German Light Products (GLP) is headquartered in Karlsbad, Germany and has been making lighting fixtures since 1994. GLP is well known for their “impression” line of LED moving head fixtures used all over the world. Now, they have brought the industry a brand new effect unit, the Force 120. Let us have a closer look at this unit, consider a practical case study, and how else you may be able to apply it.
It’s a Fan
From the name alone, you probably cannot answer the question, “What is it?” Or, “What does it do?” But looking at the pictures, you probably can. The Force 120 is an innovative DMX stage fan, inside a square casing that’s just over 4.5 feet per side, with internal color changing LEDs.
A big fan has been a retro set piece used on concerts, film sets and live performances for decades. But, there has never been an effect specifically designed for the industries’ use. The Force 120 gives designers an off-the-shelf solution for retro looks with today’s technology. Although it does not oscillate, it does have a variable speed motor and internal RGB LED lighting.
Control
GLP gives you two DMX operating modes to choose from. Mode 1 uses eight channels. Channel 1 is for fan speed and direction. Less than 50 percent is forward, and greater than 50 percent is reverse. Channel 2 is a dimmer for LEDs. Channel 3 is shutter/gate, which includes macros for ramps, snaps, and strobes. Channel 4 is color wheel, which includes three settings for CCT: 3200K, 5600K and 7200K. Channels 5, 6 and 7 are R/G/B, respectively. Channel 8 is control, which includes pulse with modulation (frequency) adjustment, ideal for camera use. Mode 2 uses 16 channels — similar to Mode 1, except Channels 4 to 7 are for the top section of LEDs, Channels 8 to 11 is the center section and Channels 9 to 15 is the lower section. Channel 16 is control.
There are also provisions for stand-alone control. You can manually set the direction, speed, color, intensity and shutter. In the menu, you can change the dimming curve (linear, soft, extra soft) and monitor the incoming DMX value for any channel.
There is no encoder on the fan, so you cannot control where the fan blades start or stop. But since there are six blades and the Force 120 is symmetrical, the most that two fans could be “off” from one another would be plus or minus 30°. GLP created a feature named “initial position.” It allows the user to save the current fan position as a default position after reset. I question the usefulness of this feature, as it is not DMX controllable, but only available in the on-board UI. In any case, it is there if you want it.
Construction
Although the body of this fixture is sheet metal, it is very road-case-y (i.e., showing similarity to a road-case). It has a lot of the same hardware you would find on a road case, like metal trim edges, rounded ball-type corners, spring-loaded handles and even wheels. The wheels are built into one corner to allow for tilt-back moving around. There are handles in two directions to allow for ergonomic lifting and placement. If you need to rig it, there are eyebolts on top and bottom for flying and even points for safeties.
The user interface and power/control I/O are both on the back right of the unit. On top is the UI and four buttons for navigating through the menu, changing settings or setting the DMX address. The display is very clear and shows the fixture starting address and the ending address. It even points out the starting address of the next fixture. And on the bottom is the Neutrik PowerCON True1 input, allowing for 100-240VAC and 5-pin DMX in/out.
Functionality
The motor is variable speed and can be set as low as 30 rotations per minute and up to 750 RPM. Spinning at 750 RPM, this beast is an industrial fan, which moves a great deal of air. Perfect for moving atmospheric smoke effects very quickly — or cooling down the band and audience! The RGB colors are bright and saturated and having three cells, allows for complex looks and chases.
First Application
Lighting designer Travis Shirley was the first to use GLP’s Force 120 for Old Dominion’s 2018 Happy Endings world tour. The beginning backdrop was a full stage width curtain with “Old Dominion” in the middle. The curtain dropped to reveal five vertical scenic banners with lights in between. The banners were then dropped to expose the grid of the large diameter fans in a three-by-five configuration.
While only three units tall, the massive fan backdrop created a grand height to the show. Put together with all the fans moving in unison, it looked like a giant set of gears operating inside a machine — a fresh industrial look. Other creative looks included adjacent rows spinning in opposite directions, all red fans with random white strobe pops bouncing around, and all blue standstill during the encore as the fans were cheering for more. At times, the fan blades look like gobos projecting onto a cyclorama.
At the beginning of one song, the moving lights and the fans all snapped on to full open white at once. The cool color temperature of the fans blended perfectly with the moving lights in between them, which really provided great continuity between the entire backdrop setting.
Conclusion
I use fans with my hazer onstage at just about every show. If you are in need of a quality industrial fan or a color changing fan effect, then the DMX controlled Force 120 is for you. Sit it on the ground, fly it in the air, or gang it together to build the look or function you desire. And be sure to get out to one of Old Dominion’s tour dates and check out LD Travis Shirley’s work incorporating the newest stage effect unit, the GLP Force 120. It’ll blow you away!
At a Glance
Bright and Breezy
GLP’s Force 120 is a large diameter, DMX controlled variable speed fan and effect unit. A high torque motor changes the fan blade speed and direction fast. The blades are lit by three cells of internal color changing RGB LEDs. These units give a bright new twist to the industrial-looking fans that have been incorporated into set designs for years.
PROS: Each blade is equipped with three cells of LEDs (top/mid/bottom). The units offer variable blade speed and are bi-directional. The motor responds quickly, and the fans can be ground-stacked or flown from multiple rig points.
CONS: None
FEATURES
- Variable speed 6-blade fan
- RGB LED source
- Electronic dimming & strobe
- Neutrik PowerCON True1 input connector
- DMX-512 via 5-pin XLR
- Built-in handles and wheels
STATS
- MSRP: $2,999
- Size: 57.25” by 55” by 15.75” (HxWxD)
- Weight: 208 lbs.
- Wattage: 1,000W
- Voltage: 100-240, 50/60Hz (auto-ranging)
- Manufacturer: GLP
- More Info: germanlightproducts.com
- Demo Link: www.plsn.me/fan-demo
- Story Link: www.plsn.me/fan-story
Pro Tip: When Blowing Smoke and Fog, Don’t “Inhale”
Never aim a hazer or fogger into a fan. The fan’s job is to blow the smoke, not suck it in. If you do, the unit will get all sticky and grimy. Simply put the fan behind, or next to, the hazer, and it will perform perfectly — without the mess.