Large Blacklights

[LELS]

Does anybody have any recommendations on professional UV blacklight systems to use? Most venues will be 750-1000 people. I am having a hard time finding anything other than wedding DJ type washes by Chauvet and American DJ. Looking for some high powered washes with strobe effects, heat is not an issue.

[norty303]

From the companies you mention, should we assume you are after led products?
Unfortunately this is one area where led isn't really up to the traditional discharge type fixtures. So for output you'll still be hard pressed to replace the 400w cannon/flood, but of course there is very little control unless you rig some sort of shutter to them.

[Shawnb]

i like the Wildfire units

[LELS]

i like the Wildfire units

I have only seen one dealer for them but they didn't have much for details. Do you have any videos or anything cool to fill me in on as they are pricey little units.

[laserwinkel]

i am using the showtec blacklight cannons 400W each
their range isnt very big ±5 meter around the light after that the blacklight effect loses power

[Shawnb]

To give you an idea i used to use 3 wild fire units to light a 30' x 40 ' UV reactive Back drop on the Alice cooper brutal planet tour and the backdrop was TOOO bright. verry intense. one thing i have found prob due to the short wave length UV FX drop off fairly fast as far as throw distance.

[norty303]

one thing i have found prob due to the short wave length UV FX drop off fairly fast as far as throw distance

I would think thats as much the nature of the flood effect as anything. A very tight focus would probably work over long distances, but we don't traditionally want that out of a UV fixture.

[White-Light]

That's why the Wildfire ones employ a longer wavelength I think. They claim an 80ft throw distance.

http://www.wildfirefx.com/wfi/amazin...TpStatus=1&Tp=

I have no operator experience of these. I've only ever seen the metal cage 400W cannons in clubs, but the venues have been small. Only black light I've used was a 75w tungsten traditional bulb type and it was a waste of time even in a domestic situation!

[danielbriggs]

That's why the Wildfire ones employ a longer wavelength I think. They claim an 80ft throw distance.

http://www.wildfirefx.com/wfi/amazin...TpStatus=1&Tp=

I have no operator experience of these. I've only ever seen the metal cage 400W cannons in clubs, but the venues have been small. Only black light I've used was a 75w tungsten traditional bulb type and it was a waste of time even in a domestic situation!

Just make sure the cable is rated appropriately.

[aclasers]

Just make sure the cable is rated appropriately.

Briggs your such a chop, (Piss my shit though)

[smogthemog]

Yes, CAT5 data cable supplying the feed to a 400W blacklight load at distances over 80ft would indeed need to be armoured. The volts drop you would encounter would exceed limitations. This is the OHM law not mine!
If needed I can draw a picture?

[White-Light]

PC works great on armoured cable. Thanks for asking.

[LELS]

Kinda disappointed in overall selection available to the public. It's like I have to buy a wedding DJ type equipment, or have to break the bank and invest heavily in Wildfire. Is this really that much of an untapped market for business' to be in, or is there not really that big of a calling for an 1000w cannon or wash for $500-$750?

[norty303]

Well, I don't really consider a 400W UV cannon type fixture to be wedding DJ type material. In the size of most wedding rooms here, they'd be overkill, especially if they wanted to light the audience rather than 'something' specific. (as with lasers, people are often ignorant of the dangers of a 400W arc lamp at close range, visibile spectrum or not)
As I said previously, it all depends on what you want to do with them. As most people want a wide wash, thats what is commonly available for cheap.
The Wildfire units don't really pack any more punch (400W) than the cannon type fixtures, they just use a different lamp, so they can use better/more appropriate reflectors. They look essentially like a decent profile fixture, but UV. So they'll be brighter, because they have a more concentrated beam, plus, probably better optics/reflector.

I suspect the reason why they're so expensive is because the market is small.

I seem to remember reading a thread about UV in a theatre environment on blueroom forum, where there was a requirement for it to be shuttered on and off quickly too. Might be worth a search over there, but I seem to remember it simply involved a regular profile/spot fixture, with a special filter and an iris. However, go and price up what that might cost and compare it to a Wildfire, I suspect it won't be too different.

BTW, you can get narrower throw cannons, so might be worth looking for them. The other thing with the regular 'DJ' cannons is that they are so wide, they project a donut of light, so pointing them directly at the target can sometimes be counterproductive.

[norty303]

http://www.usedlighting.co.uk/effect...ire-uv-fresnel

[White-Light]

I saw this earlier:

http://www.thomann.de/gb/showtec_uv4...845f10f88c84e3

No idea what they're like but its a 400W spot uv similar to the Wildfire for Euro 118 albeit the bulb is extra.

Similar one in Varytec Brand for only Euro 78:

http://www.thomann.de/gb/varytec_uv400.htm

Neither is DMX able though.

TBH I don't know if a UV strobe effect would be very effective anyway given that black light is invisible except on reflection. Have you seen this before or is it something you just want to try?

[White-Light]

Just found this site by accident, some very high power UV strobes here - right up to 2400 Watts:

https://www.interlight.biz/products....ES&dispgroup=4

Not sure what they fit though and you need to check eye and skin safety at those levels to ensure the UV is the skin safe type and the levels of UV are eye safe.

Many UV bulbs are industrial not leisure designated.

[norty303]

Al, the first 2 you linked to are the DJ cannons he was referring to and are not the same as the wildfire unit. They take a different lamp for a start although both say 400W. Keep up please

[norty303]

Most discharge type lamps have a uv element present, only most fixtures have a filter on the output to get rid of it. This is why they usually have a warning about running with the case open. The wildfire and similar units simply filter the visible wavelengths.

[laserwinkel]

for main rooms these 400W cannons are not enough i use them mainly for waiting rows / halls

also be sure to check that you get the correct 400W lamp in your enclosure.
i ordered the correct ones but received the wrong one and after 5 minutes the blacklight glass exploded (not the white 400W bulb inside)
luckily it was at the setup and not when there was a row waiting

[norty303]

Also, not all 400W UV lamps are created equal.
The EYE Iwasaki lamps are the best output and longest lasting.

[WookieBoy]

Hey Lels

Not sure if there is anything more easily available than the trust 400W cannon type fixture.
The wildfire is the only other option I've used, and that was only because they had a DMX shutter unit fitted so the LD could 'instantly' switch them on and off... Most discharge fixtures have a warm up time due to the nature of the lamp.

However, I recently added a bundle of the Chauvet LED UV wash fixtures to my hire stock as they're cheap as chips, DMX controllable (Dimmer/strobe) and provide a slightly narrower beam than the UV cannon. These would probably be the 'wedding dj' type fixtures you mentioned in your OP.. Admittedly, the output is not quite as good as a traditional cannon type unit, however, they're less than half the cost of a cannon and lamp so I can use twice as many to do the same job. Plus, being led, they're going to live longer (hopefully. I've only had them a few months so far so that hasn't been tested yet!)

Another consideration is the fact that most UV cannons don't travel well. I've had to replace far more lamps through mechanical failure through them being transported then from end of life failures... It's annoying to open a flightcase and find a bunch of broken glass in the bottom!
Another reason I bought the LED units... no lamp to rattle loose and smash in transit!

If you're dead set on WildFire's, there's a website in the US that the big hire companies sell off their old used gear on... think it's gearsource.com or something similar. Try looking for them on there as they're pretty damn expensive new!

Hope that helps.

[norty303]

Another consideration is the fact that most UV cannons don't travel well. I've had to replace far more lamps through mechanical failure through them being transported then from end of life failures... It's annoying to open a flightcase and find a bunch of broken glass in the bottom!

What are you doing to them man!!

I've broken plenty of tubes, but never a 400W lamp. I always transport them face down, so I guess less stress on the base (although it's huge). I can see a hard knock if laying sideways might do it, but I'm yet to see it myself.
I have however seen/spoken to a good number of people who've thrown away good lamps 'because it was rattling, so must've blown'

[WookieBoy]

Meh... Dry hire

Other people aren't as gentle with my kit as I am

[LELS]

Well don't tell the wife but I scrounged all my loose change up and bought one of these: http://www.stagespot.com/product/ALT...%20120V%2060Hz . Should be here in about a week, so Ill throw it a review probably next weekend. I just hope its 10x better than the wedding DJ ones, because I literally could have bought 10 smaller 400watt washes. For for my purposes and ease 1 is better than 10.