ProSoundWeb Community

Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

Pages: 1 [2]  All   Go Down

Author Topic: Fixture Brands for Rave-ish install environment  (Read 3700 times)

Scotty Myers

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 13
Re: Fixture Brands for Rave-ish install environment
« Reply #10 on: March 03, 2019, 08:32:50 AM »

...the industry as a whole doesn't offer a ton at the moment for high-output units...

Yep, this is what I have learned.  I have found a few LED fixtures that have enough output, but for the most part, discharge lamp fixtures seem to be the more appropriate for this installation I am working on.  And as you noted, the industry seems to have gotten away from many of the these, so looking on the used market has a decent selection of fixtures.  Of course, that's a crap shoot and may require some maintenance/rebuild before installation.

Of course the problem with many discharge fixtures is duty cycle and warm up time.  So that has to be kept in mind when using them.

I've also noted there is one BIG difference between "DJ" and "Pro" level fixture output.  As an example, if one compares a Chauvet DJ and Chauvet Pro LED par with the same number of LED lenses, there is no comparison on light output.  It is nearly double in lumens.  Of course you have to do math to figure that out because of the way the rate in in distance/area.  And price of the fixtures also tells the tale.  You get what you pay for.

I'll take a look at the used market on some of those fixtures you mentioned.

Thanks again.
Logged

Jeff Lelko

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 2015
  • Cape Canaveral, FL
Re: Fixture Brands for Rave-ish install environment
« Reply #11 on: March 03, 2019, 11:38:51 AM »

Of course the problem with many discharge fixtures is duty cycle and warm up time.  So that has to be kept in mind when using them.

Yep, you definitely need to keep this in mind, though usually with discharge fixtures you just turn them on at the beginning of use and leave them on until you're done.  The units will have a shutter so that you can essentially turn them off without dousing the lamp.  The Tempest Series is a bit of an exception to this, but it's also a very specialized fixture.

The Snipers (both the 2R and the Pro models) have only been discontinued for a little over a year so they can still be found every once in a while.  The Ninja is in the same boat too.  One thing to note about these fixtures is that they're "beamy", in the sense that you really need fog or haze to get the full effect.  The Ninja puts out enough beams to look okay without fog, but prisms aside the Snipers are single-beam units and won't be effective without some sort of atmosphere enhancement. 

If you'd rather not use fog or haze I'd look in the direction of Martin Wizards.  There have been many incarnations of this effect over the past decade (the Rush Wizard and ADJ Warlock being the most recent), but these units put out a massive number of beams with around 180 degrees of coverage, so they'll look good with or without fog.  I still use my Martin Mania EFX600 version of the effect (150w discharge) and they're still going strong a decade later. 

If you must buy new and don't want to stalk ebay for months many of the direct-from-China vendors such as Artfox still sell the off-brand variants of the Sniper, Ninja, and Wizard/Warlock.  Pros and cons to that route as well, but just throwing it out there.  Glad this helps and best of luck with the project!
Logged

Tim McCulloch

  • SR Forums
  • Hero Member
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 23736
  • Wichita, Kansas USA
Re: Fixture Brands for Rave-ish install environment
« Reply #12 on: March 03, 2019, 10:27:14 PM »

Scotty, just a couple of thoughts -

Cleaning?  Yes.  If they need it, do it.  The operating environment is the main determiner of frequency.  Atmospherics combining with airborne dust/dirt can stick to fixture internals, foul optics, cause overheating, etc.  To the extent that fixtures don't suck in dirty air, the better.

Fixing?  Yes.  At least a couple will fail in warranty, after that if there are no spares it's gonna look funny when they're sent out for repair.  Developing in-house service capability is a long-term must for owners of complex lights, or there must be budget/plan to turn over a good portion of the inventory every couple of years.

Chauvet Pro has fixtures that will meet your lumen output requirements, as do more traditional pro brands like Martin.

YGWYPF, and TANSTAAFL.

Good luck in your search and in meeting your client's budget.
Logged
"If you're passing on your way, from Palm Springs to L.A., Give a wave to good ol' Dave, Say hello to progress and goodbye to the Moonlight Motor Inn." - Steve Spurgin, Moonlight Motor Inn

ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Fixture Brands for Rave-ish install environment
« Reply #12 on: March 03, 2019, 10:27:14 PM »


Pages: 1 [2]  All   Go Up
 



Site Hosted By Ashdown Technologies, Inc.

Page created in 0.033 seconds with 24 queries.