Idris Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 The school has freed up some cash for a replacment board (currently strand mx 24 with act 6 dimmers), be grateful if anyone has any advice for student friendly boards under this price range? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pritch Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 What are your requirements? Just to run those dimmers (presumably 24 channels?), or do you need scope for expansion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benweblight Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 For that budget look at the Zero 88 Jester range; a good choice for schools IMHO and fairly user friendly. There's also the ETC Smartfade range; haven't checked relative prices recently though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Or maybe the new Strand 200 range? They look to have an interesting feature set for the money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rossmck Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 More information needed ... how many channels ? just generics or with support for automated fixtures too ? What type of shows do you mainly do etc.. Schools tend to go in the direction of the Zero88 Frog or Jester range of consoles, or the smaller ETC desks like the Smartfade, but these are still going to come in higher than this budget I imagine - worth having a word with local suppliers though to see what they can do. It's also worth having a look on the second hand market if your school's purchasing policies would allow buying used kit, there's some good bargains available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CharlieH Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 Or maybe the new Strand 200 range? They look to have an interesting feature set for the money.+1 Use it at school, and for a basic desk it's great. Easy for non-tech-savvy staff to be told to switch it on and push up a submaster (1 for assemblies, 2 for masses, 3 for FoH wash etc) on Page 1, and then anything I use is stored on Page 2. Only thing is the sound to light function is cr@p, but this is only minor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themadhippy Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 whats up with the old desk? And are the dimmers DMX or d54? the mx spits out both Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted May 18, 2011 Share Posted May 18, 2011 I was thinking the same as Mr Hippy - the MX does everything people wanting a manual control need, plus a few nice extras. They've always been quite reliable, and would seem ideal? Would a Jester offer anything extra? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idris Posted May 18, 2011 Author Share Posted May 18, 2011 Sorry should have said - 24 channels and DMX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 So what is wrong with the MX - is it faulty, maybe we can suggest where to get it fixed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Some Bloke Posted May 19, 2011 Share Posted May 19, 2011 The MX is a great desk and I would concur with others who say keep it if you can. However, if it really is irrepairable then the desk that works the closest to an MX nowadays and thus would require the least re-training is the Smartfade. It's a bit like a newer and better version of the MX which was always my favourite small lighting board before the new generation came out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leejlight Posted May 28, 2011 Share Posted May 28, 2011 For that budget look at the Zero 88 Jester range; a good choice for schools IMHO and fairly user friendly. There's also the ETC Smartfade range; haven't checked relative prices recently though. My old school has the Zero88 Jester, had it for a while now. Like you said its user friendly and reliable too. Just keep the GSX as back up now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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