Opti Solar 250 opinions
Printed From: Speakerplans.com
Category: Other Chat
Forum Name: Lighting Talk
Forum Description: All your lampy, laser and 'other' special FX needs....
URL: https://forum.speakerplans.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=105676
Printed Date: 23 March 2023 at 8:24pm
Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 12.05 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: Opti Solar 250 opinions
Posted By: AM55
Subject: Opti Solar 250 opinions
Date Posted: 06 September 2020 at 11:03am
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I am thinking of getting a couple but I am wondering what the real would experience of using them will be like, specifically what kind of output should I expect or if anyone has any advice on them? Would these be 250 or 575 versions in the picture below?  Cheers  |
Replies:
Posted By: Bams
Date Posted: 06 September 2020 at 12:00pm
| The opti solar 250 is an amazing piece of kit but cannot hold itself against a modern lighting rig, colourtemperature as well as output are quite a bit lower. I have an 150w hti equivalent a d even that is too dim. Lots of lumens are lost on the effect wheel and 50-year old optic path. 575hmi versions are laaaaaarge. Look up marco broeders/co2ro on facebook, he uses loads of opti kit in real life situations. |
Posted By: monkeypuzzle
Date Posted: 06 September 2020 at 1:51pm
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As someone who owns four but no fx or lenses as they all got stolen, these days a cheap projector and a micro computer would be brighter and more flexible. The price you’d pay for a 575 with lens set and a good amount of effect units is eye watering even if you could find someone to part with it. I use mine when I can blag some lenses and wheels just for house parties with mates or a gig in a pub that I’ve just been asked to bring some lights to. No effort on my part and hey presto, some atmosphere. As mentioned before, they just don’t cut it In terms of brightness and leak loads of light out of the top and base. ------------- blah blah blah blah blah...... |
Posted By: Digbethdave
Date Posted: 06 September 2020 at 2:46pm
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There is a 575 available on a fb group I'm on. He wants £1000.
Expect to spend around £300 for a 250 with some effects.
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Posted By: AM55
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 9:17pm
I should imagine he will have told hold out a while for that, seems expensive for such an old, niche fixture no?
Looks like I will be going down a projector
route then. For 2 units some oil wheels and some rotators I'd probably
be looking at £300 plus so I 'll see what I can get projector wise for
that even if it's on the bigger and older side.
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Digbethdave wrote:Posted By: monkeypuzzle
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 9:37pm
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Yep, I have a few of the Sanyo XP / Eiki LC projectors and they still hold their own. Quite a few lens options which can be found for good money if you're patient. Coupled with an old laptop and a few long VGA cables and away you go... ------------- blah blah blah blah blah...... |
Posted By: monkeypuzzle
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 9:46pm
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oh and look for Source Magma Projectors. There are also lots of small lower powered oil effects that are regularly used within the special needs and sensory room worlds. A clutch of these may fit the bill if the rest isn't to bright and they aren't very expensive.. ------------- blah blah blah blah blah...... |
Posted By: monkeypuzzle
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 9:49pm
oh and while we're at it... don't forget the original method of an Over Head Projector (OHP), a fish tank full of water, some coloured oils and someone on fist full of microdots happily playing with it all night long.... ------------- blah blah blah blah blah...... |
Posted By: Digbethdave
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 11:57pm
| I've got some solar 250 if you want to try them out. |
Posted By: Digbethdave
Date Posted: 08 September 2020 at 11:59pm
I should imagine he will have told hold out a while for that, seems expensive for such an old, niche fixture no? [QUOTE] Yeah, but he reckons he has ten. The K series and gobo Pro are worth looking at. |
Posted By: AM55
Date Posted: 09 September 2020 at 7:54pm
Thanks for the offer Dave but I think monkeypuzzle has sold me on the projector/laptop idea. Maybe me wanting some Opti kit is based more on old school nostalgia than practicality.
I have just had a look on ebay and they seem very reasonable
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Posted By: norty303
Date Posted: 22 September 2020 at 1:31pm
They are a tradable commodity still. Not much else does what they do, and they are in short supply. Most quantities held by a few people who specialise in that sort of thing. One thing that I would say about the 250's is they are massively improved by use of alternative lenses to the stock Opti ones. So look at Kodak, Docter, etc. I have some Docter zoom lenses and the light output difference is incredible. One thing in the favour of the Opti stuff is it's a self contained unit, you can throw them up somewhere with just some power and let them do their analogue thing. Video projectors are good (I've just bought some - Epson 6k's) but need a bit more infrastructure to do their thing (including content distribution systems like Datapath). I'm currently trying to find money for new cable stocks, particularly where you might need long cable runs, so you're into HDBaseT or SDI, so adaptors for older projectors too. Its another expense rabbit hole. Simple things like lenses are a good example. I can get a long throw zoom lens for an Opti for £40-80. An equivalent lens for one of my projectors is at least £800. And the Opti doesn't suffer the contrast issues of a video projector (assuming you aren't with deep pockets for laser based projectors) Try taking a dark room and putting up a single 250. Then do the same with a video projector and see if the grey rectangle is acceptable. ------------- My laser stuff: http://www.facebook.com/SubsonicSystems" rel="nofollow - Frikkin Lasers |
Posted By: imageoven
Date Posted: 22 September 2020 at 4:28pm
Is it an original '575' (boxy silver case) or a K4 (black or white moulded case)? As I understand it the reason for the K range was to improve the inadequate cooling at the effects gate of the original 575. I have a soft spot for opti's and would generally rather watch a nice moiré effect than a digital loop but that's probably just nostalgia (and too much poorly thought out digital content). I'd still be buying opti stuff for my own entertainment if the 2nd hand prices weren't so high. ------------- Keep pushing on, things are gonna get better. |
Posted By: woody2
Date Posted: 22 September 2020 at 4:33pm
Back in the mid-80s you could get a video/ computer tablet that sat on top of a 400w OHP. |
Posted By: Digbethdave
Date Posted: 22 September 2020 at 4:50pm
Yeah original 575. He was based I. Brighton. Will find details. Problem with opti now is that it has become a collect able. I have ten, plus some spares. The new vari speed gates are good. |
Posted By: kedwardsleisure
Date Posted: 28 September 2020 at 11:09am
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The opti K2 is pretty awesome, I've seen them used outside projecting on the side of a building. They do need to warm up though to get the oil flowing. The Solar 250 is cheap to run as it uses a capsule lamp but by modern standards is dim, the oil wheels sap alot of the light away, ok for a dark pub or club but that's about it. Years ago we supplied some solar250's to the wegdwood pottery to project decorating stencils onto large plates, to help the decorators to trace the patterns more accurately. They were using domestic slide projectors but the transformers kept burning out being on all day at acute angles. The cost of ownership of an LCD projector must be factored in though, one blown lamp and you're only taking home half your fee. ------------- Kevin North Staffordshire |
Posted By: SamV
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 1:45am
| Excuse the post revival, what software or video are people using with a projector. I've just acquired a Panasonic Laser projector, and also have a bunch of smaller projectors so quite eager to try especially after spending a fair bit of time with AstralProjections and LucyNation. |
Posted By: imageoven
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 1:09pm
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i use OBS and Davinci resolve( both free) for capture /editing / mixing / playlists, and a variety of media players (sumvision etc.) For playing standalone stuff. ------------- Keep pushing on, things are gonna get better. |
Posted By: SamV
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 2:29pm
| Oh I know those software, its more the oil wheel type effects in video form that I was searching for. |
Posted By: imageoven
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 3:43pm
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Plenty on YouTube if you don't mind low resolution, search for splodoscope for less laid back version too. ------------- Keep pushing on, things are gonna get better. |
Posted By: James Tengo
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 3:45pm
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I've filmed all my old opti fx and have loops i play back in resolume |
Posted By: SamV
Date Posted: 28 September 2022 at 4:19pm
Ooh thats a good shout
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Posted By: SamV
Date Posted: 04 October 2022 at 12:09pm
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@norty303 this is one of the 100w led conversions. Bright fookers. https://youtube.com/shorts/E2FkG3PRfLc" rel="nofollow - https://youtube.com/shorts/E2FkG3PRfLc
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Posted By: teeth
Date Posted: 08 January 2023 at 11:54am
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that LED conversion looks class, any info on how it was done? also really recognise that house / venue, think i might have been there?!
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Posted By: SamV
Date Posted: 03 February 2023 at 1:50am
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It was done by Jay at LucyNation. That was Sparkford Hall. |
Posted By: jazomir
Date Posted: 03 February 2023 at 11:45am
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Interesting read. How do these Solars with the 100W LED conversion compare to the latest Solar 250 LEDs or the Gobo Pro in terms of brightness? ------------- For sidefills, can we have two enormous things of a type that might be venerated as Gods by the inhabitants of Easter Island, capable of reaching volumes that would make Beelzebub soil his pants. |