Upgrading drama studio lighting.

[newpersn]

So... I've been tasked to look in to upgrading our drama studio lighting.

 

Where would we start?

 

We have 4 dimmer packs that do the lights. (Parcans and profiles)

All plugs are round pins. and sockets out on the rig. (All go back to the dimmer packs)

 

Not sure where to start. And I'm not sure on budget (not enough to get a outside company in to quote for the work).

Must be simple enough for pupils to use.

[Chris_Cook]

If its not a daft question, Id start with looking over what you've got and what you want to achieve. Whats lacking in the current setup? Does it need replacing or expanding?

 

Does it just need to do lessons, or performances as well?

 

Whats the state of the current kit? Is it DMX dimmers and desk, or analog?

 

The desk, dimmers and cabling are an important foundation. Extras like Gels, gobos and storage are also an important thing. Storage especially as it can greatly extend the life of kit. These bits add up.

 

Making sure you have dmx lines to the lighting bars, dimmers, stage area and anywhere you want to control from would be a good basic step. Also, many modern LED and moving lights need "hard power" (basically normal mains, not what you get out of a dimmer). You would want to have either mains sockets on the ceiling, or near the dimmers with appropriate adaptor cables. Alternatively a hard power distribution box would let you patch your lighting bars in.

 

Safe access equipment is also very important. Make sure you have a good ladder at a minimum. Basic tools are a must too. Screwdrivers, spanners and a multi-meter for checking lamps.

 

Once those bits are sorted, then look at lights. These can be added later, or even hired in for events. Obviously you'll need some lights, so balance it all on your plan.

 

Even older parcans and profiles can be useful if in good condition. Profiles can often be given a new lease of life by cleaning the lenses with window cleaner.

 

Training would also be a good thing to invest in. No use having great kit if no one know how it works. Basic kit in good hands can still look great.

 

It'd be worth talking to some suppliers. They can probably make some sensible recommendations.

Edited September 11, 2017 by Chris_Cook

[3s-gtech]

We recently ditched our entire lighting rig in our drama studio and started again. We went from cheapo dimmer packs (which were failing badly) to DMX controlled LED spots and parcans, all from Blue Aran. Cost about £3k to go like for like - I was impressed by just how good and bright the LEDs are in comparison to poxy 500w cans that would blow their lamps every few weeks. Not having to change gels is also great, as most of the new lights are RGB.

[Andrew_C]

LED is probably the way to go. BUT - really cheap ones won't do nice flesh tones. They will also not dim nicely to black. Important for performance, maybe less so in a drama lesson.

 

If you go the LED route, you will need to route non-dimmed mains to the rig, as well as a DMX (control signal) line. Keep the dimmers (or new ones) as you are bound to need specials at some point. LED profiles are available, but ££Many. Invest in infra-structure first, then lanterns, then toys.

 

Can I commend the Blue Room again? Full of people who have asked the same question, and have got sensible answers for pros in the lighting trade. The link it to a "Beginners" sub-fora, the best place to ask. (saves me moving it later! )

[SamanthaD]

Chris makes some good points - I'll throw some more into the mix.

 

First - safety. Has the rig been checked electrically and for load bearing? If not and you plan to keep it, spend the money here first.

 

Second - does your rig have a patch board (lots of numbered plugs that go into your dimmers)? If so I would keep your setup as it offers lots of flexibility. Having a few 13a -> 15a adapters and back again is fine for putting hard power into the rig at the points you need it. If not consider how to get "normal mains" up to your lights.

 

Third - are your existing lights still useable? If not, what makes them unusable? Can they be repaired rather than replaced? Good theatre lanterns stand the test of time - my old rig still used Patt 137's, and IMO LED still doesn't replicate the red shift any tungsten lamp gives on a dimming curve (at the cheaper end of the market!)

 

Fourth - control. You want the students to be able to control it easily - best bet is a simple fader desk. I used to use Jesters for this and it all went smoothly. However if you want to use LED and movers then something a little more complex is needed. I also had a Chamsys dongle that I taught the more technically interested students to use and they loved it, but it's not for everyone.

 

That's the basics - upgrading then depends on what you want to do with the space, and how big your space is! LED, movers etc can all be added fairly easily when you've considered everything else.

[dhicks]

Where would we start?

 

We have limited time / budget for lighting and sound, like yourself. We've had reasonable success with cheaper Chauvette equipment, mostly bought from Amazon. Nothing fancy, but seems to be adequate for our setup. We bought new DMX-controllable dimmers to use with our existing lights, along with some LED PAR cans, so we have a mixture of the two. Also, as we had issues with running cables around our white-paneled, listed hall, we found that wireless DMX kit works surprisingly well (kits available on Amazon for under £100). You can get nice DMX-controllable spotlights for £25 a go. We have a DMX-controllable USB dingle that I need to put more time into setting up, but for basic operation we have a 6-fixture control board. Each "fixture" controls a set of DMX channels, as RGB LED lights use multiple channels for control, so one "fixture" on the board generally controls multiple physical lights.

[Andrew_C]

Interesting - a post in the Blue Room this morning. Not quite where the OP is now, but apposite.

 

However, in one school we arrived and found a brand new 63A three phase ceeform, although the rest of the rig was as ageing as any other school venue in the area. We nearly fell over with astonishment; obviously with a distro, our rig plugged in nicely (but I must admit I added several blinders to the show 'just because I could'!). We got chatting with the school staff and the teacher 'in charge' of the rig explained that there wasn't a budget for refurbishing everything in one go, but over the course of the next few years he had plans for improving things in the venue in stages. He chose to get the electrical supply replaced, upgraded and renewed with the first year's budget, and in coming years he had plans to renew the rigging, then lights and sound etc.

 

Top marks to him, I thought - for doing things methodically in times when budgets are tightening more than ever. Rather than spending the money on the most interesting flashy thing straight away, he had plans for investing in infrastructure - and in the meantime, our gig touring into his school benefited.

[newpersn]

Interesting - a post in the Blue Room this morning. Not quite where the OP is now, but apposite.

 

Not me... I'm still here

 

Thank you for the replies. Will pass this on

[NB9457]

American DJ and Chauvet are worth a look, their prices are low compared to the big brands, but both have big followings and their products are very good, especially the cans and movers.

 

ADJ were even boasting about having lights present at the McGregor fight

[SamanthaD]

Interesting - a post in the Blue Room this morning. Not quite where the OP is now, but apposite.

Funny - I responded to that one as well!

[newpersn]

Ok. Been thinking and had a quick look.

 

There is 4x 63a power thingys. They are connected to the dimmer packs.

 

Yes there are patch board. Would have to get electricians in to put a few sockets in by the patch boards.

 

Had a quick look online and looking at £100 per unit.

[3s-gtech]

For power, we got our 32A sockets for the dimmer packs converted into an array of 13A sockets on separate rings. Then we could use 13A fused to IEC C13 leads to send 240v to the bars for each light. Cheap and easy.

[newpersn]

 

*Knew i had them on here some where*

[Andycat]

For power, we got our 32A sockets for the dimmer packs converted into an array of 13A sockets on separate rings. Then we could use 13A fused to IEC C13 leads to send 240v to the bars for each light. Cheap and easy.

 

Similar...

[SamanthaD]

I'd be worried about the bend radius on that cable coming out of output #2...

 

Betapack 2's are perfectly fine, better than the Strand Tempus dimmers I was running at my old place....