Martin MAC Auras at E3 Trade Show

	Nintendo booth ath E3 trade show with Martin Aura LED wash lights

Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) is the global video game industry's leading event with a tagline of "Innovation Unveiled." The world's premier trade show for computer and video games took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center from June 5-7 with upwards of 700 Martin MAC Aura LED wash lights highlighting many of the show's 200 booths. Other big exhibitors used Martin MAC Aura LED wash lights included the world's largest gaming company, Nintendo, plus Microsoft and Sony.

Lighting on the Nintendo booth alone featured 240 MAC Auras and 70 MAC 101 wash lights, a combination of compact LED lighting fixtures supplied by Entertainment Lighting Services (ELS) that designers are increasingly turning to.

Lightswitch handled all lighting design aspects of the booth for Ralph Miller Productions, with whom they have been collaborating on Nintendo of America's E3 exhibits for years. The exhibit was designed by Kevin West.

"The Aura was the workhorse of the rig," says Lightswitch's Chris Medvitz, lead lighting designer on the project. "We had a lot we needed to light with moving wash lights but had very strict weight limitations. The Aura allowed us to fit the design concept within the physical constraints of the project without compromise."

Both the MAC Aura and the MAC 101 are small yet highly capable LED-based lighting fixtures that weigh in at 5.6kg and 3.7kg respectively, a compact form that allows for important savings in weight and power.

"On this particular project, the quality of light and the overall fixture weight and power requirements were the Aura's standout features," Medvitz says, referring to the Aura's low power consumption (one amp) that allows multiple fixtures to be daisy-chained on the same power line for an easier and less expensive installation.

"The fact that the fixture itself is so compact saves truss, labor, and drayage, but also its low power requirements meant we could reduce the amount of cable in the air significantly, which is a major factor when faced with such tight rigging restrictions."