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showtec titan strobe not powering up


pigeon_boy

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Skip 3 paragraphs to get the the main issue.

 

OK So I got a showtec titan strobe... I know most guys here probably have that martin atomic 3000 but I can't afford one of them so I have to do with this knock-off. it doesn't look too bad though. It has a proper mains wall plug and not one of those big blue big-man power plugs that I can't even use. I don't even know what those plugs are called but I know it's for the serious boys.

 

ANYWAY. So using the dip switches on the back (before I bought DMX controller) I managed to get it to do some basic stuff with the manual mode, dip switch settings for speed and dimmer.... I ran it on top dimmer for s****s and giggles and it made other things in the house go crazy so I turned stopped it within a second, like everything with power in the house was struggling and the loud popping and blinding power of the strobe actually caught me off guard!! not used to strobes this powerful - I've just come from a £20 mini strobe from Maplins background hahahaha!

 

I was never happy with the speed setting, I wanted an in-between speed of 2 speeds (if that makes sense). So in comes Mr DMX, I chose a real cheapy - a chauvet dj Obey 10, it probably looks like a toy compared to the things you guys use but I'm such a novice in this game.

 

So I've got used to the basics of using DMX controllers, I had the strobe working via DMX for 10 seconds, then it just made a loud buzz noise, the strobe was holding ON for like 1 full second (like a 'Blinder' effect, except for the fact this showtec strobe doesn't even support this feature so you know it's messed up) then it just powers off. It didn't even flip down the circuit breaker on the back of the strobe.

Things I noticed were 1, it wasn't hot. 2, the tube/bulb didn't look like it was burnt out.

 

So I rested it for about 10 minutes, and luckily it came back to life, then I tried to control it with DMX again for a 2nd time and the same thing happened!

 

after that 2nd time, no more goes it seems. So yeah it won't even turn on, and by turn on I mean the fan on the back doesn't even spin. I've tried various power sources in the house too. in fact - the first time it happened it zapped my 4-way which is a shame!

Is there some safety feature inside that's not letting it turn on? the manual doesn't mention this. Just warns me not to open it unless I'm experience etc etc.

 

As it turns out I didn't have a "DMX terminator" on the strobe so I've just gone and ordered one of those! but I doubt anything DMX related could cause the strobe light to not even turn on any more.

 

Such a shame ! that strobe cost me like £200 which is a lot for me I hardly have any free money left for things I wanna buy for my hobbies.

Edited by pigeon_boy
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The manual states that the fixture power supply is 16A and the rating of the breaker fitted the same. The lamp itself is 1800W. Manual also suggests that Blinder mode is an option.

 

You sure that accidentally running at full power on blinder mode for a period hasn't cooked a tired fuse somewhere? Such as in the 'normal' plug you say it's fitted with. (Also check the rating that's been fitted in there).

 

Did you buy this new?

Edited by indyld
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OK replaced the 13a fuse and that was indeed the culprit

 

I've also got my DMX terminators so that's good

 

Question though before I even run a manual test mode on it, with the power on (and the fan going) there's like a faint clicking noise coming from it (I guess the light tube) is this something to be worried about? it's not even a constant tempo just... as random as random can be. not sure if it's a temprature thing, my room it's been in for about a week is about 6-10? degrees (when the heating isn't on) it's quite cold in the UK at the moment.

 

should I let it some how warm up a bit? ** laughs out loud ** I'm so scared of this thing it's like... I feel like it might explode in my face at any minute, serious kit for a hobbie user.

 

EDIT: just remembered you mention the blinder function... this comes without it as stock... I think you were looking at the newer "blaze" model? sadly that's become so popular that the normal titan doesn't have many google results to it.

the manual just mentions you can fit something on to it (hardware?) that lets it do blinder but that's no other information than that.

 

EDIT2: ok after about 10 minutes of leaving it on the random clicks have stopped. gonna go and test it now with the dipswitch manual mode.

 

right, it shut down again after one flash, it wasn't even very high on the dimmer setting. #5 to be exact. that's less than half!

 

looks like the new fuse I put in has blown again.

It came with a 13a fuse, maybe I need to put a 16a fuse in it instead as the manual says: Fuse 16A / 250V

 

it's not like it want it brighter than the sun, I just want it brighter than my crappy £60 party strobe.

 

doesn't make sense how it was running fine when it got it but after having it not been on for a month or so it's blowing fuses.

Edited by pigeon_boy
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Good luck finding a 16A fuse for a 13A plug BTW.

 

I really don't want to do an eBay search, because I'm scared about what I might actually find! Well of course they would have the requisite kite mark and ASTA marking (and anything else you wanted printing on there I'm sure!).

 

Oh, here we go! https://www.pat-test...s-plug-fuse.php

Edited by kgallen
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I know some one who might be able to take a look at it.

 

as for the fuse, I've just read on the plug that it says 'don't exceed 13a fuse' so ummmm,yeah guess I better not then.

I'll keep you all updated, my only guess is something got too cold/damp. the bulb clearly still works.

Edited by pigeon_boy
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as for the fuse, I've just read on the plug that it says 'don't exceed 13a fuse' so ummmm,yeah guess I better not then.

 

Please, please tell me you already recognised that a 13A connector has a 13A limit and the fitting of a "16A BS1362" fuse clearly doesn't stack up and that finding such items on eBay does not make it ok.

 

 

 

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Regarding your original comment about it working for a while but then stopping and having to wait a while this sounds quite normal to me. Pretty much all strobes (including Martin Atomic 3000's) cannot manage continuous output and the manual does say this. Typically they will gradually reduce intensity if you keep firing until you give them time to recover. This isn't restricted to continuous 'blinder' effects.

 

They also often require a lot of power. Looking at the specs the supply for this should be 16A. Perfectly normal for professional use but more than the 13A maximum from domestic UK plugs. I would guess that the 13A fuse in your plug got too hot and finally blew. This is good as it did it's job. Are you sure you replaced it with another 13A fuse? I would expect it to manage on a lower dimmer setting/slower flash rate but maybe not. If it definitely was a 13A fuse then it's possible it was bad and failed prematurely. This can happen. You can probably safely try again with another 13A fuse and be careful with the dimmer/rate settings (start with them at zero) but bottom line is you really need to use these in a professional environment where there are 16A supplies.

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as for the fuse, I've just read on the plug that it says 'don't exceed 13a fuse' so ummmm,yeah guess I better not then.

 

Please, please tell me you already recognised that a 13A connector has a 13A limit and the fitting of a "16A BS1362" fuse clearly doesn't stack up and that finding such items on eBay does not make it ok.

 

 

 

 

yep don't worry, I soon realised putting a 16a fuse in would jeopardize the whole thing.

 

Here's some pics of the fuses I used

the one that actually says 13A is the fuse that came with the strobe

the ones underneith are ones I took out of other things around the house, they just say 3A on them, I assume they are actually 13A but didn't have room on it to put the whole 13.

anyway these are all blown know.

fuses.jpg

 

 

here's a pic of the actual power plug (proper chunky one)

power-sup.jpg

 

and here's proof I was running it on a very low dimmer setting, speed was quite fast though but that shouldn't effect the watts coming into it. (dipswitch #9 just means test mode ON basically)

 

dipswitches.jpg

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