Free party setup - advice for our rig please!?

[jibba]

Easy,

I'm planning a small sand dune rave this weekend and we've hired a generator for the job. We'll be using a laptop and controller, mixer and speakers with inbuilt amps, and some lighting too.

Now I've heard from the guy who's helped organise it that the shop owner who hired out the generator reckons we shouldn't use certain types of electrical equipment with the genee as the power fluctuates and surges, therefore potentially causing problems and possible damage to the eletrics such as my laptop. Is this likely with a small generator? Or is the guy who is helping organise just trying to get me out of playing my kind of music (he's been trying to persude me to use just an ipod with the setup - old man prefers rock & roll and doesn't see the benefit of having a DJ for the party!)?

If the power does surge, would I just need to use a power board with surge protection for the leads, or will that completely cut the power out if we get a surge? Though I'm not sure it would matter as the laptop could then rely on battery power until the power resets itself?

Anyway as you may have guessed, I've not done this before so any advice from regular free party/pirate radio heads on generator & rig setups would be much appreciated!

Peas
ps apologies for the repost in the production forum, I just figured more people visit here and I've only got a day to sort this!

[oddy]

your be fine... what size genny is it??? just dont forget extra petrol!!

[blinx420]

[Osario]

so what you're saying is, you're going to be playing dubstep... in the dunes? i'm liking this coincidence

[8022]

Eggtek ?

[jibba]

so what you're saying is, you're going to be playing dubstep... in the dunes? i'm liking this coincidence

I'm actually in the middle of Australia! The party went off eventually...despite some bad organising on the part of the guy who hired it leaving the generator ignition key in his van whilst he went off to collect more people. Still; bonfires, lots of dubstep, sand dunes, a bit of D&B, a pinky orange sunrise, no uninvited wankers, plenty of techno, no police interuptions - happy days!