Recently I commissioned a renovation project for Northern High School in Durham, N.C. The district had chosen to accept the option to use LED fixtures for their cyc lighting. While the specification only required an RGB fixture, the system integrator provided the new Altman Spectra Cyc 100…I found the fixtures to perform without a flaw throughout the run of the show and I would recommend them for anyone looking for a more energy efficient source. There are three benefits to making the change; the reduction in power due to the lower power draw of the fixture and the reduced heat produced and thus the savings in air conditioning; the advantage of never having to change the lamp, which is huge, especially if the fixtures are hard to reach; and never having to change the gels. In the theatre in which I work we typically have to change the gels in our Sky Cycs six times a year at a minimum. After testing out these fixtures I can see that using LED fixtures in the theatre is now feasible. The day is not far off when there might not be any dimmers in the theatre, only fixtures that are controlled through a data network. So it's a good idea to learn how to set up data networks and run consoles that easily control multi-attribute fixtures.
From "Road Test" by Stephen Ellison, PLSN, May 2010
