Published in Events & Installations Magazine, Volume 26, 2006 and reproduced by permission.
Jands Vista - A New Vision of Lighting
Over the past thirty years, the name Jands has become synonymous with the highest level of professional lighting for events throughout the world. Distribution of the brand to the South African market was awarded to local equipment supplier, The Audio Distribution Company known throughout the industry as TADCO. Since then the company has wasted no time in getting information on the new Jands products out to the local lighting experts and of particular interest to local users is the recently launched Jands Vista desk.
Jands is a privately owned Australian company that was founded in 1970 and now employs approximately one hundred staff members. Over the years, the company has played a leading role in the development and supply of equipment and services to the entertainment industry. Since Jands built its first dimmer in 1970, the company's products have become a standard feature in lighting rigs worldwide.
A Complete Visual Picture
Almost every lighting professional is familiar with Jands family of lighting consoles, in particular the Jands Hog 500 and 1000, which together with the Wholehog II® Operating system s frequently used on major live events. The new Jands VISTA console is fundamentally different from existing consoles in three major ways. Firstly it takes a totally new approach to the user interface, which makes it extremely easy to use. Secondly, through the introduction of a 'timeline' it provides a complete picture of the lighting plot with total control of the various lighting events. Lastly, it uses a generic fixture model that eases the chore of changing fixtures and makes the task of programming fully transportable.
Among the huge range of features in the Jands Vista are extracts, which allows the user to save and re-use favourite 'looks' on any parameter or timing as well as the ability to use this feature across different types of fixture. The quick selection of features is available from a 2D rig layout window, which also displays a variety of viewpoints. There are tabbed selection windows for groups, Presets, Extracts and other settings. No re-programming is required when changing different types of fixture owing to the Generic Fixture Model feature. The "Drag and Drop' patch screen contains an extensive fixture library and a PC version is available for off-line show creation and editing.
User Friendly
Alex Mair, product manager from Jands in Sydney, who arrived in South Africa to train the local lighting technicians on the Vista console, explained the rationale behind its development. "We launched the Visa to the market in February 2005 and the response we received was much greater than we had anticipated. The Vista was four years in development prior to that time and we'd tested it quite conservatively on a few Beta sites, so we knew that the most important factor in a new console was that it must be user-friendly. " He went on explain the differences in the Vista from any other console that has preceded it.
"There are three things that make it different. First, the software has a completely graphical interface as opposed to a DOS-type command line interface so the lighting technician can immediately see what the lighting is going to look like. Secondly, it's the way the system works. The editing is 'time line' based, so you don't just create lighting 'states' instead you create transitions. Lastly, because of the Generic Fixture Modeller feature, everything is stored as a generic instruction, so it's easy to transport the entire lighting plot from one venue situation to the next without having to re-programme in different lighting fixtures."
Sand du Plessis Theatre
TADCO has already installed Jands Vista systems in the Sand du Plessis Theatre complex in Bloemfontein and the Rhema South Family Church in Alberton. The Sand du Plessis complex took delivery of a Vista T4, a Vista T2 and three Vista C512 PC versions, as well as two Jands Stage 24s, two Stage 12s and two Jands Event 408 consoles in May. The installation of this amount of Jands lighting control systems in one venue makes the Sand du Plessis theatre one of the biggest in-house users in the world. The tender for this installation was initially awarded to the Bloemfontein-based company First Technology, who subsequently called upon TADCO to supply the equipment for the entire installation.
For Richard Barnes of TADCO, this was the culmination of three years effort. "From the time we first spoke to the management about the planned upgrade of the lighting systems in the Sand du Plessis theatre complex, technology has changed and the final tender was awarded just at the right time for them to take advantage of the latest developments. They now have truly state-of-the-art lighting equipment," he commented and went on to explain the rationale behind this choosing Jands technology for this installation. "We decided to specify and supply Jands control consoles because they have proven to be reliable workhorses all over the world and the back-up and support from Jands is exceptional. They really listen to what their users say and are very quick to turn suggestions into workable products."
Rhema Family Church
The Rhema South Family Church installation was also completed during the month of May. For this project TADCO supplied and installed a completely new lighting system in association with Mark Gaffley's company Music Man. A Jands Vista was particularly specified for this installation as the Church wanted a console that would be easy to operate for its services and also be capable of running any type of show. It was also necessary to ensure that any piece of equipment that may be brought into the venue for a show in the future could be facilitated. The Jands components of the system consist of a Vista T2, four FPX dimmer packs with DMX distribution. The lighting fixtures installed comprise of forty-eight Selecon Rama 1,2kW PCs, forty-eight Parcans and twenty-six Tryka LED units with Milos truss used for the flown rig and a variety of stage boxes and accessories complete the entire system.
The Rhema Church installation was completed in good time for the staging of a major production in the venue, which took place on June 16th. The show entitled 'Godstock' featured a wide range of gospel artists from hip hop acts to heavy rock music. As the venue had not yet employed a full time lighting technician for the venue TADCO ensured that this initial production would successfully showcase the new system by contracting Gerda Kruger, who is one of the foremost lighting designers in the country, to run the show.
Impressive Performance
The guest artists were scheduled to take part in special church services on the two days immediately prior to the show, which proved to be ideal test runs for the new system. Gerda was extremely impressed with the performance of the Jands Vista system. "The Vista was easy to programme and made the running of the services a breeze, even with no rehearsals," she commented. "It's going to be difficult to revert back to other consoles now that I am used to the Vista and the way it works."
For Gerda, the running of the show was a real test of the new system. "Godstock was a total busk with no rehearsals and only one band provided me with a song list, so I literally went into the show blind. I'm just very grateful that I had the Vista on the show as I don't know of any other console that would have let me busk the show so easily," she remarked once the show was over.
The technical department at the Sand du Plessis was unequivocal in their praise of the new Jands Vista systems. "Technically it's brilliant," exclaimed the technical manager of the Sand du Plessis Andre Greyling. 'It's the first time that a piece of equipment has really lived up to what the manufacturer has claimed it can do. We love it, especially being able to create a programme on the laptop in the office and just plug it in to the Vistas in the theatres. With other systems that have claimed to be 'plug and play' there's always some kind of problem, but with the Vista it does exactly what they say; it works every time." The final nod of approval for the Vista was for its remarkable flexibility. "Another great thing is the way it works; there are twenty different ways to make one thing happen," he concluded.
LATE NEWS:
Since the above article went to print, Tadco has supplied another Vista T2 console to Sun City for use in the Extravaganza Theatre, bringing the total Vista consoles sold in South Africa to four full consoles and three PC versions. Tadco has also taken delivery of a Vista T2 to use as backup and demonstration console.
If you would like a demonstration of this remarkable lighting console, contact Richard or Philip at Tadco on (011) 791-7009.
