinct types of act, a live band and a DJ, which required a hybrid approach to the sound.

Initially, our attention was paid to the requirements of the live band. We set up a range of state-of-the-art kit, including an arrangement of d&b Audiotechnik Q1 Midtop speakers, Qsub bass speakers, and D12 power amps. This premium sound arrangement ensured that the band had crystal clear vocals and booming, immersive bass for the audience to enjoy.

We also supplied the following supporting sound gear:

  • Speaker stands
  • Mackie Pro FX12 Live Band Mixing Desk
  • Shure SM58 Microphones
  • Shure Drum Kit Mic
  • K&M Microphone Stands
  • Proel D2 DI boxes
  • All the power & signal cables
  • 3.5mm aux cable for laptop/phone playback while the band took a break

Waiting in the wings, we also had our team on standby on the evening itself to reconfigure the existing sound setup to better accommodate the DJ and integrate his personal equipment. Amazingly, he hadn’t yet worked with d&d audiotechnik speakers on any of his gigs. Let’s just say he’s now very much a convert and understands why we place so much faith in this industry-leading brand!

On-Site Event Services Support

The time for the evening’s proceedings came, our on-site team took over to ensure everything ran smoothly on the night. We had one of the team on the lighting desk to choreograph some dazzling lighting displays both for when guests arrived, during the live band performances, and he handled the DJ set too.

On the sound side, we once again had one of our experienced engineers on the mixing desk, overseeing the initial soundcheck, and then subsequently handling all of the mixing during the live band’s performance itself.

Both employees were also on hand to answer any questions, and our sound guy helped fix an issue with speakers the initial foyer reception when they stopped playing. As it turned out, it was nothing to do with the speakers. Rather, someone had pulled the cable loose from the phone that was connected to the speakers, stopping the playback. It was merely a two-second fix, but that’s what our team are there for!

Excellent Feedback for Sound & Lighting Plus Staging Hire in Surrey

While we are a business that operates to make a profit, there’s nothing better than receiving excellent feedback from a client. In this instance, it’s fair to say our client was pretty gushing in her compliments. Given that we received this text on the same night as the party, it’s fair to assume a few wines had been consumed!

Either way, our client sent us a text after arriving back from the party. She said:

“Can you pass on my thanks to everyone at the Sound & Light Hire Company who made this birthday one that I’ll cherish for the rest of my days. From the moment I walked into the venue, I couldn’t believe my eyes. The drapes worked exactly as envisioned. The lighting was just as dramatic as promised, and, well, what can I say about the entertainment show you produced for us? Superb!”

We actually met the client (who was one of those celebrating a birthday) the following morning, as we finished up the deconstruction process. While she won’t mind us saying she was a little worse for wear (we have her permission, promise!), she was no less grateful for the hard work we had put in to make it a success. To be fair, some of us were pretty tired too (it was a late finish), but her praise really put the icing on the cake.

Use the Sound & Light Hire Company to Plan, Design, and Oversee Your Event Production

Here at the Sound & Light Hire Company, we are a Surrey event company that can easily take care of all technical production aspects for your event. Whether it’s a birthday party or a wedding, we can provide the sound, lighting, stage, and all kinds of other event production elements such as furniture and LED video screens.

If you want to enjoy the ease of working with just one Surrey-based company for all of your event production needs, then don’t hesitate to contact us on 0800 8611136. We can walk you through the entire process and offer a range of options suitable for your specific occasion. Crucially, we can also provide the on-site support you may require to ensure everything goes off without a hitch.

Even if you need advice, just give us a call. We’ll here ready and waiting to help your event become a rip-roaring success!

Come and get in touch about your next event, we look forward to hearing from you soon.

Contact The Sound & Light Hire Company on the details below:

https://www.truesoundhire.co.uk/

https://www.google.com/maps?cid=177697462353676083

/by

New outdoor cinema projector & screen hire packages available from Surrey’s leading sound & lighting hire company

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

With garden parties becoming the new festivals this year, another current entertainment trend making headlines is the continuing rise in popularity of outdoor cinemas. From public venues to back gardens, the outdoor silver screen has been making a comeback!

Not ones to sit still, we’ve invested in a range of outdoor screen solutions for those of you looking to hire an outdoor cinema screen. They include large LED screens for larger events and a range of smaller but incredibly powerful cinema projectors. So without further ado, let’s tell you all about them.

Hire an Outdoor Cinema Screen from the Sound & Light Hire Company

As mentioned, we’ve jumped at the opportunity to expand on our existing LED screen hire services to include a fantastic array of new large LED screens, all of which are perfect for hosting an organised event.

In terms of digital screen sizes, we start at 55″ and 85″ with our LED HD TV devices. However, we can go much bigger and bolder than that. For larger public or community events, we can build outdoor LED screens from 2m x 1m right up to an enormous 8m x 6m! Screens this size would be absolutely perfect to hire for your surrey-based drive-in cinema event.

If you’re looking to hire an outdoor cinema screen for your event, you may be wondering which is the best size to go for. We’ll concede that’s a fair enough question considering just how many dimensions we have available! Your size choice will, of course, depend on a myriad of factors relating to your proposed venue. Such as how much space you have for the screen footprint, and whether you need any supporting structure to elevate your screen above your attendees for a better viewing experience.

We always tend to recommend our 5m x 3m LED screen to our clients, mainly because this gives a perfect 16:9 aspect ratio, which is the most common format amongst films and movies. However, we appreciate that that size may not always be the best solution for your specific event and our friendly team will be more than happy to talk you through the options available to you, based on the desired location.

Next, you need to consider the pixel pitch. Without getting too technical, the pixel pitch refers to how close the LED pixels are to each other. The smaller the distance, the higher the resolution of the screen and the crisper the picture. We have two options available in this regard, 3.9mm and 12.5mm.

While it’s correct the 3.9mm pixel pitch LED screen will offer a crisper picture, it’s important to note that it’s not always the best solution for your event. Higher distances between pixels elongate the minimum viewing distance, and helps keep costs down if you’re viewers are not going to be position close to the screen.

For instance, for a popup drive-in cinema event a 12.5mm pixel pitch LED screen might be the better option as when at greater viewing distances, higher pixel density loses its visual advantages and simply increases the cost of the display. By contrast, if you’re hosting a garden party and want to hire a substantial outdoor LED screen, then 3.9mm would be the best option.

But what if you’re not thinking about hiring a sizeable LED screen, and instead you’re looking for an outdoor projector and screen package to wow your family, or impress your guests at your next garden party?

Luckily we’ve got plenty of solutions for you in that regard too!

Outdoor Cinema Projector Hire Surrey

There’s perhaps nothing more appealing than relaxing with a glass of wine, surrounded by your friends and family, settling in for a gripping movie while the sun is setting on a late summer’s evening! As we touched upon above, we’ve been hard at work to create a new line of outdoor cinema packages for you that include a powerful projector, with a range of screen sizes to suit your home’s specific outdoor space.

Our smallest is outdoor cinema hire package comes complete with 6ft x 4ft popup projector screen perfect for a movie night with the children. But if you want to go even larger for your family get-together, you could choose our medium outdoor cinema hire package, complete with 8ft x 6ft projector screen.

Are you hosting a garden party? Then you might want to upgrade to our large outdoor cinema hire package which comes complete with a giant 10ft x 8ft projector screen to make sure everyone can enjoy the view!

Regardless of the size of hire package you choose, our helpful team will show you how to set everything up before you take the equipment home with you, and we will supply you with all of the necessary cables (including HDMI) to ensure that you can easily connect your laptop to the projector.

Once home, set up should take no longer than 20 minutes. You’ll be tucking into your popcorn before you know it! And if the weather lets you down, you can always move these setups indoors and have a cosy evening inside sheltered from the rain.

How Much Does It Cost to Hire an Outdoor Screen?

The short answer is not as much as you might think! Take our small projector and screen hire package, which includes a state-of-the-art projector, all the cables you need, and a popup projector screen for just £80. Even if you want to go large and leave the guests at your summer garden party stunned, you won’t pay more than £200 for a cinema setup capable of wowing 250 guests!

If you’re planning on organising a commercial or community event and wish to hire an outdoor LED screen, then prices start at £25 per panel for 12.5mm pixel pitch and £75 per square metre for the sharper 3.9mm pixel pitch. Don’t forget that you may also need to budget a little extra for items such as delivery and setup up of any associated truss or staging structures to either support or suspend the screen from.

On that note, why not add to your outdoor cinema screen hire to make the experience immersive for your guests with our broad range of complementary equipment hire services?

Sound Equipment Hire Surrey

Of course, going to the cinema is almost as much about experiencing the superior, immersive sound as it about enjoying a much larger screen, which is why you’ll be well served to complement your fantastic outdoor cinema set up with a sound system to match.

Fortunately, we have a vast range of dry hire speaker packages are incredibly popular here at the Sound and Light Hire Company. Regardless of which size of speaker hire package you choose to accompany your outdoor screen, our team will walk you through how to connect the speakers to your laptop (we can always take more time if you need it).

To be honest, all you have to do on top of your existing setup is plug in the speakers to a power source, connect up your film-playing device (such as a laptop) through a 3.5mm jack, and that’s it!

The only issue left is deciding which speaker hire package to choose. If you’re hosting a small garden party, then we have a fantastic starter package with two speakers, two stands, a connection cable and all the power and signal cables starting at just £60! These speakers are designed to perform for gatherings of around 70 people, so plenty of power given current restrictions.

However, given how fluid the situation is, it may not be long before we are allowed to have up to 100 guests at a garden party. In which case, you may jump up a few notches to our medium speaker hire package. You get all of the benefits of our starter package but benefit from more powerful speakers and a state-of-the-art subwoofer that will provide you with that booming bass associated with the cinema experience.

Finally, our outdoor PA hire packages are perfect if you are hosting a larger commercial or community event. Don’t forget; we also have powerful battery-powered speakers for hire for scenarios whereby running power supply cables might not be practical.

With the sound sorted, you may want to go that extra mile and hire a few lighting fixtures to make the experience truly unforgettable.

Lighting Hire for Outdoor Cinema Surrey

Going to the cinema is an act of escapism. For a few hours, you forget about the troubles of the world and focus on the story unfolding in front of you. You can help to create that magical atmosphere in your back garden or at a suitable venue with the help of a few wise lighting choices.

We would strongly recommend one of our wireless LED uplighting packages that can provide a touch of class and professionalism to your event, whether it’s private or public. They can add that so-called “red carpet” feeling to your get-together. The added bonus is that you can light critical areas without the downside of having cables trailing over all your garden, presenting a potential trip hazard.

But don’t forget we can help you to take your cinema experience to the next level by creating a 4D experience. From dancing and jinking lasers and real dry-ice machines to using strobe lights during those high-octane action scenes, you can use lighting to create a totally immersive experience for your guests.

LED Furniture Hire for Outdoor Cinema Parties 

Speaking about immersive experiences, why not set the scene for your guest with an array of LED-lit furniture? These bright pieces will create a talking point and add a touch of pizzazz to your event. We have a range of options available, from LED cubes and LED tables, to a full-blown LED mobile bar!

But the list certainly doesn’t end there. We have an extensive range of LED furniture that includes benches, curved seating, bubble chairs, champagne buckets, stools, and the list goes on! We’re one of the only hire companies in the UK that have such an enormous selection of LED furniture.

They’re versatile too, with a battery life of up to 10 hours, and the choice of several static colours, or an automated program of fading colour patterns.

Hire an Outdoor Cinema Screen with The Sound & Light Hire Company

With cinemas not being the safest environments at this moment in time, what better way to recreate the same atmosphere with a magical outdoor cinema screening? If you’re looking to hire an outdoor screen, then you’re spoilt for choice with us. Whether you want to hire an outdoor projector and screen package, or you want to invest in an impressive LED screen, we’ve got the equipment in stock to make your evening unforgettable.

Of course, we also stock the inventory to make your garden party or outdoor event a genuine spectacle, with an embarrassment of riches when it comes to both sound and lighting hire.

If you would like to talk to a member of our team to receive expert help with constructing your perfect outdoor cinema evening, give us a call or shoot us an email regarding what you have in mind. We look forward to creating a truly memorable experience!

Come and get in touch about your next event, we look forward to hearing from you soon.

Contact The Sound & Light Hire Company on the details below:

https://www.truesoundhire.co.uk/

https://www.google.com/maps?cid=177697462353676083

/by

Hire Speakers & Lighting for Your Summer Garden Party

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Summer is in full swing, and with the COVID-19 restrictions finally easing, now is an excellent time to host a COVID-safe garden party. Of course, your celebration may not be as big as you might have liked, but you there’s still plenty of room within the regulations to invite your nearest and dearest to blast away any lingering COVID-related blues.

You may also get the chance to take advantage of our increasingly prevalent ‘Indian summers’ if restrictions are eased shortly to facilitate much larger gatherings. Therefore, whether your garden party is next month or next year, it’s still worth taking a look at what your options are when it comes to speaker and lighting hire in Surrey or London.

But to know what you’re looking for, it’s helpful to plan and design your event first. That way, you know roughly what types of sound and lighting equipment hire packages will suit your particular celebration.

Planning Your Garden Party

As we’ve just mentioned, all great garden parties start with an idea. Perhaps you’re going to have a theme, or maybe you’ll have a sit-down meal or a BBQ before the party begins in earnest. The choice is yours. However, by planning your garden party, you can gain a much better frame of reference for your accompanying audio visual requirements.

To give you an example, you could hire a live band for your entertainment, or you may prefer to opt for a local DJ. If your budget isn’t quite as expansive, you could just as easily run the music yourself through a do-it-yourself speaker hire package.

The point is, once you’ve nailed down the central concept of your garden party, you can then begin to look for the different type of sound and lighting hire options. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the options available to you from the Sound and Light Hire Company.

DIY Speaker Hire Surrey

It’s almost an unspoken fact that everyone secretly fancies themselves as a great party DJ. In some cases, it’s even true! But regardless of your ability to pick (and mix) tunes for your Surrey or London-based garden party, your skills will be undoubtedly enhanced by choosing the right sound equipment to hire.

DIY packages are incredibly popular here at the Sound and Light Hire Company because they are so simple from the customer perspective. Regardless of which size of speaker hire package you choose, all you have to do is arrive at our warehouse, spend five or so minutes with our team to learn how to operate the speakers (we can always take more time if you need it), before taking them back home, plugging them in, and getting the party started!

These dry hire speaker packages are perfect if you’ve curated a perfect garden party playlist that you just can’t wait to share with your guests. All you have to do is plug in the speakers to a power source, connect up your music-playing device (such as a phone or laptop) through a 3.5mm jack, and that’s it!

Of course, the crucial issue when deciding which speaker hire package to choose is how powerful do you go? If your party is under the lockdown restrictions of 30 guests, then we have a fantastic starter package with two speakers, two stands, a connection cable and all the power and signal cables starting at just £60! The best part? These speakers will only need to be on half volume to blow your guests away since they are designed for gatherings of 70+ people.

Of course, for some of you, having double the required firepower still might not be enough, in which case you might want to jump up a few notches to our medium speaker hire package. You get all of the benefits of our starter package but benefit from more powerful speakers and a state-of-the-art subwoofer that will provide you with that booming bass associated with night clubs. It’s bound to get people dancing towards the end of the evening, that’s for sure.

If you’re planning an event on the horizon that will likely have a few hundred guests to celebrate the relaxation of lockdown, then we’ve got you covered for that scenario too. Our large sound system speaker hire package includes everything you need for one last blow out before summer is over. Two active PA speakers paired with two bass bins gives you that immersive sound associated with professional music venues.

But what if you’re hiring outside performers for your garden party? Do we provide live sound hire packages too? You’re damn right we do!

Live Sound Hire Surrey

Of course, garden parties are just as well suited to live performances as they are for do-it-yourself entertainment. Of course, there are subtle differences between sound equipment for live performers, and they require much more than a mere 3.5mm cable to get going. However, they are still pretty easy for you’ average joe’ to set up. In most cases, your hired band or performer will know what they’re doing as long as you provide the equipment.

In terms of what we offer, it’s worth starting with our solo performer package. This is perfect if the vibe at your garden party is more Katie Melua than Katy B. Included is everything a solo singer/performer could need including two speakers, a subwoofer, mixing desk, two microphones, and all associated stands and cables. Perfect for those ‘sunset chill’ moments, or if you plan on soundtracking your guests’ al fresco dining experience.

By contrast, if you’ve hired a live band to be the main attraction of the evening, you may require something a little more expansive. Yep, you guessed it; we’ve got this covered too. Our medium live band sound hire package can be set up in just twenty minutes and includes everything in the solo performer version, with more powerful speakers, more subwoofers, and more microphones (including instrumental mics).

If you don’t want to get involved on the sound setup, you can enlist the help of our friendly expert sound engineers who can be on-site from start to finish to ensure a seamless running of your sound equipment.

What About Battery-Powered Speaker Hire in Surrey?

We understand that with a garden party, running dozens of extension and power supply cables might not be the most practical of ideas, or the most professional of looks. That’s why we’ve invested in cutting-edge battery-powered speakers for when your outdoor power options are limited at best, or non-existent at worst.

These aren’t your average battery-powered speakers for hire. No, these speakers will do you proud for seven, or even eight hours of playback at 75% volume. That’s far beyond the capabilities of most conventional battery-powered options in the domestic market, and they benefit from the latest advances in connectivity such as Bluetooth and USB/SD card.

Before we move on to lighting options for your garden party, we’d just like to inform you that we are indeed looking into wireless ‘disco’ light options. But thus far, we are yet to find anything that comes close to living up to our hire standards. This is a fluid situation, of course, so make sure to check when you book your battery-powered speakers to see if we’ve managed to discover any products that fit the bill!

So that’s the sound covered, but what about the lighting for your garden party?

Garden Party Lighting Hire Surrey

No party worth its salt is complete without some kind of lighting to set the tone for your festivities. For a garden party in particular, as soon as the sun sets you’re going to need functional lighting in the form of fairy lights or stylish LED uplighters.

Speaking of which, we have a range of wireless LED uplighting packages that can provide all of the functional light you need for your event. The added bonus, of course, is that you can light high-footfall areas without the downside of having cables trailing over all your garden presenting a potential trip hazard.

But the primary consideration for your party is likely to be focused on so-called ‘party’ or ‘disco’ lights. When night falls, and the music volume knob goes up a few numbers, there’s nothing better than the accompanying light show to get people in the mood for dancing.

For DJs in particular, the lighting plays a crucial role in the overall performance. From dancing and jinking lasers that are enhanced by the smoke machine, to flashing and strobing disco lights, hiring professional-quality party lights is an investment that can elevate your garden party from so-so, to unforgettable. You’ll be glad to hear that they don’t cost the earth either, with our complete disco light hire packages starting at a mere £39!

For those of you looking to recreate an open-air nightclub atmosphere, we have plenty of UV lights for hire too, providing that glow-in-the-dark edge to your garden party. Likewise, if the live band you hired and performing well into darkness, then we provide live band lighting hire too! No matter the ambience or mood you’re trying to create, here at the Sound and Light Company, we’ve got you covered.

Do You Have to Hire Sound and Lighting Equipment Separately? Why Choose Us?

No! Of course not. We realised early on that those who wanted to hire sound equipment were likely to need lighting, and vice versa. That’s why we’ve put together a wide range of sound and lighting hire bundle deals that are a perfect match for all type of garden parties.

Whether you’re having a small get-together or a proper gathering of family and friends, we have a range of ‘off the shelf’ party packages that are bound to fit the bill. They give you everything you need, from powerful sound to expansive light capabilities. That’s without mentioning the LED DJ booths, truss podiums, and smoke machines. If nothing fits the bill, we can always arrange a custom quote for you within 24 hours. How’s that for customer service?

The other aspect to note when you hire sound and lighting packages from the Sound and Light Hire Company is that you’re not alone. Firstly, we can supply you with our incredible event production staff who take care of everything for you, leaving you to relax and enjoy your garden party rather than stress over any of the technical set up.

But even if you only need to hire a portable speaker, our team are on the other end of the phone morning, noon and night to answer any queries, or troubleshoot any problems you may be experiencing on the night. Just a quick online search of our company name will demonstrate the stellar reputation that we’ve worked so hard to build in the Surrey, London, and Hampshire region over the past decade-plus of operations. By hiring with us, you’re working with a supplier you can trust.

So if you’re planning a mini-celebration to the end of lockdown, or you’re setting your sights on an outdoor garden party to end all parties next year, just give us a call on 0800 861 1136 any day of the week. We’d love to hear about what you’ve got in store.

Contact The Sound & Light Hire Company on the details below:

https://www.truesoundhire.co.uk/

https://www.google.com/maps?cid=177697462353676083

/by

Tips & Tricks On How To Plan Your Garden Party With The Sound & Light Hire Company

Tips & tricks on how to plan your garden party with The Sound & Light Hire Company

Are you planning a garden party? Then this article is for you. Here’s what you need to know in order to throw a successful first party! Use These Guidelines To Plan Your Garden Party!

Maybe your looking to hire a sound & lighting package for your garden party? Maybe some outside lighting or battery powered PA system would go nicely….

The Sound & Light Hire Company is based in #Guildford #Surrey and stock a huge range of sound, lighting, party lighting & disco equipment perfect for outdoor events. We also have staging & covered festival stages if you’re thinking about something a bit bigger BUT for now let’s talk small parties at your house & what equipment might be needed.

Create Great Invitations

This is probably the best time to turn your calligraphy talents to work for you when creating invitations. Use this time to get creative with the lettering and add some fancy fonts. Or just write out a detailed, professional-looking group text message to make sure you get everyone on board. Choose a Theme – What kind of theme would be the most fun for the guests? Is it an outdoor picnic, a garden themed party or something else? Decide ahead of time so that you can choose a theme that will be the easiest for your guests to follow.

Set Up Your Tables

Now that you’ve chosen a theme and are sure the invitation is in the mail, it’s time to figure out where and how to set up tables and chairs. First decide where you want the party to happen. You should be able to move around freely with no worries of having to get stuck on the table due to chairs or tables.

Decide on Your Menu

This may be one of the most challenging parts of planning. If you’re using a garden theme, then you’ll have to do a lot more planning in advance about what to serve and in what quantities. It’s really important that you have plenty of finger foods and snacks so that everybody can make a nice meal. If your theme is an outdoor picnic, you’ll have to think of plates, napkins and decorations. You can pick up a nice paper lanterns at your local party store to make your table look elegant!

Decide on Location

Do you want your party to be indoors or outdoors? It’s really important to think about where you’re going to place your party so that you can make sure there are no unexpected problems like rain or snow during the evening.

How To Go To The Party

Once you’ve made your party plans, you’ll need to figure out what to wear to go to it. You could bring along a picnic tablecloth or a lawn chair slip to help keep you from getting wet.

Remember, when it comes to throwing a party, these tips will be a great help! You should make sure you have all the basic supplies at home or at least at the door (i.e. a glass of water) to wash up with!

Consider Having Some Music

It’s a good idea to have music playing while you invite people over. In fact, many people enjoy having live music playing while they eat. It’s also a great idea to play some light music in the background to keep things lively.

Don’t forget Flowers! Flowers are always a nice touch and they make your party even more unique. If you’re planning an outdoor garden party, consider sending out balloons to brighten your party area.

Have A Good Theme For The Party – It’s always nice to have a theme that you can share. With a garden theme, you could have a garden party with blue ribbons tied around trees, butterflies, flowers, vines and plants.

If you’re having a beach themed party, you could set up a sand castle. or even a pirate ship, to keep the party rolling!

Don’t forget to send out favours – It’s very easy to plan a party and find favours to give out. If you’re hosting a party, try to find a favour which is memorable enough for everyone. There’s no reason to worry about getting everyone excited about what you’re giving out.

https://www.google.com/maps?cid=177697462353676083

The Sound & Light Hire Company is Surry’s leading audio visual equipment hire company.

/by

Whether it’s a Wedding, Festival, Gala Dinner or A Small Sound Package for Your Garden Party, The Sound & Light Hire Company Can Help

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Here at The Sound and Light Hire Company, we have one of the broadest range of services when it comes to both audio and visual equipment. As the title suggests, whether you’re hosting a little get together in your garden, or you need complete technical production services for your wedding, there’s nothing we can’t accommodate.

With that in mind, we thought we would give you a more in-depth rundown of our equipment hire and support services so that you can understand just how broad the spectrum is when it comes to providing hire services to clients. Let’s make a start with sound equipment hire.

Sound Equipment Hire 

Whether you’re hosting a party, a wedding, or planning a high-level corporate awards dinner, we have the capacity to match any requirements when it comes to sound system hire in London, Surrey, Hampshire and surrounding areas.

We are experienced in handling requests on both sides of the coin. Whether you are a well-established DJ that needs a state-of-the-art PA system to deliver the goods at a series of local venues, or you’ve booked a live band, and you need help with the sound setup, we’re on hand to guide you through our vast range of options.

We offer a range of dry-hire sound packages that are suitable for a broad range of events. For instance, if you’re hosting an anniversary party with 150 attendees, then we can provide a do-it-yourself sound hire package that will more than blow your guests away for less than £100. Better yet, we’ll be on hand to show you everything you need to know regarding the operation of the equipment, and we’re never more than a phone call away (even after hours) should you need any help with anything.

But our sound services go far beyond mere party equipment hire packages. We are part of one of the largest event production companies in the UK. What that means for you, our lovely customers, is that we can provide sound equipment to leading commercial events such as gala dinners, music festivals, and arena concerts. We have industry-leading speaker systems available for hire that are literally used by acts such as Rihanna, Coldplay, and Eminem when on tour, such is their quality.

The best part? All of that expensive gear is owned and maintained by us. Many companies simply locate sound equipment, pay to hire it, and then pass on a specific profit margin to their clients. We don’t believe in that model, since there’s no way to validate what state the sound equipment might be in. For all you know, it could have been used thousands of times and might be moments away from letting you down on your big occasion!

We take pride in our sound equipment stock, continuously rotating our sound systems to ensure that not a single item is more than three years old. We also continually test and inspect all equipment before it’s deemed suitable to go back out on hire again. In over a decade of operations, we’ve yet to experience any equipment failures on the job. We put this down to our stringent care we take over our equipment as well as putting our faith in standard-bearing brands such as d&b audiotechnik.

But of course, the sound is merely one piece of our rather large event services puzzle, so let’s take a closer look at lighting hire.

Lighting Equipment Hire 

In the case of most events, where you might need to hire sound equipment, you’re very likely to be interested in hiring lighting equipment. We found this out the hard way when starting out as an audio visual company back in the early 2000s. Every event we provided equipment for, we were asked if we could handle the lighting requirements. After getting sick of saying “no,” we took the plunge into the lighting, and haven’t looked back since!

In fact, we’ve somewhat become lighting hire specialists, in many cases focusing our hire and support services specifically on lighting for events. Whether it’s wedding lighting or dazzling product launches, we’ve designed and executed so many spectacular lighting shows that have left those in attendance stunned.

We’ve managed to achieve this feat by investing heavily in the latest and greatest lighting fixtures, the majority of which are powered by LED technology. From LED uplighting, to LED-powered PAR cans, we’ve harnessed the power of this incredibly versatile lighting medium to wow our clients. The sheer scope and scale of our lighting capabilities (of all which is also our own equipment, by the way) is difficult to cover in such a short space, but below you will find just a glimpse of the number of distinct types of lighting we have on hand to supply to your wedding, award show, party, festival, or gala dinner:

  • Spotlights
  • Fresnel lanterns
  • PAR cans
  • Wireless LED Uplighters
  • Gobos
  • Pendant lighting
  • Festoon (fairy) lighting
  • Textured lighting
  • Backlighting
  • Lasers
  • Pinspots
  • DMX intelligent moving-head lights

Again that list is by no means exhaustive, but by now you’re probably starting to understand just how vast our Guildford warehouse is! But don’t worry, we’re not done yet! We also supply kinds of related audio visual hire in addition to our sound and lighting hire services.

Audio Visual and Event Production Equipment Hire

Our services really do run the full gamut when it comes to event production. For instance, if you’re looking to put on a conference in London, we can provide all manner of audio visual equipment such as projector and screen hire, LED screen hire, and even the podium if you’re short! No matter what you need on the technical side of your event, the Sound and Light Hire Company can provide it for you.

But of course, we don’t just offer all manner of audio visual equipment. We also offer up all manner of necessary event production equipment for hire. For example, as lighting experts, we understand the need for special effects equipment to really bring out the best in your light show. Let’s be honest; no light show would be complete without the supplementary hazers that help to make the lasers stand out so much. Or what about making your stage the centre of attention by adding flames? They work at small children’s parties just as well as they do as music festivals, so why not add they to one of our party equipment hire packages?

We’re also well-versed in providing all manner of staging requirements. From small wedding productions to large-scale music festival stage hire capable of accommodating up to 10,000 attendees, we have expert teams on hand that can not only assemble stage equipment, but that can design sets and stages from scratch if necessary. Need a tiered stage for an upscale London awards show? That’s not a problem either. We can genuinely offer all aspects of technical equipment hire for your event, which brings us neatly onto our next point, our event production services.

Event Production Services for Corporate Events and Music Festivals

Providing event equipment for hire is one thing, but sometimes event organisers need much more support in bringing their vision from concept to reality. Whether it be a corporate event or a music festival, you will likely need the help of professional event production services on top of hiring all of the necessary equipment. In case you hadn’t already guessed, we can do that too!

In case you were wondering what we mean by event services, we are referring to the work that goes into the production of the evening you have planned. For instance, you may have hired a sound and lighting package, but do you or your staff have a technician capable of creating a fantastic light show? Or how about someone that is an expert at sound mixing for the live band that you hired for later in the evening?

These are the critical services that can make all of the difference in the world. To use a sporting analogy, an F1 car is no good to someone who doesn’t know how to drive one, so what’s the point in hiring one? In other words, there’s no point utilising our admittedly brilliant sound systems and lighting arrays, without employing the on-site personnel that understand how to unlock their maximum performance.

Fortunately, we’ve got some of the best in the business in this particular arena. From stage crew to sound engineers and light technicians, we can provide a turn-key package for your event, which includes all equipment, staff, and event production services. We’ve provided these services to some of the most significant events in the UK, including the cage fighting at the 02 in London. Therefore, you can trust that we have the capacity and ability to provide our industry-leading event services to the smallest weddings to the biggest music festivals.

We can either listen to your specific requirements and point you to towards one of our “off the shelf” complete event packages, or we can hold your hand through the entire process, advising you every step of the way. We’re flexible to work with almost all budgets, and while we never aim to be the cheapest, we are NEVER beaten on value for money. What we charge compared to what you receive in terms of both hardware and personnel cannot be beaten by any other provider in the UK.

Talk to the Sound and Light Hire Company About Your Event

Whether you need to hire a small PA speaker system for your children’s birthday party, or you need the entire event production of an industry gala dinner, we are just adept at excelling in both environments. We have one of the biggest inventories in the whole country when it comes to sound and lighting equipment, and what’s more, we never skimp on quality. If you’re hiring from us, you’re receiving brand names that are widely regarded as the best in the business.

As for our event production services, we are the first to acknowledge that our staff are the best in the business and we’re immensely proud and fortunate to have them represent us at each event. From lighting displays that could literally bring a tear to your eye, to sound so immersive that you simply get lost in the moment, our event production team are capable of handling any challenge your event could possibly throw at them.

Even if you are only dry-hiring a PA system and you just want a touch of on the spot training, our team are just as happy giving advice in this environment as they are under the pressure of getting the mixing right for a headline act at a music festival, such is their enormous range of capabilities.

So if you’ve got a corporate event lined up at a swanky London hotel, or you’ve got a wedding booked at a Surrey venue, we can supply everything you could ever need, and run it all for you on the night should you wish. Just give us a call any day of the week on 0800 8611136 to have a chat with a member of our friendly team. We look forward to hearing all about it!

/by

Tips on Choosing the Right Wedding Lighting

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Tips on Choosing the Right Wedding Lighting

If you’re planning on having a formal wedding, you may be wondering whether you should hire wedding lighting for your reception. This article will give you some ideas on the pros and cons of wedding lighting as well as advice on how to choose the right one for your big day!

So, how exactly do you crack the wedding lighting jargon? Well, so many words have been bandied about that it’s become impossible for someone not familiar with lighting concepts to explain them. Just in case you’re still wondering, let’s start with lighting fixtures. It would be best to start with a basic set and work upwards as your needs and your budget will dictate.

Wedding lighting comes in many forms – chandeliers, spotlights, pendants and many more. Some of them can be very expensive to buy and some of them are so basic that you can even build them yourself! As well as style, they can also be made from many different materials.

One important thing to keep in mind when looking at the different types of wedding lighting is the type of wedding you’re having. If you’re having a beach wedding, which often has a lot of candles, then you’re going to want to go for a type of lighting that’s very romantic but is also safe to use.

On the other hand, if you’re having a formal wedding, then you should go for a more sober look – using more white, with perhaps some decorative lighting fixtures placed strategically around the venue. In terms of your budget, this type of lighting should fit into your budget well as the cost of a wedding is going to be spread over a lot of smaller pieces. You may find it’s difficult to pick out the right lights depending on the style and theme of your reception, so it’s a good idea to ask for help!

In terms of the wedding theme, there are so many different options available. From classical, to floral, to a fairy tale wedding, there’s literally hundreds of options to choose from. The only rule to remember is to make sure that the lighting will compliment the overall look of the wedding venue.

When picking out your wedding lighting, it’s also important to consider other factors such as the budget, the time of year, the season, your personal taste, and the size of your guests. Depending on the amount of light you need, you should always be able to find the perfect match – just make sure that you think about the following before you make your final decision.

For example, it’s very important to choose a light that’s easy to install – a chandelier or table-style light is great if you need a lot of natural light throughout the room. On the other hand, if your reception will be held in a small space, then a smaller, more intimate pendant would be ideal. Or if your reception is more formal, then a chandelier would not be the best choice as you’ll probably be using lots of artificial lighting.

For more information about our wedding lighting & event lighting hire services please see our main website www.truesoundhire.co.uk or our wedding lighting section which can be found here https://www.truesoundhire.co.uk/hire-packages/category/lighting-hire-packages/wedding-lighting-hire-packages/

/by

We Talk About PA System Hire & What Is A PA System

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Whether you’ve got a birthday coming up, or your hosting a fashion show, PA system hire should form a crucial part of your event production considerations. The last thing you want is your guests to be underwhelmed by your sound performance, so hiring an excellent PA system is crucial.

This post will lay out what a PA system is, what the benefits of hiring one are as opposed to buying one, where and when you might want to hire a PA system, and why we offer the best PA system hire packages across London, Surrey, and Hampshire.

So let’s start with the first question – what is a PA system exactly?

What is a PA System? 

Put simply; a PA system is usually a set of speakers that help to fill a room, venue, or stage with sound. Standing for ‘public address,’ PA systems are used up and down the country, from wedding DJs to football stadiums.

They usually come as a set of at least two speakers to help create an immersive ‘stereo’ sound. But when you hire outdoor line array PA systems, you could have as many as five to seven speakers strapped together along with amplifiers and subwoofers to enhance the output. They can be used as speakers for playing pre-recorded music off a mobile phone or laptop, or they can be used for live musical performances. They are perfectly adept at performing either task.

Most contemporary PA systems are classed as ‘active’ systems whereby they have built-in amplification and just need to be plugged in to get to work. By contrast, ‘passive’ PA speakers will need an external power amplification unit to work. Modern active PA speaker systems are great for birthday parties, weddings, and any other celebration since all you have to do is ‘plugin and play’ with a 3.5mm jack aux cable.

PA System Hire vs Buying a PA System

Given how easy to set up and use they are; many individuals are tempted to invest their hard-earned money in a PA system that they can use whenever they like. While that may seem like a good idea at the time, in most scenarios, it makes much more sense to hire a PA system than to buy one outright.

For a start, the initial investment in a high-quality PA is north of a thousand pounds. They’re serious pieces of kit and not investments to take lightly. People who end up buying a PA system often don’t get much use out of them since the celebrations they’re bought for only tend to come around annually or bi-annually.

Remember these are not average speakers that you can use at home after your event is over. Well not without complaints from the neighbours anyway! Storage is another factor need to consider, they are quite bulky, especially if you buy a more advanced system with multiple speakers, amps, and subwoofers.

Given the fact that you can hire a powerful PA system setup for £120 from us, complete with two subwoofers with plenty of oomph for up to 200 guests, we just don’t think there are many scenarios where spending north of a thousand pounds makes sense (not that we’re biased of course!). For example, let’s say you spent £1200 on a comparable PA system for a large get-together you host once a year. It would take you a decade to break even on your investment. By which time, PA speaker technology will have well and truly moved on.

When Might You Need PA System Hire?

The short answer is whenever you need to project sound far and wide. As you can imagine that leaves a pretty broad scope of events, but for now, let’s focus on the most popular instances PA System hire based on our decades of experience.

Parties/Birthday Celebrations

There’s nothing better than a good old fashioned party! Whether you are celebrating an anniversary, exam results, or a milestone birthday; if you plan on having a good time, then you’re undoubtedly going need to hire a PA system to blast out the hits that will get both you and your guests up and dancing.

Unless you plan on inviting several hundreds of attendees, our laptop and phone PA System hire packages are an excellent fit for this purpose. They pack plenty of punch for less than £100 and are guaranteed to get your guests at least tapping their foot as they nervously watch their parents approach the dancefloor!

Weddings 

One of our most popular requests is for PA system hire for wedding celebrations and receptions. Dancing is a prerequisite at weddings, and whether you need to hire a PA system for your live band, or you need one for the DJ you’ve booked (or both), then it’s always worth investing in a premium PA system setup.

Our premium PA system hire packages offer top of the range d&b audiotechnik speakers combined with power amps and subwoofers will easily cater up to 500 guests, perfect for even the largest wedding celebrations out there.

Live Music Acts/Performers

As a live band, singer/songwriter, or a DJ, you need to have a PA system you can rely on to do you justice. If you’ve found some initial success, you may be able to land bookings for venues with their own PA systems. However, it many cases, once you arrive, you’ll quickly discover that the systems in question are old and barely fit for purpose.

Rather than leave it to chance, if you’ve got a critical live musical performance coming up, it makes sense to invest in reliable PA equipment that is no older than three years. If you’re a bit of a PA system aficionado, you can even offer to include providing your own sound equipment (for an additional fee, of course) to venues. If they are short on knowledge and time, it saves them from having to deal with the hassle of sorting it all out for you, and you score an extra win by being represented by the premium sound quality.

Outdoor Events 

From music festivals in Surrey to horse shows in Hampshire, we’ve provided all manner of PA systems to outdoor events. In most instances, when it comes to outdoor events, in particular, line array PA system hire makes the most sense.

The most extensive setups for these types of PA systems can comfortably accommodate up to 5,000 guests, which is perfect for an outdoor stage at a local music festival, for example. But they are just as suitable for any outdoor event with a large audience.

Fashion and Award Shows

Of course, line array PA systems are just as suited to providing the booming sound required for significant indoor events held at venues such as the O2. Over the years we’ve helped out plenty of London fashion shows, as well as awards and gala dinners with PA system hire.

For larger events of this nature, we can provide not just equipment, but a full turn-key d&b J Series PA System, complete with our own highly-skilled and experienced sound technicians to help set up and run the speakers during the event.

Why Choose the Sound and Light Hire Company for PA System Hire? 

We can provide all manner of sound equipment hire for your events. Whether you need a PA system for you live DJ, or you wish to host a local live band, there’s nothing we can’t provide to ensure our PA system hire services are precisely what you’re looking for.

Hiring out PA equipment not fit for the event in question is something we’re increasingly witnessing in the industry. We distinguish ourselves as a PA system hire company by offering state-of-the-art equipment that is more than capable of meeting the demands of your events, or specific guest numbers.

We realise that our PA system hire packages are only as good as the quality of the equipment. That’s why we continuously invest in new stock to ensure that not a single item is more than three years old. We also continually test and inspect all equipment before it’s deemed suitable to go back out on hire again. Every amp, subwoofer, and speaker is serviced every six months to ensure a reliable service.

In over a decade of operations, we have never had any PA system equipment failures. We believe that is a testament to our exacting standards of care we take over our equipment, as well as the faith we put in premium brands such as d&b audiotechnik.

How Much Does PA System Hire Cost?

The question on most people’s lips! The answer is, as usual, it depends. If you want to have a simple set up for your garden party with 50 odd guests, then we can provide you with everything you need for as little as £60. Going for something much bigger? For £120, you can hire a hefty 2.5KW PA system, which will comfortably stretch up to 200 guests.

On the other hand, let’s suppose you’re looking at professional-standard equipment for a music festival or an indoor arena award show. In that case, you’re going to need to invest in d&b audiotechnik Q series line array setups, which still come within £1,000. We feel this is unbeatable value for the amount, and crucially, the quality of the equipment you receive.

Are Your PA System Hire Packages Dry Hire Only? 

We’re also flexible with our PA system offerings. We realise that not everyone is going to be an expert when it comes to setting up and mixing state of the art PA systems. That’s why we offer live sound engineer hire from as little as £125 per day plus travel based within 25 miles of Guildford, Surrey, or London.

In fact, we’re on hand to provide any additional help you might need, whether that’s lighting hire or special effects. If you also need a sound engineer, a lighting technician, or a small production team, then that’s what we’ll provide. We are here to serve your needs at the end of the day, whatever they may be.

If you do decide to hire one or more members of our team, you’ve also got the added benefit of not having to worry about the equipment set up, operation, and subsequent dismantling. Instead, you can get on with running your event or enjoying your celebration.

Choose the Sounds and Light Hire Company for All of your PA System Hire Requirements

Be it a party, or a full-blown festival stage, a PA system can make all the difference when it comes to the quality of the sound relayed to your audience. PA system hire offers those in attendance to enjoy a truly immersive sound experience and is bound to get your guest dancing for those upbeat numbers!

No matter your reason for looking at hiring a PA system, it almost always makes sense to hire instead of buy. By doing so, you can benefit from the latest and greatest systems and additional technical support, should you need it.

So whether you’re having a small scale garden party, or your planning your industry’s biggest award show, we have the PA system hire capabilities to match. Just give us a call any day of the week using the information below, and we’ll happily discuss your requirements.

/by

The Sound & Light Hire Company Talks Festival Stage Hire & What Other Event Equipment You Might Need to Hire

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Despite the cancellations across the board in 2020, the music festival industry is still in a strong position for next year’s summer season. In fact, we are a nation of revellers with over a quarter of all UK adults attending a music festival last year.

As a festival or music event organiser, you should know that the stage is the cornerstone of any successful musical event. It focuses the attention of your attendees, provides an elevated platform for your performers to look out over their adoring fans, and it houses of all the technical production equipment required for artists to sound their best.

Get your festival stage hire wrong though, and both fans and performers will be quick to notice that you’ve missed the mark. So if you’re organising a music festival or event for the spring or summer of 2021, what are the factors that you need to be thinking about now for your event to be a rip-roaring success?

Let’s take a look with a little help from our sister company Outdoor Stages, the arm of our operation dedicated to providing all manner of festival and music event stages.

Determine Your Requirements Based on the Scale of Your Event

It may sound obvious, but you’ve got to start with the scale of your event to make sure you’re choosing the right size of stage to hire. Hire a stage too small, and the performances can look awkward and cramped. By contrast, go way too big, and your attendees will think you have suffered from delusions of grandeur and you’ll likely lose money given the costs involved with hiring a much larger stage.

If this is something you’re initially struggling with, it’s often helpful to determine your needs based on the size of the audience. Generally, the larger your anticipated attendance, the larger your stage hire requirements will be. But this is not always the case. For instance, you may prefer to hire several compact stages to accommodate multiple performances in one central festival site location.

Once again, the larger the number of attendees, the more likely you are to invest in a large stage that provides a central focal point, an unobstructed viewing experience, and that can accommodate the technical event equipment hire required for clear sound and visuals for audience members hundreds of yards away from the stage.

Consider the Needs of Your Performers 

Next, you’ve got to factor in the requirements of the performers. If you’re hosting a classical orchestra, then obviously they are going to require a stage with a larger surface area than a local rock band, for example.

But it goes beyond merely space requirements, think about the technical specifications of your performers. While the acts scheduled to perform earlier in the day may not require much in the way of technical support, headline acts will often demand all kinds of additional technical support such as special effects, lighting shows, and superior sound equipment hire.

That’s without mentioning the offstage and backstage demands of top musical performers. Many will require at least a changing area. Some will specify a specific stage monitor mixing area or a musical instrument changeover zone. You might also need to put on a hospitality area and a side-on viewing platform for esteemed guests. By contrast, if you’ve booked an orchestra or a dance troupe, you’re going to need a sizeable backstage area to accommodate the sheer number of performers and their warm-up routines.

As the event organiser, it’s crucial that you receive each musical act’s rider in advance of booking in your festival stage hire so that you can make the necessary accommodations without any hassle.

Nature of Your Event Will Influence Your Event Equipment Hire Choices

Of course, you’ll also have to consider the nature of your event. For instance, are you running a festival with 12 local bands spread throughout the day? If so, it may be the case that you can have the artists share much of the technical equipment, saving on space and auxiliary event equipment hire requirements.

On the other hand, if you’re planning more of a one-night musical concert with two or three well-known national performers, each may demand their own specific technical setup. That means you’ll have to budget extra space for equipment storage in the wings ready for changeover between performances, even if the acts in question are solo performers.

Next, think about your preferred setup, which was briefly referred to previously. Are you going to out for one large stage for all performances, or are you going to over a couple of smaller breakout stages for solo performers? If so, you may want to spread you hire budget over several stages, rather than investing everything in your allocation on just the one.

Are There Any Venue/Location Restrictions?

One of the biggest mistakes we see from new festival organisers is not considering the limitations or restrictions of the venue. Erecting a stage requires significant engineering and logistical planning.

One of the first considerations you should make before you hire an outdoor stage is the ground. You need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of concrete and grass. If it’s going to be grass, is it even? Very rarely is the location proposed for a stage exactly flat in the case of those erected on lawn areas. But if it’s smooth and even, then it’s usually a suitable location for a stage.

Next, make sure that the area is free of any trees and human-made obstacles which might not necessarily be visible. Think underground pipes or wiring, as well as drainage systems. You can investigate the location of underground obstacles by obtaining ground surveys for your local council.

Lastly, turn your attention to logistics, even in their component parts, outdoor stages are not small. That means you’re going to need space for several HGVs to gain access and unload. Without sufficient access, your stage may never make it to the intended location, so don’t overlook this critical factor!

Other Considerations for Stage Hire That Are Often Forgotten

Perhaps the most underestimated factors of stage hire by festival organisers are the factors that are outside of their control, namely the weather. We don’t have to tell you that we live in one of the most unpredictable climates on the planet, and it’s par for the course to experience four seasons in one day, even in the middle of summer!

The important takeaway for you as the organiser to realise is that poor weather causes issues with building an outdoor stage. Firstly, it can cause access issues (particularly for grass setups). Secondly, poor weather means slow-going on the building of a stage. That’s why you must budget enough time for the building phase. You don’t want to find yourself on the morning of the event still having little bits and pieces to finish off on stage construction.

Speaking of time, don’t underestimate how long stages take to build regardless of weather conditions. While we can erect our smallest mobile outdoor covered stages in a matter of hours, our large 12m x 9m arc roof stage can take well in excess of a day to build and set up with the necessary technical rigging.

For allocating time allowances for stage set up, we say plan for the worst, hope for the best. That way you’ve got plenty of slack in your schedule should the weather, or any other unforeseen issues, cause any snags.

On a similar note, don’t wait to book in your stage hire once you know what you need. Most stage hire companies need advanced notice to build you into their schedules. While we don’t need as much as half a year, we do ask for at least three months to give us enough time to make the necessary adjustments to our inventory and works schedule. We can work off less in emergencies, but we can’t promise anything.

Stage Hire is Just the Beginning

For the less experienced among you, it’s important to point out the stage hire itself is only just the beginning. The structure is not going to achieve much for you without the help of professional lighting, sound equipment, and all other aspects of event production.

We believe it’s crucial to source these items from the same company that’s building the stage. It’s a better arrangement for several reasons. For a start, it’s fewer contractors to deal with on-site, all of which would turn up with lorries and several staff members. But it also eliminates any confusion between contractors.

By instructing one company to look after the stage, lighting, sound, and event production, every single team member is singing from the same hymn sheet. The stage builders erect the trusses the way the lighting team are used to working with, and the sound production team are using PA speaker systems and mixing desks they know like the back of their hand.

Given that you could have dozens of suppliers to work with on a musical festival, including caterers, performer booking agents, ticketing websites, wristband suppliers, and merchandisers to name but a few, it makes sense to hire just one company to handle all aspects of event production. We can handle all elements including staging, lighting, sound equipment as well as extras such as LED screens and special effects.

Why Choose Outdoor Stages for Your UK Music Festival?

The Outdoor Stages arm of the Sound and Light Hire Company has been providing stage hire and associated event production services festivals right across London, Surrey and Hampshire for over a decade.

We’ve taken a fresh approach to the festival stage hire industry by combining all required aspects of live musical performance and providing them bundled together as part of all in one stage hire packages. We genuinely offer an end-to-end solution for event organisers.

Take our biggest stage hire package as an example. Not only does it include an arc roof stage of 12m x 9m with a maximum roof height of 6.5m and a payload of 3500kg, but it also comes complete with a full-touring-spec sound and lighting system. We’re talking about the best in the sound business with the d&b audiotechnik PA systems used by the likes of Coldplay and Rhianna paired with over 70 lighting fixtures from 17R beams, moving heads washes, pixel battens and stage blinders!

When you also add in our highly-skilled and experienced crews and technicians who love what they do, you’ll receive an all-in-one event production package capable of amazing up to 10,000 music fans! Not bad for one easy-to-understand price, right?

We’re also on hand to help you through every step of the process should you need our consultation. We can assess venues, make recommendations, and provide bespoke quotes that match the specific challenges of either your site or the nature of the event in question.

In short, we are your one-stop shop when it comes to event production for your music festival or event. We have expert technicians, engineers and crew members, we offer top-of-the-range event equipment hire, and our stage hire options can cater for over and above 10,000 attendees giving us one of the largest capacities in the South East.

So if you’re putting together a music festival in the Spring or Summer of 2021, don’t hesitate to get in contact with a member of the Outdoor Stages team to arrange an initial consultation.

/by

The Sound & Light Hire Company Talk Live Sound Hire Equipment for Bands

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Every week across London, Surrey and Hampshire, there are events graced with the presence of a live band to get party guests, wedding attendees, or festival-goers on their feet and dancing. While undoubtedly a lot rests upon the talent of the musicians, no live band can successfully perform without suitable sound equipment.

High-performance sound equipment that accentuates every thump of the bass and delivers crystal clear vocals is crucial to your wowing your audience. However, your equipment requirements will likely span far beyond merely those related to sound. Stage hire, lighting hire, and even a dancefloor might be required to provide the immersive experience you’re looking for.

Whether you’re an event organiser investigating hiring a live band, or you perform as part of a live band yourself, let’s take a look at what you might look to hire to deliver your best possible performance.

Live Sound Equipment Hire

Those of you involved in the performance and events industry will already be aware of this fact, but live sound hire is a different beast to your traditional sound system hire. Live bands have all kinds of additional sound equipment requirements. For instance, in addition to PA

speaker hire, you’re likely to need backline equipment hire to supplement the speaker setup.

For those of you unfamiliar, backline equipment refers to items such as guitar amps, and in some instances, musical instruments such as drum kits. Then you’ve got to add in auxiliary equipment such as stage monitors, subwoofers, and microphones. All of this equipment then needs to be mixed and balanced (via a mixing desk) to ensure there’s a coherent and cohesive sound coming from the stage when the band is performing.

If you’re a live band, this can all seem like a cumbersome distraction, when all you really want to do is turn up and play. For those of you booking live bands for your event, hopefully, you can now appreciate that it’s a little more complicated than simply hiring a few speakers and hoping the group in question take care of the rest.

In fact, in our ten-plus years of supplying hire packages to live bands and event organisers, we’ve found a strong correlation between the price of the group and the ability to provide equipment themselves. The more expensive the band, the less likely they are to include sound equipment and other associated production aspects as part of their service.

Even if they do, it’s usually provided by a third-party anyway, so you may as well have all of the sound equipment hire and event production services with one supplier to maximise efficiency. This is especially the case if you’re handling a multi-supplier occasion such as a wedding or a festival.

But the sound equipment is only half the story when it comes to sound. You need sound engineers capable of bringing it all together.

Sound Engineer Services Surrey, London, and Hampshire

Even you’re an experienced musician, mixing a band isn’t easy. Many live bands try and fail to mix themselves, with sometimes disastrous results. In other scenarios, live bands delegate the sound mixing and production to a friend who might not have the knowledge required to hit the standards expected of today’s performances.

There are no two ways about it. Unless you’ve recruited someone with your complete trust, you need to hire a sound engineer to strike the right balance of acoustics, instrumental volumes, and sound equipment capabilities. This is particularly the case for event organisers who have multiple live bands lined up throughout the day, all of which will probably have different sound mixing and production requirements.

Having production staff to oversee your performance increases in importance when you consider many of the additional elements you might need to hire for the occasion such as staging, lighting equipment, and even dancefloors. So let’s explore those in a little more detail.

Live Band Stage Hire Surrey, London, and Hampshire 

Whether it’s a festival or a wedding, most live band performances require a stage to elevate the band, provide a focal point, and accommodate the various pieces of sound equipment. For most small to medium-sized groups, a 6m x 4m stage will offer plenty of room to fit all of the instruments, speakers and performers.

Of course, something you need to factor into your live band stage hire costs is the setup of the stage itself. Unless you’re well-versed in stage-building, you’ll need the help of specialists to get everything constructed correctly in a safe manner. You’ll also need to consider your weight requirements. Our 6m x 4m stage is capable of withstanding weight loads of 500km per square metre, so you’re pretty much guaranteed to be fine unless you’re planning on driving a tank over it!

Next, you need to think, as organisers or performers, about the venue. Is it indoors or outdoors? Thanks to our partners over at Outdoor Stages, we can provide all manner of outdoor stage hire, complete with arc roofs to protect bands from the infamous British weather! From outdoor performances of a few hundred attendees to outdoor festivals with 5,000+ music-lovers, we have the capacity to provide a stage suitable for the occasion.

Live Band Lighting Hire Surrey, London and Hampshire

By default, the vast majority of live band performances take place in the evening, which necessitates you hire lighting to illuminate the stage and performers. But it’s not a case of any old lighting will do. By incorporating lasers, disco lights, and spotlights, you can turn a live band’s performance into much more of an immersive experience.

As you might have guessed from the name, we provide all manner of lighting hire for live bands too! Whether you want to offer the wow factor to your clients, or you’re organising a small festival taking place during night-time hours, we can provide the lighting to elevate performances to the next level. We can also assemble the associated rigging and truss requirements, should they be necessary.

Why Choose Us for Your Live Band Equipment Hire

While there are few options when it comes to hiring equipment for your live performances in Surrey, London, and the wider Hampshire area, we are rated number one for a reason. For a start, we can provide literally every conceivable aspect of equipment required for your live show. From sound system hire to providing LED dancefloors, we’ve got it all. Crucially, we also own and operate all of our inventory, including the stages as we are part of the same overarching event production company.

We also only invest in premium and reliable sound and lighting brands such as d&b audiotechnik. Our d&b series loudspeakers offer enormous flexibility as well as a perfect design and up-to-date acoustic characteristics. These loudspeakers assimilate to their environment – always offering a brilliant sonic result and are suitable for use with a multitude of applications, from wedding productions to large scale live music festivals. They’re the brand of choice for Coldplay, Eminem and Rhianna’s live performances, so you know you’re in half-decent company!

But as excellent as our equipment stock is for live bands, we know that our hire service heavily depends on the quality of our team. Thankfully, we’re blessed with some of the best in the business.

Live Sound Engineer Hire Surrey, London, and Hampshire 

As touched upon above, mixing a band isn’t easy these days, there are plenty of inputs, and they all have to be balanced with the acoustics of the performance environment.

That’s why we choose our sound engineers carefully. We only employ a handful of sound engineers who have all met our stringent standards, one of which is having at least five years’ experience within the live sound and event production industry. But our sound engineers aren’t just incredibly experienced and knowledgeable; they’re friendly and helpful too.

Whether you’re an event organiser that’s a little in the dark about the vagaries of live band production, or you’re a successful local band looking to hire a sound professional you can trust, our team have developed a stellar reputation right across the Greater London, Surrey and Hampshire region. Our sound engineers are always flexible too. Whether you need them to act as as a front of house sound technician, or as a monitor engineer, their technical abilities run the full gamut.

But it’s not just our team that is flexible; our all-in-one live band hire packages are too.

Flexible All-in-one Hire Packages for Live Bands

We understand that no two live performances are quite the same. You could need one set of equipment for an indoor venue one week, and a completely different set up for a local outdoor festival the next. In either scenario, we have the flexibility to provide whatever you need.

We also realise that not everything is an expert on the production side of live band performances. Even experienced musicians often rely on the help of others to get them sounding as emphatic as possible. Once again, our team is happy to operate in either environment. Whether we’re taking instruction from you as a group who know your sound identity like the back of your hand, or you need us to lead the production and mixing efforts for your wedding reception band, we’ve got the knowledge and experience to handle both.

Our live band hire packages can cover sound equipment only, or we can offer an extensive all-in-one package that includes sound, lighting, staging, LED screens, on-site personnel and even a starlit dancefloor! The choice is yours.

If you’re perhaps a touch inexperienced in the technicalities (for instance, if you’re organising live sound equipment hire for your wedding) we are more than happy to sit down with you and have a cup of tea to discuss your specific event. We can then use your information to construct a package based on what the live band are going to need as part of their set up.

Choose the Best in Business for Your Live Performances Across Surrey, London and Hampshire 

Here at the Sound and Light Hire Company, we’ve worked incredibly hard over the last decade to build our industry-leading reputation in the South East region. While we aren’t the cheapest, we do provide the best value for money based on what you receive from us in terms of the quality of the equipment and personnel.

For instance, we are the only company in the UK to offer top-of-the-range d&b audiotrechnik speakers, subwoofers, amps, stage monitors, a Midas M32 mixing desk, a complete set of Shure microphones, an experienced sound engineer to set up and produce your performance, and a digital recording of your band for as little as £649! We’re able to offer such competitive prices by using our vast inventory and economies of scale to deliver better equipment, for a better price.

Whether you’re a live band on the search for live sound equipment and production staff to support local tour dates across Hampshire, or you’re organising a London-based wedding or a festival, we can really do it all. Just reach out to us using the information below any day of the week to discuss your requirements.

We look forward to working with you!

/by

Event Sound, Lighting Plus Staging & LED Screens

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

The Sound & Light Hire Company Logo

Looking to Hire Sound or Lighting Equipment For Your Events? Here We Talk About Sound, Lighting, Staging & LED Screens

Here at the Sound and Lighting Hire Company, we provide all manner of event production services. From small pick up and play services such as iPod party package, to substantial international awards shows in London. We really do offer one of the most all-encompassing ranges of event sound and lighting services within the UK.

We also offer specific services such as sound hire or provide the full monty of event production services if you’re hosting a much larger event such as a conference or exhibition. So let’s dig into our hire packages and services into a little more detail, as you may be surprised by our enormous spectrum of capabilities.

Event Production Services in Surrey, London, Berkshire and Hampshire  

We’ve said this many times before, but there is no event too large or too small for us. We really do cover an enormous range of sizes. From a couple of dry-hired speakers for a children’s party, right up to a full custom-built stage, lighting and rigging, and sound equipment complete with experienced engineers and technicians to run your production.

Regarding the smaller event, we’ve provided equipment for numerous parties, celebrations, weddings, and even outdoor cinemas! At the other end of the spectrum, we’ve provided the equipment and team for productions as large as cage fighting matches and the O2. We are pretty much the only company in the South East of England that has this range of capabilities when it comes to event sound and light services.

So in case you have something in mind for your event, be it a glitzy award show or an intimate wedding reception, let’s delve a little deeper into our specific event hire packages and services to give you a better idea of how we can help you.

Event Sound Equipment Hire 

For many of you, sound equipment hire might be all you need to run your event smoothly. That’s fine, even though we provide audio equipment for (and produce) huge events such as festivals, we are just as competitive for the little guy! We have a range of dry hire packages for speaker systems.

Whether you just want to hook up a phone or a laptop to a speaker for some background noise at a barbeque, or you need a large speaker hire for a wedding or anniversary celebration, we’ve all got all manner of sound equipment hire packages to suit. The best part? Those speaker hire packages start at just £60. Can’t say fairer than that for a party of up to 70 guests, can you?

But what if you want to take things up a notch. For instance, what if you’ve hired a live band for your event? Fortunately for you, we’ve got specialised hire packages for that too! Whether you’ve got a solo performer, or you’ve splashed out on a local band, we can cater to your every need. You can even have one of our sound engineers as part of the hire package to set everything up and professionally produce the event for you.

But what if you’re organising something different? After all, not all events are birthdays or weddings. Yep, we can do that too. We offer complete AV hire for conferences, including wireless microphones and projector hire, for example. When it comes to sound more specifically, we often supply line array packages to significant public events such as festivals, award shows, and product launches. We really mean it when we say there’s nothing really beyond the scope of our capabilities.

But what if you need more than sound? What about lighting? Well, the clue is in our name, and as it happens, we’re not too shabby at that either.

Event Lighting Services Surrey, London, Berkshire and Hampshire  

A lot of the events we’ve just spoken about also require lighting. Live bands and DJs, for example, often depend on lighting to make their performances much more immersive and compelling. Similarly, can you imagine a wedding dancefloor with any disco lighting? It just wouldn’t work.

When setting up our company over a decade ago, we were acutely aware that you often can’t have event sound without lighting and vice versa. That’s why we put just as much effort into this side of our business as we do the other, often combining sound and light equipment hire packages.

In many ways, lighting can be split up into what we would call ‘performance’ lighting and ‘atmospheric’ lighting that helps to set a mood or an ambience. Referring to performance lighting, we’re talking about event lighting equipment that is pretty much necessary for the production in question.

For instance, most DJs require an array of lasers and disco lights, rather than just a small set of speakers and decks. Or, if your event is a gala dinner, award show, or fashion event, you’re going to need spotlights to illuminate and follow your presenters and models as they move across the stage or catwalk.

By contrast, atmospheric LED uplighters can completely transform the look and feel of a venue by ‘washing’ it in a specific colour. Likewise, if you’re having an outdoor wedding, you can create a truly magical atmosphere after the sun sets with thoughtful festoon lighting. Or perhaps you’re going for a spookier feeling and want to hire UV lighting to make both people and objects glow in the dark.

No matter the type of lighting hire you need for your event, we can accommodate your requirements. Better yet, we can set up any of those lights in the specific manner you need them. Trusses and rigging are no problem for us. In fact, we set them all the time. We’ll work with you to understand your requirements, balance them against the limitations of your specific venue, and then provide you with a lighting solution your 100% happy with.

But of course, several events need more than mere sound and lighting equipment. For instance, what about your stage?

Staging Services Surrey, London, Berkshire and Hampshire

What would a live band or DJ be without a stage? Or an awards show for that matter? Most event productions need a stage or a set. Whether you’re putting on a corporate event in London, or you’re having a marquee wedding in Hampshire, you need a stage to provide a focal point and a better viewing experience for your guests.

This is a cinch for us too. Since our company is part of one of the most prominent event production companies in the UK, we can build all manner of trusses and staging. We’ve already joined forces to design, develop and work on some of the biggest events in the country. But we can take that superior experience and bring it to your smaller-scale event. Whether you’re looking for outdoor stage hire for your small-scale festival, or you’re merely looking to hire a stage for a live band, we can handle all sizes of events.

While sound, lighting, and stage equipment are critical tenets of most event productions, we also offer much more specific event services and hire packages.

LED Screen Hire Surrey, London, Berkshire and Hampshire

LED screens and LED video walls continue to increase in popularity, thanks in large part to their versatility. Our high-resolution LED video wall screens grab attention and can give your event that stand-out factor. Whether you want a solid wall built or to separate the panels across a truss structure for a more abstract effect, our cost-effective LED screen hire can set your event off perfectly.

Perhaps you need to show footage of your event if your attendees need help viewing what’s taking place on stage. Or maybe you think they would add a perfect visual display to your lighting show. Either way, LED screen hire can give your event that extra little bit of je ne sais quoi. You can hire these flexible pieces of equipment either on their own or as part of a more comprehensive event production hire package.

Bespoke and Ready-Made Event Production Services

It doesn’t matter whether you intend to dry hire equipment from us, or you want to have us exclusively design, build and execute all aspects of your event production, we are always flexible to the meet the specific needs of our clients. In many cases, we listen to your requirements and recommend one of our “off the shelf” ready-made event production packages, which will include all manner of event sound and lighting equipment, and in some instances, staging and personnel too.

In other scenarios, we have to work with our clients to shape and refine the vision for their event. Completely starting from the ground up, going through each of the design, assembly, and implementation phases together. The truth of the matter is we’re happy to do either. If you know what you want, and just want to get a cost from us, that’s fine. If you would like us to walk you through everything you need to have your event run precisely as you had intended, we’ll do that for you too.

Our event production services team have literally “done it all” in this industry, in many cases getting the T-shirt too! Whether you’re putting together a crucial corporate conference in London, or you’re planning the wedding celebration of a lifetime in Berkshire, we can do almost anything within the event space.

What Makes the Sound and Lighting Hire Company Different for Event Production Hire?

While we could tell you all about how our customer-centric approach and attention to detail stand us apart (which is true by the way), it’s perhaps best to focus on more tangible aspects such as our inventory.

It might be hard to believe, but we own everything you see available for hire on this site. All of our equipment is stored on-site, and we’re continually inspecting, maintaining and rotating our stock to ensure the equipment we provide you with never lets you down. Over ten years since launching our business that’s still the case, and we pride ourselves on our flawless track record.

But in many ways, state-of-the-art equipment is only half the story. You could have the best sound and lighting equipment in the world, but if you don’t have expert sound engineers and lighting technicians to operate them, then it might not mean much. Our staff are used to working in high-pressure situations where getting it wrong isn’t an option. From corporate events to personal celebrations, we understand that getting it right matters and we take that a “that will do” approach. It’s excellence or nothing.

Best of all, we consider ourselves friendly and approachable. Whether you need some on the spot training for your speaker hire, or you need a technician to run the sound and lighting for the live band at your wedding, we are always on hand to listen to your needs and provide our professional service with a smile.

Finally, despite what we feel is a premier event production service, we are incredibly competitive on price. In many instances, we can’t be beaten anywhere in the UK for what we offer in terms of equipment and price. So why not get in touch to discuss what you might need for your next event? We’re here for you, seven days a week.

/by