Nobody?

I really like to get this Tour Pack www.kpodj.com

But I don't want to drop that kind of coin without hearing some really good feedback.

I may go ahead and take a chance with the (2) Pack or (4) Pack though and see how it goes with those before a bigger purchase.

This system just looks so quick and easy.

the angle of the light on that video looks pretty wide and and looks like it doesn't go as far as the other lighting.

there's a thread here somewhere where someone made a wireless battery powered uplight for $60. I thought this one was smart since you're using an external battery, and all you need to do is bring extra battery and you're good, should one or two go out (though the APE Labs looks like you can put batteries for emergencies as well).

I've seen them in person. They aren't that bright.

Any other observations having seen them in person, CQE?

Was just in a showroom at a DJ store. Bit just looking st them in that setting wasn't too impressed.

Great idea tho but don't think it's practical enough for DJ use

Thanks for the feedback.

yeah from the video, it's like 2 led, probably 5-7 watts on that 1 LED, then used a fresnel/cree/whatever to zoom the LED.

it's probably good for restaurants/bars/etc, but not for private gigs suchs as weddings,etc.

see if you can find the thread where you can create your own battery powered uplight. you might like that instead.

If you were thinking about using the cans for a traditional uplighting effect, you'd be much better off with the ApeLight Mini's instead. Even though they are the same power, they have a 10 degree beam angle and are much brighter since the beam is focused. Check them out:
www.kpodj.com

The LightCans are really for "Wall Art" design. The sharp edges look awesome when they intersect, but they don't give you a traditional uplighting look.

Thanks for the clarification, Tom.

You should make a video of the Mini's being used and controlled (via the wireless remote) on a tall wall so that we can actually see their capabilities.

I know you have a few quick vids with the Maxi's, but no one has a video showcasing these lights more than 5' up a wall.

I know that you have endorsed this manufacturer pretty heavily, but we need to "see" for this type of investment. Help a brother out :)

Sure. I'll ask Mike to post a video of the Minis in his office today. Next time he does uplighting at a venue, I'll ask him to bring both Maxi's and Mini's so you can see the difference. We are planning on getting better cameras here in the next week or two so you can get a better idea of what it will look like. Unfortunately, regular cameras don't pick everything up....but they get close.

I'd say that the Mini produces about half of the power that the Maxi produces. Even though the Maxi is technically 3x the wattage, similar to wattage in speakers, it's not a direct correlation. Triple the wattage in a speaker wouldn't get you triple the volume.

Thanks, Tom, I will look forward to that!

We just did three real quick videos. Again, these cameras don't pick up all of the light, but you can get the idea:

Watchwww.youtube.com
Maxi

Watchwww.youtube.com
Mini

Watchwww.youtube.com
LightCan

In reality, those hot spots aren't there. If you hold you're camera phone up to an uplight and look the wall then look at your phone, you'll see what I'm talking about. They don't pick up the reflection of light at certain angles, so you see hot spots in certain area.

We are hoping to get a professional camera crew in here soon.

Wow, nice turn around time on those videos, Tom!

I am seriously considering that 10pc Tour Pack of the mini's for this upcoming wedding season.

Would I need anything other than the included remote for "basic" control over the light? Generally, I just like to set sloooow color fades earlier in the evening, and then just sound-to-light/auto color change when the party portion of the evening begins.

I bought some EZ Wedge Tri's from you last year... how do you think the mini compares to those?

That's all you need! And you can do a lot with that little remote. The grouping feature is awesome. You can have up to 4 different programs running at the same time.

The Minis are 15 Watts, Made in Germany. The EZ Wedges are 9 Watts, Made in China. Plus, the mean angle is tighter on the Mini's, so they will be significantly brighter. And you'll have the tiny size, German build quality, 3 year warranty, and compatibility with their Ape Remote.

You may eventually want to add the W-Ape. It allows you to run full DMX if necessary....but if you want to stick to using the remote, it ups the range from 100ft to 3,000ft.

I'd recommend buying the tourpack first, then seeing if you need the W-Ape later.
www.kpodj.com

I own 14 maxi lights and the are AMAZING.
3LBS eaach 5.5" square by about 3" tall....45lbs for all 14 lights and bag....45wats per light.

I use the flight case to charge but transport in bags for Weight/Size benefits.

There was some feedback online that indicated the flight case / charging system could be a bit fragile....but my lights shipped from overseas before available here and they made it OK.

The Remote control is simple, works flawlessly....each light has 1 button on/off.

I've used all manner of Digital Wireless Uplight in the past from the Chauvet EZ Min Series to the ADJ Squares, to Alibaba specials and the best comparison I can make is the Ape Labs lights are like MacBook pro's where the rest of what's out there are lower end PC's.

These lights are sleek and EXTREMELY well built. With water resistance for outdoor use.....
They don't have a ton of complicated, buggy menus, they just work every time....

My only recommendation is that when looking at these lights consider how low profile they are...although they have a bracket for mounting on a truss they don't lean well (although they have bad ass rubber feet for flat). So some covers or shrouds will need to be used so they aren't blinding everyone who happens to glance their way.

Something like these:
www.ebay.com

If you are going to use for indoor events with any brighter overhead light I would def. recommend the maxis over the minis or cans.

Hope this helps!

Hey, Thanks for the detailed review!

If you're interested, Ape Labs recently asked us to reach out to customers with their lights and see if anyone is interested in doing a video review.

They are offering a totally free LightCan for anyone who puts some effort into a decent review video. The guys from DJ's Unlimited recently did a great job. Check out their video:
Watchwww.youtube.com

I know this post originated with discussion about the LightCans. While I wouldn't recommend them for a traditional uplighting effect, there are some great applications for them. I know it only shows the facade briefly at the end of the video from DJ's Unlimited, but if you place one behind each panel, it creates a very cool diamond effect. It almost looks 3D. The LightCans are also really cool for a "Wall Art" effect on open walls. At 65 degrees, the 15 Watt LED inside won't "paint" the walls very high, but the sharp edges create a really cool effect. Especially when you place two near eachother. (And the sharp edges will go all the way up the walls.)

Even if you prefer the Maxis, you can always throw a LightCan or two into the mix. The controls and programs are the same on all ApeLabs products, so there is no extra set-up work to add a couple of these to your show (especially when you can get at least one for free).

I just purchased 14 apecans used. I really like them but I have diodes going out right and left on these things unfortunately. Fortunately, the guy who sold them to me also gave me some replacement circuit boards and diodes. I have just replaced my first circuit board and powered it up. All the diodes are working but it's just cycling through the colors or solid green or pulsing red like it's waiting to be programmed or paired. Anyone have any idea what I do next? I'll break out the remote control shortly (still packed and buried from last night's gig with the remaining 8 working cans) but just wanted to see if anyone here had any good knowledge to share.

If you bought these used and are now having diode issues, my guess is that they came from the old Ape Labs factory before 2015. They switched factories in 2015. Since then, there have been very, very few issues. But there were issues with batches in 2014.

The good news is that if you were given replacement boards, the seller likely knew about the issue at the old factory, and the new boards likely came from the new factory. So once they are replaced, you be good.

The PCB´s (electronic) you have is brand new and without firmware.

You can update the firmware on your new boards wirelessly from any other Ape Labs fixture that is working properly (such as: LightCan, ApeLight Maxi, ApeLight Mini or ApeStick)

Here are the steps to update the firmware:

1. Take a properly working LightCan. Push the button on the bottom and hold it down until the light is flashing blue-white. (Be sure you are in group 1)

2. Take the LightCan with the new PCB. (Batteries should be connected and the LED should glow slightly.) Push the button until the red LED is flashing in a consistent frequency.

3. Take now the remote (be sure you are in group 1) and push the “Speed up”button and wait some seconds. (You should see both LightCans flashing green or red. This means it is working. Just wait about a minute and you are done.)

Let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you. I just now received these same instructions from a guy at Ape Labs (without the interesting back history which is good to know). I will give this a try later today!

Sorry to dig up this old post, but there’s isn’t really a lot of info on these lights online except for mostly reviews. I never did like the gaudy 80’s style look of today’s uplights (and ones in the past) and their battery issues. When you have a large venue it’s a pain in the ass to set all the lights to a stand alone color, wireless or even wire them up dmx and tape it down etc. I do mostly weddings and usually rent them if needed. Then I saw the Ape Labs Maxi and was like, that’s for a DJ! I like the design, the user friendly remote that I can change the lights to whatever I want WIRELESSLY, right from the DJ booth. Well, that’s what I’m hoping for. I bought 12 and I’m getting them in the next few days. However I can guarantee I’m probably the only DJ in my area that will have them. I don’t plan on doing an elaborate review because a light can isn’t worth all that. But I will be back to post info comparing to what I’ve used in the past from rentals. The one thing I’m worried about is they seem to not be as programmable with colors as the stand alone DMX fixtures. We shall see!

I've had my cans about 6 months now. I bought used and these were the Chinese made ones before Ape brought the manufacturing in house, so there's that. They aren't bright enough to use as proper uplights, just nice accent lights. It's easy to hit the wrong buttons on the remote in the dark. You have to scroll through modes and colors to get to what you want which means this does not replace dmx in any way, shape or form. It's great that they are small, but they're easy to kick over (people do so constantly) and easier to steal. I've had many instances where they are all paid and working together flawlessly then I'll leave them on a static color for a couple of hours during dinner and then try to go to a fade or sound active for dancing and only one or two lights will respond (maybe because mine are old and the Chinese ones). I'm happy I have them. They're useful. However, I wouldn't buy them again. Those are my thoughts.

Paired not paid...

All Ape Labs products do have built in wireless DMX. You just need to get the W-Ape wireless DMX transmitter. Also, they are coming out with an app for the phone that will resolve the issues with the remote (such as not being about to see in the dark or having to scroll thru colors....and some new features).

From my understanding, the app will work with all previous Ape Labs products made since 2014. DannyDJ, if you have China version of the Light Cans, they were definitely made before 2015....but if you bought between 2014 and 2015, you are in luck. If yours were made before 2014, I'd reach out to Ape Labs and ask about the app. They can probably look up by your serial number.

Well aware they have built in dmx. I see a lot of people touting these remotes for Ape Labs and Chauvet and saying dmx is no longer needed which isn't true by a long shot. I wish it were true because dmx is way more complicated than it should be in my opinion. But if the rf remotes are having this much trouble for me, I don't think I would venture into purchasing another piece of outboard gear just to find out that sucks too, but then again I've got the old Chinese ones so the problem could be unique to me. I give credit to Ape Labs for realizing they had an issue and bringing the QC in house, but then, that doesn't help me.

I'd be interested in checking out the phone app but like most manufacturers, they'll probably only make it for ios which also doesn't do me any good since I'm an android guy.

Anyway, I was just posting to share my experience with the Light Cans in hopes that others may find benefit.

Yeah, I'm sure there were problems with the China produced products and that was the reason why they moved manufacturing to Germany.

You are in luck regarding the app, though. It will be for Android first, then iOS on some future release.

That's great news! I'll give it a shot when it becomes available. I'm just wondering how I'll know when it's out.

They are talking about demoing it at the DJ Expo this year. That is next week. They said the final release will be a month or so after that.

Love these lights. Bought a couple of tour packs from KPODJ since my Chinese made lights were getting old. These are simple to use and bright, one possible drawback is that they are so small people may trip on them.

They now offer the six light pack without the charging case which is probably a better deal. I shot a video for the Maxi which can be seen here: djcraig.net