The world of technology is constantly changing, and keeping up with those changes is challenging at best. With two upcoming tradeshows this fall, both offering excellent opportunities for church staff and volunteers to explore lighting options- LDi (www.ldishow.com) and WFX (www.wfxweb.com)-church production magazine decided to query various lighting control console manufacturers and present their primary product recommendations for houses of worship. here's what each manufacturer suggests, and their reasons for the selections, in alphabetical order:
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Avolites Tiger Touch
Avolites, based in the U.K. and distributed exclusively in the United States and Canada by Creative Stage Lighting, suggests their Tiger Touch lighting console. The console has a graphical interface, is reported to be easy to use, and sports a touch-screen interface. The Tiger Touch is designed to be operated by programmers and non-programmers alike by combining ease of use with substantial programming power. Once an event is programmed by an LD or programmer, it can be played back or operated by a corps of volunteers. The Tiger Touch has an
MSRP of $16,100.www.avolites.com | (518) 251-3302
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Compulite Dlite Series
Based in Israel and distributed exclusively in the United States and Canada by Creative Stage Lighting, Compulite's Dlite series of consoles has intuitive, hands-on tools for quick programming and playback, as well as many advanced features for complex lighting applications. Dlite supports both manual and fully programmed playback operations. Compulite reports that Dlite is designed to be the ideal choice for medium-sized venues with limited budgets, complex requirements and diverse needs. The series supports up to four control universes and up to 252 moving lights. The Dlite line of consoles ranges from
$9,995 to $17,995 MSRP.www.compulite.com | (518) 251-3302
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Elation Emulation
Software with MIDIcon Controller
The Emulation/MIDIcon combination is a powerful lighting control package. It is reportedly easy to set up, learn and use, even for non-professionals, thanks to a user-friendly interface and cuelist-based programming structure. It is designed to handle a variety of different types of lights well-conventional lights, automated lights, and LEDs-making it a convenient one-source solution to all of a church's control needs. The software runs on Mac OS X, and Windows XP through 7. The MIDI Controller provides convenient hardware access to common functions in Emulation, increasing the user-friendliness of the package. MSRP for Emulation and MIDIcon
combined is $1,500.
www.elationlighting.com | (323) 582-3322
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ETC Eos Series
Designed to be both accessible to volunteers working on weekend services and with the depth of sophistication demanded by seasoned programmers working on larger productions, ETC's Eos series, which includes Eos, Ion, Element, and the new Gio, provides user-friendly control over today's hybrid, multipurpose worship rigs: conventional lights, moving lights, LEDs, media servers, and effects devices. Eos lighting control consoles feature the ETC syntax recognized industry-wide, while the advanced hardware reportedly ensures the fastest processing and system reliability. Also backed by ETC's around-the-clock customer phone support, the Eos series of consoles are standard church-production tools.
The series' beginning Element product has an MSRP of $5,750.www.etcconnect.com | (608) 831-4116
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High End Systems Road Hog Series
The Road Hog Full Boar is a full-featured console that is expandable for future use. The smaller Road Hog version has all the same capabilities, without expansion and at a much lower cost. Either console provides houses of worship total lighting control with simple user interfaces. The Full Boar has unlimited DMX output, integrated Art-Net output, MIDI, SMPTE, dual external monitors or touch-screens, DVD-RW and more. Wholehog consoles feature outstanding durability and productivity. The ease of understanding Wholehog software is said to make the Road Hog Full Boar and Road Hog consoles a natural choice for the house of worship market where volunteers often operate consoles.
MSRPs are $15,975 for the Road Hog and $26,995 for the Road Hog Full Boar.www.highend.com | (512) 836-2242
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Jands Vista Series
Distributed via AC Lighting, the Jands Vista v2 range of lighting consoles provides a powerful, volunteer-friendly user interface in a cost effective package, according to the company. Vista v2 takes the Vista's innovative approach to a new stage. From the compact and affordable Vista M1 up to the full-sized Vista T4, there is a Vista available for most budgets. Whether you have dimmers, LEDs, moving lights, or media servers, Vista v2 reportedly provides the power required to program and run the most sophisticated lighting sequences. The Vista v2's interface allows users to effortlessly integrate lighting to help convey the message by creating lighting scenes and effects the way you'd create a painting-with broad brush strokes.
MSRP ranges from $1,250 through $41,556.www.jandsvista.com | (416) 255-9494
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Leprecon LPC Series
The LPC series lighting consoles offer hands-on fader control for conventional dimmer channels, LEDs and moving lights. Designed for users who desire a back-to-basics approach in a conventional lighting desk, the LPC offers a feature set to grow along with system needs. Use an LPC console as a standard conventional dimmer controller or add moving lights and LED fixtures for an integrated lighting controller. Create simple looks with the two-scene preset mode or design more complex timed looks and save them as a submaster or cue list with faders. The optional touch screen allows for easy programming and viewing channels, submasters and cues for conventional dimmer channels. The LPC series is reported to be easy enough for an inexperienced volunteer, yet powerful enough for an experienced user.
MSRP ranges from $5,000 to $7,400.www.leprecon.com | (810) 852-4300
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Leviton Piccolo Scan Series
Leviton's Piccolo Scan series of lighting controllers offers features not commonly found in a console of this size. Initially appearing as a traditional manual/memory board, the Piccolo Scan also offers monitor output, channel, submaster or "go" button playback, conventional channel and moving light control and Network data distribution. Combining the best of traditional and automated control, it is well suited for most small- to medium-sized worship applications. The series is highly flexible, according to the company, and can be used in several different modes, where the channel and attribute count are well suited for these applications. Reportedly uncomplicated and simple to use, the Piccolo Scan is ideal for houses of worship.
MSRP ranges from $4,700 to $5,600.www.leviton.com | (800) 736-6682
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Lightronics TL-5024
The TL-5024 is a 24-channel lighting control console that includes features such as multiple scene banks, soft patching, multiple user programmable chases, and an LCD Status Display. The TL-5024 can be configured to transmit LMX-128, DMX, and wireless DMX protocols. Simplicity of use is one of the main reasons this console fits so well in the church market, according to the company. They report that most laypersons can learn to operate the console in about one hour. Features like soft patch and cue stacking allow for sophisticated lighting functions that are easy to program and use. Cue lists allow the user to save scenes and play them back at the touch of a button.
MSRP ranges from $899 to $1,450.www.lightronics.com | (800) 472-8541
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LSC Lighting LX300
Distributed in North America by Applied Electronics, the LSC Clarity GUI used in the new LX300 console is designed to be easy to use. Even inexperienced operators can learn the basics in 10-15 minutes and can be confident enough to program and operate a simple show, reps for the company say. Yet the advanced user has all the tools required to operate the most technically demanding show, in a reportedly easy-to-use and reliable console. Able to control over 2,000 DMX channels of dimmers, moving lights, media servers, LEDs and other devices, the LX300 provides LED pixel mapping, media server integration, fixture cloning and quick programming via multiple LCD touch screens, four encoder wheels, keypad and 15 submaster/playbacks.
The MSRP for this console is $15,000.www.lsclighting.com | (757) 591-9371
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MA Lighting grandMA2
MA Lighting, distributed in North America by A.C.T Lighting Inc., suggests its grandMA2 console for houses of worship. This is the company's most powerful console, offering complete control of conventional fixtures, moving lights, LED fixtures and media, all from one platform. Equipped with the most up-to-date technology, the grandMA2 supplies intuitive and fast control for all connected fixtures and channels. Since all command keys can be found in the same place on every console of the series, the grandMA2 offers extremely flexible and comfortable ways of programming, including nearly infinite numbers of presets, cues, pages, sequences, and effects, the company reports. With innovative peripheral components like the MA Video Processing Unit (VPU), the grandMA2 responds to the demands of lighting and visual designers and programmers in bridging the gap between lighting and video production requirements.
The MSRP for the grandMA2 series ranges from $1,900 to $78,500.www.malighting.com | (201) 996-0884
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Martin Professional M1
With the full power of a larger desk and the agility of a smaller one, the M1 is a state-of-the-art, all-in-one lighting desk that is powerful and affordable. Assembly quality, thorough testing, and software stability are reportedly aspects that make the M1 an excellent value for the money. The Martin M1 has been designed from the ground up with a single philosophy in mind-simplicity. The surface is clean and easy to navigate, with fewer buttons and options to overwhelm the user.
MSRP is $15,995.www.martinpro.com | (954) 858-1800
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Mega Systems Enlighten One
The Enlighten One console was designed to be functional for churches. Learning to use the unit does not require a manual-users quickly know how to use it through a process of discovery, according to the company. The Enlighten One Console combines the Enlighten Lighting Control Software with hardware to provide a turnkey solution for churches. Together the software, board, monitor and computer provide optimal performance and the reliability needed to create a worshipful lighting experience. The board's numerous hands-on controls together with the 23-inch touch screen monitor provide the flexibility of using the monitor or the board for faster programming and playback. It has four DMX universes in the back, as well as the ability to output ArtNet.
MSRP is $9,999.www.megasystemsinc.com | (866) 460-MEGA
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Philips Strand Lighting Palette VL
The Palette VL from Philips Strand Lighting provides the power of a conventional and moving light control in a value-priced system. Using the intuitive PaletteOS operating system, the Palette VL offers a multitude of live faders, but also delivers moving light and dynamic color picking with single-button access. The company reports that setup happens through an easy-to-use, point-and-click graphic interface; colors will quickly match with well-known color filters; gobo rotation is specified in RPM; and the display delivers real information that users can easily identify, enabling maximum creativity and fast workflow. Available with either 16 or 24 submasters, the Palette VL also leverages industry-standard technologies, making it robust and future-proof, according to Philips Strand.
Pricing is available through a Strand dealer.www.strandlighting.com | (214) 647-7880
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Zero 88 Solution
The Solution from Zero 88 is a comprehensive multi-purpose lighting control console. Running the
powerful ZerOS operating software, the Solution reportedly offers simple hands-on control of conventional generic channels, submaster and cuestack playback, plus moving light controls with an easy-to-use layout. It features four DMX universes, USB storage, external touch screen support, multiple onboard LCD displays and multifunctional keys, as well. For smaller houses of worship, the Solution console provides simple, clear progressions from two-scene preset lighting through moving light and LED control. Its flexibility allows the Solution to be adapted to multi-purpose venues where the performance requirements can change daily.
MSRP ranges from $7,699 to $8,000.www.zero88.com | (800) 553-3879
