Lighting help needed

[DJDK]

hi I am looking to add some lights to my old school and wonderd what you thort of this set eg is it value for money or just going to be cheap and un reliable. and if there are any other sets ot there that might be beatter suted?

 

http://www.terralec.co.uk/stage_lighting_s...em/23942_p.html

 

 

the type of shows we do are caborets and dance shows.

 

thanks

 

Andrew

[davethetekkie]

The set looks OK for what it is, but you need to bear in mind the relative lack of flexibility that you will experience in only having PARCANs. I would personally shop around a little more and maybe look at something with less lanterns that are more geared towards the sort of work you want to do (i.e. adjustments are possible) but certainly not the worst setup that you could put your money towards.

[DJDK]

The set looks OK for what it is, but you need to bear in mind the relative lack of flexibility that you will experience in only having PARCANs. I would personally shop around a little more and maybe look at something with less lanterns that are more geared towards the sort of work you want to do (i.e. adjustments are possible) but certainly not the worst setup that you could put your money towards.

 

 

thanks for the reply I will keep that in mind what sort of lanterns would you sugest would be best? or do you think I should get a mixture of them eg par cans and fresnels? also would I be able to add more lights to this set by adding more dimmer packs ?

 

Thanks again

[Adam L F]

The set looks OK for what it is, but you need to bear in mind the relative lack of flexibility that you will experience in only having PARCANs. I would personally shop around a little more and maybe look at something with less lanterns that are more geared towards the sort of work you want to do (i.e. adjustments are possible) but certainly not the worst setup that you could put your money towards.

 

 

thanks for the reply I will keep that in mind what sort of lanterns would you sugest would be best? or do you think I should get a mixture of them eg par cans and fresnels? also would I be able to add more lights to this set by adding more dimmer packs ?

 

Thanks again

 

A mixture of lights is always a good thing :) I'd get in contact with the head of the Drama or Music department, to see what they'd want. The problem with buying lights for a school venue is that most schools do loads of different types of productions, from musicals to speeches to the students.

 

If your looking for just general cover, then I'd go for a short nose par, perhaps with a CP62 MFL lamp in it. Those lamps are pretty good if your going for a general colour wash in a direct place. Have a look around and do some shopping, find out what's required ato get a general idea of what's needed. A few Pars should do the job, as they're not too expensive.

 

PS: Sorry for rambling on a bit!

 

-Adam

[benash]

thanks for the reply I will keep that in mind what sort of lanterns would you sugest would be best? or do you think I should get a mixture of them eg par cans and fresnels? also would I be able to add more lights to this set by adding more dimmer packs ?

 

Thanks again

 

You can add as many dimmer packs as you want with this rig but you're only going to be able to control 8 channels. If you want more variety and control have a look for a basic 12 channel 2 scene desk. Bear in mind that those types of dimmers are noisy (relatively speaking) in a live music situation that's fine but if you're fading up on a silent stage you're going to be able to hear the dimmers from the fifth row. The only real solution is to mount them remotely (and buy a pile of IEC extension cords) or deal with it and just accept that it's a low budget install.

 

If you've got the funds, you would do very well to get a custom specified system. If not and you're not expecting too much, that will do just fine.

 

Cheers

[DJDK]

hi so would some thing like this be ok

 

http://www.terralec.co.uk/dmx_lighting_con...er/16035_p.html

 

sorry about the stupid questions but I am a 1st time buyer and fel a little lost.

also if I was to use this to replace the controoler in the previoustly segested package would it work ?

 

sorry for all the questions but I just want to be shure before I commit to any thing tooo expensive thanks again every one

 

Andrew

[benash]

hi so would some thing like this be ok

 

http://www.terralec.co.uk/dmx_lighting_con...er/16035_p.html

 

sorry about the stupid questions but I am a 1st time buyer and fel a little lost.

also if I was to use this to replace the controoler in the previoustly segested package would it work ?

 

sorry for all the questions but I just want to be shure before I commit to any thing tooo expensive thanks again every one

 

Andrew

 

There's nothing stupid about trying to learn about things before you spend the money. To be able to really give a decent answer we're going to need some more info about how all this is going to be used. From your profile it says that you do live music work and that you're a DJ. Will this gear be owned by the school or are you buying it with the intention of hiring it out to them when they do shows? If it's the former you may well be on the right track with the gear you've been looking at (the gear you've linked to is all live music type stuff as opposed to your more theatrical based equipment). If the school is going to be buying this gear for their exclusive use I think you'll find that they would rather steer away from DJ gear and head towards the theatrical.

 

So to throw the ball back in your court, here are some questions:

 

Who is going to own the gear?

What is the budget?

What type of school (high school etc)

Will it be permanently installed?

What sort of room will it be installed in (classroom, gymnasium, performing arts centre etc)

What power is available (single phase, three phase)

You mentioned in your first post that they do cabaret and dance shows. Can you give a little more info just to clarify the type of shows (my first thought of dance was kids on stage but on second reading I wondered if it was more "oonce oonce put your hands up in the air and MAKE SOME NOISE!!!!" type dance... you never can tell with schools these days).

 

Don't apologise for asking lots of questions. The people who frequent the BR do it because they enjoy this stuff. If they don't want to help no-one's forcing them.

[DJDK]

So to throw the ball back in your court, here are some questions:

 

Who is going to own the gear?

What is the budget?

What type of school (high school etc)

Will it be permanently installed?

What sort of room will it be installed in (classroom, gymnasium, performing arts centre etc)

What power is available (single phase, three phase)

You mentioned in your first post that they do cabaret and dance shows. Can you give a little more info just to clarify the type of shows (my first thought of dance was kids on stage but on second reading I wondered if it was more "oonce oonce put your hands up in the air and MAKE SOME NOISE!!!!" type dance... you never can tell with schools these days).

 

Don't apologise for asking lots of questions. The people who frequent the BR do it because they enjoy this stuff. If they don't want to help no-one's forcing them.

 

the school will own the gear

the buget I am not to shure off but am having a meating on tuesday about it all

it is a high school

it will be semi permanintly installed it will be there 90% of the time so it needs to be non perminent

it will be in the school hall

it is single phase electric (just like a house socket)

the shows are dancing on stage where the kids dance to songs pre rehersed but for a couple of acts we get the audience involved clapping (the ushual at a normal school show)

we already have the lighting bars so dont require any stands or trussing

 

thanks again

 

Andrew

[mar]

we already have the lighting bars so dont require any stands or trussing

 

In that case you probably don't need to bother with the package mentioned in the OP. That includes truss and stands which you don't need. You should be able to find a better price for the equipment you want if you don't end up paying for things you dont need.

 

On the other hand, if you do buy a package with stands etc then you will have the option of moving it to other venues in your school should the need arise.

[Bright-spark]

hi I am looking to add some lights to my old school and wonderd what you thort of this set eg is it value for money or just going to be cheap and un reliable. and if there are any other sets ot there that might be beatter suted?

 

http://www.terralec.co.uk/stage_lighting_s...em/23942_p.html

 

 

the type of shows we do are caborets and dance shows.

 

thanks

 

Andrew

 

Try the following site www.stagecraft.co.uk they hire and sell stage lighting products. They will also give advice if you call them. I have used them in the past they are ok.

 

Bright-spark

[benash]

I guess it all comes down to money. For what you're doing I'd be inclined to think a bunch of fresnels would be a better option. You'll have much better beam control and the quality of light will probably be better. If you have some extra budget some profiles may come in handy and would allow you to project gobos etc.

 

Having recently installed a similar lighting rig that had to be powered off standard wall sockets, I can assure you it's a bit of a pain. It depends on the wiring in your school but you need to check that you don't plug too many dimmer packs into the same circuit otherwise you're liable to trip a breaker mid performance which isn't such a good look. If there is any possibility of it I'd have a talk to the powers that be about getting a three phase outlet installed and getting a 12 channel dimmer. You can always rack mount it and run multicores to your lighting bars to keep it semi-permanent.

 

As far as the rest of the package goes the lighting desks you have looked at will do the job but as they are more DJ based you will find them a little limited in terms of how they allow you to run more theatrical shows. Something like a Strand 200 may do the job (can't be sure, you don't see them in Australia much, can some of the locals suggest decent 2 scene and programmable 12/24 channel desks???). It will still allow you to do all the same chases etc but will allow better buskability for those shows that you don't have much tech time.

 

The gels that generally come with those packages tend to be pretty crazy saturates which are ok for some shows but a little too in-your-face for most.

 

HTH

 

Ben

[david.elsbury]

For a small desk of that sort, easily available in Australia, I would suggest looking at offerings from Jands, Theatrelight and LSC.

[benash]

Oops, I may have clouded the waters there somewhat, I'm pretty sure the OP is in the UK somewhere.

 

Apologies for the awful sentence structure in my previous post. Should have read:

 

... Something like a Strand 200 may do the job (though I can't be sure as I've never used one, can some of the UK locals suggest decent 2 scene and programmable 12/24 channel desks???)...

[david.elsbury]

Ah, well, I can't really answer on that one! Ben, it may help if you put your location in your profile :)