Your capability to record sound hinges strongly on the ability of your equipment to function when on the set. Having the best of gear, but not being able to make it work, is frustrating and career damaging. There are no apologies nor excuses run under the dailies! Bottom line is that the Sound Mixer is responsible for checking each and every piece of gear that is earmarked for the shoot. Every recorder, every microphone, every accessory, every adapter cable, and every mic line must be checked with the same care and concern that a skydiver employs with his parachute.
Do not assume that because the equipment is coming from a rental facility (or studio sound department) that it has been checked. Rental technicians are generally underpaid, undertrained, and in a hurry. They don’t care! For them, the worst that can happen is that they will have to deduct an item or two from your rental bill.
Also, rental techs and many sound people make the error of checking items individually, but not cross-checking them. All of the mics may work when bench tested, but may not work when used with a particular battery supply or mixing panel. Other mics may work with the one power supply packaged with them, but not with other supplies in your kit.
Plug everything into everything to insure complete compatibility and interchangeability.
Be extremely careful to verify the contents of your rental contract. Make sure that no items that you originally ordered were forgotten or overlooked.
Double check to make sure that you do, in fact, have everything that the contract lists you as receiving. Be especially careful to log all of the misc. accessories, such as lavalier mounting clips, foam windscreens, adapters, cables, etc. Otherwise, you might find yourself being billed for all of the “missing pieces” that normally go out with a mic (but did not go out with yours!).
Allow sufficient time to prep your equipment.
Plan to prep and pick-up your equipment at least one half-day prior to the shoot itself
(For students taking Fred's class: memorize this advice! You will be tested on it!)
For one thing, you will need ample time to check through everything. But in the event that you do discover a malfunction, the rental house may not have a replacement ready to go. If they need to sub-rent a replacement unit, or repair the broken one -- that half-day buffer provides the time frame to do it!
Never leave the rental house without checking everything. Not only is it unprofessional to show up on the set with equipment that you can’t make work, but you are economically liable for everything on the rental contract. Anything missing or damaged can be billed to you the moment the equipment cases go out the door!
The Sound Mixer, personally, should prep the gear. If a production company driver is to transport the equipment from the rental house, make sure that you have prepped everything in advance of the pick-up. Sealing the cases isn’t a bad idea, either.