Reality Checks and Balances
By Joel Rollins, CTS-R Ever wonder where a phrase in the language comes from? I often do, and fortunately (I guess) I’m married to a writer with a degree in English and a great interest in its history. So I often find out, sometimes at great length.
All this month, I’ve been wondering about the phrase “Reality Check,” and how it applies to our business. Really, it could apply in a number of ways.
1. You could give it the traditional meaning, “evaluating previously made assumptions in light of current objective conditions.”
2. You could also think of it in terms of money, as “the checks we are forced to write for our assumptions being wrong” (as they so often are).
But, in the isolated world of our business, we most often seem to apply it as:
3. “Check your reality at the door, this is the AV industry.”
Seriously, there have been many occasions over the last twenty years where I’ve looked at the actions taken by many in our business, or listened to their evaluation of a situation, and wondered “What can they be thinking?” It seems we often look only to people in our industry for information or analysis, as if anybody outside AV couldn’t possibly understand the dynamics of our business. And as if AV didn’t respond to the same market conditions, or technological advancements, as everybody else. As a result, we seem willing to listen to advice from industry insiders even when it contradicts the rest of the market. And especially when it tells us what we want to hear. It’s like watching Fox News – you do it to have what you already think you know confirmed.
As an example, my first couple of years in the business were spent listening to older “experts” lecturing me on how the video technology I loved so much could never replace film because of its low resolution. And this wasn’t just water-cooler talk – it was documented, articles were written, white papers published, and “industry experts” quoted.
Right now, the biggest way I see this manifesting itself is in people’s view of the AV industry’s recovery from the current recession. Talking to peers around the country, lately, I’m actually getting the feeling that they believe what they’re saying – that business will be back to “normal” in the spring. Or next summer. Or in the fall of 2010. And they, as usual, are quoting various sources from within our business – mostly manufacturers and reps.
This goes beyond “what are they thinking?”
It goes all the way to “what the heck are they sniffing?”
Look, I’m bullish on this market for Rental. I think we in the rental and staging portion of the industry adjust to changing times and markets much faster than the rest of our little “industry.” We’re brand agnostic, and much more willing to change technologically. I think these kinds of times are Darwinian, and the companies that read the times well and roll with the changes will come out on the other side of this recession stronger.
But, gang, TRILLIONS of dollars vanished from the economy. Actually dissolved. We then took out emergency loans to cover the difference, from all over the world. And we don’t know how we’re going to pay them back yet. On top of that, we don’t even expect to repay them in our lifetimes. And, as far as returning to our last version of “normal” in the coming year: Do any of you see a 5,000-point bump in the Dow happening?
So anybody who thinks clients will EVER go back to the last decade in their business and spending patterns – at least in our lifetime – well, you need to talk to your doctor about decreasing your dosage.
New ways of doing business will evolve from this. Economical ways. Clients will look for even more added value in every relationship. Pure middlemen will be cut out. Meetings will become decentralized, or more aptly, they will become network-centric. And the successful companies will recognize that, alter their business models to deliver what the client really needs, and thrive.
Rental makes sense at times like these, because in times of transition, rental works. Especially rental delivered in the new ways clients will look for, integrating more of the overall event and delivering high expertise value and low risk.
Stop waiting. Embrace evolution.
Welcome to the new world order. rAVe Rental [and Staging] contributor Joel R. Rollins, CTS-R, is General Manager of Everett Hall Associates, Inc. and is well known throughout the professional AV industry for his contributions to industry training and his extensive background in AV rental, staging and installation. Joel can be reached at Joel can be reached at joelrollins@mac.com | |
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NEC Launches New WXGA Projector for Large Venue Apps NEC says the new dual-lamp NP4100W is designed for large-venue and staging applications since it’s big, but outputs 5500 ANSI lumens and has a native resolution of WXGA (1280×800). Boasting what NEC says is a 2100:1 contrast ratio, the DLP BrilliantColor-based projector consumes 310 watts of power in single-lamp operation mode and 580-watts when both lamps are used.
NEC says the NP4100W utilizes optional bayonet style lenses (5 options) accommodating different throw ratios including optional lenses to support screen sizes from 40- to 500-inches at projection distances between 2.8 ft. and 304 ft.
Shipping next week, the NP4100W lists for $5499 and you can see all the specs here: http://www.necdisplay.com/Products/Product/?product=0ddbbf90-d35f-4aa9-8999-facfedeb80df
Another go-around for NEC in the large-venue arena – although, for some insane reason, most people’s definition of “large venue” has moved beyond 5500 lumens. I wonder why? Have we stopped attempting to control light in the venue or something?
–JRR Back to Top Sanyo Launches New 6000 Lumen Staging Projector This week, Sanyo launched the PLC-XM150/150L projector, which is spec'd at 6000 lumens and incorporates Sanyo's proprietary Active Maintenance Filter (AMF) system and a new optical engine that Sanyo says ensures high reliability in Staging/Rental applications.
An inorganic LCD was incorporated into the newly developed optical engine that, combined with a new cooling technology, allows the projector to boast high brightness levels. The light efficiency is approximately 20 percent higher compared to Sanyo's conventional models, enabling big screen projection in large venues and well-lit
areas like hotel ballrooms and atriums.
Weighing only 23-pounds, the portable large-venue projector has a native resolution of XGA (1024×768). It's spec'd at a 1000:1 contrast ratio, includes both digital and analog inputs (but no SDI?!?) and it lists for about $5,000.
For more information, go to: http://us.sanyo.com:80/Projectors-by-Market-House-of-Worship-Classroom/PLC-XM150-L
Another interesting high-portability, mid-brightness projector – looks like an awesome piece for Rentals, rather than Staging, as the filters, and the way lamps and lenses change, make it great for portable use. But have you noticed that the manufacturers, even those like Sanyo that make 15k machines, are starting to once again define 5000 lumens as "Large Venue”? Can it be that they recognize meetings being downsized and have started to redefine (in their ads, at least) what comprises a "Large Venue" projector to meet the scale of future meetings?
–JRR
Back to Top Analog Way Launches ORCHESTRA ORCHESTRA by Analog Way is an intuitive and ergonomically designed console remote controller for their Di-VentiX II and Opus systems. Once connected to the Analog Way Switchers, the company says ORCHESTRA can control up to six independent screen configurations in different locations (single display or multiple projectors in soft-edge blended mode) and store up to 64 presets per screen configuration. Analog Way says that ORCHESTRA controls all the effects and functionalities of both the Di-VentiX II and the new Opus systems.
To learn all about ORCHESTRA, go to: http://www.analogway.com/product/NEW-ORCHESTRA
Wow. Okay, that’s more configuration capability than I can recall using. I wonder if they’ve also come up with some kind of scheme to help me remember what all those configurations are for during a show? 😉
–JRR Back to Top Grass Valley Launches 2nd Generation of Turbo If you liked the Turbo, you’ll love T2. The t2 intelligent digital disk recorder (iddr) brings full high-definition capture and playback to the video professional. Additionally, the t2 iddr has been designed to work efficiently and smoothly with grass Valley edIus nonlinear editing software and the Indigo AV mixer.
The T2TM iDDR is the latest addition to the Grass Valley family of Intelligent Digital Disk Recorders (iDDRs). The T2 intelligent digital disk recorder (iDDR) brings full high-definition capture and playback to the video professional. Additionally, the T2 iDDR works with standard-definition video and may be controlled from other production devices such as the Indigo A/V mixer. The T2 iDDR is a complete and self-contained SD and HD audio/ video play-out center. Here are some key features: - Full HD support, 1080p24, 1080i50/60, 720p50/60
- HD/SD SDI inputs and outputs
- PC screen output
- File import (Canopus HQ, MPEG-2, QuickTime, and WMV)
- High bit-rate video with Canopus HQ
This is like an old-timey traditional VTRs on steroids with two output channels supporting standard (SD) or high-definition (HD) content. The user-interface an LCD front panel that also displays HD images and is complemented by a software application suite for managing and selecting media clips, clip editing and trimming, and play-out— including playlist creation. The ultimate for live staging applications!
Want to know more? Go to: http://professional.grassvalley.com/products/t2/ I’m withholding comment on this, since I’ll be testing one shortly. But if it’s anything like the original Turbo, I’m pretty sure I’ll like it.
–JRR
Back to Top For all you REGULAR readers of rAVe Rental [and Staging] out there, hopefully you enjoyed another opinion-packed issue!
For those of you NEW to rAVe, you just read how we are — we are 100% opinionated. We not only report the news and new product stories of the rental and staging industry, but we stuff the articles full of our opinions — in this case, it’s industry-veteran Joel Rollins' opinions. That may include (but is not limited to) whether or not the product is even worth looking at, challenging the manufacturers on their specifications, calling a marketing-spec bluff and suggesting ways integrators market their products better. But, one thing is for sure, we are NOT a trade publication that gets paid for running editorial or product stories. Traditional trade publications get paid to run product stories — that’s why you see what you see in most of the pubs out there. We are different: we run what we want to run and NO ONE is going to pay us to write anything good (or bad).
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