Heaviest piece of gear you've had to move when gigging?

PorkPieGuy

PorkPieGuy

Platinum Member
What's the heaviest piece of gear you've had to move or help move at a gig?

No forklifts allowed!

Here is my submission. We used to haul around an old Peavey Versarray system. The sub cabs were 204 lbs each. Each mains cabinet was 65 lbs, and you have to lift them over your head to mount them.

I don't know much those amp racks weighed, but they were nothing compared to these. It sounded fantastic but it simply wasn't worth the sore backs and frustration. I loved unloading these in the gravel then having to carry them to where we were going. Ugh.

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for me, it was a rack set up for a PA system years ago that probably weighed 500lbs....no joking. It has lived in my friends studio now for years (b/c we were all tired of moving it) and when they finally placed it, they had to put support poles in the basement so it wouldn't buckle the floor. It is about 5 and a half feet tall by 2 and half wide; all 1" rock maple wood sides; I would guess that 75 pounds of it are stickers from all the bands and places it was used until it was "grounded". He had it made by a master cabinet maker back then, and it survived years of road abuse.

it has 4 old school - like from the late 70's - Crown power amps, and then, like, every rack processor ever made from 83-95

currently, it is my bass guitar head rack. A Cabbage Cases 16 slot flight case; 1 early 90's QSC power amp; 1 Tech 21 RBI Sans Amp pre amp; Furman power conditioner; probably about 120lbs all totaled. It weighs more than both of my speaker cabs combined.
 
PorkPieGuy said:
What's the heaviest piece of gear you've had to move or help move at a gig?

No forklifts allowed!

Here is my submission. We used to haul around an old Peavey Versarray system. The sub cabs were 204 lbs each. Each mains cabinet was 65 lbs, and you have to lift them over your head to mount them.

I don't know much those amp racks weighed, but they were nothing compared to these. It sounded fantastic but it simply wasn't worth the sore backs and frustration. I loved unloading these in the gravel then having to carry them to where we were going. Ugh.

View attachment 144806
Click to expand...

oh man...that is old skool!!!! Reminds me of the PA's in a lot of the clubs i played in back in the 90's.....I imagine it had that old "PA smell" too
 
Hammond B-3 organ - two men and a donkey job .

Ampeg bass rig with the 18" speaker .

The old Fender twin and Super Reverbs were heavy and awkward .

I owned a pair of 70's Yamaha PA speakers ( 15 " ) , built like tanks and weighed like them too .

Ludwig 6 ply Chromo o Wood , whew !!!
 
Haha viva la 21st century! Best time ever to be a bass player. Man we really really wanted to play back then huh
 
In the early 80s our keyboard player had a b3 and Leslie cabinet. The cabinet wasn't heavy, but it was bulky.
 
PorkPieGuy said:
What's the heaviest piece of gear you've had to move or help move at a gig?

No forklifts allowed!

Here is my submission. We used to haul around an old Peavey Versarray system. The sub cabs were 204 lbs each. Each mains cabinet was 65 lbs, and you have to lift them over your head to mount them.

I don't know much those amp racks weighed, but they were nothing compared to these. It sounded fantastic but it simply wasn't worth the sore backs and frustration. I loved unloading these in the gravel then having to carry them to where we were going. Ugh.

View attachment 144806
Click to expand...
Wow, what kind of arenas did you used to play?
Or was the loudness/efficiency vs weight level really out of balance?
 
eric_B said:
Wow, what kind of arenas did you used to play?
Or was the loudness/efficiency vs weight level really out of balance?
Click to expand...

We did a lot of community concerts, small amphitheaters, etc. A lot of the times, we didn't get everything off the trailer, but we had it if we needed it.
 
The worst piece of equipment was the bassist's amp in an old band. The thing weighed a ton. The handles were designed in such a way that you could never get your hands completely around the grip. It was a two person lift. One errant turn and it would twist your wrist.
 
A J said:
The worst piece of equipment was the bassist's amp in an old band. The thing weighed a ton. The handles were designed in such a way that you could never get your hands completely around the grip. It was a two person lift. One errant turn and it would twist your wrist.
Click to expand...

Ampeg 810 cabinet?
 
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Many years ago, serving in military band a school asked us to get one like this from cafeteria floor up to the stage via some steps. A few of us guys did by hand. Crazy heavy...
Sauter-Ragazza-14990-600x600.jpg
 
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No hernia-creating sound equipment for me. Just awkward timpani. In HS, we had one that was prone to tipping over! 😆
 
PorkPieGuy said:
What's the heaviest piece of gear you've had to move or help move at a gig?

No forklifts allowed!

Here is my submission. We used to haul around an old Peavey Versarray system. The sub cabs were 204 lbs each. Each mains cabinet was 65 lbs, and you have to lift them over your head to mount them.

I don't know much those amp racks weighed, but they were nothing compared to these. It sounded fantastic but it simply wasn't worth the sore backs and frustration. I loved unloading these in the gravel then having to carry them to where we were going. Ugh.

View attachment 144806
Click to expand...
Holy smokes! I can’t come close to that…victory is yours @PorkPieGuy !! :ROFLMAO: (y)
Look At This Big Time GIF by The World's Strongest Man
 
PorkPieGuy said:
Ampeg 810 cabinet?
Click to expand...
I don't remember what it was called. We referred to it as "the beast". What made matters worse is the bass player had multiple surgeries and couldn't carry his amp for a long time. We had to do it for him. We gave him a lot of grief about it. Good natured grief, of course. :)
 
Bassists in 2 different bands had an Ampeg 8x10 cabinet. Even with wheels and a handle, that thing was a beast.
 
Way back, when the piano player and I were both younger, I would help move his Helpinstill portable piano. Portable, yes, but far from lightweight. It was basically a real piano - harp & all - mounted in a road case on wheels. Maybe it was short an octave, but still suitably heavy. We had to lift it in & out of his van, sometimes up/down some steps, and onto stages of various heights if there was no ramp. Eventually he began using a few actual portable keyboards that were considerably more manageable.

For drums, I used to have a trap case with cymbals, hardware, pedal, throne, sticks & accessories. It was pretty heavy when I was younger, but seemed to gain weight as I got older. I eventually got smart and separated the stuff into 3 bags to lighten the collective load. At the same time I added a roller cart which let me move everything to/from the car in one trip. I use lightweight stands, and that bag is probably the heaviest, but easily managed in one hand with another item in the other.

Occasionally I help mount a speaker on a stand. :)
 
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