Ask Alfred: Lose The Cables This Summer!

June 2016

The summer is here, which means lots of outdoor events for many DJs and lighting professionals. Once upon a time these would have involved running lots of power cords, but thanks to the latest innovative products from ADJ you can now run a whole audio and lighting system from battery power, making for a quick and neat setup.

Weddings, festivals, carnivals, fairs, BBQs, company picnics and winery parties are just some of the summertime events that are likely to call for mobile DJ or lighting production services (or, more likely, both). However, discerning event organizers often now have higher standards when it comes to the aesthetics of their parties. They want technology to blend into the backdrop, not stick out like a sore thumb, which is why battery-powered fixtures are ideal. Power cords trailing across a patio or around a courtyard just won’t cut it these days, but discrete standalone units are ideal. Of course the other advantage of wireless equipment is that it takes much less time to setup, so there are advantages all round.

For outdoor parties that start in the afternoon or early evening and then run until after dark, strategically positioned LED par cans can completely transform a space as the sun sets. Whether elegant mood lighting fits the bill, or energetic color changing effects are more appropriate to encourage dancing, battery-powered LED wash lights are the perfect, unobtrusive, way to add color to any outdoor event.

ADJ’s new Mega Go Par64 Plus, with its array of 10mm RGB LEDs and color-wash-enhancing 3W UV LED, is perfect for this. As is its bigger brother, the Mega QPlus Go, with its five powerful 4-watt 4-in-1 RGB+UV LEDs. Both of these fixtures feature internal batteries that allow them to run on full power for at least 4 hours, and can also be controlled wirelessly from an iPhone or iPad using the ADJ Airstream IR app. This means that you can discreetly position fixtures around an event space before the party starts, wait until the sun begins to go down, and then turn on vibrant washes of UV-infused color.

There are countless ways that an outdoor event space can be transformed with wash lighting. Trees can be made to look particularly effective, with par cans positioned below shining up into their leaves and branches. Statues, walls, water features and pillars also make great canvases for colored light. For small events, just a few fixtures can make a huge impact. For larger events, multiple fixtures spread creatively across the space can generate real wow-factor and totally transform a party’s atmosphere.

The new ADJ WiFLY Chameleon is another battery-powered lighting fixture that is ideal for creating mood-enhancing lighting effects anywhere they are required. Its three angled lenses project a fan-shaped pattern of beams that can be used to quickly and effectively enhance a wall or other flat surface. These three beams can be controlled independently, which means that multi-colored up-lighting – and even animated chase patterns – can be generated from a single fixture.

Although the WiFLY Chameleon can operate standalone, either set to static colors or running through pre-programmed chase patterns, it can also be controlled by DMX to allow the creation of custom effects. This too can be done completely wirelessly thanks to ADJ’s WiFLY NE1 battery-powered programmable DMX controller. Designed for use with up to 12 fixtures, and offering an in-built Effects Generator, the WiFLY NE1 allows exacting control of a lightshow from absolutely anywhere, completely unimpeded by cables.

It’s not just lighting that can now be used to enhance an event without the need for mains power, American Audio’s ELS GO BT range features professional active PA speakers that incorporate rechargeable batteries and Bluetooth audio connections. These innovative speakers also offer mic inputs and in-built mp3 players which allow music to be played back directly from USB sticks or SD cards. This means that music can be played and announcements made from this one unit, with no power cord, literally anywhere!

There are so many ways that this technology can be used. If an event involves an outdoor cocktail hour before dancing indoors, an ELS GO 15BT 15-inch battery powered speaker can easily be used to provide background music outside from a simple and unobtrusive setup. Likewise, if a wedding ceremony is taking place on a terrace, lawn or even a beach, providing music and microphones can be done with minimal power cords and without the need for a mains power supply. Using a laptop and USB-powered MIDI controller it’s even now possible to DJ outdoors, literally anywhere, totally unrestricted by the availability of power.

Whatever events you’re working on this summer, the ADJ and American Audio ranges of battery-powered lighting and audio equipment offer the freedom to provide music and illumination wherever it is required. What’s more, you can keep you clients happy by avoiding unsightly power cords and speed up your setup and pack down times enormously. Work smarter, not harder, this summer with battery power and wireless control from ADJ.