Choose A Leko For Me.

If the price you were quoted ($250) is accurate then you might as well spend the extra $30 per fixture for the real deal Source 4. I have found that most places carry the Source 4 at around $280, and sometimes you can even get them to throw in the lamp. Also, I believe the Leo has been killed due to patent infringement, but I could be wrong.

Yes, but you get the zoom feature with the Jr.
 
Yes, but you get the zoom feature with the Jr.

First off, I was talking about the Leviton Leo compared to the Source 4. Also, not ever S4 Jr. has zoom. In zoom land, I wouldn't accept anything less than a full size Source 4 zoom, or better yet, the Selecon Pacific Zoomspots. Why? Well, you sacrifice so much output and sharpness when you switch to zoom optics from fixed beam. So, if you are going to do zoom, you should start with the best optics to can get. Also, I have yet to find zooms to be a timesaver or anything, not enough pros on my list to buy zooms over fixed beam units.
 
Did you go to the "N" place in Dallas off of Wycliff?

Yep, that's the one. :)

As much as they push the Shakeses, I can't see them pushing the Leo unless Lev-NSI-C'tran is making them a better kickback than Alt .. though the other year they were really pushing the C'tran Innovator. I think that's the one, the one that competes with Express about six years ago, before the NSI merger I think?

So I don't think the Leo recommendation is from them, but I could be wrong. They really love their Shakeses.

I need to find a good ETC dealer/rep/whatever up here that can do school bids. Barbizon probably? One that's not as biased by kickbacks and will do an honest bid...
 
ETC Source4 all the way for FOH lights, Colortran 8in Fresnels, and Source4 PARnells for above stage lighting
 
I wish the S4 zoom was more like the SL zoom in terms of size/shape/weight. I haven't done a shootout to figure out which one is better optically (though I'm suspecting the Source Four is), but as far as the overall design of the fixture, I think Strand has them beat in terms of ease of use and portability. I did some work at a high school where the tech's called them "crates", and I can see why! You can't even carry them by the yoke like a normal ellipsoidal without them banging the floor. Unless you're 7' tall.
 
Hate them Hate them Hate Them.

One of my past employers had about 15 of the Leos, 12 Jrs, 3 Jr Zooms, and 50 Lekos with various Barrels.

We never used the Leos unless everything was out. They are awkward, hard to focus, shutters are rough, the yokes always get loose.

I later sold the boss on the Leko Jr Zooms for 95% of our jobs unless we needed a 10Degree for a Gobo. He ended up buying 16 move of the Jr Zooms in black and white for doing tent jobs.


darran
limelight-services.com
 
ETC Source4 all the way for FOH lights, Colortran 8in Fresnels, and Source4 PARnells for above stage lighting

I particularly like Selecon's range of fresnels. I have seen the acclaim 4" units in action, and i have heard good things about the Rama 6" fresnels as well.
 
Slightly off-topic, two rants:
Had a TD try to tell me an HPL lamp didn't exist (this was 2005!), and his WHOLE rig was Altie's. No coincidence, methinks.
The 1KL's? Yeah, the entire FOH catwalk is 1KL's, nothing else, about 30 of them. They do suck. A lot.
 
and his WHOLE rig was Altie's.
Okay. Let's nip this in the bud, RIGHT NOW. While some noise boys of the prosumer variety think it's cute and endearing to refer to Panasonic equip. as Panny's and Yamaha as Yammies, this ain't gonna be tolerated by us burly 'trician types!

The fixtures was ALTMANS, not Altie's. There's never been a friggin' cutesy thing about any Altman fixture ever, not even the 3.5Q-MT or the #100!

And there's not an HPL lamp available for anything except ETC SourceFour. HPR and SPH are very different animals.
 
Okay. Let's nip this in the bud, RIGHT NOW. While some noise boys of the prosumer variety think it's cute and endearing to refer to Panasonic equip. as Panny's and Yamaha as Yammies, this ain't gonna be tolerated by us burly 'trician types!

The fixtures was ALTMANS, not Altie's. There's never been a friggin' cutesy thing about any Altman fixture ever, not even the 3.5Q-MT or the #100!

Well, I'll keep using my Sourcies.:angel::twisted:
 
The fixtures was ALTMANS, not Altie's. There's never been a friggin' cutesy thing about any Altman fixture ever, not even the 3.5Q-MT or the #100!

Now wait, the No. 100 and the 3.5Q are quite cute. Not my first choice for many things, but I have been known to say "cute little 3.5Q" before. And I've often heard the No. 100s called Inkies quite a bit.

Altie is a new one for me .. I've always shortened it to Alt. Panny and Yammy I've heard (and been guilty of using .. often as "crappy Panny"). And in video world, Ikegami is almost always shortened to Icky. Guilty of that one all the time.


Update: I believe I talked the school out of the Leo idea; best I know, they're still walking down the S4 path .. slowly, as anything with public school fine arts programs goes.
 
S4, I remember a show I worked last year where there was an issue with fitting slightly older color scrollers into Strand SLs because the mounting plate was S4 specific and was just a tad too large to slide into an SL. Also the SL is a pain, eventually the lamp socket assembly cap will loosen to the point where it won't lock into the fixture and certain generations have an issue where the insulated rear handle does not allow you to tilt the fixture the full 180° (only way to do it is to take the socket cap off, rotate and then put it back on)
 
S4 or S4 Jr. Espically if you have students assisting/ learning form you as they are pretty easy to use and they can get a handle on them
 

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