Robe iForte

IP Rated, all-purpose lighting fixture.

Alive Technologies recently invested in 20 Robe iForte fixtures. We were at the point where we needed to expand our lighting inventory to cover a decent sized A and B rig. The B rig has Robe BMFL and 600s, which are great but we wanted an A rig with new fixtures and more punch made up of Spiiders and iFortes. We’d been looking hard for an LED replacement for a profile or spot.

With a large MOFO event on the horizon and knowing how wet Tasmanian weather can be, the iForte had to be our pick. It ticked all our boxes – being IP rated, we could exchange gobos in it without having to use external pressure test tools – and it is one of the highest output fixtures that we could find. The weight of the unit was a huge part as well, being only 1.5kg heavier than the non-IP rated Forte version.

They are such a good general all-purpose fixture. The zoom on them is amazing, so when we need to do a framing shot, we utilise that. It’s incredible and so clear and even across the output. We are often using it just for our primary. They are very quiet also and have been great for recent corporate events or TSO shows that we’ve done.

The colour output is beautiful. It stays exactly true to how all Robe fixtures are, so it carries that same colour spectrum. They are also very harmonious with the BMFLs, even though they are lamp based.

The framing shutters are really sharp and straight. The speed in them is absolutely amazing, you can jump from, say a square to a diamond, to a line – doing a change like that can look amazing and adds another element to your programming. For the size and weight of the fixture, the pan/tilt speed is also really good. If they pop out of alignment, you can tell them a unit to recalibrate and it will fix its alignment itself.

Most fixtures come with one or two OK gobos and then fillers. The iForte gobo selection has an excellent fully fledged set that we are really happy with, covering all different aspects from breakups to effects. If you do need to change gobos, it’s a lot easier than with most IP rated units. There is no gasket replacement or external pressure tester required. Just pop off the case, change the gobo, put the case back on and use the internal pressure test function to tell you if it’s sealed up and good to go. You do have to torque the screws in the correct pattern to make sure it seals up correctly.

At 45kg, they are a two person lift but they are incredibly robust. The hard cast casings, made of magnesium alloy, with an aluminium alloy structure, should hold up better to wear and tear than the plastic of so many other lights.

The iFortes have NFC on the front of them, so you can address them using your phone. You don’t even have to power the fixture up in order to do that. You tap your phone on all your fixtures and it grabs all the information and then you address all of them from there. It’s very handy for show preparation.

Overall, we are really happy with this light. We’ve had them out in the rain, had them in the cold, and they’ve been absolutely great. We haven’t seen any moisture in them at all. They run multiple gel packs inside, which absorb the moisture and are easy to swap out and change. These gel packs are so efficient that if you need to do a repair or gobo swap it needs to be done reasonably quickly and get the case sealed back up before they suck up all the ambient humidity.

Robe have built the iFortes really well. They are very modular inside for repair and maintenance. It really goes so well on all aspects.

Product Info: www.robe.cz

Distributor Australia: www.jands.com.au

Distributor New Zealand: www.jands.co.nz

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Nathaniel Collins

Nathaniel started in Tasmanian events during the early 2000s. Five years in Adelaide with Novatech was followed by a few years freelancing. Lighting is his forte but describes himself as “a jack of all trades – everything and anything.”

Alive Technologies

Hobart Local production company made good, Alive Technologies now boasts four divisions: lighting, audio, video, staging/rigging. They also have a fabrication and integration side, building everything from trailer stages to bespoke art installations.

https://alivetechnologies.com.au/

Robe iForte – The Specs

• Light source type: TE 1.000W iSE HP White LED Engine
• LED Engine output: 82.000 lm
• Colour temperature output: 6.700 K
• CRI: 70, remotely selectable filters for CRI 80 and CRI 90
• Zoom range: 5° – 55°
• Variable CTO: 3.000K – 6.700K
• Rotating gobo wheel x 2, each with: 6 rotating, indexable and replaceable breakup and aerial gobos + open, patented slot & lock system
• Animation wheel: Aluminium animation wheel, used alone or in combination with gobos, rotating in both directions at variable speed
• Multi-Level Prisms allow multiple prisms to be “stacked” while retaining individual speed and direction control
• Setting & Addressing: ROBE Navigation System 2 (RNS2)
• Protocols: USITT DMX-512, RDM, ArtNet, MA Net, MA Net2, sACN