Nine Inch Nails Tension Rigging

Photo Adam Kaplan, ASK Media Productions

The various pods and screens for the Nine Inch Nails Tension Tour—19 total objects—often move at the same time. Based around nine Ayrton MagicPanel™ 602 units in a moving 3x3 matrix, automation is controlled via an XLNT Advanced Technologies’ CyberMotion system (read more about the design here).

The system has 68 active CyberHoists (plus five spares), 56 of which are 500kg 20m/min variable speed chain hoists, with an additional 12 1,000kg 10m/min variable speed chain hoists. Two InMotion3D control systems (one for backup) run the system. Ampco Flashlight Rental supplied the motion system, supported by CyberMotion North America (check out load-in images).

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Each pod is picked up by three hoists each to give it a full 45 degrees of pitch and rotation in all directions. Two curved 28mm PRG Nocturne custom V-Thru screens and the 70' upstage high-res 9mm V-9 screen are also picked up by the CyberHoists.

The data network for the hoist system is laid out with two XLNT groundswitches (one NS-12 and one NS-8), providing PoE to 13 XLNT NS-6 air switches (PoE hubs), with three groundswitches and two air switches as spare.

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The power network has 12 six-channel motor distros (D6C), and two E-Stop combiner (ESC-8). Both the data and power network can be split during load-in and load-out to be completely autonomous. Crew includes PJ Visser (crew chief/senior operator), Ryan Lewis (Cyberhoist technician), and Mike Rock (Cyberhoist operator).