Arena AV has taken delivery of a Martin M1 console which is the result of over a decade of console development at Martin. The M1 follows the philosophy and simplicity of Martin’s Maxxyz controller platform. It is the most powerful and affordable full-featured lighting console on the market today.
Arena AV’s managing director Sean Keaveny states value for money as his main reason for choosing an M1 console.
“Another factor was that we have also used the Maxxyz system on many shows in the past,” he commented. “I did a lot of research on comparable consoles but it was the M1 that really impressed me and let’s face it, Martin is a world class brand.”
The console’s full-feature, all-in-one capability yet simple platform and small footprint, not to mention low price tag, has struck a chord in the industry with the new generation console often cited as the industry’s up and coming lighting desk.
“We needed a console that could operate in a hotel ballroom right through to an arena,” Sean said. “Arena AV has the contract to supply lighting to a large, local 6,000-seat arena. We required a console that is portable as well as powerful, and the M1 certainly fits the criteria. It also has a small footprint which is nice as space is often at a premium.”
The Martin M1 has been designed from the ground up with a single philosophy in mind – simplicity. The surface is clean and easy to navigate with fewer buttons and options to overwhelm the user.
“It’s a very intuitive console,” added Sean. “People can learn how to progam it quite fast even if they haven’t got a high degree of knowledge of lighting consoles. Whilst it offers straight-forward programming, at the same time it is a state of the art professional lighting console.”
The M1 is equipped with a fast dual-core processor, ensuring that the user interface remains fast and responsive, even if hundreds of playbacks and effects are activated simultaneously.
As well as citing the great effects engine on the M1, Sean also favours the touch screen built-in along with the standard M-Series keypad controls.
“It’s great for manual control,” he commented. “I have never felt like the console was too small for a job. In fact, it feels much larger than it is, simply because it has so many playbacks available.”
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