Arri is known as one of the leading lighting manufacturers in the television and film industries. From my experience, their lighting fixtures are always constructed from the highest quality materials, and their optical systems are second to none.
Arri certainly got our attention when they introduced the new SkyPanel fixture. Yes, it looks light a LED soft television or film lighting fixture, but what surprised us is the power and flexibility that would serve very well in live entertainment applications. We can easily see this fixture used for broad washes of light on a cyc or other scenic pieces. It can also serve as a soft wash light for acting areas and general studio-style video production.
The Arri SkyPanel comes in two models: the S60 and the S30. The S60's aperture is 25.4 x 11.8 inches; the S30 is half that size. The Arri SkyPanel ‘C' (Color) models can adjust the color temperature anywhere between 2,800 K and 10,000 K. Plus and minus green correction can be achieved with the turn of a knob. Regarding its excellent color rendition, the Arri SkyPanel has a CRI spec of greater than 95.
We were able to briefly view these fixtures this past weekend on the show floor at LDI in Las Vegas and were quite impressed with what we saw. First, the fixture is extremely bright with a light output is 162 fc at 9.8 feet! You can place diffusion panels in the Arri SkyPanel to create softer washes of light. Even without the diffusion panel, we never saw any unwanted LED color banding or splotches. In fact, we doubt that the diffusion panels would even be necessary in live event applications.
In addition to CCT control (correlated color temperature), vivid color selection and saturation adjustments are also possible. This enables the Arri SkyPanel to not only emit a very wide variety of warm and cool “white” light, but also be able to produce impressively saturated colors. In our quick test at LDI, we were able to dial in deep saturated colors, including deep reds.
What makes the Arri SkyPanel special is the quality of the shadows it creates. In the Arri SkyPanel S60, 2,000 calibrated red, green, blue and white LEDs mix into a very soft and pure quality of light. As it has a wide aperture and has so many LED light sources, the shadows it produces are soft and uniform. There are no multiple shadows or strange colors. Similar to its theatrical broad light applications, the Arri SkyPanel produces no strange LED artifacts, just clean light with a single soft shadow.
The Arri SkyPanel's controls are on the rear of the fixture. It contains three knobs and four buttons. All of its parameters can be controlled via DMX, but for a quick adjustment (or if you don't have a lighting controller around), you can manipulate these menu buttons and control knobs to produce any quality of light the Arri SkyPanel is capable of. The color temperature, green/magenta point, intensity, hue and saturation can be adjusted instantly. In addition, a digital panel indicates the present color temperature and other attributes.
The Arri SkyPanel is only 5.24 inches thick, so it can fit in some very tight spaces. It offers an unobtrusive profile, allowing you to use it for footlight and other on-stage positions. It weighs 25.8 lbs and has a power supply that can be remotely located. The LEDs in the Arri SkyPanel have a lamp life of over 50,000 hours and has a maximum power draw of 450W. Other features include an on-board battery input for mobile applications, LAN port for network connectivity, and a USB-A port for firmware updates via thumb drive.
Although the floor at LDI is far from a scientific testing environment, we were able to quickly test the dimming of the Arri SkyPanel. We found a very smooth dimming curve (not necessarily important for broadcast, but critical for theater and houses-of-worship applications). The Arri SkyPanel faded smoothly all the way to 0 without unwanted flickering or stepping.
In addition to the color versions of the Arri SkyPanel, remote phosphor versions are also available. These models are designed to deliver near-perfect color rendition and outstanding light output. The remote phosphor versions of Arri SkyPanel are roughly 10% brighter than the color versions and have a lower price point. Different color temperature panels are available, including 2,700 K; 3,200 K; 4,300 K; 5,600 K; and 6,500 K. Understand that the phosphor versions may not produce the same saturated colors as the color Arri SkyPanels.
The SkyPanel is an excellent addition to Arri's full line of LED fixtures. It looks like a sure winner for both broadcast and theatrical applications. Yes, it may cost a little more than your typical soft light, but as my dad used to say: “You get what you pay for!”
