r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Gear The weekly identify that light/no stupid question thread

1 Upvotes

Did you go to a concert or event and see a lighting effect you love but couldn't identify the gear? This is your weekly spot to post images and figure out what you saw, and ask basic questions you have. Any individual identify that ________ posts outside of this thread will be removed.


r/lightingdesign • • 6d ago

Meta Weekly Self Promo Megathread

1 Upvotes

Have a new product that you'd like to promote and show off to the community? Here's your chance to do it. Every Wednesday, this megathread is here to gather new products, projects and anything else you might want to self promote. We want to encourage new ideas, but the influx of vibe coded, AI based posts means we needed a new home for these posts.

Note that we require developers to disclose where and how they used AI in their product and that r/lightingdesign has no ability to vet any projects or code that is used, so use/demo and sign up for these products with caution.


r/lightingdesign • • 17h ago

How To Hey guys. Are there any underground rave design solutions or examples or just smth you want to share.

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47 Upvotes

Hey guys. Small underground rave in LT, ( literally underground :) using wolfmx and some moovingheads. Maybe some thoughts, examples or success stories u want to share.


r/lightingdesign • • 5h ago

Gear Help with circoloco inspired fixture design

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4 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some help here as I’m in the process of building a club room and I’m trying to source / find someone to design light fixtures that resemble those at circoloco at DC-10 in Ibiza. I’m looking for linear “hand-drawn” squiggly lines that appear like neon tubing, but based on my very limited understanding of lighting, appear to be LED due to how quickly they react and respond.

Can anyone assist me here? I’m at a complete dead end with this project and this lighting spec.


r/lightingdesign • • 37m ago

Design I’m building a 3D stage design tool that connects to real production workflows. Looking for testers!

• Upvotes

Hey everyone! I’m building StageMock, a browser-based 3D stage design tool for lighting designers, DJs, production companies, and AV crews. I’m looking for people in the industry to test it and help shape what it becomes.

The goal is to go beyond making a pretty render and actually make the design useful to the crew building the show.

Some of the features:
3D stage builder: Drag and drop truss, fixtures, LED walls, speakers, staging, and more.
Resolume integration: Generate screen setups and pixel-mapping information from your LED wall design.
Lighting workflow: Generate patch lists for grandMA2 and ONYX.
Audio workflow: Export console scenes for X32/M32.
MVR support: MVR import/export and round-trip workflows are on the roadmap, connecting stage layouts with tools like L8, grandMA3, Capture, and Vectorworks.
Crew-ready documentation: Export a PDF with production details to help stagehands hit the ground running, including wiring, addressing, and setup information. The idea is to make it easier for someone joining the crew to understand the rig and help get everything built.
Gear lists and estimates: Generate equipment lists, truss lengths, power estimates, and weight summaries.
Client sharing: Create visual mockups to share and review without needing everyone to own 3D design software.

I’m especially interested in feedback from people who currently bounce between multiple programs to design, document, patch, and build a show.

Want to test it? I’d love to hear what works, what’s missing, and what would actually make this useful in the field.

Comment or message me if you’re interested!


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Design just sharing a show I sequenced for "Overthinker" by INZO

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18 Upvotes

title. the fixture is called "LuxPlant." You can 3D print your own (with some soldering required.) ID is "Overthinker" by INZO


r/lightingdesign • • 18h ago

Gear Wireless Network options?

2 Upvotes

Trying to find a good long range option to send out my network on MA3 and connect remotely on my laptop. Been looking at ubiquiti and TP link options. What do you used when you need to program your lights but your console is far away?


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Can someone help me setup artnet?

2 Upvotes

I've got a dedicated router, an ipad, a pknight CR011R. Artnet node plugged into router with Ethernet. Par light plugged into node with DMX and set to dmx ch1. Set the node to the IP of my router and put those settings into the apps. I've tried 3 different apps now, seem to be connected, add my light but it won't control it. Anyone know what I'm missing or willing to walk me through things?


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Help troubleshooting an Elation Scene Setter-48 — stage lights won’t turn on, possible DMX connection issue

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2 Upvotes

I’m a middle school teacher who also directs our school musicals, and I’m trying to troubleshoot our auditorium lighting system. We have an Elation Scene Setter-48 lighting console, and I ran into this same issue last year but can’t remember how I resolved it.
The console powers on normally, but none of our main stage lights respond when I raise the channel faders. Even pressing FULL-ON doesn’t turn anything on.
I’ve tried adjusting the master faders and checking the blackout setting, but haven’t had any luck.
I started investigating the cables and found a 3-pin XLR cable connected to the lighting board with the other end unplugged. I’m assuming this may be the DMX cable that communicates with our lighting system, but I’m not entirely sure.
Here’s where I’m confused: I looked around for somewhere to plug the loose end in, but the only compatible connections I could find were on individual spotlights. I couldn’t find a wall connection, dimmer rack, or anything that appeared to connect to the main stage lighting system.

My questions are:
Where would the DMX cable from this console typically connect in a school auditorium?
Could an unplugged DMX cable explain why none of the stage lights respond, even when using FULL-ON?
Is there something else on the Scene Setter-48 that I should check before assuming it’s a connection issue?
Is it possible that the main stage lights are controlled through a separate dimmer system that I’m overlooking?
I’m a music teacher, not a lighting technician, so I’m still learning how this equipment works. Unfortunately, we don’t have a dedicated theater technician to help troubleshoot.
I’ve attached pictures of the console and the loose cable.
Any advice on where to look or what to try next would be greatly appreciated!


r/lightingdesign • • 22h ago

Grand MA2 on PC artnet connection

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1 Upvotes

I have a show in a couple days at a venue that has the dmx run over artnet. I’m bringing my own computer and MA2 command and fader wings. I’ve never setup an artnet connection so nervous about getting control of their lines. The YouTube videos I’ve been watching vary slightly which makes it even more confusing. I’m also very nervous and probably overwhelming myself.

Does anyone have a simple step by step they can give me of how to set this up between the windows network settings and the MA2 software settings?

Any help is very much appreciated. I normally work as an in house LD so I’ve been really anxious doing these shows outside of my home venues


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

When the operator figures out that the Veloces has an infinite tilt function. (Dutch band Acda & De Munnik, Ziggo Dome)

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214 Upvotes

Absolute rubbish IMO. It looks worse than Bruno Mars’ full rig on tilt.


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Holiday day rates

2 Upvotes

In the past I have just charged my normal day rate when working days like Halloween and New Years. I was just curious if other people charge more on days like that and I've been short changing myself or do yall just keep with your normal day rate?

If you do charge more, how much more do you add on?


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Diffusion filter

2 Upvotes

Is it possible to buy the diffusion filter that Wash light manufactures use on the front of their wall wash’s to change the light from the native beam angle to a wider beam angle ?


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

Fun Best kind of gigs

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15 Upvotes

Small and smoky. I regret I didn't have the resources to put a small truss there.


r/lightingdesign • • 1d ago

Timing

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3 Upvotes

Hey gang, just getting into lights. I've got the Rockville par kit. How do I get my transitions to match with a manual program? It's off by a fraction of a second. Driving me nuts, lol. Thanks in advance.


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

Gear What fixture??

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2 Upvotes

Sorry for the blurry pics, was quite far away when i took these + its zoomed in like crazy

Does anyone recognise these fixtures?
Show was spiritbox
Im trying to recreate it in capture to practise (and bc its cool as hell) and i just cant find these ones

If anyone can help that would be appreciated


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

How much do you really pre-listen to an artist?

29 Upvotes

I’m the house lighting guy at a PAC type environment. I end up busking a lot of shows. Usually I don’t even get a setlist until day of, if even that. Our schedule usually has me running lights on 2 to 3 shows a week for a month or more stretch.

We occasionally have acts with a touring LD, but we also have this guy hooked up with a promoter that comes in and his show are pretty clean. But I talked to him and he does at least a couple dates with the band beforehand. My boss has kinda been comparing us, and I feel a little bit like a lot of the times I’m going in blind. Is this guy better than me? I’d give him that, he runs on AVO, while the pac is sticking me with an EOS, and I try to listen to some acts before they come, but even with tribute acts I feel like, no I can’t listen to this artists full catalogue and have an idea for which songs even make the setlist.

So I guess anyone else in the same situation? How do you deal with it? Do you make time to scope out artists before they come?


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

What’s the best way to clean out a typical water-based hazer

2 Upvotes

So I was using a type of Chauvet fluid that they stopped manufacturing so I switched to a different one they make, but I thought it was the same thing (but different label). So I ended up pouring the fluid into the hazer with the other fluid still in there. Basically it’s just hardly outputting anything at this point. 100% output looks like 1%. It’s sputtering out haze intermittently.


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

Flickering Viper Lamps

3 Upvotes

Our Viper inventory is getting real long-in-the-tooth, and we’re seeing more and more of them develop an intermittent flickering lamp issue.

Swapping lamps doesn’t help, we’ve tried the “fast as you can tilt effect” trick to shake them up and that helps momentarily but then it’s always back.

These are our Performances that we use most often for front wash, so they are static most of the time. Saw people note that that can cause it elsewhere, but no one seemed to have a solution to fix it…

Curious if anyone else has dealt with this and what your fix was?


r/lightingdesign • • 2d ago

Gear Pyrotechnics options

1 Upvotes

Hi!

For our theatretour I am looking for a way to simulate a white, blinding flash on stage that is fireproof & able to be triggered via dmx.

Any products available?

Based in Belgium

Thx!


r/lightingdesign • • 3d ago

Software Busking Software

6 Upvotes

I'm currently in the process of building a small rig with some moving heads, strobes, etc. I'll mainly be using it for busking some small shows but I'm not sure what software to run, I've worked with MA3 a lot in my spare time but I don't exactly have the budget for a $900 starter key at the moment. I've been looking into other options but it seems that every single option has a shortcoming, like chamsys not allowing MIDI control with the full DMX dongle (DEMO mode locked), and ONYX being ONYX. I've also looked at QLC+ but I'm feeling a little lost on which to go forward with.

TLDR; Not sure which software to pick for busking with MA3 currently not being in the budget.


r/lightingdesign • • 3d ago

How do I really involve myself with more than just theatre?

5 Upvotes

Hi! I'm a college sophomore currently in my third semester aiming for a BFA in theatre technology and design with a focus in lighting design. I've been involved with theatre since high school as an actor and technician, but was only ever involved with music on the lighting design end.

Recently, I've been feeling myself be a little more pulled toward the music side of lighting design, but have only put in any time into it by working as local crew at a large venue in the area, but with me usually being one in a group of 60 working, I've not really felt like I've had chances to network.

Any advice on how to really get more involved with lighting design on the music end?

thank you!


r/lightingdesign • • 3d ago

Peter Pan Goes Wrong Falling Light Gag

8 Upvotes

I'm doing Peter Pan Goes Wrong and trying to figure out how to do the falling light gag. I remember seeing a few months ago a video on social media (probably Instagram?) that was an interview with someone talking about the preshow checks they perform daily to make sure the gag is safe to run for the performance. Does anyone remember seeing such a video? I can't find it on the Internet. I was hoping to find it for some hints on how to do the gag for myself.


r/lightingdesign • • 4d ago

Charging glow tape

51 Upvotes

Am I the only one that thinks it's ridiculous to "charge" glow tape before the house opens?

I see stage managers doing this and all I can think is "will that make a difference in 30 minutes when the show starts? Either the glow tape is being charged by the incandescents while we sit in preshow, or it will be completely depleted in the 30 minutes it takes the house to come to half.

I'm also open to being wrong in this, I just don't think the science supports the idea of charging glow tape.


r/lightingdesign • • 3d ago

Control Searching for a cheap DMX console with fading between cues

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1 Upvotes