What's a good DJ lighting gift under $50?

The Rockville RockPAR50 at $39.95 is the single best cheap light in the catalog. It's a par can wash light with 18 one-watt RGB LEDs, 16.7 million color variations, DMX in and out, and power daisy-chaining, which means you can run several of them off one wall outlet. The dual bracket works as a floor stand or a hanging mount. Done.

Top pick

Under $50

RockPAR50

18 RGB LEDs, DMX in and out, daisy-chains power off one outlet. Floor stand or hanging mount.

Great gift for anyone who wants color on a wall tonight.

$39.95View product● In stock

A few more stocking stuffers that actually get used: the R700 fog machine ($44.95, 3,000 CFM, 10 oz tank, with both wired and wireless remotes), the R720L V2 fogger with RGB LED built in ($49.95, fog fluid included), a gallon of RFJG fog juice ($29.95), and an RLB40 padded lighting bag ($29.95). The fog fluid is the unsexy one. Buy it anyway. Every fogger owner runs out mid-party at least once.

Also considerR700 $44.95R720L V2 $49.95RFJG fog juice $29.95RLB40 bag $29.95

Which lights work without a DMX controller?

The ones with sound-activated mode. Rockville's INSTA PARTY 51 at $56.95 packs five effects into one fixture: derby, gobo projection, dual red and green lasers, and a strobe. The included remote controls each effect separately or all together, and sound mode syncs everything to the music with zero programming. It mounts with a magnet or a C-clamp.

Gift for the beginner

INSTA PARTY 51

Derby, gobo, red and green lasers and a strobe in one fixture. Sound mode, remote in the box.

Great gift for someone who has never owned a light.

$56.95View product● In stock

The INSTA PARTY 61 at $64.95 swaps the derby for a Bee Eye effect built on six RGBW 8W LEDs, plus dual 8W strobes. It's the louder-looking one. If the recipient has never owned a light before, buy one of these two and nothing else. A single fixture that does five things beats three fixtures they can't figure out.

Also considerINSTA PARTY 61 $64.95

Can you light a party in an apartment with no wiring?

Yes, and this is where battery fixtures earn their price. The BATTERY PAR 50 is $59.95 with a 4400mAh battery that runs 8-10 hours on a single color, 18 RGB LEDs, seven DMX channels and a remote in the box. Set them on the floor, aim them up a wall, done. No extension cords across a doorway.

No-wiring pick

BATTERY PAR 50

4400mAh battery, 8–10 hours on one color, 18 RGB LEDs, remote in the box.

Great gift for apartments, rentals and once-a-year parties.

$59.95View product● In stock

The upgrade

RockWedge LED

RGBWA+UV, 36-hour battery, built-in 2.4GHz wireless DMX.

Great gift for someone who lights a party every month.

$109.95View product● In stock

Step up to the RockWedge LED at $109.95 and you get RGBWA+UV instead of plain RGB, a 7,500mAh battery good for 36 hours on a single color, and a built-in 2.4GHz wireless DMX receiver with a range over 1,000 feet. That means multiple lights talking to each other with no cable between them. Here's my honest take: for a rental or a once-a-year holiday party, two BATTERY PAR 50s beat one RockWedge. For someone who does this monthly, the RockWedge is the better fixture and the amber and UV are worth the money.

What's the best first lighting rig for a teen DJ?

Four par cans and a controller. The RockPAR50 4-Pack runs $144.95, and a ROCKFORCE W2 DMX controller is $89.95. That's four real fixtures with 192 channels of control for $234.90, and because the RockPAR50s daisy-chain power, the whole rig lives on one outlet.

Gift for the teen DJ

RockPAR50 4-Pack

Four real fixtures that daisy-chain power, so the rig lives on one outlet.

Great gift for the teen DJ learning the craft.

$144.95$159.80View product● In stock

Why a controller at all when sound mode exists? Because learning DMX on four cheap fixtures is how people get good at this. A controller turns a pile of blinking lights into a show they built on purpose. It's the gift that teaches a skill instead of just making noise.

Also considerROCKFORCE W2 $89.95

They already own par cans. What should you buy next?

Movement. Static washes get boring fast, and the first moving fixture changes how a room feels. The Rockville RockOn-7 at $99.95 is a moving head wash light with four 10W RGBW LEDs, 540 degrees of pan and 270 of tilt, 16 DMX channels, and a full-function remote so it works without a controller. The RockOn-7 2-Pack is $179.95, and two moving heads facing each other look dramatically better than one.

Upgrade gift

RockOn-7 2-Pack

Two moving head washes: 4×10W RGBW, 540° pan, 270° tilt, remote included.

Great gift for the DJ who already owns pars.

$179.95$199.90View product● In stock

Want sharp beams instead of soft washes? The SPYDER LED at $109.95 fires eight 3W CREE beams on a motorized tilt. For something that spans the whole booth, the MOTIONSTRIP motorized head light bar is $199.95. My pick for a DJ who already owns pars is the RockOn-7 2-Pack. Two of them is a real upgrade; one is a demo.

Also considerRockOn-7 $99.95MOTIONSTRIP $199.95

Why do their beams look invisible?

Clean air. This is the thing nobody tells first-time buyers: lasers and beam fixtures only show up when there's something in the air to catch them. Without haze, a $200 beam light looks like a dot on the ceiling.

Makes beams pop

ROCKHAZE 700 V2

DMX haze machine. Fine, even haze that hangs in the room.

Great gift for anyone whose beams look weak.

$149.95View product● In stock

Fix it with the ROCKHAZE 700 V2 DMX haze machine at $149.95, which puts out a fine, even haze that hangs in the room instead of rolling out in clouds. For bigger rooms and thicker output, the R1200L is $129.95 at 12,000 CFM with lights built into the housing. If someone on your list owns beams and complains they look weak, this is the gift. It's not the light, it's the air.

Also considerR1200L $129.95

What's the right gift for a working mobile DJ?

The boring stuff they never buy themselves. Rockville RVLS1 10-foot lighting tree stands are $84.95 each or $164.90 for the 2-Pack, each holding up to eight par cans at 110 lb capacity. The RTP32W 68-inch totem pole stand is $199.95 and looks far better than a tripod in a wedding photo.

Gift for the working DJ

RTP32W Totem Stand

68-inch totem pole stand. Looks far better than a tripod in a wedding photo.

Great gift for wedding DJs.

$199.95View product● In stock

For the front of the booth: the RFAAW aluminum DJ facade is $149.95 with scrim and carry bag, the ROCKBOOTH all-in-one booth with built-in table is $183.95, and the ROCKBOOTH XL is $249.95. Add an RLB60 LED strip bag at $34.95. Working DJs will spend $400 on a new fixture before they spend $85 on a stand, which is exactly why the stand is the better gift.

Also considerRFAAW facade $149.95ROCKBOOTH $183.95ROCKBOOTH XL $249.95RLB60 bag $34.95

What do you buy the DJ who already owns everything?

A charging case. The ROCKWEDGE PACKAGE BLACK is $849.95 for six wireless DMX par lights that live in a case that charges all six at once. The BEST PACK 50 sets, black or white, are $1,199.00 for RGBWA+UV pars with the same case treatment.

The big gift

ROCKWEDGE PACKAGE BLACK

Six wireless DMX pars in a case that charges all six at once.

Great gift for the DJ who owns everything.

$849.95View product● In stock

The fixtures are great. The case is the actual gift. Six lights, one piece of luggage, charged and ready, no cables. Anyone who has loaded a car at 2 a.m. will understand immediately. If that's over budget, go wireless control instead: the ROCKFORCE W2 192-channel wireless DMX controller is $89.95, the ROCKFORCE W4 384-channel is $124.95, and the wired ROCKFORCE 384 is $99.95 with 24-light control, 16 sliders and MIDI.

Also considerBEST PACK 50 $1,199.00ROCKFORCE W2 $89.95ROCKFORCE W4 $124.95ROCKFORCE 384 $99.95

The short version by budget

Buy for how much they want to program, not how many watts it has. That's the whole trick.