Chris Pflieger
Well-Known Member
After following your posts, I wish to nominate you for sainthood. Why you haven't run away from this school is a testament...I'm a community-theater techie. Suffering is in the job description.
After following your posts, I wish to nominate you for sainthood. Why you haven't run away from this school is a testament...I'm a community-theater techie. Suffering is in the job description.
Heh, thanks. I actually love dealing with the challenges these shows tend to present, but this is more like being asked to change a tire with a broken jack. We're all going to tough it out to the end of the run, but all three of us on the lighting crew have already told each other we'll decline any future requests to work in this particular school. Heck, if they'll listen to us, we're going to encourage the company never to ask to use this school again.After following your posts, I wish to nominate you for sainthood. Why you haven't run away from this school is a testament...
We looked into that, but then it dawned on us that we have to plug these packs into ordinary wall outlets, and those only have 20A breakers. I'm guessing that 15A per-pack limit is about it, as some of that 20A is getting lost as heat in the pack. Shopping on Amazon fails to find me one that will do more than 15A total, 5A per channel.
Hey, thanks for the link! I didn't know about that one. (But, yeesh, $500?)The packs capable of higher wattage have two AC cords for getting power from two separate circuits:
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Stevens, as a lighting supplier, I understand your situation and you must do what you have to do. In the end you will get what you pay for. The biggest downsides will probably be a lousy dimming curve and color rendering. You will not get deep blues and the white may or may not be what you want to see. I doubt they have UL or even CE listings, so in the worst case scenario, if one should start a fire, you insurance company will look the other way. Will they work? Probably. For how long? Hopefully long enough for you to raise funds for more reliable fixtures. It was roughly 130 years from the invention of the incandescent lamp until the first Philips A19 LED hit the shelves in 2012. We are only 5 years into this LED revolution so we have plenty of developments to see yet. Unfortunately, many Chinese appliance makers are now introducing LED fixtures by copying designs from those who did all the research. I doubt they use LM-80 standards for testing and again, won't pay for UL or CE listings. Your best bet is to stick with the manufactures who have done the development and testing, but of course, you have to pay for that. I understand your budget restraints but my recommendation is to avoid Amazon and buy from a reputable theatrical supplier. We have access to all budget levels and know which ones you can trust to work. With the lack of history in LED products for now, any purchase contains a certain leap of faith in hoping the manufacturer has done the right testings and certifications. And of course, don't wait until the last minute. Remember the Truman triangle. You can have 2 of the following but not all 3, so choose which 2 you want. QUALITY - CHEAP - QUICKI asked this in another topic, but I want to make it a subject on its own: Are the cheap LED lights sold by Amazon and other outlets at all usable?
For example, I am assuming that theatrical professionals would see something like these lights as pure junk. But my context is not professional. I am trying to light a community theater musical being done in a local middle school and the school system's built-in lighting system (which was never that great to begin with) has suddenly and completely failed. The school bureaucracy is impenetrable and won't get the lights repaired until long after our show closes (if ever).
We have a few lights of our own, our own cables for power and DMX, and a computer with QLC+ and an Enttec OpenDMX. But we need more lights. We are on a microscopic budget ($300 is about it). If we buy a few of these crummy LED lights and get Amazon to ship them via overnight delivery, we can hang them in time to open. But I have never used any lights of this kind.
Do they work? And I mean do they work at all? We don't need long-lasting, professional stuff. We only need lights we can dim with our DMX software that actually illuminate the stage below them.
Thanks for your thoughts on this!
I asked this in another topic, but I want to make it a subject on its own: Are the cheap LED lights sold by Amazon and other outlets at all usable?
For example, I am assuming that theatrical professionals would see something like these lights as pure junk. But my context is not professional. I am trying to light a community theater musical being done in a local middle school and the school system's built-in lighting system (which was never that great to begin with) has suddenly and completely failed. The school bureaucracy is impenetrable and won't get the lights repaired until long after our show closes (if ever).
We have a few lights of our own, our own cables for power and DMX, and a computer with QLC+ and an Enttec OpenDMX. But we need more lights. We are on a microscopic budget ($300 is about it). If we buy a few of these crummy LED lights and get Amazon to ship them via overnight delivery, we can hang them in time to open. But I have never used any lights of this kind.
Do they work? And I mean do they work at all? We don't need long-lasting, professional stuff. We only need lights we can dim with our DMX software that actually illuminate the stage below them.
Thanks for your thoughts on this!
Interesting; it's not mentioned in the manual either. I'm sure @Ford or @Ben Dickmann will tell us for sure, but I'm guessing the picture is of a prototype unit, and the 4-pin DIN is for programming/updated the fixture's firmware/software.Now, the picture shows an unlabeled, threaded jack with four pins. But the 360-degree image shows an otherwise identical instrument without that jack. Any idea what that is?
Interesting; it's not mentioned in the manual either. I'm sure @Ford or @Ben Dickmann will tell us for sure, but I'm guessing the picture is of a prototype unit, and the 4-pin DIN is for programming/updated the fixture's firmware/software.
The biggest downsides will probably be a lousy dimming curve and color rendering.
I doubt they have UL or even CE listings
And of course, don't wait until the last minute.
We at Chauvet always list Lux in our specs.
i always suggest renting LED's and Movers for small shows.
And thanks for paticipating in this discussion, that is much appreciated.We at Chauvet...
And thanks for paticipating in this discussion, that is much appreciated.
Have I missed any UL listings for Chauvet? Wouldn't want to make a mistake about that.
Thank you (and Ben) for this extra detailed info. I learn so much here.As to the UL Listing... It depends on the product.
Uh... yeah. I put in some years on Loudoun County's Zoning Ordinance Review Committee a little over a decade ago. Trying to codify standards is harder than I expected. I would definitely agree that doing so affects the mind. In my case, it ended up leading to a run for public office which means I made a lot of friends who just won elections here in Virginia last night. That's kind of mind-blowing too. On the whole, though, if one is looking for personal enrichment, today I would recommend theater over politics. There's much less drama.I highly recommend serving on a standards committee (ESTA always needs participants) if you're really looking to expand your mind. It can be incredibly interesting...
If you want to hear this in more detail, buy me a drink (or several) at LDI... I can go on for hours about this.
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