In Broadcast - July 2014 - 62


I N T E R N A T I O N A L

WWW.INBROADCAST.COM | ISSUE 33 - JULY 2014

N E W S

InTECH

Litepanels Introduces ASTRA 1x1
Next Gen Bi-Color Panel Series
The new one square foot ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Colour panel is claimed to be four times
brighter than the existing one square foot panel...

L

62

itepanels is introducing its new
ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Color panel,
which aims to build on the legacy
of the company's original 1x1 ﬁxture
and set a new standard for the
form and function of professional
LED panels.
Following the Litepanels tradition
of a one square foot form factor,
the ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Color offers
a light output that is up to four
times brighter than the company's
traditional 1x1 Bi-Color ﬁxture, high
CRI (Colour Rendering Index), and
user selectable active or passive
cooling modes.
The innovative daylight to tungsten
tuneable colour model is the ﬁrst
in the ASTRA line of panels, with
additional ﬁxtures in the series set
to debut later this year.
The development of the next
generation ASTRA product line was
years in the making and every design
element was meticulously crafted.
"The original Litepanels 1x1 has
been used on thousands of sets and
shoots worldwide since hitting the

marketplace," said Chris Marchitelli,
Vice President of Marketing
for Litepanels.
"We've always known that our
next generation panel would need
to push the performance envelope,
so we approached our new ASTRA
line very thoughtfully. We took our
time, drew from our wealth of
experience building professional
LED ﬁxtures, and accessed the
wonderful feedback we've gotten
from our loyal customers.
"The time, effort, research and
development we put into the ASTRA
series has produced an LED panel
that is truly astounding, yet highly
affordable. When you put your
hands on this light, you'll see that
we exceeded our own expectations."
The ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Color panels
are designed with select premium
quality surface mount LEDs that
are paired with custom designed

ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Color offers a light output that is up to
four times brighter than the previous model

TIR (Total Internal Reﬂection) optics.
The fixtures offer a tuneable
Bi-Color output, allowing users
to adjust colour from daylight to
tungsten as needed. The high CRI
LEDs have also been formulated to
consistently deliver accurate colour
temperatures and visually pleasing
colour reproduction.

Chris Marchitelli,
Litepanels

"...The ASTRA line
is a very exciting
addition to the
Litepanels family of
products

"

Tightly binned LEDs and finetuned optics provide the new ASTRA
1x1 with higher intensity, a longer
throw, and a wider effective beam
spread than the company's original
1x1 ﬁxture. This allows the panel to
compete with strong exterior light
sources or illuminate a large area
effectively with a single fixture.
Litepanels say that proper
thermal management is the key to
maintaining the long life and colour
accuracy of LED ﬁxtures and the
ASTRA 1x1 offers both passive and
active cooling modes.
The passive cooling mode
provides a completely silent
operation, while the active cooling
mode enables an ultra-quiet fan
module and double light output. An
internal microprocessor monitors the
temperature, minimises fan speed,
delivers smooth dimming from 100%
to zero with no noticeable colour
shift, and ensures a completely
flicker-free performance at any
frame rate or shutter angle.
With the addition of an optional
communications module, the
brightness, colour temperature and
cooling mode of the ﬁxtures are all
controllable via DMX512 protocol.
The new panels have an aluminium
I-beam core construction to provide
maximum durability and superior
thermal management, and also
feature strong, integrated aluminium
accessory mounting points and lens/
filter rails.

The high impact, durable resin
end caps feature downward angled
exhaust vents carefully designed to
direct air ﬂow away from the ﬁxture,
minimising obstructions and helping
to prevent foreign materials from
entering the panel.
"The ASTRA line is a very exciting
addition to the Litepanels family of
products," commented Marchitelli.
"We are always striving to set new
standards and deliver the best in
LED technology to our customers.
We've done that with the ASTRA 1x1,
which is likely the most versatile LED
panel ever built.
"It's both sturdy and lightweight,
ﬂexible and strong, and provides a
higher output and better colour than
has ever been seen before. We're
especially pleased to be introducing
this product at the Cine Gear Expo,
as Los Angeles is where Litepanels
got its start."
The ASTRA 1x1's extensive list
of features continues in the curved
yoke design with a wide tilt range,
dual integrated cable guides, and a
combination yoke mounted power
supply with a three-pin XLR locking
power connector and optional Gold
Mount or V-Mount battery plates.
The yoke also features a removable
TVMP connector and additional
¼-20 mounting points.
Litepanels' ASTRA 1x1 Bi-Color
panel will be available worldwide
in the summer of 2014.

The unit offers both passive and ultraquiet fan-assisted cooling modes

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