I am bumping this thread up again because I have been asked to give an updated review of these fixtures, now that we have had them in use for a number of shows.
We rolled the PS700s out for the first time in last season's production of the
regional theatre premier of
Les Misérables.
Lighting designer Karl Haas from
ETC Architechtural enjoyed using them. IN that production, they ended up used mostly as moving specials and effects lights. Rotating gobos and animation wheel worked out great for a bunch of effects. They have a great punch and when needed could cut through almost any lighting on
stage, and we were also able to blend them well when we needed to. The similar color temp. to our follow spots was also a big plus. They were bang on for all 81 performances of the show.
We opened with them in this season's production of
Paint Your Wagon, lighting design by Phil Monat. Phil was thrilled with the fixtures, and used them throughout the show. Loved what he could get from the
CMY and
gobo effects. He was also quite impressed by the size, speed, and low noise of the
fixture.
We hung the fixtures for Doubt, but even though
lighting designer Michael Gilliam liked the fixtures, we didn't have a place for them in the show.
My overall experience with the fixtures is very positive. They are easy to maintain, though I felt really dumb when I realized there was an easier way to get the air filters out to clean them... They are easy to change gobos on. They are quiet, fast, small, and pack a big punch. I know we shot them out against the
Mac 2k and it was a very close race, but I would love to see it against the
Mac 700, because it wouldn't surprise me if the PS700 had more kick.
Learning that we have a choice in lamps made me quite happy. The fact that these fixtures are significantly lighter than the Revolutions that we also own is a big plus.
I would recommend this
unit to anyone who is looking for a great ML on a tight budget. So far, I couldn't be happier with them, and I was quite wary about being in the first group of consumers to buy the
fixture. I mean, they hadn't finished the
manual when my units shipped, so they came without manuals (they emailed me a pre-release copy and now the final is available on their
website). So, if you have the chance, schedule a demo, then you don't have to take my word for it.