Members RadiationNation Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 Hey, my band is looking at starting to build a lighting system, and after several hours of reading stuff about lighting online and scratching my head in confusion, I decided just to go with a small package deal (four par 56s, a chase controller and stand), two Chauvet Mushrooms, an American DJ Fog Storm 1200HD, and another light stand. Basically just wondering if this should be enough to start out with to be built on later. We don't need anything to powerful or fancy right now, basically just a few changing colors on the band and a couple of rotating effects for the dance floor. Anyway, just wondering if this is all I need and should suit our purposes before I order it. Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members burdizzos Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 That will work, but you should probably focus on lighting up the band before getting into effects lighting and fog. 4 Par 56 cans will do a mediocre job of lighting the band. One tree on either side would do a much better job, but the coverage is going to be less than perfect and those cans get crazy hot. The dollar amount for the stuff you listed is in the $550 neighborhood. A Chauvet Stage Wash 950 pack would give you more options and expandability for $400, but you're going to run into the same issue with heat and power consumption. If you can swing it, go for an LED setup. It costs more, but there are more options and you never have to worry about tripping a breaker. I can run my entire band, PA and light rig on one 15 amp breaker. I don't like to do it and I avoid it if at all possible, but I have done it without problems. 4 Par 56 can consume 1200 watts, that's roughly 2/3s of a 15 amp circuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BillESC Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 He's absolutely on target. With the advancements in LED technology there are few good reasons to go with Pars. Four LED fixtures, two per side will give you thousands of color combinations which is a lot more interesting than the four colors Pars will allow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members burdizzos Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 The trouble is initial investment. I have close to $1500 in my lighting rig and that's more than most people want to spend on a PA. My band sounds better and looks better than most other acts in the area because I have the money to do things correctly. Most people who are trying to get a band going don't have the cash on hand to do it that way. 4 Colorsplash 200Bs will do a good job of throwing some light on a band, they can be set to work as stand alone units until the user can afford a controller. The ColorStrips look even better. I'm curious to see how those do when Z-X eventually gets his. The difference in a stage lit up with two trees of par cans and a stage lit up with two trees of LEDs is night and day. I'm using 4 CS200Bs and 8 CSJRs and I can get all kinds of different looks. Par cans are very limiting in both appearance and power consumption. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Zeromus-X Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 If you can swing it, go for an LED setup. It costs more, but there are more options and you never have to worry about tripping a breaker. I can run my entire band, PA and light rig on one 15 amp breaker. I don't like to do it and I avoid it if at all possible, but I have done it without problems. 4 Par 56 can consume 1200 watts, that's roughly 2/3s of a 15 amp circuit. Just don't try to run four Intimidators, a tree of effects lighting, and a couple subwoofer amps on one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jwlussow Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 Would one ColorStrip on a tree on each side of the stage replace 4 CS196s per tree? These would just be used as washes because I have Intimidator Colors for spot and contrast use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RadiationNation Posted November 13, 2007 Author Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 That will work, but you should probably focus on lighting up the band before getting into effects lighting and fog. 4 Par 56 cans will do a mediocre job of lighting the band. One tree on either side would do a much better job, but the coverage is going to be less than perfect and those cans get crazy hot. The dollar amount for the stuff you listed is in the $550 neighborhood. A Chauvet Stage Wash 950 pack would give you more options and expandability for $400, but you're going to run into the same issue with heat and power consumption. If you can swing it, go for an LED setup. It costs more, but there are more options and you never have to worry about tripping a breaker. I can run my entire band, PA and light rig on one 15 amp breaker. I don't like to do it and I avoid it if at all possible, but I have done it without problems. 4 Par 56 can consume 1200 watts, that's roughly 2/3s of a 15 amp circuit. I guess I should have explained our situation a little more. Basically, we're the house band for my parents' bar, which means although power is an issue, it's not a huge issue since when we find a setup that works for us, we should be set every time we play. Also, I almost want to say that the focus isn't even really on the band, but rather the dance floor, so having kind of weak lights on the band wouldn't be a big deal for now (we play with nothing but the neon beer signs on us right now). The plan is to start with something that I can expand later. Also, I'd love to get just a set of LEDs, but like you said, there's quite a bit of initial investment (and it doesn't really pay off until you get a bunch of them, which for me would probably be a while). I'm pretty sure I'm stuck going the par can route for now. Thanks for the replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RadiationNation Posted November 13, 2007 Author Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 I guess I've got another question, lol. If I bought a couple of these instead of the par cans, would that be in the same neighborhood in terms of brightness (assuming they were both on at the same time)? Also, would they be a good investment? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BillESC Posted November 13, 2007 Members Share Posted November 13, 2007 The Colorsplash 200B's were exactly what I was thinking of when I posted. One from each side would serve you well as a start. For the dance floor you might want to consider the Elan from chauvet, it's a lot of bang and coverage for the buck. Here's a link to a video of it in action.http://www.chauvetlighting.com/flash/elanfinal.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BBDrums Posted November 14, 2007 Members Share Posted November 14, 2007 Ive got 8 par 38's (4 each side) on tree's, if I would be to add a 200B on each side or a jr led on each, that would color the stage better? Even with no DMX yet? Just wanted to know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members burdizzos Posted November 14, 2007 Members Share Posted November 14, 2007 Just don't try to run four Intimidators, a tree of effects lighting, and a couple subwoofer amps on one. No kidding, I blame the intimidators. Although, I'm still not sure how that happened. I think Mike moved an extension cord after I had everything set up, or it could be that I was just a dumbass. Either is possible. Back on topic. If it's going to be a permanent install and cash is an issue, just get the Chauvet Stage Wash 950 Package. Then you can add a couple of Chauvet Mushrooms and a couple of Derbys for the dance floor area. Just make sure you put the Stage Washes on their own circuit and the effects lights on their own circuit. This will provide good stage lighting and add some action to the dance floor. Add a fogger later on to make the effects lights really pop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members burdizzos Posted November 14, 2007 Members Share Posted November 14, 2007 Ive got 8 par 38's (4 each side) on tree's, if I would be to add a 200B on each side or a jr led on each, that would color the stage better? Even with no DMX yet? Just wanted to know. A pair of CSJRs aren't going to do much for you unless you play in a really dark rooms. The 200Bs would definitely be an improvement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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