start to finish....what do i need to put on a show

hey everyone.... im new here but love me some music and was wondering what is important start to finish
i have a laptop and a descent budget.. but i will have to buy it all one piece at a time. im curently useing ableton for my music and i hear i can program lasers through it.... that would be fuking crutial and really nice....i have done some pretty frantic researching on this but all the software mumbo jumbo still isnt very clear and.... if someone could explain what happens to the laser from start to finish.....in timeline format
form the time it comes out the end of diod to hitting the crowd. would really like to have some sweet pro looking FX if i can get them

party on
joseph

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

im a little confused by your question.

are you just wanting to know what all is involved in making a laser scanner?

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

thesk8nmidget said:

im a little confused by your question.

are you just wanting to know what all is involved in making a laser scanner?

Click to expand...

if your talking about the timeline thing. Yes
im just trying to understand what i need a sound card for and how my laptop runs software for the laser.

it might be beneficial if there was a sticky posted on what everyone uses in there light show setup and a discussion on why they liked it.

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

also another point that i think i just noticed....is there a difference in lasers for a scanner and for just playing around with?

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

well by timeline do you mean like how does the software get from your your computer screen through the projector then out the laser into the scanners and then onto the wall?>


and yes there is a huge difference between a laser in a projector and a laser you play with.


the main difference is size.
the laser in your projector will be whats referred to as a lab laser or a labby.

it will usually be in a box shaped aluminum finned case and will be a dpss (Diode-pumped solid-state) laser. it will also usually have a external power supply box and also a modulation box for analogue and or TTL modulation also refered to as blanking (quickly turn on and off the laser).




for the laser timeline if i understand your question will be this.

computer->
DAC(control board)->
scanners amps----laser modulation box->
scanner(galvos)----Laser

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

galvos are the mirros and there motors?

what is laser modulation box

is the DAC board just some hardware inbetween the computer and the laser modulation box

are "labbys" generally allot more expensive because of the blanking and ttl and whatnot..

i suppose green would be the cheapest and blue the most expensive

can i make a green laser scanner cheaper than 200 bucs...

is one i make goin to be able to be more creative tahn one i buy.

im more interessted in the beam rather than wall designs.
i want to apply to a stage set

:-? :-? :-? :-?

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

the modulation box is what makes the laser "blank" which means if you are say writing a word on the wall with it when there is a gap between each letter the laser has to blank (or turn off very quickly) so it doesnt have a line connecting the words.


the galvos are the scanner the motors that sort of twitch back and forth very quickly and the mirrors are attached to them.

and sometimes lab lasers can be cheaper than hand helds depending on the powers.

but since you are interested in beam shows and not so much graphics you could get away with say some 20k speed scanners instead of faster 40 or 50kpps

but another thing if you are interested in beam shows you would also want a stronger laser since you want to see the beams. also a fog machine or hazer would help you get away with a lower powered laser.

green will most deff be the cheapest laser of the colors.

pm me if you wanna talk about buying a lab laser.

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

joebone said:

hitting the crowd.

Click to expand...

:-/NO! No hitting the crowd unless you actually know what you are doing.... which you don't... yet...

Scanner kit - Galvos, drivers..etc. This is the the main part, it uses to mirrors to reflect the beam, X and Y axis. Start at about Aus $270

Laser module - The laser, large variety and price range.. Depends on your application, size of venues, etc...

DAC - Digital to Analogue Converter... This is the hardware that allows you to control the scanner via a PC.. Pangolin makes some of the best, the FB3 being the entry level at about $400(can't remember the exact price :-[)

Creating a laser show is more involved than you think, especially when doing it to music..

Check Andy's site out http://www.laser-man.co.uk/
and the PL forum http://www.photonlexicon.com/forums/index.php

Good luck

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

FokoP said:

[quote author=joebone link=1219125219/0#0 date=1219125219] hitting the crowd.

Click to expand...

:-/NO! No hitting the crowd unless you actually know what you are doing.... which you don't... yet...

[/quote]

Lol ok no hitting the crowd. what is the deal with that though... can you hit the crowd with anything under 5mw?

and i want to use my spyrograph to shoot down right onto the DJ booth.... and im goin to be using a 100+ mw blueray for that... is that ok? do the DJs have to wear protective sunglasses?

so a scanner is goin to cost me 700+ fo sho?

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

audience scanning is a very dangerous thing to do without years of knowledge and practice.

you can really blind people or destroy their vision if you are not careful.

stick to no human contact.


and just look around and figure out prices

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

Best is to never let the beam come into contact with anyone.... I know our local club uses two dual beam lasers straight at the crowd, think they 30mw green and 70mw red, doesn't seem to be a problem, but if anyone looked directly into the beam or if there was a failure, there would be blind people on the dance floor... read up on safety first and get the light measuring equipment if you are serious about crowd scanning.

Lasershowparts.com for most of your parts.. good prices and great service!

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

joebone said:

[quote author=FokoP link=1219125219/0#7 date=1219415163][quote author=joebone link=1219125219/0#0 date=1219125219] hitting the crowd.

Click to expand...

:-/NO! No hitting the crowd unless you actually know what you are doing.... which you don't... yet...

[/quote]

Lol ok no hitting the crowd. what is the deal with that though... can you hit the crowd with anything under 5mw?

and i want to use my spyrograph to shoot down right onto the DJ booth.... and im goin to be using a 100+ mw blueray for that... is that ok?  do the DJs have to wear protective sunglasses?

so a scanner is goin to cost me 700+ fo sho?[/quote]

Would you want any laser pointed at you? The power of the laser doesn't matter, pointing lasers at people is dangerous full stop. Leave that to the professionals.

If you are going to have a laser pointing down at you then I would seriously recommend keeping it away from anything reflective, especially at that power. Last thing you want is a beam reflecting up into your eyes and blinding you. I would suggest goggles but im not actually sure there are goggles for blue ray lasers.

No matter what scanner you choose, be it a home build or a off the shelf, you will be looking at at least £500 for a good scanner. There are lots of laser scanners around for less but you will find they only have 10k galvos or no ILDA etc. But then the type of scanner really does depend on the kind of effect you are after, animations will need at least 20k galvos for a good smooth animation.

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

does anyone here know of anyone who has lost vision?

im not planing on crowd scanning just curious... the only reson im persistant with this is cause i got 10 5mw red ebayser modules and i wanted to occasionly shoot them into a little crystal ball i have for house parties and stuff thought it might be cool..but i wont if you guys really think i might hurt someone. and if you guys where doin it would you scan the DJ booth cause im seriously not trying to get my eyes lasered!!!

i dont plan on doing any anmation at all. just beam shots and not the really progressive stuff... more like what tool does at there shows. maybe put one of those reflective things that split the laser up into 5 beams and roll it over itself
with the occasional crazy beam breakdown.

a lot slower stuff than what most of these projecters i see doing.

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

If you don't want animations, then a cheap DMX projector is all you need You can get nice ones for just a few hundred

It's the fast scanners, ILDA control and animation stuff that skyrockets the price on these things.

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

i have done a few parties with a green 1 watt laser turned down VERY VERY low to get a dot effect through out the entire room but it was turned down and also has the correct safety measures to protect from malfunction.

these pictures make them look a bit brighter than they actually were

Re: start to finish....what do i need to put on a

did you shoot the disco with that laser?

also i have been to guitar center and looked at there scanners.. they had one with 2 5mw lasers in it and the guy swaid you can crowd scan with it......but sometimes those guys dont know what they are talking about.

im not interested in lawsuites or blind people so i would rather just be on the safe side..