Stage lighting- hire or buy

rsvmark

We have a wedding booking in the new year and have hired in a decent sound system and engineer for the night. Thoughts have now turned to lighting and I think we have 3 options:

1: If there is a dj- use what ever lights he brings otherwise

2: hire in a lighting rig

3: buy a basic set up

I have no idea what is needed, how many lights, programming etc etc. Any early advice to set me on the right path would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

John_P

Might be worth a conversation with the sound guy to see if he can also supply lights.

I'd always prefer to buy than hire but it depends on how much use they will get - if you expect a lot of gigs and can transport and store them then buying a pair of t bars and with led par cans is probably a good investment.

rsvmark

Thanks @john_p and I already tried that route. He was hired on a previous gig to do lighting and sound. Sound was superb - a full festival sized rig and we have never sounded so good, both on stage in terms of fold back and foh. Lighting was shit for the additional cost and we ain't gonna fall for that again.

randomhandclaps

Have you got time to knock a few of these up -

http://www.mgsfx.com/uploadfile/pic/2013022246599829.jpg

Danny1969

The current trend for LED DMX based cans have made the traditional Parcan pretty worthless, you can pick em up for less than a tenner each. Thing is 2 bars of 4  x 500 watt Parcans connected to sound to light dimmer pack and placed at the front \ sides will light up the band more than adequately and  prob cost less than £150 the lot

We have loads of LED Parcans we hire out but in honestly, good as they are in terms of current draw they don't have the lighting up power of good ol lamp based Pars. 

ElectroDan

It's always good to have at least some lighting as quite a lot of venues have woeful provisions for it.

Presuming this is not a one off gig and you will definitely use 'em again, then buy some I'd say.

Most have some sort of simple sound to light controllability these days, so you won't have to worry about that too much.

rsvmark

Thanks @danny1969 and @electrodan Have browsed a bit. Next question- if we went led route, what would we need to look half decent? I was thinking a couple of sets of 4 floods on T bars plus maybe a couple of led light bars, all linked up to some sort of Dmx controller automated to music? Unfortunately we are too far away from you to hire but what might that cost to hire for a night? Assuming we decide to buy, I am guessing you have to check the light output from LEDs to see how much they actually kick out? Any pointers there and what might the set above cost? I am thinking led set ups are much easier to set up, break down, and smaller- better for storage and getting in and out of cars which is leading me down this route.....

ElectroDan

You're right, although you can get all in one units instead of a T bar, which fit into boxes a bit neater (you still have the upright part of the stand of course). With DMX you can generally connect them and any controller together with XLR cables, whereas with traditional Par cans there were huge mains carrying cables running everywhere.

Some effect lights that contain their own sound to light function and will act as Masters/Slaves when chained together. They look like they are programmed or being controlled when really they are just following the first in the chain. Although on cheaper units this can sometimes cause them to flicker quickly and annoy everyone.

Danny is better placed to give you a particular brand or an idea of price as he is in the business of hiring. But it shouldn't cost you much to get up and running. You can add as you see fit, and a little goes a long way.

ESBlonde

Your sound dude probably has something simple and would likely add it to the sound package for a nominal fee like £25-£50.
He's already there and so transport is not an issue. Set up and breakdown is minimal for a simple Par can rig or even some modern LEDs.The stuff would earn nothing sat in his warehouse anyway.
Don't pay extra for nodding colour changing thingmybobs if the gig doesn't warrant it.

Fez

When we started Borrowed Time 6 yrs ago rather than have no lights I got some cheapy ones from Maplin. Once we got a bit of money in we bought some better LED cans. Still not retired a couple of the Maplin ones though cos' in small venues they are OK. Have a couple of boards with par cans on which go on the floor as footlights, they have a socket strip on them so can power monitors or pedalboards too.