Laser Recommendations

[dh140770 0]

Hi.

 

I've got an 18th Birthday coming up (at my usual venue) and i thought it would be cool to get a laser as they want fairly heavy dance music.

 

I'm looking for a non too expensive laser ideally 2 colour with DMX so i can use my controller to switch it on and off.

 

I've seem the star cluster lasers (Kam and Acme Nebula) and to be honest i'm not impressed with the videos i've seen so far. I'd like something a bit more fasst moving.

 

Also are there any usage considerations for the laser. What if someone looks at it drectly. Do i have to aim it right above the dancefloor rather than point it at it ?

 

Any advice welcomed as I have not used one before.

 

Cheers

 

[norty303 0]

The HSG95 document lays out how you should setup and operate a laser. It covers how you can ascertain whether the power level is permissible for each pattern to be used for crowd scanning.

 

Details here:

 

http://www.lasershowsafety.org/faq.htm

 

You are encountering the main issue with lasers these days, in that previously if you wanted one they were thousands of pounds and that you had to have some knowledge of them to enter the market. Now they are cheap and readily available but not any less dangerous.

 

Have a look at this site for a lot of info on how you should safely use a laser.

 

http://www.lasershowsafety.com/

 

The common rule of thumb that is used is that if you haven't got the equipment or skills to measure and calculate whether a beam is over the MPE (Maximum Permissible Exposure) then you shouldn't be crowd scanning.

 

On the flipside, many mobile jocks go out every weekend with reasonable sized lasers and scan where they like, and there are no reported injuries. However you might just want to check out that site and scare yourself a little bit before you do go out and use one - it might just make you a little bit more cautious which is a good thing.

 

As an example of how dangerous lasers can be, I've got some 100mW green lasers which by all accounts are quite low power (at the bottom end of class 3b) On a static beam i can still burn through gaffa tape and upholstry, so imagine the damage to someones eyes.

[stardust 0]

I have just purchased the Kam star cluster - It is totally amazing, original etc however if you are looking for the traditional laser which creates tunnels etc etc don't get the star cluster.

 

I also have a £160 kam lazer30 DMX which cost around £170 - this is a fantastic laser for the price and it also comes with a mini controller. If you can afford it - getting 2 of these at a discounted price, the effect would look amazing!!!

 

Back to the Star cluster - The videos do not do it justice (i spent hours going through youtube the other night watching them deciding weather to buy) - the effect is not about the lazer lines with smoke - It is all to do with the effect it has on the floor or walls it points to. My main happy point is that with the lights on the lasers are still

very very effective - which is good for me as quite a few of my gigs recently have been kids disco (during the day in bright halls) and gigs where smoke machines are not allowed which make the laser effect fairly redundant.

 

I also owned an isolution 30MW green a few years back which i would highly recommend.

[OllieJames 0]

I went into my local DJ store today and they had a Kam Cluster there. They filled the room with smoke and turned it on and it looked amazing!

 

I can't remember the exact model, but there's a laser called "Magic Box" or something and my mate has 2, i thought they're pretty good.

[Dream Catchers 0]

I've got some 100mW green lasers which by all accounts are quite low power (at the bottom end of class 3b) On a static beam i can still burn through gaffa tape and upholstry, so imagine the damage to someones eyes.

If your 100mW green can burn through gaffa tape and upholstery then it almost certainly hasn't got an IR filter fitted.

The most dangerous thing with imported Chinese lasers is the lack of the IR filter. The reason is that we cannot see the IR and thus we don't have the benefit of the blink reflex to protect our eyes, the IR (808nm) will be many more times powerfull than the green (532nm), as an example a 50mW green may well have a 2W 808mw IR pump diode.

 

When buying a laser make sure it has the filter.

 

You also get what you pay for, a laser in the £200 range will most likely only be able to project squiggly lines and basic poor quality graphics as the galvos (the parts that move the mirrors) will only be about 8kpps, the majority of the ones on ebay that claim to be 15k will only move at that speed but not be able to project the industry standard ILDA test pattern correctly.

 

If you have lots of money then you could always build one like mine :joe:

 

GDYWKbRNGKc

 

Jim

[Reverandfunk 0]

I use 2 x Purelight 60mw green lasers approx £100 on ebay and 1 purelight 100mw red laser approx £70 on ebay.

 

I've used them for nearly 18 months and haven't seen a better priced laser.

 

As for burning through gaffer tape and up holstery I find that rather hard to believe lol

[Dream Catchers 0]

As for burning through gaffer tape and up holstery I find that rather hard to believe lol

It is due to the IR that cannot be seen and isn't (usually) declared as part of the mW output.

I have seen lasers that are quoted as being 300mW but only 50mW is visible.

 

Jim

[Reverandfunk 0]

I understand that Jim, but burning thro a settee?

 

Sounds a bit James Bond lol

[dh140770 0]

I understand that Jim, but burning thro a settee?

 

Sounds a bit James Bond lol

 

Sounds dangerous too. I just want a UK legal, DMX controlled, 2 colour laser. I am going to look at the Star Cluster though, in a shop, as a couple of you made comments of how good it is.

 

Thanks for the comments.

 

[norty303 0]

Talk about overblowing a comment!

 

Yes jim, it does have an Ir filter, i checked the laser unit against the manufacturers specs when i bought them.

 

In the same way as the 100mW laser pens can burn through black paper etc, so my laser unit will burn through thin black material at very close range before the beam becomes too difuse. and likewise, whilst sitting on my office chair and powered up, the laser started to smoke the fabric. No it didn't punch a hole through it! But i never said that anyway. i was merely trying to demonstrate that even low power lasers can be dangerous if used incorrectly and that people shouldn't view them as 'just another light effect'

 

BTW Jim, did you sell your Mamba system? i nearly bid on that but use Alphalite now

[Dream Catchers 0]

BTW Jim, did you sell your Mamba system? i nearly bid on that but use Alphalite now

Yes, one of the guys on PL bought it off me.

I'm using Pangolin gear now, I may have a QM32 Pro going for sale soon though.

I sold one last week for just over £300, they cost about £2k new.

If you ever get the chance to compare a Pango system with anything else you would be amazed, for some reason they make your lasers look twice as bright and far better colour, everything runs so smooth too.

 

Jim