New to Lighting

[MC150]

I am new to lighting after decades of live sound reinforcement. The question has been posed: What is the process for dealing with an S4 36 degree that has failed channel check? Any info would be helpfull. Thanks MC

 

[Brandofhawk]

people have a different way of checking their own systems. Without knowing your system exactly...
I'd go in this order.

Patch - Is it patched correctly in the board, what about the physical patch?
Circuited - is it circuited correctly? Plugs all the way in?
Lamp - Is the lamp blown? (don't touch the lamp with bare skin!)
Cable - Is the cable functioning correctly? Or has something happened to the connections?

I'd skip Patch and Circuit till the end if it once previously came up/worked but now doesn't. I've always found that the problem is with the lamp being blown/no good anymore.


Here is a thread which can probably help a lot! It's from the QOTD part of the forum.
http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...wont-light-troubleshooting-conventionals.html

 

[DuckJordan]

are the shutters pulled?

 

[techieman33]

If it's failed channel check after being known to work earlier then I go right for the lamp if it's easily accessible. Probably 99% of the time that will be the problem. From there I check the cable, then confirm the patch is correct, then check the dimmer itself. If it's in truss then I'll check the patch and dimmers first before taking the time to lower a truss.

 

[avkid]

are the shutters pulled?

My deck electrician failed to notice this a few weeks ago.
After patching to 3 different channels and a hot pocket I got more than a little annoyed and went to look for myself.

 

[Footer]

Same way you check a bad mic... divide and conquer.

Start at the light. Use a good fixture to verify that you have power. If it has power, its the lamp or burner cap. If it does not, test the unit with known good power. You then need to find out if you have a bad cable, mistpatch, bad dimmer, blown breaker, bad softpatch, etc. Treat is just like you would a mic that gets no sound... just with power instead of signal.