As we reported in the news last month, Stage Technologies' main announcement at LDI was the opening of a permanent US office in Las Vegas, to be headed by Kevin Taylor. Having contributed extensive stage automation expertise to the major Cirque du Soleil show KA at the MGM Grand (see L&SI May 2005), and with other major projects ongoing, the US office is a timely move for the company. John Hastie commented that the US office is also involved in some film work (the UK office has too - the latest Harry Potter movie being an example). As to LDI, 'pretty quiet' was the verdict.

City Theatrical continued its line of power supplies for Color Kinetics LED fixtures. The PDS-750-TR provides power and DMX-control capability for the ColorBlast. Also, the AutoYoke is now available with WDS wireless DMX technology, say the company.

Martin Professional's international stage, studio and event segment manager, Mark Ravenhill, had just settled into his new Florida home, following his move from Denmark, and was having an "absolutely great" show.He showed us the company's latest prototype moving head, the Mac TW1 ('Tungsten Wash') - its first incandescent fixture, following many requests, said Ravenhill. The idea, he explains, was to achieve "everything in one fixture": no small aim. It consists of a new, magnesium-bodied head on a Mac 2000 yoke sitting on a Mac 700 base, sensibly taking advantage of tried and tested components. It features a twin-lensed zoom system, an internal dimmer (various dimming curves are available), plus a connection for external dimming; it also includes full CMY colour mixing, very precise movement, a quarter-turn lamp access door and is 110/230V compatible. Its patented (a

XLNT gave the official US debut of its Cyberhoist/InMotion 3D motion control system, winning LDI's Rigging Product of the Year Award in the process to add to its PLASA Award for Innovation, won in 2004. The system's two main elements are the InMotion 3D programming and control software and an unlimited number of CyberHoist intelligent motors. The dedicated DataMotion Ethernet network and PowerMotion power distribution system complete the package.

Show Distribution revealed that it has supplied to Tait Towers the biggest Chainmaster Variolift system in the world, for the current Jon Bon Jovi tour. The company also has gear out with the Foo Fighters (due to be covered in depth in L&SI, February 2006) and other music acts.

Seen earlier at PLASA, but hotly anticipated in the US was the return of Vari-Lite's VL5 in its updated guise as the VL500. There are four versions: the VL500 has the option of a 1,000W or 1,200W lamp and uses a conventional dimmer circuit for intensity control. The VL500D has a built-in IGBT dimmer but is otherwise identical to the standard VL500 - right down to the 12.5-to 20° beam angle. The VL500A is the arc-source version, with the option of either a 575W or 700W source. The VL500A is significantly narrower than its tungsten cousins, at 7.5 to 16.5°, and uses an external ballast. The VL500 80V uses an 80V/1,200W incandescent lamp, an external dimmer, and has a beam angle of 11-16.5°.

Apollo Design Technology showed its new collection of gobo patterns for 2006. A neat new product was a tapered top hat for conventional fixtures. These can be stacked on top of one another, taking up just a tenth of the space of a normal collection of top hats.

Pathway Connectivity has incorporated DIN-rail mounting, popular in industrial controls, into its new line of eDIN DMX distribution and interface products. They include four-way DMX opto-splitters, 12-way DMX contractors, and 16-way DMX demultiplexers in eDIN modules, with additional products on the way. Pathway also introduced the new DMXManager Plus! This product provides four ports that can be user-configured as any combination of inputs and outputs.

A.C. Lighting's main announcement was the introduction of the Chroma-Q Color Web - a transparent, modular LED matrix developed by Artistic Licence (as Pixi-Web). Featuring a unique modular design, each flexible 1sq.m panel provides 16 individually addressable colour mixing LED cells with a pitch of 250mm. Panels clip together on all four sides and can even be joined over distances using separately available interlinking cables, giving users complete control over the size and shape of their display area.

As only 20% of the surface area is taken up by the lightweight, flexible webbing, it offers unparalleled transparency for double hanging or multi-layering at distances. Color Web can be lit through for integration with set and other lighting elements. The product is also extremely cost-effective: 10 x 1m panels with PSU would weigh less and be size and cost comparable to a moving light,

Rosco showed several new products, including Infinity Effects, a new gobo animation device offering kinetic lighting effects combined with simplicity of use and low cost; Keystroke, the hardware/software solution for running PowerPoint projections directly from your DMX control board; and the upgraded X-Effects projector, which now has onboard DMX and a mechanical dowser. New colours from Rosco include Hemsley Blue, designed by Mark Stanley, lighting director for New York City Ballet, in honour of his mentor, the late Gilbert V. Hemsley, Jr., and Pale Bastard Amber, created by Michael Chybowski to warm the light of an ETC Source Four to enhance skin tones.

Sunlite showed the 2006 suite package of its Easy Stand Alone system. This version adds a new stand-alone Ethernet DMX 512 interface (IP version) to the already existing USB-DMX interface.

Element Labs displayed the new Versa Pixel system, which allows a video wall to contain any shape or size of pixel. Also on show was a new mounting system for the Versa Tube system.

Something new in LEDs is Selador's X7, which uses seven colours - red, green, blue, amber, red-orange, cyan, and indigo - for a more sophisticated form of colour mixing. The company offers its LEDs in a number of strip and block configurations for different uses.

Pulsar had recently appointed Jerry Colmenero as their dedicated sales manager for the Americas, and LDI was our first opportunity to meet him. Based in Texas, he will help to develop Pulsar's business in the Americas and also offer support for the company's distributors in Canada, USA, Mexico, and South America.

ESP Vision's pre-visualisation software has reached V2.0. It includes physically correct light-field rendering, true rigid-body simulation for moving truss and set pieces, and reflective and translucent surfaces. To celebrate this new release, ESP Vision's world-wide distributor, Zzyzk, Inc., announced that it is sponsoring a contest to find the best lighting design to a song.

New from Lee Filters were holders and louvres in silver or black for MR16 fixtures. The screw-on holder fits directly on to the lamp and can hold any two accessories (colour, diffusion, or louver). The honeycomb louvres come in 45° and 60° versions.

Probably the most talked-about product on the show floor this year was the Kapas II lightweight LED display from Japanese company Komaden. It's a full-colour LED display system for permanent outdoor installations - but although drawing plenty of interest, it was too early for information on pricing or availability to be available.

Columbus McKinnon had its new manual inverted chain hoist, the Hurricane. Available in one-ton capacities, the Hurricane's hand wheel cover rotates 360° for hoist operation in any direction. Also new from CM was the ProCommander Control System, which offers motion control of electric chain hoists, with up to 96 motors, which can be controlled singularly or simultaneously.

DiGiCo was one of a handful of pro audio regulars at LDI. Dave Webster's time was split between the stand and the ET Live demo area behind the halls, where a number of live stages were set up to demonstrate show technology in real, live situations. "It has been really useful for us," said Webster. On stand, DiGiCo had new Aviom and EtherSound cards. The former allows the Aviom self-mixed musician-monitoring system to be routed direct from the console. The EtherSound protocol puts the engineer in control of running the loudspeakers, which is especially useful with self-powered PA systems.

Swisson showed the 12-channel, rack-mountable, sinewave dimmer 12 x 2.5kW and its high-speed five-to-one DMX merger, as well the single-channel, DMX-addressable/ manual 2.4kW dimmer.

Barco showed OLite 510, the company's indoor/outdoor SMD LED display, with 5,000 NIT light output, 10mm pixel pitch, 15-bit processing, IP65 rating, and full TUV approval, as well as the LC-42 and LC-47 high-definition LCD displays. Also shown were MiPIX Creativity Packs, for creating display solutions without time-consuming and expensive custom manufacturing.

Martin Professional's Mach Audio showed the CW 115 subwoofer, as well as 100V versions of the Mach CI4 and CI6 infill speaker: these also feature a special mounting system that cuts installation time in half. The first in a series of white CI Series (infill) molded speakers, the CI 6, was shown.

SGM, exhibiting on the Techni-Lux stand, showed a number of products, including Synthesis - the first of a new generation of moving-head fixtures, with two types of interchangeable 70W lamps, automatic hot restrike, colour-mixing, and what the company calls an "unbeatably precise" linear dimmer. Also new were the Palco 3 colour-changing LED projector for indoor and outdoor applications; the Palco 3 Mobile, which comes with pan and tilt; and the Ribalta colour-changing projector with 90 Luxeon LEDs, which allows you to cover large areas.

Philips introduced a new multi-functional solution for Ceramic ST fixtures. By simply changing the bulb, Ceramic ST fixtures can now create daylight with the MSR 250 HR bulb or create cool and cost-effective light with the Ceramic ST 250 HR lamp. The company introduced a new 1,200W single-ended MSR Gold for SSTV applications. The new bulb, a compact single-ended lamp with a very short arc, creates up to 30% higher brightness compared to current available light sources, the company says.

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