Oopsdabassist Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Anybody use em? Can ye recommend any? Was thinking something like http://www.dv247.com/dj-equipment/kam-led-parbar-mkii--70401 But I really have no idea, we are a 4 piece pub rock covers band just looking to up our game a tad, need something easy to use by a band member, probably me, which adds a little oomph to our show. fire away Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalMan Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I bought a couple of American DJ wash panels a while back and may get a couple more, thoug the two are fine for small places to add a bit of colour. Still working out the best setting for them. The biggest peoblem we had was a dreadful buzzing through one guitarists gear in particular. One went back for that and another apparent problem but came back with a clean bill of health - though iI was still not entirely convinced. Ultimately we seem to have killed off the buzzing with a couple of hefty mains filters Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willl Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 The band I play in, a rock covers band, has a set of old lights which create lots of heat but do 'add a little oomph' as you say. We have a sound guy who joins us for larger gigs and in addition to the PA he brings a set of LED lights which are superb - lighter, cooler, and I would say brighter than our tired old dusty ones (much like the band members). I don't know the specific model, and I'm not familiar with the KAMs you link to but in principle they're good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobpalt Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Have a look on Thomann's website. They have loads of led set ups for bands at great prices. We have used 3 or 4 Kam and Thomann T Bar systems for a few years now, and they really are the bees knees. Wouldnt be without them. No heat, low power draw, dead simple to use, the new ones are bright as hell (if thats what you want). We can get all the lights up in 5 minutes or so! In fact, we now leave all of our lighting duties to my wife......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thestick Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I have the kam power bar cans ,they are great full colour and they dont get hot! and come complete with stand and case/covers so easy to transport. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Smoke machine & laser beams! Here... [url="http://www.dv247.com/dj-equipment/kam-dmx-1600v-vertical-smoke-machine-with-remote--53121"]Smoke[/url] [url="http://www.dv247.com/dj-equipment/equinox-vega-laser-dj-lighting--80938"]Laser[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopsdabassist Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 The other brand I came across was equinox, same idea I thinks, could we get away with 1 T bar, or should we get 2, 1 each side of us? Would 2 be overkill for a pub setting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 We use the brand from Thomann. A single bar of 4 is light, easy carry and set-up. DMX capable.. so expandable, and easily provides light for a 5mtr staging area, Limited power draw and no heat so these are a good option for a pub. Rooms that require full P.A require more lights but then we hire in. The light unit seems good but the carry bags and stand is where they cut costs. It is better this way round. £300 for a decent pub rig is worth the money, IME. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Booooooom Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 We've been cooking under a few R80 coloured spots for pub gigs but have recently got a couple of Visage par56 LED floor cans from [url="http://www.rsdmusic.com/productcatsub.asp?catid=165&mcatid=163"]here[/url] which are great (and stay cool). They do the same Kam package as the OP's link and also foot controlled sets and were very helpful when I phoned. (I don't have any affiliation to them). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 http://basschat.co.uk/topic/152473-band-lighting/page__p__1357216__hl__led__fromsearch__1#entry1357216 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopsdabassist Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 Cheers for the link Pete, I KNEW I'd read about LED lights somewhere, but was checking talkbass site doh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigwan Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 My last cover band had 2 T-bars fully loaded with the Thomann PAR56 LED cans. They did the job. They're not spectacular quality, but what do you expect for the money? We had trouble with a few of them where the plastic nut on the inside of the can slipped off the power cable grommet, meaning there was no tension relief on the power cable, and they weren't easily taken apart to fix the problem (although I managed it in the end). Other than that I can't really complain. After playing under normal cans for a while the LEDs made things much more comfortable, temperature-wise. They wouldn't have anything like the same light output though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mep Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Our covers band uses somehig like this although I can't remeber which make. For what they are they are ok. Lightweight, compact, no heat gain, sound to light you are on to a winner. Our singer bought them and we can tell what sort of gig he had by them. If it was a good gig he is 'networking' with some (female) punters and we have to pack them up. If it was a bad gig he packs them up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulWarning Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 just bought 2 par 64 LED's from Thomanns, about £95 for the 2, used them this weekend, just set them on sound to light and away you go, we didn't opt for the T bar with 4 lights because of the space problem in small pub gigs, we can mount these on top of the PA speakers if we want or put them on the floor. We might get 2 more now we've tried them out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 We've been using the iColour 4 lights for the past 2 or 3 years and they've been really good. I know that LEDs last a long time but in the time we've had them, I've had to change one bulb at a cost of about £1 You can also link them up to a DMX controller and set them off with a laptop at specific parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 [quote name='Oopsdabassist' timestamp='1321275348' post='1437138'] Cheers for the link Pete, I KNEW I'd read about LED lights somewhere, but was checking talkbass site doh! [/quote] No worries. We've gained a bit more experience using ours since then. We usually take two and use however many we've got room for, linked together with XLR cables. Even if you don't have DMX this allows you to control both sets with one foot controller. I'd say it's worth sticking with the same brand. The Equinox pre-sets are different to the KAM ones, so if you scroll through you don't get the same lighting patterns. I managed to break the footswitch socket on the Equinox, so I can report that they're easy to dismantle to change components. There are additional positions on the top of the bar for adding more lights, or the odd laser. The KAM units are slightly more expensive but I think worth it: the T-bar hinges in the middle, so they're easier to cram into corners of rooms, and pack up slightly smaller than the Equinox units which go into a case the size of a bass flight case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopsdabassist Posted November 14, 2011 Author Share Posted November 14, 2011 Tnx for the heads up, pulled the trigger on the equinox earlier, 2 T bar units, foot controller, cables and case, tad under 400 notes, hopefully delivered tomorrow, gigs this w/e and next so best get playing around looking for best settings! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 Look forward to a full review with interest, please! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopsdabassist Posted November 15, 2011 Author Share Posted November 15, 2011 Kit arrived this morning to work, so had a play at lunchtime, set it up in a quiet room. Comes in a Protex plastic, foam lined box about 900mm square by 200mm deep, plus 2 nylon shoulder bags for the stands. everything seems sturdy enough, all cables supplied plus a 4 way foot switch. Took me less than 10 mins to set up, bearing in mind it was my 1st time, I'm sure I could be quicker with practice. Instructions a tad vague, but a quick call to Tim at Phase one http://www.djanddiscostuff.com/contact-us.asp soon put me right, kudos to them too for the very prompt delivery, no extra charge. So, 3 modes, 1. manual light change, 7 colours to choose from, using the up/down footswitches 2. Sound to light, with an adjustable sensitivity pot on the footboard, couldn't really check that too well at work, my phone isn't THAT loud! 3. programme mode, 13 presets, which are all customisable for colour and speed, using a little lcd screen on the back of the heads, easy to read, and instructions very clear for this bit. 1 small niggle, when you go into programme mode, I think it remembers the last programme you had, and with no vis ref as to which prog it was, trying to find the one you want isn't easy, a lil LED screen on the footswitch showing P1-P13 would have been nice. There are 4 buttons on the foot unit, mode, up, down and blackout, which switches it all off for that dramatic finish! It was difficult to tell just how bright the lights were given the situation I was in, but they look very promising, will report further after gig on Friday. Overall, initial impressions are very favourable, and I am looking forward to next gig! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gilmour Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 I have similar equinox system, reviewed in detail [url="http://finnbass.com/showthread.php?t=6306"]here[/url]. I really like our rig it looks awesome, was affordable and easily transported but wish I'd spent the little extra on the Kam stuff as the cases are better and the stands sturdier. That said ours has been used every week for the last 18 months, and makes a massive difference to the show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WalMan Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 I just wish I could get my lot a bit more proactive. Sound guy does have the full LED par can rig but doesn't bring it to our gigs - as he frankly carries too much PA about but that's another story I bought the digital recorder to do gigs, and more recently the camcorder to try and get the odd (very odd) video, and it was me that got sick of playing under a 30W bulb and originally put together some light boxes, then more recently the two LED panels. To be fair the vocalist does put the set them up and the sound guy has fashioned some T bar poles that fix to the back of the PA to save floorspace, but other than that I get the feeling it is down to me sometimes I wish the others would show [i]some[/i] interest in adding to the show sometimes Anyway, rant over Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 That is really useful - thank you both for taking the time to write all that. What would anyone consider would be the advantage of this over the floor cans? I much prefer this idea but our singer seems to be sticking to his guns about floor cans. Having said that I am in two bands, neither of which have decent lights, so I might bite the bullet and get something to use for both, rather than have part 'band ownership' on 2 sets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crez5150 Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 [quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1321373957' post='1438393'] That is really useful - thank you both for taking the time to write all that. What would anyone consider would be the advantage of this over the floor cans? I much prefer this idea but our singer seems to be sticking to his guns about floor cans. Having said that I am in two bands, neither of which have decent lights, so I might bite the bullet and get something to use for both, rather than have part 'band ownership' on 2 sets. [/quote] Get both if you can..... floor cans are fantastic for uplighting the band and giving backwash Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete.young Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 +1 to Gilmour's comments about the stands. The one in my Equinox set had plain nuts fitted which swiftly unscrewed themselves, making the whole thing a bit rickety. I went down to B&Q and bought some Nyloc nuts which have improved matters no end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 I would add another bar...but can't or don't really want to carry it, tbh. I T-bar/4 LEDS covers nearly 90% of gigs..where we take our own lights. The basic presets are not easy to ID...or retain, once found, so am thinking about using DMX to program a light show from a laptop possibly. That will add just a few more minutes to set-up. We don't have an extra pair of hands so a simple trigger would have to be enough. But we are getting to the limit of what we can carry in the cars..and we still have a sub issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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