Strand's new Light Rack Dimmer Rack

[derekleffew]

Which would you rather have and why?

This:


This:


or This:

[gafftaper]

First the disclaimer, I'm not a road show guy so my impressions may be completely inaccurate.

That 4 module strand rack with dimmers in the flight case is 240 lbs... not bad. I like the connections on the back too they seem really neat and simple which in my book means SAFE.

The ETC is great too of course but it looks like it's significantly heavier. There is also a complexity of options that although nice options at times, makes it just seem like it's doing too much. I like the simple SOCA out strategy of the Strand.

That Dadco looks like something the Librarian at Guantanamo Bay would use to make sure books are returned on time. Not exactly something I would take on the road.

[dannyn]

The Strand seems to be the best built. I like the connections that they use on it. It has a very nice road case with it too. The Dedco seems to be the least quality product.

[Darthrob13]

How about a 48 way rack you can two-man into the back of a pickup?

The 96 is only slightly heavier....haven't tried to lift a loaded one but it should be doable.

(This is the LightRack of course.)

[Malabaristo]

Originally Posted by dannyn

The Strand seems to be the best built....

If you're saying that you like the way it's laid out, that's fine. If you're talking about ruggedness, I'd have to disagree. After seeing the massive amounts of abuse a Sensor touring rack can stand up to, the Light Rack looks downright flimsy to me. A Smart Pack tour rack would be a much fairer comparison.

The DADCO isn't really a dimmer, just distro for the CD-80"s that you (presumably) already have lying around. I can't imagine wanting to actually travel with it, but I suppose it's better than hauling six CD-80's individually.

The Sensor rack is the obvious choice... if you can afford it. It's not really in the same category as the other two.

The Light Rack looks nice for what it is: small, light, and (I'm assuming) relatively cheap. I'd be curious to know how well it really performs. There's not nearly enough information in the datasheet and manual to really form an opinion at this point.

[Toffee]

Most rock and roll shows I work use the one on the very bottom.

[Pie4Weebl]

The first one looks like a beast, I don't know why you would not want to have that all in a solid rack, I could not see putting that on a truck and it does not even look neat.

I'm fine with the Leprecon MX dimmer racks I used day to day.

[derekleffew]

Originally Posted by Toffee

Most rock and roll shows I work use the one on the very bottom.

Errr. No they don't. The one pictured was just introduced a few weeks ago and I don't believe has begun shipping yet. There are many similar ones, from lesser manufacturers, such as this. (Yes, I know it's actually an ML PD, but they all look the same.)


For what it's worth, I can count on one hand the number of tours in the past ten years I've seen NOT using the "middle one."

The Dadco rack is designed for movie studios and has the advantage of sending 60 dimmers to one place, or 12 dimmers each to 5 different places. (If it were meant for touring, it would have ratchet straps installed.)

[TimMiller]

I like racks that have patch bays. NO SOFT PATCH!!!!! I like to physically be able to two-fer up two lights onto one dimmer.

[len]

My only beef with the sensor rack is that the doors get dented fairly easily. But I like that on that one the doors disappear inside the case. With the Strand, the lids tend to get put somewhere that is inconvenient. In Derek's second post that looks more like a distro than a dimmer rack. I don't like lift out racks at all. That's why we have wheels and motors in this world, so that we don't have to lift stuff. But if it were in a rack with front/back lids or the rack was accessible without removing it from the tray that would be fine.

The first picture (just a frame) is something that I would be concerned about taking on a truck due to it's being open. But since the distro/dimmer rack is often one of the last lighting items to come off the truck (typically) I would think you could pack other cases around it. OTOH, why create a worry for yourself?