Earlier this year, High End Systems launched a new addition to its family of automated framing fixtures – the SolaFrame 1000. ApexPro, the South African distributor of ETC lighting solutions, demonstrated the unit just weeks later in Johannesburg. Now, Cape Town has also had a chance to view the units in action, at a demonstration held at the Studio of the Fugard Theatre.
High End Systems was acquired by ETC two years ago, and we are seeing the early fruits of that union. Mathew Lewis, ETC product manager at ApexPro, tells us that “the first fixture that was conceptualised, developed, produced and released with those two research-and-development teams together is the SolaFrame 1000.”
“It’s the first fixture to mix the DNA of the two companies: the theatrical DNA of ETC and the rock n’ roll DNA of High End. The result is a really beautiful light that can do almost anything.”
Indeed the SolaFrame 1000 is an impressive beast. Boasting a 20’000 lumen output, a 470 Watt LED chip, full framing shutters, rotating and fixed gobo wheels, multiple colour systems, 12° – 40° zoom, animation effects “plus all the bells and whistles required by the modern LD,” the SolaFrame lives up to the rep. Lighting students and professionals alike gazed in wonder at what the fixture is capable of, particularly the strong, beautiful colours.
Available in Ultra-Bright and High CRI versions, the SolaFrame 1000 ships with a TM30 Filter that boosts the Ultra-Bright engine to 85+ CRI. Other features include Iris and Light Frost, Rotating Prism and High End Systems’ patented Lens Defogger System.
Also on display was the SolaFrame 750, the most compact framing fixture in the Sola Series family of automated tools. Featuring a compact footprint but a huge feature set, SolaFrame 750 is a perfect fit for smaller to medium-sized venues, and its 11’300 lumens can easily cut through the competition. With 6° – 50° degree zoom, a 270 Watt LED chip, rotating gobo wheel plus fully continuous animation and much, much more, SolaFrame 750 offers the widest array of effects currently available in a fixture of its size.
With all of this on offer, the SolaFrame series is ideal for the rental market.
“From a rental company’s perspective, they need something that can go and be an effect light in a corporate day, and then they need something that can do a theatrical show the next day. The problem has always been that you’ve then had to buy a beam light, a spotlight and a wash light… The idea behind the SolaFrame family is that it can be all of those in one. It can be a true, workhorse light.”
Also at the demonstration was the Source Four LED Series 2 Lustr, as well as the ColorSource fixtures. Using ETC’s x7 Color System, the Lustr combines a balance of up to seven colours to create evocative colour mixes that can use the full spectrum. A theatre was the perfect setting to view its capabilities, as, in Lewis’ words: “ETC’s heritage is theatre, so everything they do is really dedicated to being practical for a theatre environment.”
“When the LED revolution hit, the colours wouldn’t always match, or there would be the dreaded flickering when you took it down to ten percent. ETC took their time coming out with their own LED offering, but when they did, what we have is a very high quality fixture.”
If you would like to know more about any of the above fixtures or book a demo, please contact Mathew Lewis at mathew@apexpro.co.za