We couldn’t miss the first 1250 W LED source! But if it is also installed in a fixture capable of singing in the rain, what more could you ask for? A list of parameters as long as my arm? Many protocols that would make a network administrator green with envy? Complete connectivity? Simple and quick disassembly of modules? And why not aim for the moon too?
Chauvet : What if we proposed all of that?
SLU : Could you give us the moon too!?
Chauvet : All of it, except for the moon…
SLU : OK and, when is all this ready for?
Chauvet : It is already available!
A strong and beautiful baby!
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For this new source, the American brand hit very hard. It was thanks to the collaboration between the Chauvet United States and European teams, who collected and then cross-referenced the requests from rental companies and users that this project saw the light of day.
The two “love handles” are ideally placed for easy lifting and handling of the fixture.
We will start at the beginning and make it clear that the Storm 4 Profile is mainly intended for large venues. On the one hand, it’s a pretty baby that measures 836 mm from the top of the head to the bottom of the base unit.
It is also well built with a width of 469 mm from handle to handle! It must also be said that the midwife cleaned her glasses twice to check the 46.5 kg of this sacred baby!
To carry it, no problem, two additional handles have been added to the yoke to facilitate movement. If there is a lack of space, they can be removed using 4 BTR screws.
The IP Tester by Chauvet.
It is important to point out that from birth the newborn was clean, we did not detect any air or leaks of light. Like the entire Storm range, it is IP65 and waterproofing requires the application of permanent internal pressure.
It is also part of this new generation of IP sources that can be opened. Thanks to the “IP Tester”, which is, basically, a compressor with a pressure controller.
On the one hand, we can check that everything is going well, but also automatically recreate the right pressure in the head and yoke.
This allows you to check that all the casings have been reassembled and that the seals have not moved at all.
From head to toe
The compressed air connector is located on the rear of the base, just above the USB socket which is used for updates. It is possible to modify the software version on several fixtures if they are connected via DMX. We don’t always think about it, but this socket can also be very useful for connecting a USB lamp if you need to do a little maintenance or tidy up in a dark area.
There are also two XLR 5 sockets for the DMX signal, a Seetronic PowerCON power socket, and two RJ45 In and Out connectors for the ArtNet and the sACN. The Storm 4 is also controlled via W-DMX and is RDM compatible. If you use the CRMX Protocol in G4S mode, you can use the Chauvet Micro T-1 TRX G6. Of course, all connectors are IP65 and should be capped if not in use.
Do you prefer square ones, round ones, or flat ones?
Just like the rear panel, the front panel of the base unit can be dismantled from the front (not from above) and held by 8 screws. This is a detail that seems practical to me for maintenance. On the front of the base unit, the LCD screen displays the status of the fixture. You can also view the menu and modify the options using the 6 navigational buttons.
The baby is already in full adolescence, screen and buttons!
As a practical little tip, if you need to work on the fixture, a long press on the two top buttons (when the machine is in place) deactivates the pan and tilt parameters. We can thus control and check parameters without the risk of being disturbed by the head movement.
Here you can see the electronic board. for the tilt function. The other is where the big three-phase motor is for the pan function.
The side covers of the yoke “arms” are held in place by 10 screws each. This is the most effective way to maintain uniform pressure all around the seal.
As on the majority of fixtures, we find, on one side the head drive (tilt) but for once with a motor management card plus a strand of cables, and on the other, the power supply cable runs with two electronic cards. We can also see in this arm, the imposing three-phase stepper motor of the Pan parameter.
Each of the head covers is held in place by 8 screws. As with the “arms” of the yoke, it is necessary to have regular and complete contact between the two covers and the structure of the head to ensure that the pressure is maintained and to guarantee sealing.
The laws of physics mean that the overall architecture of the head does not differ from other sources. At the back are the light source and its cooling, then the settings compartment, and finally the optics.
This is how we see that everything is precise. We cannot say that the Storm 4 lacks cooling!
At the very rear of the head, the enormous radiator cools the 1,250 watts of LEDs. It is crossed by a flow of air generated by 6 fans, 3 above and 3 below. It is also crossed by a series of pipes in which a fluid circulates in a liquid state which vaporizes by absorbing thermal energy emitted by the hot light source.
Keeping its cool!
The vapor/steam then circulates to the cooling system where it condenses to return to a liquid state. Placed against the radiator, the LED matrix is on the border between the rear section and the first compartment.
It’s clear that, like at home, the more space you have, the more stuff you have! The Storm 4 is far from having the size of a wimp and one might have expected to find a little empty space in the settings compartment, but nope. Not even room for my baby finger!
On the other hand, we note that dismantling the 2 parameter blocks is easier than in certain smaller machines. Thanks to two “large” screws that can easily be loosened with a flat head or Phillips screwdriver, you can replace the parameter block without removing the fixture from the truss or pipe and thus maintain optimal precision on the focused points for your show.
The first module, closest to the light source, are the 6 CMY trichromic flags (2 per shade) and the 2 CTO flags. On the color side, there is also a wheel with 6 slots accommodating 1 CTB, a CRI corrector, and 4 colors. The solution of dichroic glasses glued close to each other was used, it allows a better transition between the slots and a much better reproduction of two-color beams.
On the first module, on the light source side, in the middle of an array of motors, we can see 4 of the 8 CMY and CTO flags.
Just above is the effect wheel with one axis for insertion and the second for continuous rotation. And finally, 2 wheels of 6 rotating gobos. We also note the presence of 5 fans allowing all of these little “busy-bodies” to operate without a problem.
On the other side, the color and effect wheels as well as the 2 gobo wheels.
The gobo size.
On the second module, it is “simpler” but just as busy. This is where the 4 framing shutters are located which each use 2 motors. The module supporting all of the framing shutters is of course rotatable. The last parameter is the iris.
In the upper part of the head, the zoom moves between two sections and of course along with the focus. There are also 2 diffusers and 2 prisms. We can notice a metal plate that can be placed in front of the zoom. This is the “Sun Shield” which helps protect the optical components when the sun passes through the 188mm lens.
Having studied among machine tools and technical drawing desks, I am always in awe of the framing shutters modules.
The Iris is a parameter that is very heat-sensitive.
There is a constant at Chauvet, the design of the base units of all its fixtures. Even if there are variations in size, we always find the rectangle with the 4 corners rounded inwards to form the handles. The moving heads are also very similar with some differences depending on the size of the Pan motor. We find the oval shape as well as the alternation of exterior circles with interior rounded angles (a little reminder of the base unit).
It is often the grooves that, in addition to the position of the series name, identify the model. On the Storm 4 Profile, they are shallow, unlike those of the Force 3 Profile, but present in quantity on all sides. They allow it to slim down the rather potbellied silhouette. I find it well proportioned with a balanced mix of lines and curves which enhance the hidden strength of this fixture.
Our first steps
Thanks to the 6 buttons on either side of the screen, using the menu is very easy and user-friendly and there are a multitude of options! To avoid any errors, access to the menu is lockable. If a colleague forgot to remove the option and you don’t want to read the manual, the code is 0920! To facilitate basic configuration, the choice of address, protocol, and mode are at the start of the menu.
Even if we often use the option in the controller/lighting desk, we can also reverse the pan and tilt in the fixture but we also have a choice of 3 ranges of movement for each of the two axes. As long as it’s logical, we might as well put the screen rotation with the pan and tilt inversion, even if I would have preferred a shortcut on 2 buttons, always more practical than searching in the menu, with your head upside down.
Among the most interesting options, the menu offers different “Move in Black” options, a total reset, and 5 other resets by parameter type, 3 menu memories that can be automatically synchronized with the Storm 4 Profiles of the same DMX line, and 5 fan speeds!
Video presentation
With a single fixture and a complete universe at my disposal, I have the luxury of choosing the 55-channel mode. Controlling via ArtNet works on the first turn of the wheel. Of course, I roughly direct the nose towards the white target and @ Full, then “Wow! Now that is a slap in the face”! One thing is for sure, there is no shortage of light!
Both pan and tilt parameters are well managed. I tested the movements with several speeds, tilt alone, pan alone, and a combination of the two. Given the weight of the head, one might have expected problems, but the big three-phase stepper motors make it possible to obtain smooth movements with slow or rapid transitions and smoothness at the ends of the movements.
On the optical side, the aperture range is very close to that of the large and small sharp edge beam. We regret a somewhat short amplitude but it is more than sufficient for the vast majority of uses. Depending on your working habits, or what you want to do, there is a “Minimum Zoom Focus” option which offers complete independence between the two settings or automatic focus adjustment when the zoom approaches its minimum value. You can also add the iris to obtain a tight beam/pin spot of light.
From 5 m away we can obtain a sharp-edged circle of 5m to 60cm in diameter, and using the Iris it can come down to 20cm.
The base white is at 6855 K (according to our measurements) with a CRI of 72. Even if I prefer to work with slightly lower white temperatures, this value increases the visual impact. The CRI is within the range of most of the fixtures commonly used in shows.
Now, concerning the color settings. As we have seen, the Storm 4 benefits from a CMY three-color process with dichroic glass flags/blades. The insertion of colors is discreet and we can therefore work with pretty pastels. It also produces beautiful saturated shades even if the base white limits the depth of the reds a little.
A small taste of what the trichromic flags can do.
4 colors and 2 correctors on the color wheel.
The 2 CTO flags can roam at will in the beam of light
We can also play around with the progressive CTO to warm up the white or, a color. The color wheel includes 4 shades that are difficult to obtain with trichromacy, a corrector that allows you to obtain a CRI of 91, and a CTB. The combination of all these parameters gives us a wide range of colors and the power of the source makes it possible to bring out certain saturated hues quite nicely.
It’s always a pleasure to have at least 2 rotating gobo wheels. With 2 x 6 rotating gobos we are at ease, especially since the choice of images is intelligent. They are often effective in projection and volumetrics with a good range of luminosity and finesse. Certain combinations of 2 gobos are very interesting with the possibility of playing on several focal lengths. We also have pretty water or fire effects by adding color.
Added to this is the possibility of superimposing one of the prisms with one or two gobos. The first 5-facet prism produces a circular multiplication and the second, with the same number of facets, multiplies the image along a line. Finally, the effects wheel, which can be used alone or with the gobos and/or prisms, producing a linear animation, adds dimension to the rotation of the gobos. The Storm 4 has a complete range of stackable parameters to create many effects and adapt to the different atmospheres if needed for a show.
12 indexable and rotating gobos give you a new dimension.
Whether in a circle or a line, it’s always x 5.
The framing shutters module is also one of the settings that I find effective. Each shutter can completely pass through the beam but, depending on the zoom aperture, we still manage to have an acceptable sharpness on several shutters, with the advantage of having an almost homogeneous defocus on all sides.
Of course, if your zoom is wide open, a large cut will not be possible but with a little practice, you can anticipate and position the fixture in the right place to get an optimal result. The complete module is indexable over 120°, this is, in my opinion, the minimum so as not to have too many problems with cropping when playing with the pan and tilt axes.
Watch out it’s shuttering!
The last mechanical parameter is double, light and/or medium. These are the 2 frost filters that are separate on two parameters. I find it wise to choose these diffusers which correspond perfectly to most common uses. There is also a virtual setting that may be interesting, “Virtual Shaking”. It’s a sort of “chaser” in the LED matrix which generates flickering effects. You can simulate an old movie/film, a laser beam, or shine in a gobo.
The frost: without, light or medium.
Here comes the downpour of numbers
Derating
The derating measurement shows that despite its 1,250-watt LED source, the flow stabilizes in 10 minutes with 3.42% attenuation of illuminance in the center.
Just to be sure, but also to go and enjoy some Sushi, we leave the fixture on for a little over an hour. Upon our return, we have the same value.
Faisceau 20°
We start the measurements with the reference aperture at 20°. At the center of the target, we note 26,420 lux after derating (27,355 at cold start) and between 8,100 lux and 10,400 lux at the edges of the beam. The luminous flux reaches 53,720 lumens (55,620 lm cold).
If I’m not mistaken this must be our highest score in the Spots and Profiles category! No incident is visible on the intensity curve. I can also tell you that with the CRI corrector, the white temperature drops to 5900K, and with the CTO at full 2900K.
Small sharp-edged beam
The following series of specs concern the smallest sharp-edged beam (without using the iris) but the measurement range limited to 99,999 lux of our Minolta lux meter was exceeded by the illuminance of the Storm 4. At this aperture, the Chauvet photometric readings indicate an illuminance at the center of 131,608 lux at 5 meters and a flux of 26,678 lumens for an aperture of 6.6°.
The widest sharp-edged beam
For the widest zoom, we can take a look at our lux meter which displays at the center of the target 3,852 lux after derating (3,990 lux cold start) and 1,000 lux at the edge. The flux reaches 53,600 lumens (54,500 lm cold start) for an aperture of 53.13°. The intensity curve is nicely drawn.
An encouraging storm!
The Storm 4 is built to tackle the great outdoors. Very bright, it offers a complete range of functions with an avalanche of rotating gobos, a torrent of colors, and a deluge of effects. Development and manufacturing deliver a quality product that seems built to last. The value for money makes it a very attractive fixture that should very quickly be found on the largest stages on earth and, perhaps one day, beyond!
We like:
- The powerful light output
- The value for money
- The very extensive menu
We miss:
- The possibility to invert the display via a shortcut with the menu buttons
General Specifications
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