Vizi Hybrid 16RX and discharge lamp question

[dpak]

At some point in the near future, I'm looking to buy two moving spots for the high school theater where I teach. I really like the specs of the ADJ Vizi Hybrid - zoom is a must, and this fixture goes from 3-32 degrees - and the price of $2300 is almost in my range (I also like that it puts out a lot of light and it has some eye candy that we could use for our talent show and a few other events). However, I know nothing about the type of lamp used - a discharge lamp. I'm not too worried about the life span - 1500 hours will give us at least a few years of use - but I am worried about the warning in the manual about being 40 feet away from whatever is being lit - the catwalk that we would put it on is about 30 feet away from the stage.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[rsmentele]

Used these on a show just to demo. Personal feedback: The gobos are less than desirable for theatre applications, and the dimming is TERRIBLE. The units cut off at the bottom of the dim curve and the minimum intensity is quite bright, which is odd for an incandescent sourced fixture. My only warning with any moving light is that you are gonna get what you pay for, so keep that in mind as you look.

 

[dpak]

Used these on a show just to demo. Personal feedback: The gobos are less than desirable for theatre applications, and the dimming is TERRIBLE. The units cut off at the bottom of the dim curve and the minimum intensity is quite bright, which is odd for an incandescent sourced fixture. My only warning with any moving light is that you are gonna get what you pay for, so keep that in mind as you look.

Thank you! I'll cross that fixture off my list.

 

[DELO72]

- but I am worried about the warning in the manual about being 40 feet away from whatever is being lit - the catwalk that we would put it on is about 30 feet away from the stage.

It really depends on what you are trying to do. Every moving light is not the same. That fixture doesn't use a metal halide lamp. The reason for the warning is that Beam fixtures using Mercury vapor lamps put out a very concentrated tight beam of light as their purpose is for "painting the sky" with intense, visible beams, something made popular with the introduction of the Sharpy years ago. That concentrated beam of light can burn things too close (fabric, people, etc.) This isn't a problem for Spot or Wash fixtures, or metal Halide fixtures. If you want to paint the sky with intense beams, that type of fixture will work great for you. If you want to use it for a variety of uses, from front light or specials to gobo patterns, I'd suggest going with a traditional Metal Halide Spot/Profile/Performance fixture which are designed to be used more in that manner.

 

[dpak]

It would be used mainly for stage lighting. I'm looking at the Elation Platinum III now, and will have it demo-ed soon. It's a bit above what I'd like to spend, but for a quality moving spot, it looks like I'll have to spend the money.

 

[rsmentele]

I like the Platinum LED series. I've used them for years and they are pretty well priced for the features. The 6 I use are about 4 years old or so and I have never had any issues with them, at all (knock on wood)