CHAUVET DJ 4Bar Quad ILS All-in-One RGBA 4-Par Wash Light System

Best Value Stage Lights, Period

This system isn't perfect—the case, stand bag, and foot controller don't really inspire a ton of confidence. The case is thankfully a hard-foam zipper style, which makes it light and relatively protective, but its canvas outer layer is held on with screws which I can pretty much guarantee will back out over time. The canvas material feels pretty cheap, and that trend continues even more with the stand bag which is essentially a skinny potato sack with a drawstring—it's more convenient than carrying the bare stand would be, but it's not adding anything in terms of protection. The foot controller also feels pretty cheap, and the battery compartment is secured with screws instead of a clip so if the 9V battery dies at a gig, changing it will take longer than I'd like. I haven't had it long enough to know if it will indicate somehow when the battery is low, but I suspect it won't. The stand is surprisingly sturdy and extends the lights to a maximum height of 7 or 8 feet (sorry, no tape measure handy at the time of this review), but the hardware for setting the feet and the pole height is, as is the overall trend here, pretty cheap. It works fine, but odds are a lot of this won't hold up all that long if you're gigging regularly. At this price, however, I don't care. The stand and case that come with this one are WAY better than in the not-that-much-cheaper 4 Bar LT. The light output is great for the price point, and as simple as the foot controller is, it's by far the easiest (and I'd argue best) way to control lights from the stage. One system is more than sufficient to light up a solo or duo act. I ended up buying two of these systems and a 50ft DMX cable for use with my 4-piece band. I haven't tested it yet, but in Master/Slave mode I'll be able to use one foot controller to synchronize both units. I may even get a third one to place upstage for some rim lighting. Sadly, it seems like this system is being phased out, replaced by the newer Hex version. Personally, I found the price point of this system and the higher overall output to be preferable to the color advantages of the hex lights, but the good news is it looks like that system comes with all the same accessories so, while it's a slightly worse value, it should still be a great option when this Quad system is eventually discontinued.