I was so happy when I finally bought my Chauvet DJ lighting. When I first started as a DJ, lighting sucked. We had to lug around huge stage lights. Each one had its own colored filter you had to keep track of. They were heavy and hot!
Nowadays, DJ lights are almost all LED-based. That means you get a lot more light in a much smaller and lighter package. And nobody puts these packages together better than Chauvet DJ. I own one of their 4Bar Flex models, but I also highly recommend their GigBAR 2 for reasons I will get into shortly.
Make More Money with Lights
You should add lighting to your DJ setup for one reason, and one reason only. Lights make money! OK, that’s not the only reason, but it’s a very strong one. You can of course add lights to your setup to put on an even better show than you are now.
But, as a mobile DJ, lighting is an automatic way to increase your income. You are providing another valuable service that you can easily upsell. There are two main ways to monetize your lights: charge extra for them, or add them in to close a deal.
Obviously, you can make your lighting an additional charge. How much should you charge? Well, that depends on the size of your lighting setup, your time involved to set up and run them, and what your local competition is charging. Take a look at some competitors’ websites and see what lights they offer and how much they charge. That will give you a good idea of where you can price your system. Don’t forget to factor in the extra effort it will take to set up and run the lights. Think about your hourly rate and how much of a premium you will add for an additional responsibility. Finally, put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Would you be willing to pay that amount for lights?
Once you have a price for your lighting package, you can use it as added value to close a deal. I like to throw in lighting when I quote longer events, because I can give them a great deal on paper without hitting my bottom line very much. For example, if they are booking a 4-hour wedding at my current rate of $175 per hour, I might offer a small discount on the hourly rate plus a free lighting package if they sign in the next 5 days. Make sure you show them the full retail value of what they are getting. In this example, I’d offer 4 hours of performance time plus a lighting package ($900 value) for only $700. That’s $200 in savings!
I personally don’t view that as huge loss in revenue, because I don’t know if they would have booked the lighting package anyway. But, to the potential client, it looks like a great deal. They get a better package than they were planning on for even less money. And, my lights are so compact that it’s not much extra effort for me.
If you want to maximize your profit and bookings, check out how I structure my Act Now offers. I give you the full breakdown on how to build your own and start booking more right now.
Recommended – Chauvet DJ 4Bar Flex Q
I personally own the Chauvet DJ 4Bar Flex, and I could not be more pleased with my purchase. The 4Bar Flex puts 4 super bright LED wash lights on a single bar. It also has 4 more mounting points to attach additional lights, and 2 more power outlets to plug them into. This gives you plenty of space to add additional effects lighting, as most lights will let you daisy-chain the power cords, so you really only need one power outlet. All of this will connect to the 4Bar Flex so you will only need to run one power cord and one DMX cord up to your lights.
The 4Bar Flex connects all your lights in a clean, seamless package, but the real benefit is the weight and size. This lighting system weighs only 12.2 lbs (5.5 kg), which makes it a breeze to carry and lift into place. There are no extra bars or clamps to deal with because it’s all built into one unit. And adding additional lights is as easy as plug-and-play.
I have had nothing but great experiences with Chauvet overall. Their build quality is substantial without being unnecessarily bulky. My lights have been going strong for over 5 years, and I feel like they would last another decade. Chauvet even provides a free stage lighting “learning library” through their website. It’s a great place to get started if you are new to stage lighting.
The 4Bar Flex is fully DMX compatible, but also comes with a wired footswitch. You can activate preprogrammed patterns with your feet while you DJ. I mostly use the automatic features, unless I am using additional effects lighting that needs DMX.
The latest version is the Chauvet DJ 4Bar F, which adds some amazing new features. It comes with a wireless footswitch and supports wireless DMX. It also adds amber LEDs to the standard red, green and blue for more natural-looking colors. The Chauvet DJ 4Bar Flex Q is currently listed on Amazon for $479.99.
Recommended – Chauvet DJ GigBAR
If you are looking for an even more compact lighting system, look no further than Chauvet DJ’s GigBAR systems. The GigBAR combines 2 LED wash lights with 2 LED derby effects lights and 4 additional combo blacklight/strobe LEDs. While you won’t get as much wash effect out of just two lights, the GigBAR gives you a full party lighting setup in one unit.
Chauvet’s GigBAR comes in two flavors right now: GigBAR Flex and GigBAR 2. GigBAR Flex works just like the 4BAR Flex. It allows you to add 4 additional lights of your choice to the top of the bar. It also has the extra power and DMX plugs for any lights you add. It comes with a wireless remote and wireless footswitch, but it doesn’t appear to support wireless DMX.
The GigBAR 2 adds a red and green laser light to the setup, but doesn’t allow you to add additional lights to the unit. This version is great for the DJ who doesn’t want to spend much time fussing with lighting but still wants an impressive setup. Just pull this sucker out of the bag, clamp it on the included tripod, and you’re ready to go!
Both the GigBar Flex and the GigBAR 2 are available on Amazon for around $400 and $500, respectively.
What To Look For in Mobile DJ Lighting
Regardless of what system you choose, you want some key features in a mobile lighting setup. Every system I own has to have the following features:
- Lightweight
- Compact
- Easy Setup
- Easy Controls
I want a lighting rig that will be small enough to fit in my car, light enough to lug around, and simple enough to set up quickly. Unless you are planning on paying a lighting technician for each one of your gigs, lights add extra work. You need them to be fast to set up, and dead simple to use.
That’s why I’m partial to all-in-one lighting rigs. There’s very little setup and new LED technology makes them ultra-lightweight. It probably takes me less than 10 minutes to get all of my lights unpacked and ready to go.
I also really love the footswitch for simple lighting setups. My 4Bar Flex has a 3 pedal footswitch. One pedal cycles through the programs, one triggers sound activated mode, and one blacks out all the lights. If I were buying it again today, I’d get the latest model with the wireless footswitch.
You can make your controls very complicated with DMX. I recommend you create some presets in advance. DMX calls these “scenes”. Adding a DMX controller will give you detailed control of all of your lights, but you won’t have time to use it while you are DJing. Stick to a handful of preset scenes and you will be much better off.
Types of Lights
If you are brand new to lighting, you need to know a couple of terms to know what lights you need. Many of these lights go by many different names, but we will focus on what they do. Here’s a quick definition list of some of the most common lights you will encounter.
Wash Lights
Wash lights create a broad beam of light across an area. Wash lights are also called floodlights, PAR or PAR cans. You use these lights to light up a broad area. These are the main lights in the 4Bar and GIGBar.
Spotlights
Spotlights focus the light in a specific area. They are typically used to highlight something or someone, like an individual performer. However, many spotlights now have moving heads, so they can be used as a dancing effect light in mobile DJ setups.
Effect Lights
Effect lights is a catchall term for any lights that create mood, movement, energy, branding, and anything else. Basically, anything that’s not standing still. Effect lights can have moving heads, moving lights, patterns, beams, designs and more. Strobes and UV/blacklights fall into this category too. You can use effect lights to add energy to a dance floor. These are the lights that take a party to the next level.
Strobe Lights
Strobe lights give you that stop motion effect on the dance floor, so they naturally fall into effect lighting. Be careful to not overuse a strobe effect, or any effect for that matter. Like audio effects in your music, strong lighting effects should be used sparingly.
Uplighting
I broke out uplighting because it’s a wedding trend that is simple to execute. Uplights are just wash lights positioned against the walls of a venue and pointed up towards the ceiling. This creates a beam of colored light that acts as room decorations. If you are going to offer uplighting, you need small wash lights that can be programmed to display any color. Uplights also need to be chained together for power. They won’t always be near an outlet. I recommend renting uplighting before you commit to buying additional lights. That way you can see if the extra income is worth the hassle.
How to Set Up Your DJ Lights
If you’ve got a easy-to-use system, setup should be a breeze! Typical safety rules apply: put your lighting tripod away from guest traffic areas and keep your cords tucked away. Any cords that need to run over a walkway needs to be taped down with gaff tape. I usually place my lights behind my speakers and position them above the top of the speaker. This keeps my space compact and reduces trip hazards. You can also place your lights next to one of your speakers. However, I’ve had events where I was set back away from the dance floor. Lights should be placed near the dance floor in that case, while still trying to avoid trip hazards.
One very important tip: be sure to connect all of your cables and aim your lights before you raise the tripod pole! I constantly forget to do this in my rush to get ready. So I’m also constantly lowering the lights to fix them. Very frustrating.
Finally, you may need a sandbag for the bottom of your lighting tripod. The lights get tippy when they are up high, even with a lightweight setup and a good tripod. That’s physics for ya! Weigh down your tripod base so nobody gets hurt. It would be hard to get paid if your lights fall on a guest.