#59 - What's in my ProAudio gig bag? 💼🤔 - 2017

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Visit www.dcsoundop.com/dcsound-shop/ for links to the items featured in this video and other tools I carry regularly.
Things I use that viewers order the most:
Jackery Battery Charger - amzn.to/2tSiWqU
Tascam DR-05 Recorder Kit - amzn.to/2uw6pHT
Stanley Proto PZ-1 Pozidrive Screwdriver - amzn.to/2tXb9cg
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2017-07-06 - In this video I go through my bag and show you what I've been carrying regularly these past few months as I work both at home and on the road.
If you enjoy these videos and would like to support the channel, join me over on Patreon - / dcsoundop

[@michael_caz_nyc]

Great stuff. Very thorough & complete. I'd possibly add: "assorted" batteries, wet-wipes, and electrical tape.

[@BLADEOF4]

Great video! For the medicine, I keep mine in an altoids tin to keep them all together and protected, instead of throwing it in the bottom of my bag.

[@joshblair8344]

Love the Video! keep it up. I'm bout 3 years into my freelance career and its going well. your videos are full of useful information. thank you for taking the time to make them!

[@KernRamsdell]

The (perhaps) most important item I noticed is your marking system. I thought I was clever for using green tape to identify all of my gear/cabling until I worked with a band that also used green tape. Your red on yellow system is a great idea. You might just be the only person working in the field with a double color mark. I also should point out I live in Maine where the lobster boats all use different color schemes on their gear/buoys. Great videos and thanks for sharing your ideas and views. This takes a lot of hard work and hours of time, so thank you!

[@DcSoundOp]

Thanks for the message! I try to keep up with keeping my gear marked, mostly so I don't leave it behind accidentally when I'm in a rush. Lots of broadcast TV guys I've worked with use similar multi-color codes to tell their gear apart. Here in DC, ENG work can look a lot like commercial fishing... lots of gear in the water and no one really knows what they're going to catch. Thanks for watching the videos though, I'm subscribed to your channel and hope you keep making more videos too. It can be hard some weeks to find the time.

[@RobertLinthicum]

Liked and subscribed. This is great but I do not miss D.C. At all.

[@lukejackman3802]

always packing light but prepared

[@danvondrasek]

Ever try finger-less gloves? When I worked in AV, doing warehouse and field gigs, I found for me that finger-less gloves with padded knuckle guards were the best.

[@jasonstarr6023]

Great video, awesome gig bag! But what about gaff tape, board tape and most important...Sharpie?

[@QuIaTcHoN29]

you should do a gig bag update 2018 to see what stayed and went

[@DcSoundOp]

Hey Aaron - thanks for the message! I'll def. do an update here soon!

[@martinekdahl1740]

Great video! Inspiering as always. I'm a rookie sound guy from Sweden. What was taped to the back of your power bank? (Sorry for my spelling)

[@DcSoundOp]

Hey Martin, thanks for the message! Right now there are just a few small strips of black gaff on it from the last gig... it's always handy to have some short strips on hand for tidying up lavalier mic cables and things like that, so I tend to save them. On the other side is a sticky all-access pass for the baseball stadium here, from a gig a few weeks ago. I just stuck it on there to save it until I got home. Thanks for watching!

[@Jon6sic6]

Do you ever have trouble with customs in airports with the contents of your bag? And would you use this bag as your carry on? I was going to do some touring gigs and have been checking out people gig bags, but was curious if I would be able to take things such as c-wrenches, leatherman, and Allen wrenches along with similar stuff you included in your video. Either way. Thanks for sharing! Just subscribed.

[@DcSoundOp]

Hey, thanks for the message! I absolutely do fly with this bag (just got back from a domestic trip last week & head out on an international trip this weekend) and I just pull the restricted items like leather-man and knives out prior to flying. Just to be clear, Customs doesn't typically have an interest in things like tools (be SURE to declare them) in your bags, that is a security (TSA here in the states) question, and may differ depending on where you are flying to and from. Beyond items like food, plants and large quantities of cuban cigars or cash, customs in my experience couldn't care less what is in your bags as long as you don't try to hide anything. To be honest though, I don't really do the type of work where I need to have those tools in a carry-on personally. If you were doing a tour where you're 100% self contained, it might be different, but I'd imagine you'd be checking pelicans anyway where you could stow the restricted items rather than going through security with them. The companies I work for are typically shipping or trucking the gear, tools, workboxes etc on ahead of the crew, and in the rare situations where I can't put something on the truck ahead of time, it's easy enough to check a bag or pelican and avoid taking it through security. If you have a serious need for your tools on a gig, I don't think paying the checked bag fee is too crazy, especially as you should be able to bill that on to the client without any issues. Even since I made this video last year, I've cut down more on what I carry on my person when traveling. It's just so much easier to send questionable or heavy items on ahead, I take advantage of it whenever I can these days.

[@freddielatham-coyle7484]

HI man, do you still take your Peli out with you on some gigs? If so could you do a video on whats in that! Cheers

[@collinjklein]

How were you able to install windows on a flash drive? Because I can't figure out how to do it

[@krisheist8760]

Have you replaced the laser range unit yet? If so, what did you buy. I have a Hilti wcurrently. Looking to upgrade...

[@justinthums149]

Hey, you mentioned you worked for a bunch of different sound companies, as a student looking to go down your line of work, what companies do you work for, and do you have any advice for someone starting out?

[@DcSoundOp]

I think one of the best things I can suggest is to work a bit outside your comfort zone in the field, and see what you really like.There are a ton of different audio related fields, with everything from freelance to full on government salaries to get into. I love the diversity, but lots of folks branch out & find one thing they really love. Look around your area online for audio jobs that are not whatever you're doing now, not sure where you are, but you might find something really interesting you never knew existed.

[@abecoulter18]

whats in these work boxes...im starting my own company and looking for recomendations on how to set one up

[@DcSoundOp]

Hey Abe, not sure how I missed this question until now. Work boxes vary quite a bit, but are usually stocked with whatever expendables and tools you know you'll need on every job you do. For some folks that can be audio tools and other companies get pretty deep into hand tools and things like that. It all depends on what you find yourself using a lot on the job. The best ones include plenty of different tapes, tie line, adapters basic hand and electric tools (think heavy or sharp ones your crew might not be able to carry in their bags passed security) - things like a first aid kit, some basic pain killers, allergy medicine and anything else you might need to keep your crew safe like hand warmers or a small fold up camping tarp for unexpected situations where you need to cover things up fast. I hope that helps and again, sorry for the slow response.

[@stanleyjr5665]

Where did you get the north face rain jacket?

[@DcSoundOp]

Hey Stanley, I buy most of my gear like that at REI these days. I'm not affiliate with them at all, but if you join as a member for like $20, you get a dividend credit back every so often. I think it's like 10% back, so it adds up over the course of a year. Love that place & if you can wait for a sale, you can get great stuff from last season at really affordable prices. Thanks for the question & for watching!

[@wallewaltz]

Hello I just want to ask a very simple question and I hope you get to see this! Right now I'm using a very old Trust microphone and somehow I just wanted to start making this youtube cover thing and I don't think that I'm getting good quality. So I wonder if you know a nice quality (not like meh, like good good quality) and kind of cheap microphone for singing? Not over 50 dollars around 25-50. Cause I don't want to splurge on a microphone but I always do record my voice. Thank you already :)

[@DcSoundOp]

Hmm, although your question might seem simple, there isn't much of anything in this business that is 'good good quality' for $25-50. I would be looking for used mics for sure in that price range, but that comes with it's own set of risks. If you're only using it at home, I might look at a used Audio Technica AT2020 - if you need to use it in Live settings also, I'd probably be looking for a used Shure SM-58. Unfortunately, buying used sm-58's on eBay is risky, as there are a fair amount of fakes floating around out there that are simply junk. If you can save up a bit more and spend $100, your options open up a bit on the used market, or you can just get a new 58 that will last you a lifetime.