Vari-Lite, a Signify entertainment lighting brand, unveils the VL1600 PROFILE, an advanced moving head profile luminaire designed for theatrical key lighting applications. The fixture brings a high CRI tunable white source and the same CMY colour mixing system found in the VL2600 PROFILE, along with a feature set targeting theatrical productions, TV studios and productions, opera houses, music halls, and performing arts centres.
“The VL1600 PROFILE is a true Vari-Lite-quality fixture that has been explicitly made for theatre,” explains Martin Palmer, Senior Product Manager, Vari-Lite and Strand Luminaires at Signify. “Designers still express a lot of underlying frustrations when using LED moving lights for theatrical or studio key light applications, and Vari-Lite wanted to address that with the high output and excellent colour rendering you’d expect from our fixtures, along with precision lighting features and tailored creative effects. We designed the VL1600 from the ground up to address the specific needs of these applications.”
One of the key features in the VL1600 PROFILE is the Vari*frost adjustable frost system. “Most fixtures have fixed frosts,” states Palmer, “and there is no way to change the amount of diffusion for the entire image without either replacing the glass for one of the frost filters or adding a filter to the front of the fixture.” Vari*frost provides designers with a truly seamless graduated frost that diffuses the entire aperture at once, allowing for the lightest of image and edge softening all the way to the heaviest wash diffusion, while always maintaining an even frost across the entire beam.
The VL1600 PROFILE also brings several other features that open creative possibilities for theatrical lighting designers. The exclusive VL*FX wheel, first seen on the popular VL10 BEAMWASH, has been updated on the VL1600 with animations designed to replicate natural lighting effects such as fire, water and earth tones. To simplify startup and minimise movement, the patented V*Track Calibration system calibrates pan and tilt on the fixture in less time and with less potential for damage to the rig or hanging scenery.
“The VL1600 PROFILE is a perfect companion to the VL2600 series of fixtures,” adds Palmer. “The colour-matched mixing system ensures designers can use both fixtures together, with the VL2600 PROFILE serving as the workhorse fixture and the VL1600 as the fine paintbrush, with the precision and detail you need for key and effect lighting. With excellent colour rendering, camera-friendly features and our SmartFan Control that includes standard, studio, whisper and fanless silent modes, it’s no wonder that designer feedback has been tremendously positive.”