The Sparkular is a DMX-controllable device that is capable of projecting up to a five-meter fountain of sparkles. This new product debuted at LDI 2016 and was named Best Debuting Product: Special Effects category. Since its inception, it has been used on the largest stages, from presidential campaigns to the 2016 American Music Awards.
In this modern day of pixilation, it’s become so commonplace for the new par fixtures to act like eye candy as opposed to emulating the look of a gelled par 64. While there is nothing particularly wrong with the look of an LED wash light with many cells on its face, some designers as well as artists prefer the look of the older pars and moving wash fixtures of yore. This is where Elation’s series of Fuze fixtures comes in. They have a lens system that turns this line of RGBW COB wash fixtures into one homogenous beam.
In the last 12 months High End Systems has been very busy with the implementation of many exciting features into the Hog 4 family of consoles.
Today’s CAD packages have — and this is perhaps an understatement — a lot of power beneath their hoods. An industry-standard drafting suite like Vectorworks or WYSIWYG costs thousands of dollars, not only in up-front costs but also in ongoing update and maintenance fees. For this, they provide a stunning array of features that — when used to their fullest extent — give the user a great deal of power. Learning to harness this potential, however, comes at the cost of a steep learning curve, many hours in training or searching through tutorials looking for the exact function one needs. The creators of Drafty thought this was unacceptable; that between ease of use and overbearing sophistication lay a realm of software usability begging for our acquaintance. And thus, Drafty was born.
Oracle LED Systems Sees Early Success with New Video Panels
Two new video panels introduced by Oracle LED Systems earlier this year have seen significant early success in the event and rental markets. Oracle LED will demonstrate these products at its booth (#445) at LDI.
Today, we’re not going to look at the latest in whiz-bang technology or the coolest LED fixture on the market, but rather at the technological building blocks of a good show — networking and data distribution hardware from TMB. As our show networks get larger and more complicated, the need for sophisticated and reliable networking technology grows ever more important.
In almost every event produced these days, the moment comes during a meeting or tech rehearsal where someone asks, “Can’t we automate that?” Most good technicians will answer, “yes, but…” Those “buts” refer to cost, complexity, time, staffing and expertise. What has been missing (until now) are products designed for easily automating the little effect — a prop or drape or lighting practical.
Tracing the Evolution of HES’ MMS Orbital Head: A look at moving mirror systems technologies offered by High End Systems, a Barco Company
Rather than struggle with the challenge of rigging and precisely pointing the beam from a big, bulky projector, it’s often easier and more efficient to fine-tune the position of a flat mirror that reflects and angles the light beam. That simple truth has led to the creation of MMS (moving mirror system) technologies by Austin, Texas-based High End Systems, now owned by Barco. Here, PLSN takes a closer look at the MMS concept and how it evolved.
Launched at the recent LDI show, the PRG GroundControl™ Followspot System is making people re-think how they use followspots in production. Awarded the LDI 2015 Best Debuting Product, the GroundControl is a huge step forward in not only safety in getting the truss followspot ops out of the truss and safely on the ground, but also in how designers use followspots. The LDI judges summed up their feelings on the GroundControl system, “The GroundControl advances the cause of staging and rigging in the concert industry by offering the possibility of removing spot operators from trusses forever, and continuing the efforts to make our industry safer.”
For a production house, one of the most tedious — yet mission-critically important — tasks is keeping track of the gear that goes out on a gig and then comes back in from it. So what if that cable could tell you it was there? It’s actually not that far-fetched…
If you’re in the touring industry, chances are that at some point you’ve done (or will soon do) a show on a Stageline mobile stage. For over 25 years, they’ve been providing mobile staging for not only outdoor concerts, but also marketing events, mobile theatres, and custom projects of every sort. With an eye for detail and a team with years of experience, their stages are used on the biggest festivals and events around the world, with their popular SAM555 model providing staging and protection from the elements for hundreds of shows since its inception.
Gravity and its related safety hazards never sleep, so crews working at height need to be vigilant about protecting themselves and others. Mountain Productions is helping with an expanded array of fall protection offerings including harnesses, lanyards, fall arrest systems, helmets and more. Their inventory from DBI-SALA includes some of the most trusted fall protection equipment in the industry. Along with DBI-SALA’s extensive product line, they are also now offering Python Safety’s drop prevention products and KASK’s Super Plasma helmets to keep crew members safe on site.