9/5/08 - Sound System Jr.

So my "Sound System Jr." arrived today. It's even smaller than I thought... I've been using a Fender Passport 250 watt system for the past four years, and while that has been great for all of the shows I've needed it for, the necessity for another sound system became apparent during my trip to Montana in July. The airlines have instituted a new policy whereby you get only one free checked piece of luggage, and any other piece is $25, and any piece of luggage over 50 lbs. is a $75 charge (each way). When I put my Passport 250 on the scale and it came up at 52.5 lbs., I realized that I might need something else to travel with. Thankfully, I had bought those tickets before that policy changed, so I was only charged $25 each way for that. But going forward, the same exact luggage configuration would cost $100 each way. Considering I have at least a few air trips coming up, it made sense to get a system under 50 lbs.

I shopped around and ended up going with the Passport's younger sibling, a 150 watt version that weighs only 28 lbs. It's almost, but probably not quite small enough to be a carry-on. 150 watts might not be enough for some of the larger auditorium and park shows that I do (sound systems are usually provided for those, anyway), but it should be plenty for schools and libraries and most other venues. I'll probably end up using this one for most things now, whether I'm flying or not, just because it's easier to haul around. It looks cooler, too, with the black color, though the round control knobs are still kind of dorky...

We've been working a lot on the "Blackbeard..." video, and that's coming along well. You can see a still of Yellowbird, the parrot, below...