Help me assess my situation on equipment

achstechdirector

Active Member
I would like you to form an opinion on our lighting system and give me some lower-budget ideas on how to improve it.

FIRST) Basic Info
Stage Dimensions-
Prosc. Width-33ft.
Stage Depth-22ft.
Width at most upstage curtain-20ft.

SECOND)Lighting Equipment

8-PAR56 with 300 watt MFL
2- Elation Dimmer Pack (DP-415)(4 channel: 600 watts per channel)
1-Elation Scene Setter Eight
 
Just to ask... what kind of show are you running so we can help with your lighting setup
 
Just to ask... what kind of show are you running so we can help with your lighting setup

Well... currently we are doing, Flapper by Pioneer Drama (A broadway style musical set outside most of the show

We have a battle of the bands coming up and some awards ceremonies in may. Oh and a variey show with a coffeehouse feel at the end of the year and a murder mystery dinner theatre thing.

PLEASE PUT EMPHASIS ON THE MUSICAL

Thanks
 
well sounds like ya got ya hands full and I'll love to help. not to brag or just chat on and on I work with After Hours Productions and we supply a lot of lighting for great shows... to add to the flavor i order a lot of my personal lighting from PSSL

1st step the Elation Scene Setter 8 is a great controller but ya need more channels the Elation operator 192 will fill the need for more lights/ dimmers and the option to add movers for cool effects. not to bad for $199 ya might find it cheaper on ebay. and DMX dimmers are really cheap these days.

i would use the par 56's on the sides and 4 3.5" Ellipsoidal to bring out the bright spot look to lighten any dark spots on your stage or to shutter any hot spots on your stage.

Sorry for blabbing on and on just giving ideas for my booth mates :)
 
We have four lights in our gym pointing at the back of our stage...it is reversible but the bulbs are out I might be able to get them? could someone identify them please

They are square, have lenses, shutters, approx. 24" long and 4" wide. They were installed when the gym was built the lamps were shot because of basketballs hitting them I can't get within 50 feet so i cant identify them Im looking for a picture.

I found a similar instrument but still have not id'ed it yet will this light be useful ine theatre what is the wattage what dimmer pack do I need to run 4 of them what kind of bulb
 

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would that be Sky Cyc lights? {=|=|=} <--- kinda like this :!:
 
ahh that looks like a small Altman mini zoom there good if ya can find the bulbs we have 2 of them at tift theatre
 
Will 4 of these provide enough front lighting for my stage or do I need to supplement that with pars
 
well i mostly use them to fill dimly lit areas on our stage i would go with pars to give more wide lighting
 
i like to use only ellipsoidal's for my shows its easier to make scenes
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Yea those instruments look like an old colortran fixture that my old High school had.

If you can find the appropriate lamps I would use those for front light then put the PARS as a wash or maybe even a top or side light if thats possible.
 
Colortran... thats it i couldnt remember the name for nothing, our zooms are very weak i 2nd about the pars
 
I think I will get them down and mount them in the house if they are not enough light i will add pars and then the rest of the pars I will need as specials
 
if ya need anymore help just let me know and be glad to lend a hand
 
I think you will want to avoid the Colortran Zooms. I personally have never used them, but people around here who have used them dislike them.

If I were you I would try to get another dimmer pack or two. This opens up some more doors (Say you stick with the Elation ones @ 600w/channel.) I would scour eBay and look for some old 500w fresnels and and get a few of those first. To me it doesn't sound like you're in terrible need of the functions of an ellipsodial. If you can find them, some old S4s lamped at 575 watts would also work.

Also, I would bump up the par lamps to the 500 watt lamps and go for the wide dispersion, to me it seems like I get a better wash. But that's just me.
 
That is a pretty scarce setup you've got there. Now I must say that in the LONG run it will be cheaper to get a permanent install of dimmers and good quality instruments. But, from the sounds of it you don't have the kind of capital to front all of that. So, in the SHORT run shoebox dimmers and cheap equipment will be cheaper.

In the school system I know how hard it is to buy used equipment. Which is unfortunate because there is a lot of good used equipment out there for people on a budget. So, assuming you are limited to buying new, you are going to get the best bang for your buck by going with PARs and Fresnels. These instruments are much cheaper because they are simpler than the complicated multi-lens systems of an ERS. ERSs are very important, but you are so limited by power and money that I think it may be more important to just get light on the stage.

-Tim
 
I completely agree with you, xander. My district has a 500,000 deficit when the superintendent changed (OLD SUPERINTENDENT IS NOW RICH) so they had to crack down thanks for the input
 

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