Distro builds & rentals — the right tool for the right amp draw.

The rental fleet, in plain English

We carry eight distros that go out as rentals. The flagship is a Motion Labs PD-48, a 400 A head-end with 48 output circuits, twin Cam-Lok pass-through (so a second distro can be daisy-chained for double the output capacity), and a phase-rotation indicator on the front face. It sits in a 23U road case on locking casters and weighs eight hundred and forty pounds with cables coiled and the case lid on; we move it with a two-person lift and a stair-climber dolly when stairs are unavoidable.

Underneath the PD-48 we have four PD-24s, which take a 200 A Cam-Lok input and break to 24 outputs in the same connector mix. The PD-24 is the everyday workhorse — most tours under arena scale need exactly one head-end and one or two PD-24s. The Lex BNCB-12 is a 100 A 12-output rack-mount we use for audio-isolated builds and for OB-van applications where we’re feeding monitors at FOH from a back-of-house tie-in. The DB-400s are utility distros from Lex Products that take 100 A through stage pin and break to Edison for festival applications.

The bespoke builds, in the bay

We build custom distros in the bay against tour-specific requirements that the rental fleet can’t meet. The lead-time is four weeks from signed advance to delivered case; the price is between $8,400 (a 60-A roadcase with stage pin in and twelve Edison out) and $32,000 (a 400-A head-end with hybrid Socapex output, isolated tech bus, and front-panel current metering). Builds are listed against UL 1640¹ as portable power distribution; we file a copy of the build certificate with the production manager at delivery.

The most common bespoke is a 200-A sub-distro with an isolated technical bus for broadcast audio — a job we’ve done seven times for NPR Music’s Tiny Desk field-recording crew and three times for NEP Group’s OB vans on the Music City Center side. The isolated bus is fed through a Powerstax isolation transformer (5 kVA, 120 V to 120 V, 1:1), single-point grounded at the case lug, with a green-yellow strap from case ground to the venue’s isolated tech-ground bar. We add a TVSS module (Eaton SPD3) inline on every isolated bus.

Phase rotation, every time

Before any distro closes a breaker, we phase-rotate at the input. A Fluke 9040 reads the rotation and the result goes on a label on the case lid. ABC is normal; CBA means we’re flipping at the head-end. The label stays on through the show. If the venue’s tie-in changes between load-in days (it has, twice — once at Bridgestone after a switchgear maintenance, once at TPAC after a panel rebuild), we re-phase and update the label.

The phase-rotation test is also where we catch venues that have a high-leg (a wild-leg 240 Δ) supplied at a panel that was labeled 208 Y. We have refused to tie in once, on a fairground gig in 2021 — the venue’s electrician swore the panel was 208 Y, the meter said it was 240 Δ, and we sent the crew home until the venue could provide an actual 208 Y feeder. We did not get paid for the day. We do not regret it. NFPA 70E’s arc-flash boundary calculation depends on knowing the source voltage; you can’t do PPE selection if you don’t know which transformer you’re downstream of.

GFCI on every public-access

NEC 525.23 requires GFCI protection on every receptacle supplying entertainment temporary equipment used outdoors or in carnivals, fairs, and similar events.² We carry inline GFCI modules in 20 A and 30 A flavors and we apply them at the distro output. For NEC 525 outdoor work, every public-accessible receptacle has GFCI. For Article 520 theater work, the rule applies to dressing rooms and any AV station within reach of the audience. We follow the stricter rule when the two overlap.

We do not GFCI-protect inverter-driven motors (chain hoists, follow-spot servos), per NEC 525.23(B) Exception. The harmonic distortion from the VFD trips a GFCI nuisance, and the standard contemplates the exception. We do, however, double-check the chain motor’s ground continuity at the rigging hand-off, which is a P-04 task.

Inventory of output families

• Edison NEMA 5-15 — fixtures under 15 A. Standard utility receptacle on every distro.
• NEMA L5-20 — twist-lock 20 A circuits for moving fixtures, follow-spots, and any 20 A draw that needs lock-down.
• NEMA L6-30 — 208 V single-phase, 30 A twist-lock; used for larger fixtures and consoles that draw 30 A at 208.
• NEMA L21-30 — 208 Y/120 4-pole 5-wire 30 A; used for portable racks of audio gear.
• Socapex 19-pin — six 20 A circuits in one connector, used for lighting bars and motor-control feeds.
• Stage pin (3-pin) — 20 A non-locking, used for legacy theater fixtures and intercom-station drops.
• powerCON True1 — 32 A locking power connector used for audio amplifier racks; we adapter at the output, never field-modify the connector.

When a distro is the wrong tool

If the show needs less than 60 A of total branch service — a small acoustic set in a 200-seat room, a daytime panel discussion, a streaming-only field recording — we recommend a portable PD-12 or a venue’s house panel. We will not deliver a 400 A distro to a job that needs 40 A because the cost-of-delivery is wrong for the buyer. Conversely, if the show is at arena scale (700 A and above) we run multiple PD-24s under a PD-48 head-end rather than a single oversize distro; the redundancy is worth the case count.

The other wrong-tool case is when the venue refuses to allow a portable distro on the floor at all — some operatic theaters and most historic-listed venues require house-only power. We refer those to the venue’s in-house engineer or to Gobo Tech for the local sub-contract.

Lead time, price, and the way to book

Rental lead time is five working days for any distro out of the standing fleet; rentals roll out on Wednesdays for weekend shows and on Mondays for weekday runs. Build lead time is four weeks from signed advance — that includes shop fabrication, UL listing review, hipot test, factory acceptance burn-in, and delivery on a pallet to the production manager.

Price banding: rental from $425 (a single PD-12 for the weekend) to $2,800 (the PD-48 head plus two PD-24s for a five-day run). Build from $8,400 (small UL-listed) to $32,000 (full custom 400 A head-end with isolated bus). For booking, see /advance/.