ETC ColorSource Par -- original vs deep blue

[dreamist]

Happy Monday!

I'm trying to get a demo of the original and the deep blue next to each other so I can see for myself, but until I can get that arranged, I'm curious if anyone else has done that comparison and what their thoughts were..

Looking at the photometrics sheet in the documentation, it would appear that the Deep Blue is a fair bit dimmer, though I'm not sure if that's across the entire spectrum or how that's computed.. The original is listed as 47,900 candela, vs 32,627 for the deep blue.. I'm wondering if the intensity difference is noticeable in a side by side?

What are your thoughts on the original vs deep blue in general?

Thanks!

 

[robmerow]

I've worked with the original, but never saw them side by side. I definitely felt that the original was rather unusable as far as LEDs go because of the lack of deep blues (It really can't make a true majenta either. More of a hot-pink).

I suppose for a front light it may be a better fit. But if you're intention is to use the fixtures for color, I'd take a slight loss in output for the deeper color.

 

[Jim Uphoff]

Happy Monday!

I'm trying to get a demo of the original and the deep blue next to each other so I can see for myself, but until I can get that arranged, I'm curious if anyone else has done that comparison and what their thoughts were..

Looking at the photometrics sheet in the documentation, it would appear that the Deep Blue is a fair bit dimmer, though I'm not sure if that's across the entire spectrum or how that's computed.. The original is listed as 47,900 candela, vs 32,627 for the deep blue.. I'm wondering if the intensity difference is noticeable in a side by side?

What are your thoughts on the original vs deep blue in general?

Thanks!

Hello,
You are correct that the total output of the Deep Blue is less than the total output of the original ColorSource Par, but you are also correct that the output will depend on what color you are mixing. The difference is not enough that it should sway your decision on which one to use. You should pick by the color range you are looking for. Original for rich blues and cyans (think sky blue and aqua marines) and the Deep Blue for.. well... deep blues (and magenta.)

I hope this helps

Jim Uphoff

 

[rsmentele]

I've seen them side by side, and the new Dark Blue is a beautiful thing. Deep blues, purples and magenta's. Think of this if you want a very saturated over head or sidelight. If you need something with more output and a cleaner white, go to the original.

Was going to take a picture of them side by side, but capturing the quality was near impossible, so I decided against it as the photo wasn't doing the light justice.

 

[dreamist]

Hello,
You are correct that the total output of the Deep Blue is less than the total output of the original ColorSource Par, but you are also correct that the output will depend on what color you are mixing. The difference is not enough that it should sway your decision on which one to use. You should pick by the color range you are looking for. Original for rich blues and cyans (think sky blue and aqua marines) and the Deep Blue for.. well... deep blues (and magenta.)

I hope this helps

Awesome info and perspective, thanks! I'm hoping to get both of them side by side soon along with a more traditional RGBW fixture, and that should hopefully inform my choice as to which to choose...

 

[dreamist]

I've seen them side by side, and the new Dark Blue is a beautiful thing. Deep blues, purples and magenta's. Think of this if you want a very saturated over head or sidelight. If you need something with more output and a cleaner white, go to the original.

Was going to take a picture of them side by side, but capturing the quality was near impossible, so I decided against it as the photo wasn't doing the light justice.

My primary use for these is downlight/backlight, so having more saturation in general is a good thing. My throw is quite short (14ft and change), but the output level does worry me a bit.. when I did the demo of the original CS Par next to a ShowLine 155, I was worried about the strength of the CS Par original output, so having less output does worry me.. Guess the only way to tell is to put em next to each other and use the old eyeballs

Thanks for the insight and perspective!

 

[Crash_Override]

Hey quick question. Usually with everything with LED I try to get units that have 16bit dimmer but looking at ETC Colorsource or even S4 series2 Lustre they both are 8bit dimmer?
All my moving heads (Robe) have 16bit dimmer witch I have thought to be better than 8bit. But having seen both ETC units they to long fades very well. I have to but together a recommendation for new fixtures. I cannot say that I want ETC but I can give them specification that the new fixtures have to have. Like 16bit dimmer, RGBL and so on.


Edit: After reading again the spec sheet found it has 15bit virtual dimmer

 

[sk8rsdad]

Internally, ETC fixtures have 15-bit dimming with interpolation, but the control is 8-bit. 16-bit dimming is sort of moot except for maybe really, really finicky colour mixing, which no human can distinguish. Since DMX refresh rates are around 44 Hz, any good fixture needs to manage the dimming anyway, regardless of 8-bit or 16-bit control.

 

[FMEng]

What matters more, the numbers on the spec sheet or results you can see?

 

[gafftaper]

What matters more, the numbers on the spec sheet or results you can see?

That is a very wise statement. It also relates to the OP's old problem of the deep blue model being not as bright. It's easy to get caught up in the numbers with LED fixtures when what you see in real life is more important. Always remember how low the transmission rate of deep saturated gel colors is. Yeah the LED may be not as bright at full blue but it'll kick the butt of an incandescent with Congo Blue gel.