Weekend Warrior Stage Lighting Discussion

[Barisaxman]

That looks great, what're you using out front? That's the issue I'm trying to sort out. Washes and scenes are fine, but just dark overall. @Barisaxman

Front lights are some fairly cheap RGBA par cans from Amazon. Key for me was going with 4 per side. Main thing is getting them up high on light stands. The four (two each side) furthest from the lead singer are illuminating the middle of the stage. The other two on each stand are focused toward the individual on each corner. I can flip those to a skin tone if they are doing a lead song, etc. otherwise I leave them on wash colors to compliment the upstage lights which is what you see happening in these pictures.

https://www.amazon.com/OPPSK-Lighti...pd_rd_i=B07VBCDZVY&psc=1&ref_=pd_bap_d_rp_1_i

 

[SuperK]

Blue tooth is starting to give it a run for its money.

I tried Bluetooth and found that the lag time was too long for my tastes. When trying to sync lighting changes to the music even a 0.5 second delay loses the impact. I switched to wireless and the changes are now instantaneous.

This was a few years ago using the Chauvet D-Fi system. Perhaps the technology has improved over the last few years.

 

[musicman7722]

I have found my blue tooth has no lag time

 

[4Mal]

Blue tooth range is too limited for my use. I'm often 125 to 150 feet out front... and there certainly is lag time with anything bluetooth. I wouldn't bother with it when the Donner stuff is so affordable and reliable.

 

[4Mal]

That looks great, what're you using out front? That's the issue I'm trying to sort out. Washes and scenes are fine, but just dark overall. @Barisaxman

in general, I go for a look where the front is a little dark and there is more color coming from the back. The fron scene can be fairly static and variations on fades and color changes come from the back. It's a bit more of a dramatic look. That said, I don't have a Celine Dion in the middle needing a follow spot ;-)

 

[4Mal]

I thought I read here (or somewhere) that for a simple lighting rig you could just fabricate a T brace and attach a couple of basic pars (or other lights I suppose) to the top threaded receiver/socket on most PA tops (I have QSC K10.2's and they have this socket feature). Am I imagining that this is a possibility ? Given that the PA stands are always just ahead of the band/stage, it seems like it would work out ok for elevated lights (say to smallish/light multi-LED pars).

Yep.. I did that years ago on K12's. I mounted a pair of $60 led 9x10 color changers from monoprice on each. Still have them on a shelf somewhere...

 

[4Mal]

If you have extra tall speaker stands, get some of the large clamps and mount 3 or 4 vertically. Think stop light. this works well when space is limited or the client has sight line requirements. My 90 watt led pars do a great job for that.

@pfschim
The venue is a winery and the client has a real dislike for visible hardware - the space is amazing - I don't blame her so the direction is go small...
I rolled a wine barrel and nestled it in the legs of the stands. I put up 6 or 8 up lights. The upright is another 9x10 monoprice par in a painters bucket. I cut a shaped the top of the buckets and cut a cable slot. For weddings I wrap them in wedding gift paper take from the colors of the wedding. For a pretty modest investment, they get a lot of praise.

 

[4Mal]

I need to mention ... this was in October. Pacific Northwest about 20 miles west of the beginning of the high desert. It gets pretty darned chilly at night. The guys come dressed to kill including very dressy leather soled shoes. On a cold concrete slab. Never once complained. End of the show and they are in the dressing room rubbing life back into their feet quickly!

If you are a blue grasser or just like great acoustic music and harmony check these guys out! If you get a chance to work with the, jump at it. Great guys, know what they need, ask for that and nothing more. Super easy and you'll hear a great show.

 

[Frankjohnson]

I need to mention ... this was in October. Pacific Northwest about 20 miles west of the beginning of the high desert. It gets pretty darned chilly at night. The guys come dressed to kill including very dressy leather soled shoes. On a cold concrete slab. Never once complained. End of the show and they are in the dressing room rubbing life back into their feet quickly!

If you are a blue grasser or just like great acoustic music and harmony check these guys out! If you get a chance to work with the, jump at it. Great guys, know what they need, ask for that and nothing more. Super easy and you'll hear a great show.

I can't tell - are those Ear Trumpet mics? I did a show with Myrtle mics from them once, and found that I really had to be on my game but got it pretty close to right when it was said and done.

 

[4Mal]

Yep. also the bass player had an Ear Trumpet Nadine nestled into his string below the bridge. The vocal mic stand also had a Neumann 184 at waist level to pickup the guitar as he is the primary lead singer. Needless to say, they brought their mics.

The solo mic off to the side... When the soloist finished, he would put it to the correct height based on the instrument that followed. Down for the guitar or banjo, mid height for the mando, up for the fiddle. One of the guys doubled. I forget which. These guys are sooo good at what they do.

Any LDC mics are a challenge at volume. For the most part the bluegrass crowd does not need a ton of stage monitor though which makes it a lot easier.

In my (2) bands we all sing on hyper/super cardioid condensers, except for one guy... Audix vx-5's for the most part. One guitarist screwed up and bought a cardiod AKG. Good sounding mic but a pita from a gain before feedback perspective. With the vx-5 the only run I need to follow is monito at 45 degrees to the mic. That friggen AKG I need to ring out every time it changes rooms... I honestly can't understand why people insist on sm-58's when mics like the vx-5 exist. It makes singing so much easier and they sound so much better.

 

[Frankjohnson]

Yep. also the bass player had an Ear Trumpet Nadine nestled into his string below the bridge. The vocal mic stand also had a Neumann 184 at waist level to pickup the guitar as he is the primary lead singer. Needless to say, they brought their mics.

The solo mic off to the side... When the soloist finished, he would put it to the correct height based on the instrument that followed. Down for the guitar or banjo, mid height for the mando, up for the fiddle. One of the guys doubled. I forget which. These guys are sooo good at what they do.

Any LDC mics are a challenge at volume. For the most part the bluegrass crowd does not need a ton of stage monitor though which makes it a lot easier.

In my (2) bands we all sing on hyper/super cardioid condensers, except for one guy... Audix vx-5's for the most part. One guitarist screwed up and bought a cardiod AKG. Good sounding mic but a pita from a gain before feedback perspective. With the vx-5 the only run I need to follow is monito at 45 degrees to the mic. That friggen AKG I need to ring out every time it changes rooms... I honestly can't understand why people insist on sm-58's when mics like the vx-5 exist. It makes singing so much easier and they sound so much better.

WOW! You know - I am still learning, but doing pretty ok with small scale live sound. I get to do a very cool songwirter/singer performer "in the Round" set for a local performer who always has top notch and even some grammy award folks......Its always a nail biter because they are so good and for whatever reason - they trust me not to screw it up too bad. I also get to work with a top notch Neil Diamond Tribute act that has a great video backdrop. Again - WOW! Then there are the local bar band show that just get too loud. I am at the point where I am becoming more hesitant to take those gigs, but actually upcharge them to at least make it worth it when I DO take them.

Acts like the one you just showed are really a lot of fun becasue you can polish an already finished product. The dance with the mics is just a little challange thrown in for free to keep you honest I guess!

 

[4Mal]

WOW! You know - I am still learning, but doing pretty ok with small scale live sound. I get to do a very cool songwirter/singer performer "in the Round" set for a local performer who always has top notch and even some grammy award folks......Its always a nail biter because they are so good and for whatever reason - they trust me not to screw it up too bad. I also get to work with a top notch Neil Diamond Tribute act that has a great video backdrop. Again - WOW! Then there are the local bar band show that just get too loud. I am at the point where I am becoming more hesitant to take those gigs, but actually upcharge them to at least make it worth it when I DO take them.

Acts like the one you just showed are really a lot of fun becasue you can polish an already finished product. The dance with the mics is just a little challange thrown in for free to keep you honest I guess!

Some days it's chicken, some days it's feathers ;-)

These days I'm hardly getting or taking any gigs at all. I've had 3 major clients tell me that they won't be doing events this spring or summer. I expect it will be a lot of electro'coustic trio gigs in the vineyards for me this summer.

 

[Frankjohnson]

Yep a lot of that thought this area as well. I sold an entire system and still have two xr18s and enough for a large small system or medium system.....or two band setups. Lighting wise i love this thread and didn't mean to hijack it. I intend to employ some ideas and things I saw here. For now......I got what I got and thats all that I got.....to misquote an old sailor with a pipe!

 

[musicman7722]

Blue tooth range is too limited for my use. I'm often 125 to 150 feet out front... and there certainly is lag time with anything bluetooth. I wouldn't bother with it when the Donner stuff is so affordable and reliable.

Well that is quite a distance. Before Covid I had a wireless Donner type setup and it worked fine as well with no lag time but I was never 100' or more away.

 

[musicman7722]

I agree this is an awesome thread

 

[4Mal]

Well that is quite a distance. Before Covid I had a wireless Donner type setup and it worked fine as well with no lag time but I was never 100' or more away.

Yeah, well... I'm nothing more than a weekend warrior at this Covid point ... when the good sound gigs come back 2023? ... I'll be back to scrapping in the mid market... I'll be doing it with a dedicated lighting partner though. We're like minded and both more interested in our specialties. For me, sound, for him lighting. we can share a crew guy and make it efficient.

Pre-Covid, there were a dozen shows a summer where my FOH was 120 to 150 out front. Someday...

 

[mudpup]

We've just added a few bits to our lighting.

We currently use an ADJ VBar Pak as front uplighters, VPar Pak as drum lights, ADJ Sweeper Beam Quads stage rear pointing inwards diagonally, a random laser and a Beamz Fazer haze machine.

We've just added a pair of Chauvet Intimidator Duo pin spot moving heads and a Eurolite Bigfoot stage DMX controller. Everything is set to autorun macros and slow fades apart from the Chauvets which i programmed scenes and movements into via the DMX pedalboard and spent most of Friday evening tap dancing on.

It looked pretty good judging from the feedback after the gig from the customers and owners....here are some pictures

 

[musicman7722]

very nice and I am dig-gin seeing a drum shield. Was that house or the bands?

 

[Bullitt5135]

We've just added a few bits to our lighting.

Looks great! The fog adds a lot of ambiance...too bad it's all but forbidden here in the US.

 

[Bullitt5135]

I recently discovered that my local public library has a ton of Chauvet lighting gear that you can sign out with a library card for 4 weeks at a time. I stopped by the other day and was shocked at how much gear they had, and it looks like it doesn't get much use. I'll be taking advantage of it this summer for sure.