"We had wanted to keep this under wraps," stated Johansen, "but then someone got hold of our product pipeline and leaked it. When one of our key distributors heard about it, they placed an order for more than 2,000 fixtures ... even though we will not be launching the range until the Prolight+Sound Show in Frankfurt next April."
Up to that point SGM had been denying rumours that they were about to re-enter the moving head arena. And although full details will continue to remain secret, the product's big USP is that it will be IP65-rated and promises to boast the most compact form factor in the market; it will also incorporate only essential features in a low-weight chassis, outputting 850W. "This spec was put together after many discussions with rental companies," said Johansen.
When his old R&D team at Martin Professional, headed by Finn Kallestrup, produced the iconic Mac 600 25 years ago, Peter Johansen felt he had delivered the defining moving yolk washlight. "This was the perfect fixture for the market, and I felt I never needed to do it again," he said. But now - with the genius of boffins, Kallestrup and Jan Pedersen, at work again - he believes he is on the verge of repeating his pioneering exploits in the brave new world of LED.
"The market is flooded with moving heads - but no-one is really catering for the vast outdoor market with an IP65 product such as this."
(Jim Evans)
