Contact Info

For sales & support contact Chuck Rau

ILDA Awards

We are pleased to announce that in conjunction with our product announcement, we have won six artistic awards from the International Laser Display Association. It is an exciting part of our launch, and we are proud of our accomplishments. Special thanks goes to Laserdome for allowing us to enter these pieces, as much of it was programmed for them originally.

Live Performance:

• 1st Place - Metallica Nothing Else Matters

Abstract Show:

• 1st Place - Pink Floyd Keep Talking........ (watch a clip)
• 2nd Place - Rush YYZ ....... (watch a clip)
• 3rd Place - Maroon 5 Makes Me Wonder........ (watch a clip)

Laser Photography:

• 2nd Place - The Cube
• Honerable Mention - Concave Abstract Masking Grid

Our Philosophy

We truly enjoy the art of the Laser Light Show. The vibrant colors and performability is unmatched in other mediums. Lasershows have always carried a certain mystique, a magical experience where science and music are combined into an amazing art form. On the whole, the industry has stepped away from classic abstracts. We believe that the classic abstract images can and should still have a prominent place in lasershows, and that it has been the limitation of the tools available, rather than that of the medium or the popularity of the abstract image that has been the biggest factor in their reduction over the years.

We are kicking status quo to the curb, and diving into a bold new metaphor.

Our Core Team

Matt Polak embraced technology at an early age and was quickly bitten by the computer graphics bug. A chain of events led him from interest in pursuing work in film special effects and 3D, eventually bringing him to laser entertainment. By 9th grade he was creating ISA cards to run his first home-built laser projector, and has since gone on to master engineering skills required to the support artistic endeavors through both hardware and software design. Not satisfied with the glass-ceiling imposed by traditional software engineering techniques, Matt has also helped to lead the development of a revolutionary new low level, cross-platform framework that helps to make rapid development of complex applications easier. This framework is at the very core of the interface for production tools such as DigiSynth.

Matt officially holds a Bachelors of Computer Science from Bowling Green State University, with an undeclared minor in Glass. During his college years Matt supervised laser operations and production at the former SeaWorld of Ohio and got a hands-on feel for the kind of products the laser industry really needed, solving many technical challenges along the way. Upon graduation he formed Raven Systems Design, Inc to continue per suing his love of engineering for the entertainment industry. Matt has previously chaired the ILDA Technical Committee in past years, and has a great fondness for both the art of laser and creating the tools behind it. He has designed key technology components for many large-scale technical projects for high-profile venues all around the world, has been a guest presenter for several events including SIGGRAPH's 2007 Electronic Theatre preshow, and the original co-creator of LaserMAME.

"The overall goal is top-notch development for the purpose of supporting the artistry. Artists always deserve better tools than what are currently available, and by giving them those better tools we let them push beyond the boundaries to really be able to express their ideas. I think people enjoy working with [our products] because of the level of personal interaction we offer them. We are interested in what they are doing, we speak their language, and we help them accomplish their goals. People hear about our products, use them, and become long-term loyal customers." -- Matt Polak, Lead Developer of DigiSynth

Chuck Rau is a classically trained laserist and producer, with experience in analog and digital image synthesis and production techniques. His skills are matched only by his passion for the art of the laser medium. Chuck holds an Associate in Specialized Technology Degree (Electronics) from Penn Technical institute, in Pittsburgh, but values his real world experience far more, with his extensive background in programming and performing lasershows and effects.

Chuck has been a fan of lasershows since his early days hanging out at the Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh. In 1994 he was hired by Audio Visual Imagineering, Inc as a their youngest laserist for the then new Carnegie Science Center. After three years of performing shows on the ChromadepthTM RYGB style projector and running planetarium star shows, he moved on to Orlando to take a position with AVI's production department, where he resided for eight years. Chuck has spent the past five years living in Texas, as a Producer / Educator with Central Texas College's Mayborn Planetarium, as well as producing shows in his home studio for Laserdome in Lancaster, PA.

"When I started using DigiSynth four years ago it was still very young, but I was shocked at how amazing it was, and that anyone would put this much work into a programming tool for the industry. It has come a long way since the early days. I love this software so much that I joined the development team" -Chuck Rau, Digisynth Evangelist

Chase Grozdina brings a new level of code expertise to the team. He is a highly skilled programmer with a focus on 3D gaming and interface solutions. Unimpressed by the "glass ceiling" limitations of standard Windows interfaces, Chase has been the driving force behind our new Topaz GUI toolset, the foundation of the new DigiSynth 3 interface.

Chase continually strives for the best possible solution as he creates each new utility in DigiSynth. He puts his creativity and expertise to work as he steers the next generation of DigiSynth tools.

An Introduction to Abstracts and DigiSynth

History

Abstracts were not only a staple of classic lasershows, but were the original and only form of imagery available. As the art of lasershows developed, more complex abstracts we able to be created.

Traditional abstracts were formed by combining signals from oscillators, amplifiers, manual controls, rotators sequencers, and multipliers, etc., into what is known as a "patch." These "patches" included a multitude of cables connecting different parts of an "image synthesizer" together. The technology was derived from the analog music synthesizers, and with some modifications and redesigning, these became capable of simultaneous X,Y signal creation.

Recent Years

The presence of traditional abstract imagery had declined due to the popularity and availability of frame-based imagery, and the limited availability of professional tools for creating high quality abstract images. The popularity of abstracts among viewers, however has not gone away.

DigiSynth fills a hole in the industry, by allowing the user to create images using the same "patching" techniques that once engaged audiences in a swirl of color and light. Laser abstracts are only attainable with a laser. The best way to achieve these images is by patching them. Patching offers the highest level of flexibility to the user, and allows for the possibility of stumbling upon a cool image.

When patching in DigiSynth, Images are created by dragging virtual wires between "nodes" on components. There are over 70 different components that can be connected in infinite combinations to create very simple and very complex images.

Analog vs Digital

DigiSynth overcomes several problems that plagued the world of analog abstracts, such as noise, offsets, resetting the components, and capturing a repeatable performance. In the old days it might have taken hours to create an image, and to have to pull out all the cables before moving on to the next image was nearly torture for the artist, watching the subtleties of his work disappear forever. Now it is possible to save every patch you create, and even to share them with a community of talented professionals.

• DigiSynth provides a clean signal that can be output through an optical fiber, and maintained as a digital signal longer and cleaner than analog output cards will allow.
• When components are added to the Patch Editor, they are reset to their default state, so chasing down weird offsets or recentering the rotators is a thing of the past.
• Motion Capture technology allows performances to be recorded during show production, and further editing or recapturing can minimize the number of passes needed to get the perfect performance forever.
• Patches, and whole shows can be saved and shared, so there is no need to ever lose your work, and you can go back and edit as needed later.

No Limitations

DigiSynth's Patch Editor is designed to allow the greatest freedom of creativity and image creation. Sure, there are still limits to what scanners will display, but there are no programmed limits to important things like how many oscillators, rotators, or other components you can connect in a patch. And even better, no writing code... ever!

A Note About Safety

The safe use of laser light is important to us at DigiSynth, as well as the industry at large. It is in everyone's best interests that we all practice safe opperation and performance procedures when using the awesome power of coherent light. While the lasers you use in your projector may not actually be "Death Rays", in many places the use of lasers is governed and restricted. In addition to employing a liberal use of common sense, please follow the rules relative to your country, state, or local governing entities.

Digisynth makes use of the "Esc" key to discontinue signal output during normal operation. This may be a helpful and convenient method of stopping output from a laser projection system, but does not fully protect against all possible disruptions to the signal path to your projector.

Safety is your responsibility. At no time will DigiSynth, its employees, owners, partners, or contributing user group be held responsible for any result of the actions, performance, abuse, missuse, safe or unsafe practices of any individual or entity making use of the products, services or image content made available through DigiSynth or any related hardware or software products.

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