cantata followspots

[schooltechie]

hi all

 

we are currently in the process of looking at what we need to hire for our up and coming show of back to the 80's.

the need for 2 follow spots has risen, now I have had a look on the SLX website and have found the cantata follow spot kit reasonably cheap to hire and was wondering if they are worth using the throw is about 25m, also do they have a dimmer it says it has single channel dimmer but will this let the ops manually dim the lights and also it says it has an integral iris will this let the ops change the beam size manually. as you can tell I'm not used to follow spots as we avoid them as much as possible as with it being a school they could get damaged if we don't remove them every night.

any help much appreciated.

 

thanks Alex.

[joshread]

Hi Alex

 

I have used the cantana followspot(1.2kw Tungsten halogen) quite a bit with school shows and amateur dramatics and found the throw to be fine (the maximum distance I have used is probably about 20m).

 

My experience of a cantana followspot kit is that it comes with:

 

cantana followspot (obviously!)

stand

Colour magazine

13A -15A Jumper

Single Dimmer

 

"it says it has single channel dimmer but will this let the ops manually dim the light's"

 

Yes the single dimmer means that it is a separate unit that can usually be mounted on the stand etc. They generally have a flash button and fader for the operator to control.

 

"integral iris will this let the ops change the beam size manually"

 

Yes the operator has full manual control over the iris

 

Hope this is of some help

 

Josh

[JimWebber]

Hi Alex!

 

Yes, and Yes!

 

The dimmer will allow your operators to dim the spots, and the iris will allow them to adjust the size. If you have never used limes before, allow plenty of practice for your operators, it isn't as easy as it may look...

 

Jim

 

EDIT - Ever get the feeling you should type faster????

[Paul J Need]

Hi there,

 

Although ok, you have to decide how much 'punch' you need from the follow spot; are you using it purely for fill; are you using lots of heavy backlight etc. From 20m I'd suggest a 2kw tungsten unit.

 

Good lucj with the show

[paulears]

25m is a decent throw. As Paul says, 2K or even a discharge source would be better. When our discharge followspots were playing up a couple of years ago, I pulled out a 2K solo, and used them - our follow spots are in the roof, only 45ft from the stage, and 2K was a feeble circle against the normal lighting.

 

You may also find the standard Cantata won't be able to iris down that much at that distance, and again this wastes light, as the iris works between closed and maybe not even half open at that distance.

 

One other snag is that worked from that far away it will be difficult to keep them still - small movements will be very big by the time the light hits the stage. Adequate practice time is essential.

[robloxley]

A Cantata FS beam at narrowest will be 4.8m wide at 25m throw, so by the time you've iris'ed it down to a sensible size will be somewhat dim.

[Rowan]

It depends what the follow spots are up against. True if they were up against a rig full of source 4's then they probably wouldn't do. I suspect that this will not be the case. If you have any cantata's as part of your standard rig, then it might be an Idea to see how bright one of them looks at that distance. It won't be exact as the beam angle of the profiles is a lot wider than the F/S.

 

If you are looking for another spot from Stage-Electrics, I would suggest the RJ Foxie. The only thing is that because it is a discharge light, the dimming arrangement is slightly different.

[robloxley]

If you have any cantata's as part of your standard rig, then it might be an Idea to see how bright one of them looks at that distance. It won't be exact as the beam angle of the profiles is a lot wider than the F/S.

Um, isn't the Cantata F/S just a Cantata 11/26 with the extra handle/sights etc.?

[tokm]

Um, isn't the Cantata F/S just a Cantata 11/26 with the extra handle/sights etc.?

Near enough, yes... UsedLX had some in a while ago & someone's done similar to a narrow beam S4!

 

I'm with the Paul's (:)), they units just won't stand out when you've got anything remotely 'bright' happening on stage, regardless of what lights are in the rig.. Even a 700w Discharge Buxie/Foxie is pushing it at 25m IMO.. I'd say go bigger (Manon/Korrigan etc) But SLX's list price for them is rather much higher than a cantata, though if you want details of a hire co that'll do a 1.2KW discharge for half SLXs price (it's not me or something, promise!), PM me.

 

HTH.

 

Tom

[Tomo]

Another alternative would be a 2K Cadenza F/S

Tungsten lamp like the Cantata F/S, but the higher wattage means that it's a bit brighter.

 

However, I'd still prefer a discharge F/S for any throw over about 10-15m

Zig-Zag Lighting in Leeds may be able to help, as they aren't too far away from you.

[J Pearce]

The higher colour temp of a discharge lamped followspot will help it cut through a tungsten based wash too.

[Stutwo]

A bit of background info on the venue, the foh wash is from about 8 x 650w Quartet profiles on a single bar.

 

The hall is long with the stage at the end and has a raised walkway to one long side of the hall, making it appear the seating area is sunken about 3ft into the hall floor. I would be tempted to put one followspot on the walkway about halfway down the hall, and the other followspot on a raised platform on the other side of the hall (which has no walkway). This would cut the distance in half and make the cheaper Cantata followspots usable. Schooltechie, give me a ring if you like, you know where you can get my number.

[schooltechie]

thanks everyone

 

just to say we have hired some 1.2kw lamps and I intend to put them half way down the hall on raised platforms due to health and safety reasons from the school (very annoying) we cannot put them on the walkway. I will take some pictures if I get the chance for all your help.

 

Schooltechie, give me a ring if you like, you know where you can get my number.

 

I might end up giving you a rang when we get stuck :)

 

thanks again alex

[robloxley]

Or look at somewhere that still has discharge Solos for hire? (the 2K tungsten Solos are adaptations of the Cadenza 9/15 as a followspot). Again beam angle is maybe not narrow enough for your throw?

[WiLL]

Another alternative would be a 2K Cadenza F/S

Tungsten lamp like the Cantata F/S, but the higher wattage means that it's a bit brighter.

 

However, I'd still prefer a discharge F/S for any throw over about 10-15m

Zig-Zag Lighting in Leeds may be able to help, as they aren't too far away from you.

 

I have a 2k cadenza FS in my venue, it does indeed cope with a 25m fairly well. Although it also requires me to sling a 10kg weight from the rear end in order that it balances properly and can be easily operated by students. Otherwise the incredibly off centre weight distribution means the nose tips constantly.