GageStryker
Member
No, I'm not talking LED wash fixtures. I'm talking LED-washing. Kind of like green-washing. Focusing on something to make it appear environmentally friendly, when in fact it isn't.
Here's a snippet from Martin's official press release on the Mac 350 Entour (soon to be released):
(Emphasis mine)
http://www.martin.com/productnews/productnews.asp?id=464
Sounds cool and revolutionary - and the product videos do the same. 8000 lumens - an output that's greater then many 250/300 watt fixtures! What an energy savings!
What the article DOESN'T tell you is that this amazing 8000 lumens output is from an array of 7 50W LED sources. Which would be 350 watts, hence the product name: The Mac 350 Entour. In other words, they're pushing a "green" solution that is only marginally more efficient than a 250W discharge source.
Let's check the math:
Martin 350 Entour: 8000 lumens @ 350W = 22.857 lumens/Watt
Martin 250 Entour: 5000 lumens @ 250W = 20.0 lumens/Watt
Output of the 350 vs the 250: 1.6:1 doesn't look like 4 times the output of comparable fixtures. Unless there's a more comparable fixture then the same line by the same manufacturer in a non-LED source...
Now, I will give them the fact that bulb replacement on an LED is greener then for discharge lamps, both for the lack of mercury and the longer lifespan of an LED source.
And the interesting thing is that this development came about, as in the article, from a technology grant for new LED technologies. If Martin hadn't snapped up funding and made a product, someone would have. LEDs are the savour of the universe, when in reality, although they are useful for a number of applications, when you scale them up to these areas, they suffer from the same problems as traditional sources.
Having said that, I'm happy that Martin is taking a step forward and introducing an LED profile fixture (that is worth a GIANT hurrah!). The applications for it will be different then a discharge lamp, and I'm excited about it just for that alone. And maybe, in a few years, the LED technology will become more efficient and prove old sticks in the mud like me wrong for good. I hope one day that will come.
Here's a snippet from Martin's official press release on the Mac 350 Entour (soon to be released):
The new MAC 350 Entour™ from Martin Professional is the most powerful and energy-efficient LED-based profile moving head fixture on the market to date. It marks a radical advancement in light output and quality compared to other LED profiles on the market.
The direct result of a technology grant for the development of new LED technologies, the MAC 350 Entour surpasses what has previously been possible in terms of brightness, efficiency and compactness in a hard edge LED fixture.
Bright!
Light output is exceptional for an LED profile yet the MAC 350 Entour is highly energy efficient. It delivers 8,000 lumens of output from extremely efficient 50 W white LEDs, an output greater than many larger and more expensive 250/300 watt fixtures and four times more than comparable fixtures.
(Emphasis mine)
http://www.martin.com/productnews/productnews.asp?id=464
Sounds cool and revolutionary - and the product videos do the same. 8000 lumens - an output that's greater then many 250/300 watt fixtures! What an energy savings!
What the article DOESN'T tell you is that this amazing 8000 lumens output is from an array of 7 50W LED sources. Which would be 350 watts, hence the product name: The Mac 350 Entour. In other words, they're pushing a "green" solution that is only marginally more efficient than a 250W discharge source.
Let's check the math:
Martin 350 Entour: 8000 lumens @ 350W = 22.857 lumens/Watt
Martin 250 Entour: 5000 lumens @ 250W = 20.0 lumens/Watt
Output of the 350 vs the 250: 1.6:1 doesn't look like 4 times the output of comparable fixtures. Unless there's a more comparable fixture then the same line by the same manufacturer in a non-LED source...
Now, I will give them the fact that bulb replacement on an LED is greener then for discharge lamps, both for the lack of mercury and the longer lifespan of an LED source.
And the interesting thing is that this development came about, as in the article, from a technology grant for new LED technologies. If Martin hadn't snapped up funding and made a product, someone would have. LEDs are the savour of the universe, when in reality, although they are useful for a number of applications, when you scale them up to these areas, they suffer from the same problems as traditional sources.
Having said that, I'm happy that Martin is taking a step forward and introducing an LED profile fixture (that is worth a GIANT hurrah!). The applications for it will be different then a discharge lamp, and I'm excited about it just for that alone. And maybe, in a few years, the LED technology will become more efficient and prove old sticks in the mud like me wrong for good. I hope one day that will come.
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