Sound system rental without a DJ: the guide for individuals

“A sound system”: three different things

The term covers three offers that do not have the same content. The first is speakers on their own: they play what you send them, nothing more. Active speakers have their amplifier built in, so you just plug them into the mains and a source.

The second, often called a “full sound system”, adds a mixing desk, one or two microphones, sometimes a subwoofer and the cables to connect everything. This is what you need for speeches, karaoke or several sources at once.

The third is a service: someone brings the equipment, sets it up, adjusts it and stays during the party. It is priced by quote and goes beyond equipment rental.

Fox Rider rents the first: speakers, without a mixing desk, without a subwoofer, without lighting and without a technician; a Shure SM58 microphone can be added as an option, €5 per microphone per rental (two at most), XLR cable supplied and microphone stand free of charge: it plugs straight into the Soundboks 4, while with the RCF pair it goes through the Pioneer XDJ-RX3 console. Knowing which category your party falls into avoids booking too much, or too little.

Without a DJ, who handles the music?

Without a DJ, the music comes from a phone or a computer. Four precautions avoid silences and unpleasant surprises:

• download the playlist to listen offline: the network in a hall or in a garden full of people often drops at the worst moment;
• turn on crossfade between tracks, if your app offers it, to avoid gaps;
• turn off notifications, or switch to airplane mode once the playlist is downloaded: a ringtone through the speakers is heard by everyone;
• plug the phone into a charger for the whole evening.

Then appoint one person who keeps control of the volume and the playlist. A volume that rises in steps over the evening works better than a volume set loud from the aperitif, and song requests reach a single person more calmly than a phone passed from hand to hand.

If a friend knows how to mix, the Pioneer XDJ-RX3 console can also be rented: it reads a USB key and connects to the speakers. The party then has its DJ, an amateur one, and the playlist question is settled differently.

With or without a socket: two formats

If there is a socket near where the music plays, the RCF ART 912-A pair of speakers suits a hall or an equipped garden: two active speakers on stands, one mains socket per speaker, XLR and jack inputs. It has no Bluetooth: a phone connects to it with a suitable cable, as detailed in the article connecting your phone to speakers without Bluetooth. The stands and covers are provided, and the XLR or RCA to RCA cables are ticked at booking.

Without a socket, in a park, by the water or at the bottom of a garden, it is the battery-powered Soundboks 4 speaker: a single speaker, placed on the ground, which the phone joins by Bluetooth or by a mini-jack cable. Soundboks states 40 hours of battery life at medium volume and 6 hours at full volume, and a spare battery is available as an option.

To decide according to your party, the article battery-powered speaker or wired pair compares the two formats point by point: venue, source, transport, number of speakers.

What to bring

The rental covers the speakers; the rest is up to you. Before the day, check these points:

• the source: phone or computer, charged, with the playlist downloaded;
• the cable between the source and the speakers, if you are not using the Soundboks Bluetooth;
• an extension cord and a power strip if the sockets are far away, for the RCF pair;
• a microphone if someone has to speak, and a way to mix it with the music: a Shure SM58 and its stand can be taken as an option, and the Pioneer XDJ-RX3 console has two microphone inputs;
• a car for transport: 39 kg for the RCF pair without the stands, 16.1 kg for the Soundboks.

Booking and picking up in Lyon 3

The rental lasts from 1 to 7 days. The price depends on the duration and is shown on the page as soon as you choose your dates. Pickup and return are done by hand in Lyon 3, every day from 9 am to 8 pm, by appointment; the exact address is given to you at confirmation. There is no delivery or shipping.

At pickup, show an ID: a copy is kept during the rental, then deleted 30 days after it ends. The security deposit, whose amount is shown on the page, is paid on the spot at handover and returned to you after a check on return, if the equipment is returned in good condition. The equipment is checked with you at departure and at return.

See speaker rental in Lyon