Choosing the Right Digital Sign: LED Message Centers
LED message centers come in a variety of sizes, resolutions, color or monochrome; so which combination is the right led message center choice for your needs?
LED Display Size
There are several questions you must consider in determining the appropriate display size:
- How far will viewers be from the message center?
- At what speed will the viewer be traveling? Are they walking, driving at 35 mph or 60 mph?
- What other things are competing for your viewers’ attention? What else is in the area that may attract more attention than your message center?
- Do local ordinances set limits on the size of your message center?
Ortwein recently had a prospective church request a bid for a message center and gave a maximum budget of $25,000. They received several competitive bids that came in under their budget. Ortwein’s sales professionals did a site evaluation and found that any message center that could fit within a $25,000 budget would be grossly inadequate. Ortwein brought out multiple message centers; one was the specific size and resolution quoted by other sign companies and placed them on the street for the church to evaluate. As church staff drove up and down the street it quickly became apparent the grave mistake that they were about to make. Imagine having to explain to 1000 church members that you spent $25,000 on a sign that no one can read.
About LED Message Centers
Pixel Pitch
A pixel is a single grouping of red, blue and green lights. Pixel pitch is the distance, typically in millimeters, from the center of one pixel to the center of the next. The smaller the distance, the tighter the pitch, therefore the higher the resolution. Higher resolution translates into sharper images being displayed on the message center.
As a rule of thumb, a 12mm pixel pitch message center is best viewed at 12 meters, a 16mm at 16 meters and so forth.
Color or Monochrome
In choosing between color and monochrome various factors should be considered:
- What are you promoting? Do you want to display video or just images and text?
- Are multiple colors required to draw attention or will a single color be sufficient?
Many clients immediately think color is the only way to go and while it obviously provides more options, a well-designed monochrome message center combined with a well-lit graphics sign can provide as much desired attention at a more economical price point. Full color images should be shown at least a minimum size of display, your Ortwein representative can help in sizing your display so you represent your organization well.
Summary
Your Ortwein Sign professional can guide you through the entire process and eliminate the uncertainty from your decision making. We won’t sell you a message center that your viewer’s will not be able to read.
The following chart provided by Watchfire provides a guide that can be helpful in your initial considerations. Your Ortwein Sign professional will be able to help you even further with a site evaluation and further guidance.