CHIPS Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 I suppose the director insisting on a strobe comes to everyone in time - she wants that old movie look and my experiments with a flash gun suggest 16fps but how much power do I need for a typical school hall stage ? I'd like to trigger the effect (control freak yeah) from the rear of the hall - had planned to put a channel on on/off switch from the desk but see warnings on here about blowing dimmers. Recommendations and advice very welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Hmmm... In theory, I suppose you COULD turn the mains on to a strobe via a dimmer with a switch setting, or a DMX switch pack BUT I wouldn't recommend it as yes some strobes can give a pretty high kick-back on the mains which can damage the dimmers. The best (and most appropriate) way of starting a strobe is to use a slave unit and a pukka controller. You can get analogue (which means you need to run a control cable back to the strobe, and if you want to control it, that has to go back to your desk position) or a DMX controller, in which case you can pick up DMX from the nearest point and locally mount the pack near the strobe. As for the flash rate, that can really only be ascertained by trial and error on site with your director. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHIPS Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 Tell me more about "pukka controller". I can certainly chain the demux cable. Best to buy a made to measure control box or are there generic offerings ? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul_R Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Check on your strobe unit, most have two sockets, Control In and Out.Normally these are 0-10v control and are 6.3mm mono jack sockets.Check the specification of your strobe unit. If thats the case something like this *:-http://www.thomann.de/gb/botex_strobe_controller.htm Might fit the bill, you leave power connected to the strobe, and run a cable from the strobe back to the controller.If you want to run more than one strobe, you 'daisy chain' from the strobe units. i.e.Controller <-> Strobe <-> Strobe As Ynot has already suggested there are DMX versions of the strobe controller, so you can then run the strobe control from your lighting desk, rather than the manual control. *No specific recommendation, just the first one found... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 Tell me more about "pukka controller". There are all sorts of strobe controllers out there.Terralec do several, as do Pulsar, and others.And I'm sure that you'll find some in the CPC or Thomann product lists. Google is your friend. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHIPS Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 Thanks - hoping strobe will have built in trigger and DMX - and instructions!!" What power for school letter box stage ? - targeting itms from 750 - 3000 watts Obviously high power and dimmed if necessary - is 750 enuff ??? Cheers Need to wire brain into on/off channel - separate bill for lamp maintenance on this one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theatrcymraeglampy Posted February 28, 2008 Share Posted February 28, 2008 I know there are many other makes of strobe available, and it may be a tad overkill but....... What about the Martin Atomic 3000? It is DMX controllable so can just be a few channels on your desk (Intensity, flash rate, duration, special effects etc. - Specific information in the manual) and although it normally runs off a 16A supply (Just) one of the dip switches changes it into a lower power mode so you can use a 13A to 16A jumper, it wont take the fuse out and you can plug it into local power somewhere, or run local power to it. Info: http://www.martin.com/product/product.asp?product=atomic User Manual: http://www.martin.com/service/default.asp?...amp;category=65 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHIPS Posted February 28, 2008 Author Share Posted February 28, 2008 Looks like the dog's dangles but is what my daughter used to call "too expensible". Have ordered a 750W with analogue trigger and DMX and if that doesn't work we'll just have to get the audience to blink in time to the music! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamtastic3 Posted February 29, 2008 Share Posted February 29, 2008 Just to say, if you were looking to get some top speeds of 16fps, then you need to get a strobe that has a 'blinder' function. You get them on the Atomics and on some 750W jobbies but most of them only work with DMX control. The blinder effect needs more power than usual to make its effect instead of just the normal flash rate you get on most strobes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHIPS Posted March 2, 2008 Author Share Posted March 2, 2008 Thank you - have gone for 750W with blinder and DMX and analogue so as long as the power is up to snuff.... I'll probably find herself wants it set lower than 12fps which seemed too low to me waving my hands about but what can a poor boy do ??? Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themadhippy Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 One thing to be aware of on cheaper strobes is the time it takes to charge up before flashing. The Acme unit we hired over Christmas would take a couple of seconds from triggering to actually producing any light,the cure was to fire the thing at full for a minute or 2 immediately before doors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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