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WOW...I just got my (8) 64B LED PRO's and Elation DMX Operator from a national retailer and I'm amazed at how poor the product documentation is as well as the ADJ support site! I hate to say it...but after 30 years of electronics background and pro audio work, I'm stumped! I'm really hoping this forum will be the answer. I have a show coming up in days and I'm behind the power curve.

My requirement is for a fairly simple yet effective stage lighting package I can provide to my clients for my sound contracting biz. I provide FOH engineering and mixing for small live blues and R&B bands. These generally are 30-60 year old artists (and audiences), so you kind of get the feel for what era, effect, experience I'm trying to achieve. Nothin to techy or Dj'-like (no offense), just a great show experience for the audience and genre.

The facts...?

-I'm technical on pro sound recording, live mixing and MIDI. Is there any reason I can't understand and deploy DMX?
-Do I have the right equipment combination? (I understand that the sky's the limit there's lot's of subjectivity to these things) I just want to understand the DMX protocol and make these things work before adding more gear...if possible.
-Is there better/more recent documentation for the 64B LED's?
-Is there better/more recent documentation for the Elation DMX Operator?
-Is there a great primer on DMX (Digital Multiplex) protocol for dummies?

HELP!!!!
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Like all high tech equipment and control, DMX has its unique language/protocols - which takes some getting used to. If you can figure out sound equipment, you can figure DMX out too.

The equipment you got will be fine to get started and may be able to work for you permanently (lighting control wasn't that great in the '60's). You will be able to use the lights essentially forever. You may outgrow the DMX Operator before long - especially if you add more or different kinds of light fixtures or want your light show to be very synchronized with what is going on the stage. But it is not a bad choice to get started with/learn about DMX.

Here is a very good overview: http://www.box.net/shared/hl7oxy4bd6

The manuals for lights and controllers are good at some aspects and terrible at others. People on this and the Elation forum are pretty good at answering questions - but they should be more specific than the questions you asked.

To give you a frame of reference for DMX, maybe this will help:

DMX control gives you a way to control each light in your system individually, even though they are all daisy changed on a single cable (there are exceptions to this you don't need to worry about for a long time, if ever). Here's a useful analogy for how this is accomplished: The controller "broadcasts" (think radio stations, except into the DMX cables instead of across the air) light setting instructions on multiple "frequencies." Most fixtures these days, including your 64 LED Pros, need to listen on multiple frequencies to get all the instructions they need. For example, your 64 LED Pros must "listen" on 7 channels to receive control instructions to get full control of each of it's features [See page 12 of your manual]. http://www.americandj.com/pdffiles/64bledpro.pdf
If you can live with less control of the fixture, you can choose DMX modes that listen on fewer "frequencies."

In the DMX world these frequencies are called "Channels," and the first channel for each fixture is called a "DMX Address." To get the set of instructions meant for it, each fixture must be tuned to the DMX address on which the controller starts broadcasting its instructions.

Most modern light fixtures need more than a single set of instructions on the one DMX frequency. So the controllers not only broad cast instructions for a fixture on the "frequency" that is the DMX address, for any given fixture it also broadcasts on several consecutively numbered frequencies. This will become clear with the discussion below.

Different controllers handle DMX addressing differently. The DMX operator is primarily designed to handle 8 fixtures, provided the fixture needs no more than 16 channels to be controlled. Because your 64 LEDs only need 7 channels, it will work fine.

To get started, connect your DMX controller to one of your light fixtures with a DMX cable. Set the fixture Mode to "7 Channel Mode" and DMX address "001." See page 10 of your manual.

The DMX Operator automatically sets the DMX addresses for you - one every 16 addresses, ie., Fixture 1 is set to DMX Address 1, Fixture 2 is set to 17, etc.

Since you set your connected fixture to DMX Address 001, when you select FIXTURE 1 on the DMX Operator, it will control the light you have connected. Slider 1 will control RED intensity; Slider 2 will control GREEN intensity, etc. See page 12 of your manual for what slider controls what on the fixture. Sliders 8 - 16 on the DMX Operator will do nothing.

Now connect the next light to the daisy chain of DMX cables. Set it in "7 Channel Mode" and DMX address 17. When you select FIXTURE 2 on the controller, it will now control the second light. Repeat this addition of fixture (addresses 1, 16, 17, 33, 49, 65 . . . ) until all eight fixtures are connected and controlled.

Then come back to the forum if you have additional questions.
Thx....on my way out to the shop to start the process. I really appreciate this. Looking forward to being able to help an old guy like me some day decipher all this

I'm not impressed with the quality of the controller. More "ProSumer" in feel! The main issue I have with the little functionality that I've been able to achieve just basically "brickling" with the system is that the faders/sliders are erratic in their response thru the cans! I'm surprised the fade in and out is not silky smooth. (Yep, I'm using new DMX data cables...so there should be good shielded/solid data to and from)
quote:
brickling

Sorry to say I don't know what either "ProSumer" in feel or "bricking" means. If you set it up correctly, there should be immediate and accurate responses from the cans.

Yes! Set up all 8 64s in a daisy chain, but make sure that each fixture has a separate, independent DMX address that is in the 1, 16, 17, 33, 49, 65 . . . sequence.
The fade on the 64 LED Pros is kinda silly. It tends to go in and out fast. That's how they are. You'll just have to do SLOWER and less dramatic fades.

I've got 28 years of pro audio(recording, studio, stage, live and broadcast), developed many audio and MIDI technologies, wrote and developed modems and modem chipsets, and have designed networks from the small business/home business to massive 30K+ node networks for Fortune 500 companies. DMX wasn't a big stretch for me.

Once the OP gets into programming and documenting the rig and his scenes, he'll be happy.

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