Three Cheers for Universal

Jrn14

Jrn14

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
http://www.parkscope.net/2013/11/uor-permit-updates-new-projectors-for.html

Why Universal is #winning right now. So they have confirmed new projectors for both The Simpsons Ride and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. This may seem insignificant to some, but for me these kind of upgrades to already wildly popular attractions shows just how much that Universal cares about the "QUALITY" of their parks and attractions right now. Sure I noticed the Simpsons screen was a tad fuzzy, but it's still a great time and I would never think of skipping due to the quality of the projector. This is in a park with two new rides "Despicable Me" and the hugely impressive E-Ticket "Transformers" as well as other highly popular rides… MIB, RRR, The Mummy etc and they are about to open another ground breaking attraction next year.. They don't "need" to update the projectors on The Simpsons Ride… but they are anyway… because they want to deliver a quality product.

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is highly regarded by tourist and critics alike as one of, if not the most impressive attraction in all of Orlando. It's hugely popular and on its own and probably accounts for about 75% of the attendance if not more at IOA right now. It's a working formula… but does Universal rest on their laurels and think… "if it's not broke don't fix it"… No! Since it's opened they have fine-tuned it multiple times to give a better experience and they continue to do so by adding new projectors… as well as other rumored upgrades… It's so refreshing to see a park give even their most popular attractions love and attention when they are already drawing huge crowds.. I think the crowds would still be coming … at least for the short term… but I think Universal is thinking long term.. and there is a sense of pride and ambition that they are showing right now that is very exciting. I guess this should be no surprise as they have already made noticeable improvements to their previous title holder of most innovative attraction in Florida with Spiderman

On the other hand… we have the broken yeti…. we have the hugely popular Soarin arguably the flagship of Epcot dusty speckled screens… I don't believe either attraction has ever been refurbished (correct me if I'm wrong) and they opened in 2005/2006 respectively.. people still rush to these attractions at rope drop and they bring in the crowds…. why fix em… right?
 
Californian Elitist

Californian Elitist

Well-Known Member
CHEERS! Universal is seriously on it and they're making me very happy. And people here wonder why some of us appreciate Universal... It's because of things like this!!!!! That's why!!

On a side note, Despicable Me in Hollywood is coming up and it's looking great.

10763162033_2723edd959_b.jpg


http://www.ushforums.com/index.php?/topic/171-despicable-me-minion-mayhem/page-16
 
BubbaQuest

BubbaQuest

Well-Known Member
Wow, I didn't know Despicable Me was going to be themed outside. What a great surprise.

Also glad to hear FJ is getting new projectors. The fuzzy film segments were a bit of a disappointment for me. It's nice to know Uni isn't waiting for the thing to fall apart before they enhance it.
 
TalkingHead

TalkingHead

Well-Known Member
I'm surprised by FJ getting new projectors. I rode last weekend and the image quality was far brighter/crisper than what I'd seen in the past. Didn't feel any nausea either (although I haven't really felt that since the year it opened, I think). I wonder how noticeable the new projectors will be.

I'm really looking forward to the projector upgrade in Simpsons. The crisp image quality of Spidey and Transformers makes the Simpsons look like it's being projected through a gauze.
 
BryceM

BryceM

Well-Known Member
My last ride on FJ I definitely noticed how bright the screens were. I definitely preferred them to be darker, but hey, at least they're getting updated.

One attraction that needs a complete overhaul is Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls at IOA. You would think with all of this plussing of attractions that they would notice the terrible state that this attraction is in.
 
S

Skunk

Member
I've always noticed how dim the projections in Forbidden Journey are; was kinda disappointed by it, but I always figured it was to cut down on light pollution in the surrounding scenes. Good on Universal if they found a way to lighten them up a bit more, especially if they will have better IQ too.
 
TalkingHead

TalkingHead

Well-Known Member
marni1971 said:
And so it continues...

Added to planned enhancements and overhauls to Mummy, ET, T2, Disaster and Twister that I know of.
Click to expand...

Any idea how extensive the enhancements to Mummy would be? I know they've supposedly been updating the projections and show lighting over the past year.
 
HTF

HTF

Well-Known Member
In regards to why the new projectors are coming, cost effective in the long run

In the older "dim" version of the FJ they were using 3KW bulbs that produced around 15-18K Lumens. These bulbs would last roughly 3500 hours of use but due to bulbs getting even dimmer were usually taken out before they hit the 3K hour mark. The new bulbs are 6KW bulbs that are producing around 32-35K Lumens but the bulbs only last between 1000-1250 hours a piece before being replaced.



Examples at market rate

Old Bulbs: $900 a piece and rebulb entire ride is 20 bulbs. 18 for the carousels and 2 for the screen endings. Now lets say they last 3K hours as well. And for the sake of math lets just say they run 12 hours a day. So every 250 days Universal would of replaced 20 bulbs at a cost of $ 18K bucks.



New Bulbs: $1600 a piece and 20 total bulbs. Now lets say they last 1K hours a piece, and again lets say they run 12 hours a day. For these bulbs they would have to replace every 85 days at a cost 32K per replace.



In five years under the old bulbs they would have to rebulb everything 7 times at a cost of $126K. The new bulbs setup on the other hand means they would have to replace the bulbs 20 times in 5 years at a cost of $640 dollars. Yeah big difference...
 
HTF

HTF

Well-Known Member
Jrn14 said:
http://www.parkscope.net/2013/11/uor-permit-updates-new-projectors-for.html

Why Universal is #winning right now. So they have confirmed new projectors for both The Simpsons Ride and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. This may seem insignificant to some, but for me these kind of upgrades to already wildly popular attractions shows just how much that Universal cares about the "QUALITY" of their parks and attractions right now. Sure I noticed the Simpsons screen was a tad fuzzy, but it's still a great time and I would never think of skipping due to the quality of the projector. This is in a park with two new rides "Despicable Me" and the hugely impressive E-Ticket "Transformers" as well as other highly popular rides… MIB, RRR, The Mummy etc and they are about to open another ground breaking attraction next year.. They don't "need" to update the projectors on The Simpsons Ride… but they are anyway… because they want to deliver a quality product.

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is highly regarded by tourist and critics alike as one of, if not the most impressive attraction in all of Orlando. It's hugely popular and on its own and probably accounts for about 75% of the attendance if not more at IOA right now. It's a working formula… but does Universal rest on their laurels and think… "if it's not broke don't fix it"… No! Since it's opened they have fine-tuned it multiple times to give a better experience and they continue to do so by adding new projectors… as well as other rumored upgrades… It's so refreshing to see a park give even their most popular attractions love and attention when they are already drawing huge crowds.. I think the crowds would still be coming … at least for the short term… but I think Universal is thinking long term.. and there is a sense of pride and ambition that they are showing right now that is very exciting. I guess this should be no surprise as they have already made noticeable improvements to their previous title holder of most innovative attraction in Florida with Spiderman

On the other hand… we have the broken yeti…. we have the hugely popular Soarin arguably the flagship of Epcot dusty speckled screens… I don't believe either attraction has ever been refurbished (correct me if I'm wrong) and they opened in 2005/2006 respectively.. people still rush to these attractions at rope drop and they bring in the crowds…. why fix em… right?
Click to expand...

You can keep track of all enhancements for most of Universal here as well if your interested.
http://forums.wdwmagic.com/threads/the-universal-rumors-thread.851716/page-41
 
Magenta Panther

Magenta Panther

Well-Known Member
Jrn14 said:
http://www.parkscope.net/2013/11/uor-permit-updates-new-projectors-for.html

Why Universal is #winning right now. So they have confirmed new projectors for both The Simpsons Ride and Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. This may seem insignificant to some, but for me these kind of upgrades to already wildly popular attractions shows just how much that Universal cares about the "QUALITY" of their parks and attractions right now. Sure I noticed the Simpsons screen was a tad fuzzy, but it's still a great time and I would never think of skipping due to the quality of the projector. This is in a park with two new rides "Despicable Me" and the hugely impressive E-Ticket "Transformers" as well as other highly popular rides… MIB, RRR, The Mummy etc and they are about to open another ground breaking attraction next year.. They don't "need" to update the projectors on The Simpsons Ride… but they are anyway… because they want to deliver a quality product.

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is highly regarded by tourist and critics alike as one of, if not the most impressive attraction in all of Orlando. It's hugely popular and on its own and probably accounts for about 75% of the attendance if not more at IOA right now. It's a working formula… but does Universal rest on their laurels and think… "if it's not broke don't fix it"… No! Since it's opened they have fine-tuned it multiple times to give a better experience and they continue to do so by adding new projectors… as well as other rumored upgrades… It's so refreshing to see a park give even their most popular attractions love and attention when they are already drawing huge crowds.. I think the crowds would still be coming … at least for the short term… but I think Universal is thinking long term.. and there is a sense of pride and ambition that they are showing right now that is very exciting. I guess this should be no surprise as they have already made noticeable improvements to their previous title holder of most innovative attraction in Florida with Spiderman

On the other hand… we have the broken yeti…. we have the hugely popular Soarin arguably the flagship of Epcot dusty speckled screens… I don't believe either attraction has ever been refurbished (correct me if I'm wrong) and they opened in 2005/2006 respectively.. people still rush to these attractions at rope drop and they bring in the crowds…. why fix em… right?
Click to expand...

Not to mention Mickey's Philharmagic, which is a wonderful, clever, popular, highly entertaining show whose 3D projectors are either fuzzy or out-of-sync most of the time. And TDO does NOTHING about that. The new Star Tours' 3D puts Philharmagic's to shame, but TDO couldn't care less. After all, it's just a show featuring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, two actual, non-purchased, company-developed characters, who sell tons of merchandise. Yeah, THAT'S not worth an upgrade. Damn, what's wrong with the showrunners at WDW??? :mad:
 
tissandtully

tissandtully

Well-Known Member
Magenta Panther said:
Not to mention Mickey's Philharmagic, which is a wonderful, clever, popular, highly entertaining show whose 3D projectors are either fuzzy or out-of-sync most of the time. And TDO does NOTHING about that. The new Star Tours' 3D puts Philharmagic's to shame, but TDO couldn't care less. After all, it's just a show featuring Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, two actual, non-purchased, company-developed characters, who sell tons of merchandise. Yeah, THAT'S not worth an upgrade. Damn, what's wrong with the showrunners at WDW??? :mad:
Click to expand...
Yeah, it's a shame, philharmagic is a good film.
 
BrianLo

BrianLo

Well-Known Member
Animaniac93-98 said:
That's pretty sad to hear considering it's two years younger and in a park/resort with fewer things to manage.
Click to expand...

It was my only real complaint though about about an otherwise very nice castle park. I think it just speaks to the fact that both are in need of upgrading.
 
IAmFloridaBorn

IAmFloridaBorn

Well-Known Member
raven24 said:
CHEERS! Universal is seriously on it and they're making me very happy. And people here wonder why some of us appreciate Universal... It's because of things like this!!!!! That's why!!

On a side note, Despicable Me in Hollywood is coming up and it's looking great.

10763162033_2723edd959_b.jpg


http://www.ushforums.com/index.php?/topic/171-despicable-me-minion-mayhem/page-16
Click to expand...
Is the one thing I dislike about Universal Orlando re-using buildings. They cant be as creative as they would like too. The Outside of that Despicable me in Hollywood blows Orlando's out the water.

On the other hand Universal Orlando, can go inside a building and change a ride quicker, cheaper if it becomes irrelevant so I dont mind. I'm a sucker for theming though!
 
IAmFloridaBorn

IAmFloridaBorn

Well-Known Member
TalkingHead said:
It's not a bad flume ride, all things considered. Uncomfortable seats/restraints are probably the worst thing about it.

But IOA doesn't need more than two wet rides -- and Ripsaw Falls is my least favorite of the three. Not to mention it takes up a sizeable piece of real estate.
Click to expand...
I disagree. IOA is balanced with the water rides and Roller Coasters. I don't want ANOTHER ride eliminated. The Water rides usually are my main reason for going to IOA if I start at Universal first, to cool off.
 

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