More About Us

Sound Hire as a business was established in 1990 by the present owner Joe Mitchell who started trading from home in the village of Kirkby Fleetham near Northallerton in North Yorkshire here in the UK.

Having had around 10 years previous experience of designing and operating Theatre Lighting, Pyrotechnics and Sound Reinforcement Systems for a couple of local Drama Groups as well as providing Conference Sound for a local NHS Hospital along with other interested parties which included local Flower Clubs and the WI etc enough interest had by then been generated to establish a new business. And so Sound Hire began…

For the first 7 years it was run part time as more of a hobby if you like as I already owned and operated an award winning high street shop in a completely different line of business. By 1997 I moved on from the shop and Sound Hire became a full time business.

In addition to the local work mentioned above word got around and other amateur drama groups further afield began asking for equipment I provided along with an acoustic engineer to operate it so out I went on my travels. Soon some professional users came on board and though the nature of the business had changed over time it still retained that friendly helpful approach.

By the early 2000’s things really began to move forward and getting to know more people within the industry was a big help. “You’re never too old to learn especially in this industry” a really good contact who worked right at the top of the industry with some of the worlds best performers once told me. That’s what really got me personally into Radio Microphone Systems as I wanted to pick a specialist area and having a family history of Musical Theatre kind of pointed me in this direction.

My Grandmother was a professional actress and performed lead rolls in the West End and my Mother was a very good amateur who took many lead rolls herself before later becoming a Director/Producer. I never fancied acting but still loved everything Theatre so I became a technician.

Today some 30 years on from the birth of Sound Hire we provide some high quality Sound Reinforcement Systems using some of the same Loudspeaker Systems as used on both Broadway and West End productions and yet this grade of equipment can be surprisingly affordable considering what you are getting.

However as mentioned above today we specialise in the supply of discrete “Headset & In Hair” type Radio Microphone Systems for all forms of Drama & Musical Theatre Productions as well as Lapel Microphones being available for the likes of Conferences etc. We can supply budget to professional high end Microphones in a variety of colours to match various skin tones or simply to blend into costumes etc. These are supplied as part of our Radio Microphone System packages which also include Cabling and standard PMSE Licensing..

We have for quite some time now been working with some manufacturers of this type of equipment helping on the development of future products so we have a little more hands on experience of this particular line of products we offer which we feel allows us to recommend the best possible solutions for various budgets for both Hire & Sales too.

Today we have around 200 Radio Microphone Systems available for Hire and this stock level keeps on growing due to a continuous growth in demand year on year.

Over the past 30 years we have provided equipment for use on events attended by heads of state such as Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and Nelson Mandela as well as some notable MP’s, Olympians and other well known Sports people along with many a TV personality and Thespian.

Affordable High Quality

The aim of the service we provided in 1990 just as it is today is to provide affordable high quality Sound Reinforcement Systems using some of the latest available environmentally friendly technology. These products include various Audio Mixers, Microphones, Loudspeakers and Power Amplifiers etc along with our customised Radio Microphone Systems and other associated Audio equipment. This equipment selection now also includes some of the latest LED Stage Lighting. Don’t forget we not only supply all this type of equipment for “Hire” but also for “Sale” as well.

Please look around our website and if you don’t see what you are looking for then please get in touch and we will do our best to give you a great price on the product in question.

Joe Mitchell
Founder & Owner of the Business