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German magazine Soundcheck tested the new LED PAR-64 RGBA spot for its July issue – with best results.

With its new 10 mm LED spot Eurolite finds a remedy for the difficult output of warm colors of conventional LED spotlights. How? With amber colored LEDs in addition to the primary colors red, green and blue: “This creates an additional warm orange color”, the periodical mentions. Thereby, the spot provides “a broader range of colors looking more softly and naturally in the yellow and red spectrum”. Even the usually extreme color transition from red to green can be covered by this diode, the testers observe.
Besides harmonious color transitions, the fourth color has another advantage: “If we mix all colors to a white color, the amber diodes will create a cozy and warm white which is similar to incandescent lights”.

Apart from an outstanding color combination, the new spot offers further advantages compared to conventional devices. The controller persuades the Soundcheck team: “The small DIP switches were replaced by a full menu with display and buttons”. Thereby, the spots allow a considerably easier setting of DMX with more possibilities. For example, much more color mixtures can be adjusted directly at the device: “This is ideal for using the spot as static light without control”. But the spot also persuades the testers in stand-alone operation: There is a larger variety of stand-alone programs with sequences and color changes and they are easier to adjust,” the journal says.

The magazine also tested the matching LED operator 2. One of the especially positive things they noticed was the easy handling – “without any programming effort”: “The handling of the LED operator 2 is really easy and fast to learn – even for novice users”. A special benefit: the operator can control a smoke machine with two DMX channels (by pressing a button). The Soundcheck crew recommends the controller as an excellent “entry-level device”, which is applicable for stages as well as for bars or lounges.
A similar large variety of applications offers the Eurolite LED PAR-64 RGBA spot: “In fact, the spot can be applied wherever the former 300 watt parcan 56s have been used”. For example, by the recommendation of the testers, the spots is ideal for smaller stages and hobby musicians.

With its new RGBA series, Eurolite now offers spots with a warmer color temperature – similar to incandescent lights and their red colors. By adding the color amber, which is composed of red and yellow, the ordinary RGB color mixing can be “warmed up” individually with the fourth color. So it’s not surprising, that also the Soundcheck team was convinced of these advantages – and the RGBA spot passed the testing with top grades.

EUROLITE LED PAR-64 RGBA spot, alu, 10mm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lV5GUVgVAQI

EUROLITE DMX LED Operator 2

Even in music, as is so often the case: “Trust is good, control is better”. The acoustical controlling option addressed here is called Monitoring (lat. monere, to monitor, to warn). Essential for stage or studio musicians, if good sound is of particular importance.

Let’s tread the boards, as the world’s a stage, and devote ourselves to live monitoring on stages. One may ask why this is necessary. Other than perhaps on very small stages, the PA – or rather guitars and drums – are usually so loud, that the singer can’t or the keyboarder barely hear themselves. In order to change the situation and to allow for control over one’s own performance, it is advisable to install a monitoring system. It is a separately managed sound system, isolated from the PA. The musicians receive a similar auditory impression over the loud speakers as the audience does, making it easier to hear themselves and to better coodinate the musical interaction.

Studio monitoring, on the other hand, has a different emphasis. It naturally deals with controlling options, but on a much more sensitive level. On stage, the priority is good musical interaction and a means to check the overall impression, while in the studio everything centers on the quality of the individual signal, in other words of the respective instrument. In this case the sound of the recording and the subsequent editing are monitored. The point is, to reproduce the respective audio signal as exact as a microphone, an amplifier or another sound generator would emit. In order to achieve this, several factors must be considered.

Of overall importance is the right choice of speakers. There’s no getting around special monitor speakers disposing of good impulse reproduction as well as low reverberation and for which a linear frequency output ist essential – in other words, frequencies are neither raised nor lowered. Since one sits right in front of the speakers in the studio, they should moreover dispose of a wide emission angle and the sound properties should not alter within the working parameters of the sound technician. Equally important is the correct positioning of the speakers. If the sound should reach the listener directly, without hindrances, it is advisable to mount the speakers on tripods or on the wall. If mounted on a table or at the end of a mixer, distorted reflection could occur. The speakers should be oriented toward the listener and in this manner ideally form an equilateral triangle between the speakers and the technician.

In general, the rating of the amplifier should be larger than that of the speakers, in order to avoid distortions. Furthermore, larger amplifiers offer a higher damping factor and are able to produce precise and fast transmission of voltage peaks.

The selection of monitor speakers for stages is equally important. Similar to studio monitors, they should have a linear frequency response if possible, yet here it is more important to achieve a greater performance. One difference is demonstrated in the emission angle. As opposed to the broad studio version, a targeted emission angle is preferred on stage, as each musician uses his own speaker. A word about the design: it visibly differs from the studio speakers. A horn is used, not a dome tweeter, furthermore one side is sloped so the monitors can be laid on the floor in order to resound upward.

In-Ear monitors are being used more and more on stages, instead of speakers. These are small ear plugs with a fine earpiece, which take over the function of speakers via a wireless link. The advantages are clear. On the one hand, the musician can move freely and always receives an unaltered signal. On the other hand, technicians need to lay less cable and transport fewer speakers. Additionally, In-Ear-Monitoring protects against acoustic feedback, which could occur when, for example, a microphone again picks-up the amplified singing of an artist, which is played back over the speaker monitor.

Whichever version you choose or require, the right equipment is important so the performance isn’t distorted and as a result, inferior.

Our product recommendation:

OMNITRONIC IEM-500 In-ear monitoring set

The IEM-500 is a wireless in-ear monitoring system with excellent sound and full user comfort. 16 frequencies in the low-interference UHF band can be adjusted. Due to a limiter in the transmitter input, the ear is completely protected even in case of extreme clipping. The system can be operated in mono and stereo mode and is thus qualified for many applications such as live music, theater use and voice transmission. The multifunctional LCD screen indicates all operation modes. The transmitter features a headphones output with adjustable output level in order to monitor the signal sent to the musician at the FOH. The set comes fully equipped with transmitter, receiver, headphones and 483 mm mounting kit (19″).

From July 10 to 12 the international trade show for living, tableware and lifestyle takes place at Munich fair grounds. Pay us a visit in hall B2, stand number F 24.

Steinigke at a show for living and the like? Sure! In the end we have got a trademark for this special field: Europalms. That is why in Munich we are concentrating almost exclusively on Europalms and its novelties.

These include the latest artificial plants for outdoors (with the best quality ever), current trick fountains, Halloween articles and the Christmas assortment 2010 which has just arrived – links to some of the novelties can be found below.

Twice a year, always in January and July, TrendSet takes place in Munich. With more than 1100 exhibitors and 35000 visitors it is one of the largest trade shows of its kind. This summer TrendSet celebrates its 96 run (more information about the show under http://www.trendset.de

Pictures of the TrendSet 2009

Only three month are gone and the deployment of “LED Lighting Control” software MADRIX has published a new version.

Of course the boys took all the requests, controversies and error messages of the users to heart and put as most as possible into the new version.

And in spite of the big amount of the release note of this update is, as we are used to, for free.

Download MADRIX V2.9 here

Who regularly visits our blog, has already found it for sure. The Steinigke Blog has got a direct conection to Facebook with its new “like” buttons. Now you can’t just be a fan of our Steinigke fanside, as it was called earlier, now you can show others which blogmessages you like.

If the “like” button is clicked, every one of your friends can read what you like on your Facebook profil. It doesn’t matter if it is our fanside on Facebook or our blogmessages. So you can inform your friend about what could be interessting to them. Of course you can although see in our blogmessages which blogmessages your friends already like.

You can although find a Facebook box on the right side of this blog which tells you how much fans we have already got and which activities will be set free by the new “like” button. How many people shared blogmessages on their profil and who likes which messages.All in all at one look.

In the future you will be able to comment our messages right away, which will although be posted on your facebook profil, if you like it to. Of course,you can see here too which friends of yours have already commented. To use all of those Facebook functions you have to be logged in. But that’s something everybody know for sure.

You can test how the “like” works right here. Have fun!

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