Ai for Kilowatt AV

Michael Edwards (Kilowatt AV) takes ownership of the new AI Media Server. With him is Bradley Bruchhausen who represents DWR in Cape Town.

Michael Edwards (Kilowatt AV) takes ownership of the new AI Media Server. With him is Bradley Bruchhausen who represents DWR in Cape Town.

Dillon Jearey is the Managing Director of Kilowatt AV, a Cape Town based Rental Company. In an environment where technology constantly evolves, Dillon gives feedback on his newly purchased Ai Media Server.

What made you decide on the Ai Media Server?

This was a very difficult decision for us. Kilowatt AV has a very unique approach to investing in equipment. We are committed to always supplying the world’s leading brands for our clients events, however sometimes the best equipment may not be the best investment for our company.

Video mapping has become a major product of our company. We have been working Watchout5 and MadMapper for some time now and where looking for a solution that would allow multiple projection blending and warping control across all 3D axis’. We were quite a long way down the road to investing in d3, however the numbers did not add up according to our investment policy. We loved the server though and we needed to do a lot of homework.

Dillon Jearey

Dillon Jearey

The AI server was way better value for money, but could it deliver what our video mapping engineers required? We called numerous people around the world and had huge debates in the office. Our verdict was that there is no doubt AI could deliver what we needed. We believe that the product is still very young and that user interfacing and ease of use may not be as good as the other products, but that with the backing of Avolites it would be only a matter of months before the system becomes better. The final tick in the process was that this product would be supported by DWR. This is hugely important for us. As a tech company that does not often invest in gear, we are definitely not anywhere close to being a big client of DWR, yet they treat us like we are and their support goes way beyond what is expected. All these things pointed us in the direction of AI.

Have you tested it and what are your thoughts?

Not, yet. We have spent time watching videos of what has been done and we are super excited. Our Technical Director, Michael Edwards is in the UK now for training and the system will be rolled out for a 10 month video mapping road show, mid Feb.

Once you have your head around it, what features do you think you will particularly enjoy? The biggest feature for me was the value. The numbers stack up to make it a great investment. What’s important to our clients is not gear, it is the content. You can have the best equipment in the world. If your content is rubbish, the show will suck. For this reason, we want a system that allows us to wrap great content to the 3D models is the quickest and most reliable way, AI ticks all these boxes. The tech team thinks it is super cool too, for reasons that are above my pay grade, but that’s a win for everyone!

Are you excited about how technology is changing and how does this effect what you are able to offer to your clients?

Definitely. It is one of the things that keep this industry exciting. Ten years ago, 3000 Lumen Projectors were class leading and the size of a dog kennel! A media server was a VHS video machine. The best thing for me about technology is that it gives our company opportunity to be more creative and more flexible in the quickest amount of time.

Do you have an event planned where you will use the AI Media server for the first time?

Yes, the server will be used in what we believe is the world’s first mobile video mapping theatre. More than that we also believe it is the first time that multiple cars will be mapped in the same video mapping sequence. We will be mapping scale 3D models of a Jaguar E type, a BMW X5 and a Lamborghini Reventon in the back of an air conditioned truck. This truck will travel through SA for 10months of activations.

Anything else for now?

If anyone wants to learn more about video mapping processes and integrating content, please feel free to contact us. We would be happy to share some tips and tricks with you. Better shows means a bigger market for everyone.

Koy Neminathan, Sales Director for Avolites Ltd, stated “It was a pleasure to have Michael here at our training facilities for 3 days. He had the opportunity not only to learn the Ai system but also saw the servers connected to the Tiger Touch 2, Sapphire Media and Sapphire media wing. I am hoping Michael will also be joining our weekly webinars every Thursday’s to top up the vast amount of knowledge he has absorbed already.”