Bright business (magazine AV #08'14)

It is no secret that the projection equipment market is now experiencing the simplest times. However, some brands still manage to increase sales and develop. Among them is the famous Belgian company Barco, celebrating the 80th anniversary this year. The seminar for dealers dedicated to its technique was held in Moscow by CTC Capital, an exclusive Barco distributor in Russia. The event was organized with the participation of the Russian representative office of the company.

Similar seminars took place before – in 2012 and 2013, but the current one was the first, entirely dedicated to Barco. And the point here is not only in the anniversary, but also in the abundance of interesting new products. At a time when many market participants are forced to reduce production, the Belgians increase momentum. The secret of their success is obvious: in many respects, the Barco technique is unique, the company closely monitors the quality of products, introduces the latest technologies.

The business began in 1934 with the assembly of radio receivers from American components, hence its name – Belgian American Radio Company. In the 50s and 60s of the XX century, the company rose in the production of TVs, and it was the first to use printed circuit boards in them. In the 70s, Barc took up the projection equipment, and in the 90s she also began to produce medical equipment and LEDs. Now the scope of its activity includes professional solutions for visualization, components for avionics and defense, lighting equipment for show business and advertising, video processors, etc.

Over 50 million spectators are visited daily cinemas equipped with Barco equipment. It was used at Eurovision, the LED source of light-at the Olympics in Sochi, its products are used in museums and at exhibitions (for example, at the 5th Biennale in the Moscow arena in 2013). Now Barco is represented in 90 countries and has become a global brand. Despite the breadth of the production program, the company also has priority areas. One of them is (Large Venue). The current line includes devices with a brightness of 8000 to 40,000 lm resolution from SX+ to 4K, with 3D support as an option or standard – a total of 12 models. Everything is on 3-chip DLP darts and with a wide range of additional equipment. Models with the HD (Heavy Duty) index are designed for professional use with maximum load. There are unique among them.

For example, HDX-W20 FLEX is the most programmable brightness (maximum-20,000 lm), which makes it extremely convenient for rent. HDQ-2K40 is the brightest projector with a resolution of 2K. The novelty of the HDQ-4K35 line is a 4K projector (4096 x 2160 @ 60 Hz) with a brightness of 35000 lm. Another promising direction is the LCD panels with thin frames (the latest models-3.5 mm), from which the screens of a large diagonal are collected, as well as video walls with a reverse projection. They are used in dispatching points, road traffic control centers, advertising, etc., that is, wherever significant sizes with high resolution are required and trouble -free work in 24/7 mode.

The latest company development is the Clickshare presentation system: the base device system is connected to the display (TV or projector), and a special USB device with a large button is connected to the source (laptop). One press is enough, and the slides are displayed on the screen. Communication is carried out by Wi-Fi, and the base station takes upon itself the function of the access point. The system is available in two modifications. The simplest Clickshare mini (CSM-1) is designed to output one presentation at a time in the Full HD resolution from one of 8 participants. The more advanced CSC-1 is capable of displaying up to 4 slides from different sources to one screen, the number of active participants in the presentation is up to 64. At the same time, the resolution of the slides reaches WUXGA (when connecting via DVI) and 2560 x 1080 (if the base station is connected to the projector via DisPlayPort ). The second system can be complemented by the Clickshare Link adapter – through it the base station is connected to the Apple TV prefix, which allows the role of portable Apple devices with a special application as a source. Accept information from Android Smartphones and tablets both sets (free application-on Google Play). The maximum simplicity of management and attractive design with hidden cables are common features of Barco business. The Pressent series includes 9 models – they all differ in the maximum simplicity of operation and are relatively affordable in price.

COLLABOrate series models provide improved image quality, are silent and allow, in particular, to demonstrate a panoramic video with a resolution of 2560 x 1080. This is the development of the famous Norwegian company Projectesign, which included Barco in 2013. The only model in the IMPress series is also silent, built on three DLP matrixes and provides impeccable image quality, it can also be used in large home-made cinema halls with large screens.

For digital cinemas is one of those spheres where the company has indisputable authority. The main feature of these devices is the complete integration with the server-each of them is equipped with a built-in RAID mass-mass-mass-mass-passive for storing films and a media processor with a playback function. The family includes models for large and small halls, with a resolution of 2K and 4K, as well as with support for 3D or frame rate 60 Hz. The development of the Auro 3D professional sound system continues – at the last year’s conference it was presented in format 11.1, recently a configuration of 13.1 was added to it. A laser with a light stream of 60,000 lm has been launched into production, and the first batch has already been completely sold out, and the company plans to expand this line due to models with less brightness. Another unique novelty is Escape technology: films are shown by three three screens projectors – front and side. The image can be a single (panoramic) or separate – it depends only on the fantasy of the filmmakers.

The seminar and about the company's policy and the service, because professional equipment needs qualified maintenance and original spare parts – at least 70% of them are constantly available in a warehouse in Moscow.The closest attention is paid to this aspect of the work, so everyone who uses Barco equipment can be sure of its long and trouble-free operation.