labby Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 Hi all. I work in a 200 seat arts center on the isle of man and im looking to update my lighting desk. at present we have a second hand Zero 88 leapfrog 96 but it has seen better days. I want something that is easy to use and capable of running the fixtures I have at present. plus room to add more in the future. I have mainly LED lights above the stage (approx 40), 3 dimmer racks, 4 small LED moving heads, and 2 explorer moving heads. plus a few effects lights. any advice would be appreciated as this is a big purchase for us and I want to be sure its right for us. what are you using? how would you rate it? specially venues of a similar size. the link below shows the type of things we are putting on at present. http://www.centenarycentre.com/whats-on/ thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timsabre Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 Give us an idea how much you have to spend on this... there are a lot of answers otherwise. Do you always have an experienced operator or do you need to cope with people off the streets who just need to get a few lights on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigglet Posted July 19, 2016 Share Posted July 19, 2016 Hi all. I work in a 200 seat arts center on the isle of man and im looking to update my lighting desk. at present we have a second hand Zero 88 leapfrog 96 but it has seen better days. I want something that is easy to use and capable of running the fixtures I have at present. plus room to add more in the future. I have mainly LED lights above the stage (approx 40), 3 dimmer racks, 4 small LED moving heads, and 2 explorer moving heads. plus a few effects lights. any advice would be appreciated as this is a big purchase for us and I want to be sure its right for us. what are you using? how would you rate it? specially venues of a similar size. the link below shows the type of things we are putting on at present. http://www.centenarycentre.com/whats-on/ thanks in advanceI have an ETC Element 60 that you should consider. I run 11 led statics, 6 led movers and 0-30 generic fixtures. It is a powerful desk and is easy to program(I get my 11 year old pupils to do it). ETC do mmore complex desks if you intend to use more movers but when I was looking it was best value for money for what I wanted. If you can make it To PLASA this year in London, you can have a play with it and any other desks you might be interested in. I used to do the flight regularly when I was on the IOM getting home to parents. Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 Don't forget Big Clive now lives on the island - and could be a good source of local advice and help - probably best to contact him via youtube. Biased - but I'd consider MagicQ in one of the variants to be ideal here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinntec Posted July 20, 2016 Share Posted July 20, 2016 Biased - but I'd consider MagicQ in one of the variants to be ideal here.Seconded. Our tiny 77 theatre has an Chamsys MQ60 which replaced our venerable Fat Frog. We use it as a theatre desk, but also perfectly at home for live music or events. Excellent support in Southampton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
labby Posted July 24, 2016 Author Share Posted July 24, 2016 thanks for the replys. ive got a budget of £5000. im self taught but have a good understanding of DMX and can patch and program the leapfrog quite easily. im looking for something that can be easily programmed and suitable for theatre and live music shows. so far I like the ETC element 60 but would like more ideas, any help would be appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 If your venue only ever has it's own pro technicians then there are lots of desks with lots of features. You take your pick according to your preferences for the type of shows that pass through. If your venue is ever operated by unknown amateurs than having a " 1 fader per channel " desk with an on/off switch is probably the only option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KCLeblanc Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Another vote for Chamsys, we're hoping to purchase either a PC Wing of an MX40n in the next few weeks to replace a Fat Frog. If you're seriously interested they will probably lend you a desk to trial. You can also get their trial PC dongle for £12 and then download the software for free. So a very cheap way to get your head round the system. I already using chamsys with my lappy instead of the Frog for most shows. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinntec Posted July 26, 2016 Share Posted July 26, 2016 Another vote for Chamsys, we're hoping to purchase either a PC Wing of an MX40n in the next few weeks to replace a Fat Frog. If you're seriously interested they will probably lend you a desk to trial. You can also get their trial PC dongle for £12 and then download the software for free. So a very cheap way to get your head round the system. I already using chamsys with my lappy instead of the Frog for most shows.... plus free 2 day education class in Southampton! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexforey Posted July 31, 2016 Share Posted July 31, 2016 I second the Element suggestion. IMO the advantages are that it runs the same OS (mostly) as the bigger consoles, and can be used both in an advanced way (like an ION lite) or more simply by the inexperienced with channels-on-faders and a touch screen with magic sheets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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