New School VS. Old School

[keeperx]

there seem to be 2 major schools of thought here at the PL.

The Old School way...
MultiLine Gas Rigs
PCAOMs

The New School way..
DPSS and/or direct injection solid state rigs
analog modulation

Now before recently there was no hope for the analog modulation to ever be as accurate as the PCAOM. DZ is working on closing the loop in the modulation realm.

The other issue is color. Gas has always had more colors than Solid State, but solid state works on the easy to use and understand RGB model.

With the recent(past 5 years) introduction of things like:
BluRay (405)
Cheap Scanners
Sound Card DAC
Red from DVD burners
DIY drivers
all into the main stream of laser display, the face of the laser display industry is changing dramatically. The technology that is being developed is not moving toward the continued prolification of large frame gas systems.


The question is, how much will technology have to change before the older methods of laser display become outdated. As it stands, there is no replacement for a PCAOM or even an AOM when it comes to modulation and there is certainly no replacement for argon when it comes to blues...

Will gas lasers ALWAYS have a place in laser display?

With Laser TV and laser everything else, wont diodes continue to become cheaper and more powerful?

Will wee all eventually be blind?

opinions??

[Lasernerd]

I for one will continue to use gas lasers till I am too old to push the start button!
I have noticed the new Diode laser systems I have, had me really lazy!

[LASERGUY]

I must say nothing will ever replace the excitement of the gas lasers...

The old school gas setups are most likely what made us obsessed with the world of laser shows in the first place!

I am not only speaking from a color point of view as much as the optics\electrical\mechanical playground we found in laser shows.

Large frame ion lasers passing through PCAOM or even better old school color mixing setups... WOW!!

I did a short informal internship with Laser Fantasies Philadelphia (Franklin Institute) several years ago for a couple months..

When I looked inside that projector I almost crapped myself!!

Large frame Coherent purelight.... split through a PCAOM beam path and another galvometric "color mixer"
Each color line traveled to its own independent scan set (4 or 5 X/Y scanner pairs)... this all in one projector.

The optical trickery I saw in this projector was amazing!!!! SO SO SO cool!!

Anyways... This was a day when laser projectors were truly a special device and performing shows was truly a privilege..

The new solid state stuff is just to easy!!!!

I was about to give up my argon laser for a solid state blue but then I realized that I would be giving up that last remaining part of the projector that still makes me smile (And gives me head aches)

Anyways... I am interested to hear others comments about this topic

LG

[keeperx]

I was bit by the laser bug, never knowing a gas laser.
I have never seen a gas laser on, close up, other than marks little argon (not the big one). and im still just as laser crazy as the rest of you..

I think this is a deeper issue. i believe that alot of the people that have been in to lasers for a period of time and have worked with the gas rigs etc, feel very disgruntled (maybe thats not the best word) that some punk ass kid (like myself) can just jump in to the laser display field and build a projector putting out beams that 10 years ago would have cost 10,000$...

its such a strange time in this hobby. Since the beginning of the laser, there has never been as comprehensive of a paradigm shift in the market. The diode laser seems to be taking over the majority of the market, at least the low to mid power market.

I have always had internet (since i was 12), i have always had a cell phone (16), i have always had diode lasers. That cant be said for many here...

[Laserman532]

Old school gas lasers are beautiful and sexy and the majority are pieces or works of art, made by skilled craftsmen and raving madmen.

Diode lasers for all practical purposes are boring although technical marvels are made in cookie cutter factories by mindless drones.

But it is all about the light anyway, so it is a natural evolution.

There were pulsed and RF excited argons before there were CW argons, its all the same...just different

[Diachi]

Gas all the way for me .

I for one will continue to use gas lasers till I am too old to push the start button!

Amen !

[keeperx]

But it is all about the light anyway, so it is a natural evolution.

Thats the way i see it..

Gas is complicated and expensive, Diodes are simple and cheap.. laser light is laser light.

[Diachi]

It depends, do you like your greens at 532nm or at 514nm ?

[keeperx]

if im mixing, i dont think i care...
i do not have any experience with gas lasers but the fat beam green i saw at the laser show i went to was argon and i did not like that color..

[Laserman532]

Thats the way i see it..

Gas is complicated and expensive, Diodes are simple and cheap.. laser light is laser light.

You have obviously never had an Oldsmobile 442 or a Camero Z28 or a 66 corvette or a Dodge Challenger or a Cuda


Style is not the way you pick you nose...Its where you put the buggar.