Are IECs safe to use for lighting?

[Rob K]

Hi people,

 

We're in the process of buying our first bunch of lighting kit - a full rig each for our two main bands. This being so, I'm trying to decide on what connectors and cables to put all of our kit on. The way it's done when we hire has always been DMX dimmers, outputs on soca, inputs to IWBs on soca, and the occasional soca breakout to 15a to run floorcans. Moving heads on IECs.

 

I have to rig all this kit up over the next couple of months and it looks like soca is pretty expensive - both the connectors and the necessary multicore cable to make the cables up with. I am considering not using soca at all, since I'm planning on running our bars of par64 out front from Multidims or some of those Showtec 4-way dimming bars, so we won't need any massive cable runs. It's cheaper just to make looms up for the cable runs that we do need. I then have a choice of 16a, 15a or IEC to put on the cables and fixtures. It seems to me that the pros and cons are...

 

16a; strong, seem to be cheaper than 15a, very secure (clip together), pretty weatherproof. But they are bulky.

15a; used by luvvies the world over, therefore easy to integrate with hire kit, fairly weatherproof, but expensive.

IEC; dirt cheap, but not weatherproof and don't clip together, so won't take any weight.

 

Now I appreciate that using IEC on everything would be a bad move if it was hire kit, because frankly, people would laugh in my face when faced with a 6-way 10 metre IEC loom instead of a Socapex multi. But IECs are so cheap that it does seem to make a lot of sense for what we want. We take our own gear to gigs so everything is plugged and unplugged in a night, so it doesn't matter that an IEC joint won't hold together if you pull on either end of the cable. We never gig outside with our own kit so it doesn't matter that they're not weatherproof. I'm going to need to have half our fixtures on IEC anyhow, as the Multidims and Showbars have IEC outputs. Edit - I do realise that if we had dimmed outputs on IEC we would have to be very careful not to plug them into moving heads by mistake...

 

Am I missing something? Is there a really good reason to stay well clear of IECs? I'm planning on using them for everything, even wiring up an IEC patch panel on the back of each dimmer rack - it's substantially cheaper to buy 6-way IEC patch panels and connectors from CPC than to buy soca panels and connectors.

[musht]

They are an absolute pain to wire, ready made IEC leads up to 10m are readily available.

[maeterlinck]

Strength and reliability are two key areas you've not mentioned.

 

IECs aren't the most robust of connectors and may not fair too well at repeated plugging and unplugging and the 'gig environment'.

 

16A is becoming the new standard (although some may disagree). They can cost <£1 for a connector. So I would suggest that would be the best long term, professional level choice. However, you make no mention of what size band you are, weekly pub gigs then IECs would probably work out cheaper over the life of the kit (breakages replacements etc).

 

One question: Are you sure buying is cost effective? In addition to the capital cost you have maintenance costs, yearly testing, cleaning, fixing and replacing breakages, and regardless of what dies at the last gig you should get a working rig at the next because the hire company fixes the issues and probably has spares to swap out.

 

Oh and looming cables can be cheaper but they can be a pig to use.

[amillar]

They are an absolute pain to wire, ready made IEC leads up to 10m are readily available.

 

Use Schurter ones - they are much easier to work with.

[Rob K]

Hi Maeterlinck,

 

I suppose you're right about strength and reliability - if trodden on a few times an IEC may break where a 16A won't. It is a function of cost really. I would rather put everything on 16A, but I can't find anywhere to do 16a connectors for under £1 - for example, CPC have them at £1.69 for a plug and £2.07 for a socket, where the IEC equivalents are £0.63 and £0.94 respectively. I found someone on Blue-Room who was offering 16A connectors for £1 each, but sadly although I have sent him some money, it doesn't look like I'll be getting any connectors out of it (see my thread in General <_< ). So if you can point me to somewhere to get really cheap 16A stuff I might reconsider!

 

The bands are a girl band (just 4 mics + track but we try to have pretty high production values) and a rock/rap band. Usually crowds of between 200 and 500.

 

It's not been cost effective to buy before but we are looking at putting on a tour for the rock band which will be at least 40 dates before next summer, plus the girl band too, so right now it does look like buying is the right option IMHO.

[paulears]

The only real thing wrong with IECs is just that they are inconvenient connectors - all their defects in real use aren't that bad. For wiring a load of PAR LEDs, I bought plenty of ready made extensions, small switched distro boxes, and 12 plugs to replace the moulded euro plugs on the cans. After battling to fit the first one, the entire lot is in the store on the shelf. The cans have big plugs on that took a minute therabouts to fit. The other cabling is overkill, but a pile of 16A can be used for other things too - so if you are going to have 16 on everything at some point in the future, as you get bigger - you may as well start now. 13/15/16 - all work fine on all sizes of cable. IECs don't. The worst thing is that they fall out. If you look at shows coming in who use IECs - you see plenty of tape on cracked housings, lots of quaint ways of stopping cables falling out, and loads where the cable clamp screws have given up. 16s often look a bit scratched and beaten up - but that is about it!

[themadhippy]

Try and go with the standard man,if you leave the box of 15A or 16A leads at home you'll be able to get hold of spares much easier than if you've got em on some strange connector,how many hire company's stock 20 meter iec leads by the bucket load?

[smalljoshua]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I have no problems wiring up IECs, specifically these IECs from CPC. They are a bit more expensive than the ones you've found but they are nice and simple to wire.

 

Josh

[back_ache]

Multidims....IEC to put on the cables and fixtures.

 

Okay, our theatre is completely distributed dimming and using the same setup as you are suggesting, 16a for hard power with multidim's local to the fixtures and with the fixtures using iec's.

 

Whilst our equipment doesn't see the rough and tumble of the open road it does get moved and repatched around a lot in our studio space, so has given me a some insights.

 

The only IEC connector you can trust (and to fit well) is the moulded ones, so we use ready made moulded cables that we use to replace the standard cable the fixtures come with (ensuring first the cable to certified for that temperature) . As long as you are using those and you make sure they a full engaged when you plug them in they work fine.

 

We also upgrade the incoming cable of the multidim to 16a TRS with a 16a ceeform, add a hook clamp and keep them on the same bar as the fixtures.

 

another tip is to once you have fed a safety cable safely through the fixture add a zip tie it so that it always stay with the units otherwise they tend to get lost.

 

also re-usable velco ties permanently attached to your cable helps keep things tidy (and sticky mess free!)

[Yorkie]

Unless you've got small dimmers very local to lights, I can't see any reason why you'd use IEC's. I've always found IEC's an absolute pain to wire, and have never wired one with anything as large as 1.5mm^2 cable. If you have lots to wire and they're to be done reasonably cheaply, I can certainly say that you will find 16A connectors to be your best option. Like Paul said, a pile of decent cable on 16A connectors will always come in useful, and would work with hired kit. The same cannot be said for IEC's; their only advantage that I can see is their compactness.

[stillwave]

If compactness is the major issue, another option is Powercon (not very cheap, as OP suggested), only downside is the hire availability, although having said that I see more shows coming in that are on powercon (although mainly non-dim... still an option to consider?).

 

I have managed to fit 2.5mm in an IEC before but only once (& took over 30 mins to do!).

 

as for velcro search ebay for aplix cable ties (aplix is the maker of Velcro), also the contruction of them can vary. some can only be attached to a cable before the cable ends are made, others are a peice of hook tape sewn to the back of a loop tape (avoid these as the seam comes away very quickly when used in theatre land).

 

Regards,

 

Ben Wainwright

[Stuart91]

If compactness is the major issue, another option is Powercon (not very cheap, as OP suggested),

 

One drawback with Powercon is that you need barrels to join cables together. They add significantly to the cost, and are easily lost.

 

 

http://www.jacksmusicfactory.com/images/products/91113.jpg

[paulears]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I have no problems wiring up IECs, specifically these IECs from CPC. They are a bit more expensive than the ones you've found but they are nice and simple to wire.

 

Josh

Well - I have also got loads of these, as I said, and 1.5mm is a VERY tight squeeze, 2.5mm virtually impossible. With 1.5mm cable, the two cable clamp screws hardly go in unless you squash them in, and full tightness is after about two turns, so with even gentle cable wiggling, the screws pull out, leaving the tiny conductor screws to make the electrical and mechanical connection. You have to be really, really precise with cutting the cable lengths, and the 3 conductor lay means that one way around, the conductors are the correct way, and fit reasonably, but the other way means the centre has to be pulled up to the top, expanding the size of the cable entry as they squeeze past, due to the centre pin being at a differnt level to the outer ones. They fit fine on 1mm cable - but who would want to use that on these connectors?

 

There is nothing wrong with IEC for use, as most people have said, with moulded cable forms - it's just that these plugs are physically too small to use with cable approaching the design capacity of the standard.

[smalljoshua]

However, 1mm Flex (According to RS) is rated to 10amps which is the maximum rated current of the connector. Doesn't this mean that 1mm flex is fit for purpose and there is no need to use 1.5mm?

 

Josh

[TomHoward]

I have to register my complaints about the standard of those connectors as well - most specifically the lot I had had no real holding of the pins in place - even with the connector assembled they wobbled. They were simply held in place by the closing of the case and the cable.