Building the Perfect ZÜCA Sound Cart: Insights of John Rönnerblad

Meet John Rönnerblad, a production sound mixer from the south of Sweden, working under his company Monoklang. With a background in music and radio sound engineering, John found his passion in the television and movie industry. As his work evolved, he realized the need for a compact and lightweight sound cart that could handle the demands of his profession. He decided to go for a ZÜCA cart and turned it into his perfect sound cart. ZÜCA carts are known for their strong frame to which you can add different parts. In this interview, John shares his experiences and insights on building the perfect ZÜCA sound cart!

How did you get the idea to turn the ZÜCA cart into a sound cart?

“During the years I’ve seen some script supervisors and make-up artists rolling around with their ZÜCA carts. But I never thought of turning a ZÜCA into a sound cart until a friend of mine showed me his. So I decided to make one as well. It started out as a simple bag cart but evolved pretty quickly to a sophisticated sound mixer workstation that retained the essential features of my previous cart but in a lighter and more compact form.”

Where to start building your own cart?

“The ZÜCA cart is a pretty easy cart to modify. I need a sound cart for all environments, so I went for the All-terrain ZÜCA cart. The wheel base, the rigid frame and the bag itself are the parts I value the most. There is a Facebook group where professionals share their knowledge and ideas to build the perfect ZÜCA sound cart. A great way of getting inspired or to inspire other people. My cart has developed from something very simple to a complex dream of mine. Many pieces are custom made and fabricated at a local workplace. But there are so many ways of modifying a ZÜCA, it can be done fairly easily and cheaply.”

What is the best addition to your cart?

“Difficult question, but since the first modification has made everything else possible that must be the best addition. The frame of the ZÜCA has a diameter of 2 cm and m6 bolt holding the cart together. I cut these tubes 5cm from the bottom and exchanged these for the OpenBuilds v-slot 2020 extrusions. Now that this was the back piece of the cart, all other parts and modifications could be done without any drilling and doing permanent damage to the ZÜCA. Making my ZÜCA cart height adjustable is the second best modification. To be able to stand behind my cart from time to time is amazing.”

Where do you buy all the extra parts?

“My parts come from different places, but to name a few of them: the 2020/2040/C-beam extrusions and accessories come from OpenBuild that I have bought from Makersupplies in Denmark. Tubes, rods, handles, clamps, hinges and other mechanical parts are from Elesa. And all the shelves, brackets and drawers are done by myself but fabricated and powder coated at local workshops. The wheels are from Haco Tellus. Folding brackets and the 12v worm gear motor are from Amazon.”

What are your best tips for optimizing the cart for your profession?

“Go slow. Read and search the forums and ask all the questions. And by knowing the needs you would make fewer mistakes and that leads to an overall cheaper, a more well planned and better cart. Since we all use different gear we might need different carts. So optimizing it for you and by yourself is the key. Also, cart building is fun.”

Curious about the All terrain ZÜCA cart and accessories? Discover our collection here.

Sharing is caring! Check out the Facebook group here.