Frequently asked questions about Orbiter
Do you have questions about Orbiter?
Here you will find answers to the most frequently asked Orbiter questions.
Orbiter is more than just a single fixture; it is a system with many options. Therefore, it is not possible to narrow down any specific photometric data. ARRI keeps pushing for the best in color rendition and output. For most of the optical accessories, Photometrics are published in the formats below:
Orbiter supports eight color modes - (1) CCT (correlated color temperature), (2) RGBACL or Calibrated RGBW (individual control of the respective LED colors), (3) HSI (Hue Saturation Intensity), (4) x,y Coordinates, (5) Source Matching, (6) Gel Selection, (7) Effects plus (8) the new Color Sensor Mode to replicate ambient light. Please have a look at www.arri.com/lios for upcoming software updates.
Along with other LED lights, ARRI SkyPanel and Orbiter support a calibrated mode for RBGW / Individual control to ensure that the same colors are created - incl white. The white can be selected to combine color and white perfectly.
In a mixed lighting fixture setup HSI will help to avoid color mismatch if consoles are used. The white point cannot be changed, it is 5000 K.
Orbiter's new light engine consists of six different LED colors that perfectly complement each other to achieve outstanding color rendition - for every type of camera and the human eye. With double the color channels - Orbiter doesn't have a white LED. Compared to SkyPanel or L-Series, the new light engine offers a wider color range (CIE color space).
The six new LED colors have been selected to create a more continuous spectrum, resulting in ultra-high values in metrics like CRI, TLCI, or TM30-15.
Material recorded in Rec 709 (short for ITU-Recommendation BT.709) has a display specific encoding or a, in other words, "what you see is what you get" characteristic. The purpose of a display specific encoding is to immediately provide a visually correct representation of the camera material, when it is screened on a certain display device. This is achieved by mapping the actual contrast range of the scene into the contrast range that a display device can reproduce. Examples of display specific encodings are Rec 709 for HDTV screens or DCI P3 for digital cinema projectors. On the downside, a display specific encoding puts some limits on the options for a colorist.
Rec 2020 is a wider color space than Rec 709, which is the current industry standard for HD. Rec 2020 promises more brilliant images, though only new display technology is able to show these. Traditional Rec 709 displays (like TVs or ordinary computer displays) can’t display Rec 2020.
While Rec 709 (short for Recommendation ITU-R BT.709) is the encoding color space for HDTV, Rec 2020 is the encoding color space for UHD. The primary colors lie on the spectral locus and it is thus possible to have more saturated colors in images. (It does not mean, however, that all colors look more saturated. When properly converted, a Rec 709 image will look exactly the same when displayed on a Rec 2020 display.)
Rec 2020 is an encoding standard. A TV or display may not support the full gamut. Nevertheless, it will correctly display the colors within its physical gamut. To get the “Premium” logo of the UHD Alliance, for example, a TV needs to support a minimum of 90% of the P3 gamut.
A color gamut is the range of reproducible colors available on a certain device such as a display for example. A display may have a color gamut that exceeds a certain color space which itself is a subset of the visible spectrum of the human eye.
The color gamut is described by its three primary color values (red, green, and blue), which define all possible colors for a color gamut inside of a triangle spanned between these primary colors. The primary colors therefore also define the outer boundaries of the gamut of the specific device. A display cannot produce colors that are outside of its gamut.
Orbiter's light engine uses six colors incl. cyan, amber, and lime - but not white. Consequently, the way hues are generated follows a different algorithm. The user has more possibilities to adjust colors even more precisely.
For very high frame rates (e.g. high-speed commercial shots), Orbiter offers a High-Speed-Mode specially designed to also work with all kinds of shutter angle settings. For typical 200 fps shots, the standard mode works without limitations.
The new electronics in Orbiter include a new LED driver designed to consequently facilitate great and smooth dimming. Three techniques have been combined for stable colors even at very low values. Due to technical reasons, low end dimming resolution is limited when using high-speed LED refresh mode.
Orbiter has a 3-pin battery connector: pin 1 negative, pin 2 positive.
The 5-pin ports are assigned for DMX input and DMX through connection.
QLM stands for Quick Lighting Mount ™ the new and simple way to change optics. Orbiter can transform itself easily into a variety of lighting fixtures.
LiOS - the short term for Lighting Operating System - is the software platform for Orbiter and offers many powerful features. In combination with the removable control panel, in turns into an intuitive way to navigate through all modes and settings. Learn more on www.arri.com/lios
All individual LED colors are selected by minimum binning variation to achieve a great spectrum and thereby very natural skin tones. ARRI Spectra uses a new LED generation which is only available by ARRI.
Yes, Stellar has been updated to allow the use of the Orbiter.
Orbiter is compatible with the "C" version of SkyPanel and L-Series, however, Orbiter might produce improved color rendition and additional hues.
Since LiOS Version 1.4 the software supports all of the following languages: English, Spanish, German, Chinese, French, Japanese, Korean and Portuguese.
Please contact your local dealer or ARRI contact for Orbiter pricing.
Orbiter's newly designed electronics enables more self-controlled features to ensure best image quality. Extra options like Frequency Selection or special modes like Low End and Stage Mode are not needed.
High Output Mode allows for Orbiter to operate in the brightest possible way, compromising only very slightly on color rendition. Low Noise Mode enables totally silent operation whilst compromising slightly on output level (also depending on ambient temperature). High Color Rendering Mode is the best of both worlds, focusing on best color rendition with very little compromises on output and noise level and is therefore the default and recommended operational mode.
Yes and no; two control panels can be connected simultaneously, but only one of them will be active - the one connected by cable.
Orbiter is a very powerful fixture, with many different features. The value of 500 W includes the entire set of ports, interfaces like USB and Ethernet switches, and electronics in addition to the ARRI Spectra LE (light engine). Also considered are an external supply like the control panel in remote setup, and future motorized accessories.
Overall, the power consumption of all these additional electronics is about 100 W, leaving 400 W for the light engine. Divided between the light engine's six channels, this equates to about 65 W per channel, which is approximately 35% less per channel compared to SkyPanel. Additionally, the ARRI Spectra design prioritizes optimum color rendition and smallest footprint over maximum brightness. Taking both aspects into consideration, the efficiency of Orbiter is less than SkyPanel at the same power consumption, but colors and skin tones are more beautiful and natural with Orbiter, and versatility is greater.
Although the housing itself is weatherproof, ports like power, USB or XLR (for DMX) require protection to ensure no short or long term defects such as corrosion. Hence, for tilt angles from horizontal to face down the rain cover is mandatory, although the cover will not restrict usage in any way. From horizontal to 75° upwards the rain cover is still recommended, as rain rarely acts in the way IP rating tests predict.
The main difference is simply in the naming itself. Host/Client is a term commonly used in modern IT, and best represents what the Orbiter is - a fully digital device, ready for advanced networking. As of firmware version 4.4, the naming of SkyPanel’s Master/Slave mode has also been changed to Host/Client. Despite the shared name, Orbiters and SkyPanels cannot be controlled together in Host/Client mode. Standard communication protocols such as DMX/RDM, CRMX, ArtNet, and sACN are more appropriate for controlling multiple fixture types.
A step-by-step guide to configuring your LED fixture according to your needs
Feel free to share your Orbiter experiences with us. We are curious to hear about the stories you have told with the Orbiter and would love to hear them! When and where did you use the Orbiter? What did you learn and what can others learn from you?
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