Extensive research into what products were available followed. The team liked the idea of going for a moving yoke rather than a moving mirror as they needed a fixture that gave them a variety of options to meet market demand. They impressed by the punch and brightness of the Martin MAC 250 Entour, and also liked their robustness, an important criterion as they rarely use all 100 tables and so the remaining fixtures have to be hardy enough to travel to other venues in the complex.
A total of 100 Martin MAC 250 Entours were purchased from Chameleon Professional Lighting Sales with distribution through Martin's Australian representative, Show Technology. 80 are currently mounted permanently in the roof which holds a DMX network while 20 travel around the building. The quietness of the Entours was a major selling point. Although the ballroom can have 90 or more of these units switched on at any given time, the resulting noise is minor. The technicians at the SCEC also praised the versatility of the Entours, for the panning and tilting of the moving head, and the minimal distortion that they deliver. When at full pan the amount of distortion you get out of the optics is minimal, say Martin. The Entours are positioned between 4.2 and 4.8m up, so when they hit the table, the punch is reportedly "phenomenal".
(Lee Baldock)
