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[Andrew Pernica]

Sorry for little OT, but lights are usually somehow tied with sound.

I have met with one really interesting question.
Inside effect lights like derby ,zigzag, doubleball there are usually 2 lamps connected in series.
F.E.: two 120V lamps in series instead of two 230V in parallel.

Why are they connected in series, not in parallel?
Is it because of "same current running through = same intensity" or better manufacturing (in countries running 120V power outlet they just move jumpers to connect them in parallel) ?

[Mac Kerr]

Sorry for little OT, but lights are usually somehow tied with sound.

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[Craig Leerman]

One answer might be that they are connected in series because if one bulb dies, the entire fixture goes out so you know a bulb is dead. With parallel bulbs, if one bulb dies the fixture still works but not as intended. People using a 1/2 working fixture might not understand a bulb died and would keep using it, or stop using it as it now underperforms. 

[TJ (Tom) Cornish]

Sorry for little OT, but lights are usually somehow tied with sound.

I have met with one really interesting question.
Inside effect lights like derby ,zigzag, doubleball there are usually 2 lamps connected in series.
F.E.: two 120V lamps in series instead of two 230V in parallel.

Why are they connected in series, not in parallel?
Is it because of "same current running through = same intensity" or better manufacturing (in countries running 120V power outlet they just move jumpers to connect them in parallel) ?

Another potential issue is that 230 volts can be challenging for filament design, particularly for low-wattage or physically small lamps.

[Jeff Lelko]

In countries running 120V power outlet they just move jumpers to connect them in parallel?

That's a good question.  In all of my similar effect lights (and I own many), they're all in parallel (and I'm in a 120v country).  The 120v variant of the 64514 lamp that most of these effects use seems to be the common choice, but a 230v version exists.  Without too much digging in inventory I found a few examples.  My ADJ Avenger IIs have a fixed voltage and simply list the 120v fuse and lamps, whereas my Chauvet Lighthouse has a user-selectable voltage (120/230v) and lists the fuse/lamps for both settings.  All units have the lamps tied together in parallel.  I know that's not really an answer for you, but more info to chew on! 

[ProSoundWeb Community]