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Thread: how much power do you need for beam shows?

  1. #11
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Connecticut, USA
    Posts
    2,478

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    Shane-

    as others said, LOTS of power. but it also depends on atmospheric factors. there is a member of this forum that does shows professionally that just did a show with (2) 30-40 Watt Laser Scopes and he said the visibility sucked. it was an outdoor show and the atmosphere just did not cooperate with him. The next night, they used 10 fog machines and got a much better show.

    however, on average, with average atmospheric conditions with average humidity, i would say start with a minimum of 2-3 Watts of green (532nm). and you are correct, the "slower" type of beam type effects will provide much better visibility also. Stick with "Finger" type fans. individual effects where there are less points and therefore more beam visibility.

    If you project a "liquid sky" ( a solid sheet ) above the crowd, it is going to be very hard to see it in adverse conditions. However, if you slow that sheet down greatly, you will begin to see individual beams and the effect will become more crowd pleasing.

    also, as i am sure you are aware, *NO* beams can ever go into the crowd. (there are exceptions to this, but it is not worth looking into at this point in your laserist career).

    You came to the right place to soak up as much information as needed. its good to see you are looking to educate yourself PRIOR to doing shows. Feel free to ask as many questions as needed. Whether it be for variance issues, equipment questions or just plain advice. we're all (for the most part) cool guys and gals willing to help.

    Its good to have you here. Try to read up on the SELEM meet coming up also. Its a weekend of a bunch of us laser geeks gettin together and just having a blast!! youll see some pretty SERIOUS lasers from RGB lasers to Multi-Watt greens to 8-10+ Watt ion systems to some very influential indistry pros coming and hanging out with us! Its definintely worth the trip.

    Stick around and soak up the knowledge.

    -Marc
    http://www.laserist.org/images/ildalogos/ILDA-logo_colored-beams_Corporate_150w.jpg

    ILDA- U.S. Laser Regulatory Committee

    Authorized Dealer for:

    • Pangolin Laser Software and Hardware
    • KVANT Laser Modules & Laser Systems
    • X-Laser USA
    • CNI Lasers
    • Cambridge Technology & Eye Magic Professional Scanning Systems

    FDA/CDRH Certified Professional LuminanceRGB Laser Light Show Systems


  2. #12
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    northwest arkansas
    Posts
    24

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    Buffo I do not have a laser yet. When I say doing a show I mean doing sound playing at one actually throwing it or sometimes just attending it but that rarely happens I always end up doing something. The shows we do are usually small 200-500 people, but the main place we do events at is in about a 10 acre(swag) field that has no city light or other manmade light. We usually have some lights and a projector. I usually do 4-7 shows per year so i dont want to spend 10k on a laser, it is starting to sound like animation may be the way for me to go. May need to build a 1/2-1 watt rgb and forget doing much in the way of beams.

    Most of the threads on this board have been very civil. it is nice.
    where is the best place to start on building a laser? any build guides out there?

  3. #13
    Join Date
    Jul 2006
    Location
    Connecticut, USA
    Posts
    2,478

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    hi shane-

    as far as there being a "guide" so to speak about building a laser, there really isnt one. there are way too many variables and designs and techniques to have a guide.

    What i usually tell my clients and where i usually get the ball rolling in the right direction is to start thinking about the following-

    1- what is your main goal? beam type shows or graphics types of shows? or a happy medium between the 2? graphics do not require as much laser power. beam quality is much more important and much more visible to observers. Beam type shows for the most part require much more power. beams are harder to see in the air as opposed to laser being projected on a screen or other surface. beam quality (imo. others disagree) is not as important because the observers are not directly viewing termination points. they are looking at, well, beams. So you want as much power as possible for your budget.

    minimum suggestions:

    RGB Graphics small to medium venues- 600-800mW (640nm/532nm/445nm)
    RGB Beams small to medium venue- 1-1.5W (same wavelengths)
    RGB beams/graphics happy medium- 800mW-1W (same wavelengths)

    Again, those are just bare minimum suggestions.

    2- Come up with a *realistic* budget. remember, quality costs money. building a laser system has come to become a game and just a "quick buck" for some manufacturers. there is an ENORMOUS difference between a pro/quality system and a laser bought off of ebay that bounces around laser beams to music. you can do a laser "toy" for a couple hundred dollars. or you can do a "Laser System" for a proper realistic budget.

    3- research your companies. Whether it is my company (CT. Lasers), Slick Lasers, X-Laser, LaserWave, CNI, kvant Coherent...whatever. Know the company youre dealing with! this is going to be a significant purchase for you (and i promise you, will KEEP you spending money! lol!!!) you should have a 1 on 1 relationship with your seller. service is imperative before, during and (this is where most companies go belly up) AFTER the sale! We have a very thorough "Seller Review" section where you can get very unbiased and in depth reports on all companies represented on this board and most companies dealing with laser components anywhere in the world.

    4- start laying out and drawing out your desired system. come up with your parts list and literally draw it all out.

    5- Get familiar with the rules/regs for Lasers here in the U.S.

    6- ASK QUESTIONS!!!!

    this is an amazing community to learn. whether its just general questions or late night emergency calls to troubleshoot scanners (Thanks DZ!! lol!!) youre never far from help.

    -Marc
    http://www.laserist.org/images/ildalogos/ILDA-logo_colored-beams_Corporate_150w.jpg

    ILDA- U.S. Laser Regulatory Committee

    Authorized Dealer for:

    • Pangolin Laser Software and Hardware
    • KVANT Laser Modules & Laser Systems
    • X-Laser USA
    • CNI Lasers
    • Cambridge Technology & Eye Magic Professional Scanning Systems

    FDA/CDRH Certified Professional LuminanceRGB Laser Light Show Systems


  4. #14
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    East Sussex, England
    Posts
    5,248

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    You still haven't told us how much budget you have to throw at this thing... that would give us most of the information to be able to advise what you might want to aim for. If you say $500 it'll be a very different set of advice to $3k

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    northwest arkansas
    Posts
    24

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    thanks gottaluv. helpful for sure.

    norty i am still not sure what i can spend. i will probably have to get it going with several chunks of money. maybe 2-3k over the next year or so.I HAVE TOO MANY HOBIES.
    I think I am in the early research soul search phase. I will figure out what I "have" to have to be happy and go from there. At leash i have a good resource here

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