A ShowCAD Artist show control system was specified by Essex Sound & Light as the integrated visual systems controller for the 1,200 capacity nightspot, Mayhem.

The 2,048 DMX channel Artist, complete with video input capture card and nine serial ports, is the visual control hub for the entire club. It runs all dance-floor lighting and the substantial amount of environmental and architectural lighting, plus two white light lasers, a Hippotizer digital media server and audio and video sources--in addition to lighting--in the VIP pods via BSS Soundweb London controllers. ShowCAD Artist also handles video input switching to all the various LED light sources via the Hippotizer.

The ShowCAD Artist system was vital to the technical integration element of the project. It was chosen as the best and most versatile multi-protocol control solution by Bob Calvert, who worked closely with ESL's Mike Glover to design, specify, and commission sound, lighting and AV for the gleaming new space.

"We've focussed on looking at the whole club as a complete integrated sound, lighting, and visual environment," explains Calvert. "Rather than lighting-video-ound, etc., as separate entities. That's why I picked ShowCAD Artist. I have used it constantly for the last 12 years or so, and it's still the only controller on the market that will do what we needed for a reasonable price."

Mayhem is entered through a sweeping staircase that plunges downwards into the basement of the building. Each step is constructed from 30mm toughened glass and under-lit with two 900mm Pulsar Chroma Strips--120 in total.

Once inside, the club's structural pillars have been clad in a frosted polycarbonate material and then clad with metal mesh, and are each internally lit with eight pieces of single-color neon. There are infinity mirrors at the top of each pillar, and several others dotted around the club, tastefully expanding the optical illusion concept, making it seem that Mayhem has an even larger collection of visual surprises around each corner.

Making up the 96 channels being fed into ShowCAD Artist are long cool blue strips denoting the three bar tops and fronts, and electric pink for the staircase edges down onto the dance floor, plus lots more low level blue, purple, or pink strips around the edges of the dance floor.

The circular Cocktail Bar is lit from above with 12 ChromaFlush fixtures in the ceiling, interrupted by a giant metal propeller that whirrs around, slicing through the beams.

Another major architectural effect is six Barrisol false ceilings. ESL's lit these from above with a total of 154 Pulsar ChromaHearts lighting four skins, and Martin Mania SCX500 scanners lighting the other two.

The four spherical padded-cell style VIP pods are clad in white leather and resemble igloos. ESL suggested six separate systems of color-changing Tryka LinkLEDs per pod, which are recessed in a narrow crevice down behind the back of the seats, diffused by a strip of frosted Perspex over the top.

Each pod also has two 20" LCD screens supplied by ESL, complete with independently selectable video (five options) and sound control from within the pod--all running via ShowCAD Artist.

The dance floor moving lights are primarily Robe--chosen for their reliability, features and functionality. This includes eight Robe ColorSpot 250 ATs, eight Scan 575 XTs, four Robe Wash 250 XTs, eight Robe Spot 150 XTs and eight Robe ColorMix 150 XTs. There are also four Martin Wizards, two Atomic strobes and two Exterior 600 color changers, plus eight Pulsar Demon strobes and a Jem Club smoke machine on the dance floor.

The lasers were supplied to ESL by Laser Electronics. They are Orion white diode systems and came with their own Zion 3D PC-based controller which is triggered via ShowCAD Artist.

The Hippotizer is used to create video animations that are fed into the screen outputs and then to ShowCAD Artist via a video capture card, where the same video sources are used to run the LED light sources.

For the lighting and video switching in the VIP pods, the triggers from the Soundwebs are sent to the Artist, which in turn sends out commands to the video switcher via its RS232 port.

"There's currently no other show controller that unites all three sources--lighting, video, and audio--in such a coherent way," says Calvert. He adds that the service and back up from ShowCAD Control Systems is excellent. "They benefit from the agility of being a relatively small company, with the ability to react instantly where and when needed."

In addition to lighting and visuals, ESL also supplied a 35K Kv2 sound system and kitted out the DJ booth with the latest gadgets including Pioneer DVJ X1 DVD players and an Edirol V4 video mixer.

The system is looked after day-to-day by house engineer and VJ, Nick Bailey.