examples of good bar-band lighting?

Maybe some ideas here: Weekend Warrior Stage Lighting Discussion

 

I delved into this area and after a lot of money and research, I concluded that something like above is the best because of convenience and the smaller footprint onstage. One in each corner , set to a slow fade from one color to the other works great. I went the other way by buying each fixture and the time it takes to set everything up sucks, especially if you're also performing. I bought the most heavy duty stands available to find out that the footprint was so wide that it really isn't doable for bar stages. The 4bar type I'm suggesting has a smaller footprint. Notice I posted a pic of the newer type of bulbs vs. the litebrite style of bulbs ? The new ones allow for better photos and video. The older litebright style does something weird when trying to take pics and video. Hope this helps.

 

Never ever use green lighting. Ever.
Don't get me started.

 

You want lots of light and a really small footprint for a very reasonable cost? Two of these mounted to the tops of your mains and DMX controller - and including your LED bars, you've got a pretty decent package. Check this link to see what it looks like for us...

Weekend Warrior Stage Lighting Discussion

 

Ok I'll bite. There should be no green par cans at all? We have one green (led) can.

 

Nobody looks good under green light, much less the food at the establishment (except for goth punk rockers maybe?).

 

Faces should be lit in as natural light as is possible. Colors should be used from the back for effect.

 

I saw this lighting system watching a band and was impressed on how well those strips in front lit up the band. They were incredibly compact and bright.

 

Re-gel that green to a nice "bastard amber" color, and you'll all look young, tan, and healthy.
Rosco #02 Filter - Bastard Amber - 20x24" RS0211 B&H Photo

 

Bastard Amber had a killer light show at bonaroo last summer.

 

2 x ADJ Sweeper beam quads either side at the rear mounted on stands, an ADJ VBar Pak on the floor at stage front. Fronts linked and rears linked but thats it. Throw a hazer into the equation and you have a mini stadium gig going on!
Tried a DMX controller but couldn't be bothered with the amount of time it took to set scenes up - the crowd usually can't tell the difference between programmed and autorun anyway.

Dodgy video below but you'll get the idea when the band comes into shot....

 

I used to be in a cover band that rolled with two of these:

Yorkville Sound - Dimmer Bar

 

I have two Chauvet Gigbars for the dance floor:

Chauvet GigBAR 2.0 4-in-1 Lighting Effect

I have up to eight American DJ LED par can color washes for the band similar to this:

American DJ Hex Par Pak

Mounted on two 9' light stands. And done. We're set.

Not cheap, but I wanted good stuff, easy to set up and use, and quickly, so I splurged. Lots of Studio 54 style dancing lights on the dance floor, nice color washes for the band. It's often too much for typical small to medium sized clubs and we just scale it back a little, but my band often finds itself in larger spaces.

 

We've used those in the past. Plenty bright but expensive and heavy...and you need the Yorkville specific controller if you want a light show. The Chauvet 4 bar does the job for a fraction of the price and weight. Both also take a lot of floor space - matters if you're in a small joint.

 

We use these as well, one on each side of the stage. I can have the lights up and running in 15 minutes m/l, they look great, are easy to haul around, take up minimal space in the gear hauler and minimal stage footprint (basically two tripod light stands).