Mid level strobes

[Lburners]

Looking to pick up some mid level strobes for a warehouse party to fire off at the ceiling. Wouldn't mind have something useful I could put to work in the future though. Pricing definitely a consideration. I have had the Martin 3000 recommended as it looks like the price is right on the used market right now. Thing that concerns me is the power draw. Can these run off a 120v 20a circuit? Or should I stick with a lower power model unit?

 

[JD]

Pulse mode has a very short duration current draw. Blinder mode can draw a lot, but you should be ok. Non-peak draw is listed at 8 amps. That 33 amp listing is during the 1/2 AC cycle flash (120th of a second)

 

[Lburners]

So are you do agree this is probably the best bang for buck strobe out there? Would be nice to have less of a concern with the power draw ie LED but really looking for maximum light output.

 

[JD]

So are you do agree this is probably the best bang for buck strobe out there? Would be nice to have less of a concern with the power draw ie LED but really looking for maximum light output.

Depends on the buck, but it certainly has a big bang. That's why it is a popular piece. If you are looking for brightness, then this is a good piece. If you are buying used, make sure you get one that has a fresh lamp as compared to one that is at the end of life. A new lamp will be almost completely clear. Older lamps will be cloudy near the ends with some deposits. Also, old lamps will skip flashes.

A little more if you're new to these kind of strobes:
Use a dedicated cord to it's own outlet. (do not plug in to an equipment rack. Strobes dirty up the power and can cause problems for other equipment.)
Don't use a skimpy extension cord! This will cause the brightness to drop off quite a bit.

 

[Lburners]

Very good info thanks. I have some 12/3 cable I will use.

 

[Lburners]

How about one of these compared to a couple adj cob cannon led?
All the units Im finding for a good price are 200v models.
Found some for right around 400$ each seem like a decent deal?
Looks like they have the Max-7 lamp which i read on here is able to run 2 per circuit.

 

[soundlight]

You should check out the Elation Protron 3K or the Chauvet Strike 882. Both are fantastic strobes and are LED and can run at 120V. They also both punch similar to an Atomic 3000 in terms of output, and look really good. I prefer the Protron to the Strike, but both are great.

 

[Erik456]

The difference between the voltages for the atomic is the lamp. Unit itself will work with either 120v or 208v. The 208v lamp will work with a 120v service but be considerably dimmer.

 

[Lburners]

Decided to give the Elation Proton 3k a shot. Was a little more than I wanted to spend but figured at this point I might as well go with LED.

 

[Erik456]

Let us know your thoughts on those. I know I'm always curious for good insight to products from end users.

 

[Lburners]

Will do.

 

[MikeJ]

The Protron is brighter than even the 208v version on the Atomic. Its a good unit.

 

[Lburners]

Ok this just got it. Ran the auto test. Didnt have a dmx controller handy. This thing is not for small spaces. It definitely blasts. I will try to take a video when I am in the large event space. Might be hard to display actual results with camera settings. Build looks very quality though. Unit is a bit bigger than expected but reasonable for output.

 

[Erik456]

Good to know thanks.

 

[Lburners]

Well after all that I did not end up using at this job.
We had a couple vendors there and the other crew had a pair of Showline Nitro 510s. We ended up using those. I did not have time to do an A/B which I would have liked to as I think the Protron is significantly brighter. Oh well. Will report back when I have some usage.