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[Jeff Lelko]

Hi Maidson, I'll throw my 2 cents in on this!  Definitely pass on the Studio Colors.  Big movers are fun when they work, but unless you know your way around the inside of one they'll spend more time in the shop than out on jobs.  You'll also be sinking more money into the upkeep of them, especially if you need to pay someone to do even simple repairs for you.  Another thing to keep in mind is available power.  You can only put 3 Studio Colors on a 20A circuit whereas you can group many more LED movers like the American DJ Inno series onto the same single circuit.  32x20ft isn't a small stage, so I agree with the others - spend your money on good primary lighting first (whether it's LED or halogen), and add the eye candy later as your budget allows.  If you're forced to shoot the lights from a close distance, beam spread is also an important thing to take into account and the ADJ Dotz / COB products are hard to beat for very wide coverage. 

In regards to a controller, the PC-based solutions are certainly your best bang to buck.  MagicQ PC has always been my preference, but others have their own opinions.  The nice thing is that most of these programs are downloadable for free to at least demo and see if it feels right to you.  Good luck with the project!   

[Rob Gow]

I agree on getting the basic wash lighting down first. It can look pretty good. I use 11 Blizzard 3NX, but that's because that was the tech 3 years ago. Today I would go with Dotz Pars because I like the traditional bulb look. I always go with 11 so there's a center light to work off of if I'm alternating colours. Then I address the lights in pairs starting from the outside. It saves on DMX channels and I like the look during chases.

This is what I mean.

A B C D E F E D C B A

I use DMXIS software/hardware for control. The oscillators let you create scenes easily and quickly. If I want the lights to change from light to dark, I put an oscillator on the dimmer instead of a chase. It's hard to describe but easy to see. All the "movement" in the following scenes are done with oscillators on different channels.

But yeah, again, I'd start with some decent wash lights, the truss & 2 stands run around $1000 or so. Then you'll be set up with the infrastructure and can add movers etc after that.

It's running through the scenes pretty quickly but you get the idea.

http://youtu.be/38njyiJ9xUM

[Tim Weaver]

Just a note.
If you address your lights in pairs, you lose the ability to do left-right or right-left chases. You also lose the ability to use the far left or right fixtures to highlight part of the stage for a solo or something like that.

None of the LD's I know would want anything less than each light individually addressed. This gives you maximum flexibility.

I know Rob is not providing for guest LD's with his setup so for him, mirroring works. But if you might have a guest LD, I would plan on individual addresses for everything. DMX universes are cheap. .

[Debbie Dunkley]

Consider the Blizzard Q12's as a basic wash. They're very bright for the money. On small stages I can get away with using only 4 on one side of the stage. I usually use 4 per side and with my mega bars at the back, it looks very effective for minimal investment. I use to use an Obey 10 but now I am wi-if and I use Luminair on my iPad to control everything.

[Steve Garris]

Here's a budget priced light that you might also consider. I've been using this brand for about a year now with excellent results. This light is (18) 8W quad color led's RBGW, and a 40 degree spread.

http://www.mcmelectronics.com/product/555-27035?utm_campaign=MyBuys&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=Email

[ProSoundWeb Community]