Avolites

Avolites
Name	Avolites
Type	Private
Industry	Lighting Control Systems
Founded	1976
Headquarters	London, United Kingdom
Products	Lighting consoles, media servers, control software

Avolites is a British manufacturer of professional lighting control consoles and media servers widely used in live entertainment, touring, theatre, television, and installation markets. Founded in the 1970s, the company developed a reputation for hardware innovation and integrated control software adopted by major touring productions, festivals, broadcast studios, and theatrical institutions such as Royal Albert Hall, The O2 Arena, Glastonbury Festival, Wembley Stadium, and Sydney Opera House. The company has engaged with a network of manufacturers, production companies, and standards bodies including ETC (company), Philips Entertainment (Vari-Lite), MA Lighting, Martin Professional, and D3 Technologies.

History

Avolites emerged in the mid-1970s amid a vibrant live-entertainment scene that included companies such as Pioneer Corporation, Soundcraft, Yamaha Corporation, Roland Corporation, and venues like Wembley Arena and Madison Square Garden. Early milestones involved supplying control systems to touring acts linked to promoters such as Live Nation, AEG Presents, and designers associated with productions at Broadway and the Royal Shakespeare Company. The company's timeline intersects with technological shifts driven by corporations and events such as MIDI Manufacturers Association, EUROVISION, and the expansion of digital lighting fixtures from Harman International Industries brands. Over decades Avolites invested in partnerships and acquisitions in contexts involving firms like Genlyte Group, Martin Professional, and software collaborators connected to ArKaos, Resolume, and Vectorworks.

Products and Technology

Avolites' portfolio spans consoles, media servers, networking interfaces, and control protocols, situated within an ecosystem featuring manufacturers and standards such as Ethernet, DMX512-A, sACN, Art-Net, and suppliers like Riedel Communications, Shure Incorporated, Sennheiser, and Neutrik. The company's product design responds to demand from touring companies including Cirque du Soleil, Disney Theatrical Group, and Fleetwood Mac tours, while integrating components from vendors such as Intel Corporation, NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Apple Inc. for processing and graphics. Avolites technology competes and interoperates with products from Strand Lighting, ChamSys, ETC, and MA Lighting, addressing workflows for productions at institutions including Metropolitan Opera, National Theatre (London), and broadcasters like BBC and NBCUniversal.

Software (Titan, Ai)

Avolites' software offerings include the Titan series and Ai range, designed to handle cueing, effects, pixel mapping, and media playback in contexts involving show designers affiliated with Rick Smith (Underworld), Patrick Woodroffe, Isobel Griffiths, Bob Bonham, and production houses like PRS for Music. Titan software integrates features paralleling tools developed by companies such as Avid Technology, Steinberg, Adobe Systems, and Blackmagic Design, enabling interoperability with systems used by festivals like Coachella, Reading and Leeds Festivals, and broadcasters like Sky UK. The Ai media-server platform supports workflows comparable to Disguise (formerly d3), Ross Video, and Green Hippo, serving visual artists and touring productions associated with agencies like William Morris Endeavor and CAA (agency).

Hardware Consoles and Media Servers

The company's console hardware lineage includes compact and full-size desks designed forfront-of-house and rigging contexts alongside media servers optimized for pixel-mapped LED arrays, LED screens, projection-mapped shows and permanent installations at venues such as Madison Square Garden, Staples Center, Barclays Center, and O2 Academy Brixton. Hardware engineering draws on components and suppliers used by firms like Bosch (company), Siemens, Texas Instruments, and Broadcom. Avolites products are deployed in production workflows alongside lighting fixtures from Robe Lighting, Clay Paky, Chauvet Professional, and Martin, and integrate with control surfaces and peripheral ecosystems from Avid Technology, SSL (Solid State Logic), and Yamaha Music UK.

Applications and Notable Uses

Avolites consoles and servers have been used on tours and productions involving artists and companies such as U2, Coldplay, Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Kanye West, Madonna, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd, Muse, Radiohead, Cirque du Soleil, and theatrical productions at National Theatre (London), Shakespeare's Globe, and television broadcasts by BBC, ITV, and CBS. Installations include stadia and arenas like Wembley Stadium, Emirates Stadium, and cultural centers such as Sydney Opera House and Lincoln Center. The systems are also used in festival contexts including Glastonbury Festival, Burning Man, Tomorrowland, and Isle of Wight Festival.

Company Structure and Operations

Avolites operates as a private company headquartered in the United Kingdom with manufacturing, research and development, sales, and support functions interacting with distributors and rental houses such as PRG (company), Tait Towers, Ver], [sic and regional partners across Europe, North America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. The company engages with training programs and trade events including PLASA Show, Prolight + Sound, InfoComm, IBC, and LDI (Live Design International), and collaborates with educational institutions like Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and Guildhall School of Music and Drama for skills development. Operationally, Avolites participates in standards discussions with bodies such as the Association of Lighting Designers and technology consortia linked to manufacturers like Harman International Industries and Philips.

Category:Lighting manufacturers