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SIMULATED THUNDER & LIGHTNING |
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Lightning
and thunder is a great
addition to any Yard or Home Haunt!
One of the most popular special effects to add to a Yard Haunt or
Halloween Party is simulated thunder and lightning. Imagine a bright white flash of light,
followed by the deep rumbling sound of thunder coming from your yard haunt!
When we received our Lightning Machine
kit from
www.halloweenconnection.com we were anxious to try it out, but restrained ourselves until the sun went down so we
would get the full effect. It only took about ten minutes to set it up and we were ready
to go.
We switched the speakers and strobe light on, popped the Thunder CD into the player
and hit the play button.
 Suddenly, there were several bright flashes of white light,
followed shortly by the deep rumble of thunder. We sat entranced for almost half an hour
watching, listening and waiting for the rain to come. All we could think about was what a
great addition this was going to our yard haunt this Halloween.
The nice thing about this system is that it
does not simply repeat the same lightning/thunder sequence over-and-over again, but is
random like the real thing. The Lightning Machine creates an incredibly realistic effect
of thunder and lightning, and needless to say we were very impressed!
This is, hands down, THE best Lightning Machine in the business!
The Lightning Machine -
Haunted Enterprises
Originally designed for the
haunted attraction industry, the Lightning Machine is now available to the public. Since the flash of light from
real lightning is seen before we hear the thunder, the method of simulating it must be
capable of synchronizing the sound of the thunder and the flash of light generated by a
strobe unit. This unit does just that!
Setup is easy with only three
cables to plug in. One cable goes from the CD player's headphone jack to the amplified
speakers. Another cable goes from the CD player's line-out jack to the Lightning Machine
unit. The third cable goes from the Lightning Machine unit to the strobe light. Pop the
thunder CD into your player, adjust the sensitivity knob for the desired effect and you're
done.
This Lightning
Machine Kit comes with its own power supply. And because the
Lightning Machine uses a strobe light, instead of a regular
light bulb or flood light, the lightning created is a
brilliant white light, just like the real thing. The
Chauvet ST-2000S Techno Strobe offers a bright output of 75
watts and can be linked to other units to increase
output. 75 watts adjustable speed (1-20fps) 10 million-flash
life(included in the kit) is a real bad-boy, powerful enough
to add the effect of lightning for the professional or home
haunter. It has flash and speed control, and you can even
daisy chain multiple strobe light units to only one
Lightning Machine unit. This allows you to have lightning in
several areas at the same time with only one Lightning
Machine unit. You can purchase the extra strobe lights and
linking cables from Halloween Connection.
The kit
includes: the Lightning Machine unit, a Chauvet ST-2000S
Techno Strobe, all adapters and cables needed, custom
thunder CD and full instructions. All you need to do is plug
it into your stereo system/CD player and it's ready to go.
You may also transfer the thunder CD to your MP3 player, and
plug the MP3 player into the Lightning Machine control unit.
Available from the
Halloween Connection
Lightning Tips and
Safety
Positioning your Lightning generator
is important. If you have a peaked roof, place the unit just behind the peak.
You can also place the unit up in a tree as an alternative to the roof. We like to place a Lightning Machine unit on
the roof, pointed up into the trees behind our graveyard scene. For our indoor Halloween party, we place a
Lightning Machine unit outside facing the windows to the room where the party will be
held. This gives the effect of a raging thunder and lightning storm outside.
If you
are having an indoor Halloween party, place this lightning
machine outside facing the windows of the room that the
party will be in. This will give the effect that there is a
storm going on outside.
Safety note: As with any electrical device,
do not use outdoors if there is any chance of moisture of any kind, such as rain. Don't
allow extension cords to run through water or snow on the ground. Make sure that the cord
is placed in such a way as not be become a hazard to guests.
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