DJ lighting for dumies

[Zer0beet]

Hey guys,
I'm a mobile DJ, 16, and have very little money coming my way. I have everything I need to play music at parties, and anyone who hires me says I am quite good at what I do. But lately I feel as if just music at some parties isn't enough, so I want to get into lighting.

If you could offer me any knowledge on how I could go about creating a light setup controlled through DMX cables and another controller for cheap, I would be regretful.

Thanks in advance, you guys are great.

[sol*los]

When doing mobile lights are always a good look. You can use it as a up sell or include it in the price, they feel like they are getting a deal when you say the price you quote them includes lights and sound for the night. I've done a lot of gigs and the people are amazed I even have lights.

Make sure you go with LED lights.

[dj gullum]

American DJ has lots of cheep but good LED lights that run by DMX or sound to light. they are worth a check I think. I have several of their lights and they are good.

[Sn0wday]

all about dat linein:// milkdrop projector hahaha

[0Notice]

Hey guys,
I'm a mobile DJ, 16, and have very little money coming my way. I have everything I need to play music at parties, and anyone who hires me says I am quite good at what I do. But lately I feel as if just music at some parties isn't enough, so I want to get into lighting.

If you could offer me any knowledge on how I could go about creating a light setup controlled through DMX cables and another controller for cheap, I would be regretful.

Thanks in advance, you guys are great.

Agreed Ive always wanted to know more about this stuff.

[Conall]

all about dat linein:// milkdrop projector hahaha

+1

[djrosco]

Find your local hire shop and try out a few fittings before you buy anything.
Also, a smoke machine is essetial to bring out the best in your lights

[Otacon]

I'm a mobile DJ and my best friend travels with me with his light rig. It really helps alot and people really enjoy it, especially lasers.

+1 for fogger/hazer

[VanGogo]

I would start with some LED par lights or par light package like the 4 bar. If you plan on growing your set up and want DMX controll, a controller like the Chauvet Obey 40 or 70 is a good purchase. A hazer is a good addition, and will make the light beams stand out. Go for ADJ, Chauvet, or Blizzard lights, not lights straight from China off eBay or from cheaplights. Pretty sure they all come from China, but the bigger name companies test them before shipment, and warranty them from a US location.
To start you could just use 2-4 pars up lighting the wall behind you in sound active mode, and add dmx and stands as you can afford it.

[Rexx]

When I first started with lighting I bought a centrepiece light and went with Chauvet's Vue 6.1 and a light stand ($300). Then after one gig, I bought one ColorStrip and Obey 40 to uplight the table or dancefloor ($500). At this point, I was charging $800-$1000 per show. With the money, I bought 2 Intimidator Spot LED 150's ($900). Then, I bought another light stand and another ColorStrip ($300). One more gig. Charged ($2000) and bought 10 Slim par 56s ($1200) for uplighting around the room.

I did find a smoke machine on kijiji for $30 bucks and tried to use it at a gig, but found that most venues won't let you use it, or old ladies complained they were choking. I rented a haser and a dry ice machine once thinking that would solve the issues, but I still got complaints of choking. I think some people see smoke and think they're on fire. So I don't use smokers anymore. Though, if a client wants it, they get it.

After 5 shows, and 3 months, I had all the lighting I needed. People are absolutly floored when they walk into a wedding reception hall full of light. I get nothing but compliments on the lighting. Lots of customer referrals from one gig to the next.

As you can tell, I went with an all Chauvet light set-up. I did this for a reason due to DMX programming. The guy at the shop told me that sometimes DMX programming from one brand to another can cause flickering and communication issues to the lights. I also found Chauvet's lighting to be less intrusive (bright) than American DJ lights. Plus, Chauvet's lights are cheaper. I love some of ADJ's lights, and sometimes think of switching brands, but I'm too lazy to do the reasearch on the best options.

With this set-up, I can offer quite a few options for my customers... but 8 times out of 10 they go for the ultimate becuase they've already seen it at their friend's wedding/party and want the same thing or better.

If anyone has great experiences with lasers, please let me know.