ArKaos Introduces Track DJ and Full Fixture Control for Video Mapper

	ArKaos' Track DJ

At LDI 2018 in Las Vegas, October 19 - 21, ArKaos will preview its powerful and flexible MediaMaster 5.4 and GrandVJ 2.6 video and media control platforms.

Both now offer two important new features: TrackDJ is designed for the seamless synchronization of video clips with a live DJ or to beat-match short video loops; while Full Fixture Control has also now been added to the ArKaos video mapper.

ArKaos has had a busy and productive summer out and about at festivals and shows, talking to numerous lighting and video operators, DJs, VJs, lighting designers, etc., working in many different environments, and several have also visited ArKaos's base in Brussels.

Their invaluable comments and feedback have helped shape the latest product developments and ensure that ArKaos keeps in touch and on-trend with what the fast-moving world of show visuals is demanding.

All this activity has resulted in these two new creative and practical features being developed and added.

TrackDJ is a straightforward solution for better integration between DJs or LJs and their live visuals, while Full Fixture Control is a serious advancement for lighting designers and operators, allowing them to control LED screens / surfaces and treat them just as if they are lighting fixtures.

An LD or lighting operator using MediaMaster will often be in a scenario where there are multiple video surfaces on a stage as part of the production design -- especially at festivals where this is an extremely popular set up -- in addition to their lighting rig.

The setup / changeover time is always extremely short and often stressed at festivals or multi-artist events, yet the pressure to use these video surfaces creatively in the show ... is extremely high.

At a festival, an LD may want to treat the whole video setup as a single surface one minute and then use each individual video surface (columns, squares, shapes, or whatever format these might be) with chases or strobing effects in time to the music.

A second totally different scenario -- where this feature is again a neat solution -- is in TV studios, where the lighting designer or director must control both lighting and several LED screens which are distributed around the stage / studio.

In this case, the LD can have dozens of small video surfaces dotted around, and using Full Fixture Control, can at any moment transform the appearance of the whole space, allowing them to react to a real-time event -- for example during a game or quiz show when a player or team is knocked out or transcends to the next level, etc.

This feature also has enormous potential for controlling lighting and media surfaces in the burgeoning live e-games tournament sector, which utilizes large productions to ramp the excitement for both live and streamed audiences.

For all those reasons, full fixture control has been added to the ArKaos video mapper.

An LD can now patch any video mapper surface or video output into their control desk -- unleashing the massive potential for it to become a fully creative and "fluid'" environment with video surfaces on a stage used just as if they were lighting fixtures controlled by all the standard lighting desk parameters and functions.

TrackDJ is a huge leap forward to DJs working at festivals and in clubs or at parties, offering more control over their own visuals.

Timecode is an important way to synch video, and ArKaos has already added support for audio SMPTE timecode in both GrandVJ and MediaMaster. This summer, ArKaos added support for timecode over Art-Net.

This proved powerful and opened opportunities to do even more ... so the timecode event was extended to also include BPM and artist / track name information, and thanks to these developments, it's now a very easy method for GrandVJ or MediaMaster to track the real-time creative work of a DJ as they are playing live.

The first adopter of TrackDJ is ShowKontrol which allows GrandVJ or MediaMaster to communicate with the op level of Pioneer DJ players which are one of the universal industry standard brands.

ShowKontrol supports Pioneer's most versatile and powerful DJ players including the NXS2 and TOUR1 ranges and upwards.

ArKaos will also show Mixxx at LDI, the popular free open-source DJ software application, which has been updated to send this TrackDJ information.

Other companies in the DJ technology industry have already voiced their commitment to adopting TrackDJ, and more announcements are expected soon.

To contact ArKaos direct, please call +32 (2) 340 8686 or check the URL below.