Equinox Spark stream or similar - anyone used them?

[John_P]

I was looking at adding some wow effects for stage  use with bands so I’d appreciate any feedback and ideas. 
 

The equinox (prolight) spark steam looks like it might be good but I think they’ve stopped making them.   
 

A couple of questions - how much dust and mess do they leave behind?    Are they any other similar pyro type products where I don’t have to put big safety precautions in place beyond distance from acts and walls etc.

[J Pearce]

I've been on a show that used the Sparkulars. They worked great, and I didn't notice a significant extra amount of dust, certainly less than you'd expect from pyro.

You still want a small exclusion zone, but probably not as big as pyro, and you can kill the output at any time unlike a pyro where once you've fired it you've got very few options apart from wait for it to finish. They are still quite noisy, which can be a + or - depending on what you want to achieve.

Edited August 8, 2022 by J Pearce

[Brian]

39 minutes ago, John_P said:

A couple of questions - how much dust and mess do they leave behind? 

Lots. And it's very abrasive. If it gets onto an LED dance floor or any shiny smooth floor surface, and people then dance on it, the floor will look like it's been attacked with sandpaper.

As for safety, you really don't want to be getting either the 'lit' particles, or the fallout, into your eyes. Think sand.

And, as Jon says, they are noisy. Think small vacuum cleaner.

[John_P]

Thanks chaps.     As I’m always working in different venues, I want to avoid anything that leaves a mess and I was hoping for quick cleanup when packing up.    The noise levels aren’t an issue as it’ll be loud bands that get the most use.
  
I might investigate other options for adding some “wow” moments to shows  

 

[Brian]

The mess is manageable, a simple 1m square bit of carpet, or rubber mat, means you can just grab and go, and give then a good shake outside. 

[Stuart91]

On 8/8/2022 at 12:55 PM, John_P said:

The equinox (prolight) spark steam looks like it might be good but I think they’ve stopped making them.   

You're right, they were discontinued fairly quickly. 

My experience with the two we bought wasn't great. 

MagicFX have a much better, but far more expensive unit. I sub-hired some recently. The effect itself was very good and easily controlled. The granules need careful cleaning out afterwards so that they don't work into the innards of the machine during travel. 

[ferretwrangler]

We had some of the Equinox units and they proved massively unreliable - after 3 replacements and several new motors, fans etc and a fire we gave up.

[MixingWizard]

I've had pretty good experiences with the Sparkulars (I rent a couple out quite regularly). Just bare in mind the powder is relatively expensive, and I would definitely DMX them rather than using the remotes, the remotes can be a bit sketchy.