LONDON — Oasis’ current Dig Out Your Soul world tour is using over 140 i-Pix BB4 wash lights for its stadium stops, along with 17 i-Pix BB7s — which i-Pix said is the largest number of its LED fixtures used on any touring production so far. LD Rob Gawler’s original over-stage rig last fall used 30 BB4s, with six units rigged horizontally onto each of five raked upstage/downstage “finger” trusses. These were attached via custom brackets fabricated by lighting suppliers PRG, and are used to produce a general stage wash.
For the summer 2009 stadium shows, the “fingers” grew from five to six, and another six integral BB4s were rigged in vertical pairs, a nod to the 8-light Molefey format. Another MiTrix video screen has also been added to the four original screens as well.
The other 12 BB4s from the original rig are still there — mounted on six 4-foot high vertical poles, three of which are positioned either side of the stage in boom positions, shooting directly across the band. Another 8 BB4s have been added to the downstage edge for footlighting, taking advantage of the fixtures’ low profile.
The majority of the extra stadium show BB4s are hung in pairs on custom soft ladders, built for PRG and suspended in front of the stage PA wings and delay towers. Another seven pairs of BB4s have been added to the front truss, used to light the audience.
Nine BB7s have been added to the mother grid trusses over the stage for the first time, along with the original seven arena show BB7s, which are used together to produce a powerful top wash and for between-song looks.
Gawler originally spec’d BB4s because he sought a color-changing wash light offering a nice, even spread of high quality light, not too beamy and that was a less energy-hungry alternative to conventional 4-lite fixtures. He looked at several options before deciding to go with the i-Pix products.
“They are reliable, efficient and make good colors. I also really like the homogeneity of the light sources and the smooth and even output,” he said. He also credited the fixtures for the CTO-like tint that can mimic a PAR bulb without the heat, cabling, dimmer and energy-consumption concerns.
Gawler is operating the shows on a Hog 3 console, which is also driving (for the stadiums) two Catalyst digital media servers (1 for the standard show), running the playback video content and running camera cues on a Barco Encore via MSC and the skills of Richard Turner.
For more information, please visit www.i-pix.uk.com.
