Macau’s Planet J comes alive with x7 color

Lighting plays an incredibly important role in enhancing the magic world of theme parks. It is far more than a tool to illuminate or decorate, but a key to connecting people with a fantasy realm. With theme-park experiences growing day by day and new digital tools developing fast, interactivity is transforming lighting designs in modern theme parks. Planet J, located at the Sands Cotai Central in Macau, has taken revolutionary steps, putting together trendsetting interactive elements and a sophisticated lighting-control system, including ETC Selador® Desire® luminaires, Source Four® LED fixtures , and Unison Mosaic® and Paradigm® architectural systems, to provide visitors the world's first live-action role-play theme park. 

"The lighting will change as players interact with their surroundings," says Derek Warrick, the lighting and systems-design manager from StandardVision, the company that designed and specified the lighting system for the Planet J project. "This means a lot of programming and interaction between computer systems. It also means that the park will look different from minute to minute, so you will get a unique visit every time." 

In the 95,000 square feet of interior space, the park is divided into eight zones, each with a unique theme and different lighting concept. To create the magical world that makes people feel like part of the story, Warrick employs an LED system that includes ETC fixtures with the unique x7 Color System™ blending seven LED colors, embedded into scenic elements to complement the ambient lighting fixtures. "The x7 Color System provides such a full color spectrum, that people walking through the park look great, and we didn't have too many surprises when we lit the scenery," describes Warrick. "They are very well designed!"

Planet J has hundreds of ETC LED luminaires installed, including 483 Source Four LED Lustr®+, 575 Desire D60 Vivid™, 255 Desire D22 Lustr+, and 37 Desire D40 Vivid fixtures. "These fixtures have great light output and color rendering," Warrick explains. "The RDM capability saved countless hours and days of work." 

The control system is a mixture of Unison Mosaic and Paradigm architectural controllers utilizing DMX and DALI protocols across 92 universes and 16 loops. "The mix of both Paradigm and Mosaic controllers provides us a flexible yet robust system. We haven't put a large demand on the systems yet as interactivity is still being programmed, but I have faith that everything will work as intended," says Warrick. A lot of interactivity comes from the game interfaces. This means final programming can only be tested when the park is fully operational.

Warrick is no stranger to ETC products. He has used ETC lights and control systems over the past 15 years and summarizes: "I have been extremely happy with both the products and support of the staff at ETC."

Photos courtesy of Derek Marion from StandardVision