Disguise is launching X1, a portable version of its Designer software.
X1 lets creators run 4K visuals directly from their own laptop or hardware, with no proprietary media servers required. This is the first time Disguise’s production engine has been made available in a flexible, software-only format.
Developed for professionals delivering small-to-medium live events including concerts, theatre productions and corporate brand experiences, X1 works by providing users with access to the software used to pre-visualise, sequence and control headline shows.
The portable new solution has already been used on several live events during a pilot, including Bullet For My Valentine at Rockfest in Germany, Festival Napa Valley, and the USA and Canadian legs of Central Cee’s world tour.
“In order to support the world’s biggest shows and installations, we have high-performance media servers powerful enough to seamlessly run visuals on LED walls over 4,000 square meters in size,” explains Chief Product and Technology Officer at Disguise, Raed Al Tikriti. “But not everyone needs all that power — or has the space or budget for it. That’s why we decided to create X1. With X1, for the first time, anyone can harness the same powerful Designer tools used on the world’s biggest productions, all in a portable format that’s easier and more cost-effective to bring on tour or support smaller productions.”
X1 users will be able to plug their license key into their laptop to access the latest version of Designer. Show visuals can then be imported into Designer from any real-time graphics tool, including Notch, Unreal Engine, TouchDesigner and Unity using Disguise’s RenderStream protocol.
X1 includes a content pack, featuring Notch and TouchDesigner effects — from DJ-style visuals to motion looks, created in-house by Disguise’s Creative Services team. Each look will also be rendered as a high-quality video ready for playback and looping.
X1 also enables users to preview the content on a 3D mini-replica of their stage or environment. The Designer timeline is a feature that enables users to schedule and edit all the visuals needed to run their show or experience live. Disguise also has critical redundancy features, with built-in 1:1 failover.
Alex Loftie, Video Programmer for Central Cee’s tour comments: “With Central Cee’s shows in Canada and the USA generally having a more intimate feel at smaller venues, it made perfect sense for us to use X1 on a laptop. It allowed us to pack light, easing the burden of transporting kit between multiple venues — but it also meant everything could stay on Disguise and I didn’t have to re-program the show with a different solution, which saved a huge amount of time and budget. Being able to stay within the Disguise ecosystem is so key. When we returned to larger venues in Europe, we were able to easily transition back to Disguise media servers, ultimately giving us the flexibility to use Disguise’s familiar and reliable Designer software across shows of any size.”
Glenn Jenkins, Video Engineer on Bullet For My Valentine’s tour, valued the flexibility and control that X1 brought to the production. “Live shows on tour are never carbon copies of each other. Last-minute changes come up every time, and using X1 meant we were able to keep up with the rest of production and make quick, crucial edits on site thanks to Disguise’s timeline workflow.”
Jackson Cobb, Video Programmer on Festival Napa Valley adds that the travel-ready status of X1 is a game-changer. “Being able to shut my laptop after the show, put it in my bag and just walk away without transporting a server with me was incredibly freeing.” Kate Freer, projection designer on Festival Napa Valley, adds: “Having this new solution doesn’t totally eliminate the need for server-run shows. There will always be larger productions that require more power. But it makes show control so much more accessible, and being able to use X1 in a festival scenario like this has been a dream.”
Pippa Considine
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