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Strand Dimmer Pack (48 chan, CD80sv)

FM Former Member
I'm sure this has been asked, but time is tight.. Our church Strand 300 processor has died and is too expensive to fix. Looking at MyDMX as alternative. We have a Strand dimmer pack (CD80), with 48 dimmers total (2kW each). Our lights are incandescent fixtures only, nothing too fancy. Will the MyDMX do the job?

Also, we'll have to get a dedicated PC (to replace Strand consoles), so must we use XP, or is Win-7 or (ugh! Vista) OK?

From a user's perspective, (think: volunteers), how difficult is MyDMX to operate at a screen resolution smaller than that required to show 48 sliders at once? And with a mouse, not touchscreen? Just wondering. Will likely run at 1280 x 1024 with a mouse.

FWIW: The existing Strand 300 has always been overkill, nobody knows how to use it fully. We will retire everything but the CD80 dimmer pack and go with MyDMX + PC. Our church seats about 500. Thanks!!
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FM Former Member
http://www.strandlighting.com/...downloads/CD80SV.pdf

Pages 15, 36 and 74 may be the most relevant.
Hopefully you will have better luck deciphering this manual that I did?

The CD-80 can accept DMX-512, AMX-192 or D54 protocols on Mux-A, and only DMX-512 on Mux-B. I'm unsure if Multiplex-A and -B mean the same thing you alluded to? There is no mention of RDM anywhere that I could find.

On the rear chassis of the Strand 300 Controller (PC-sort of), the 5-pin XLR jacks are silkscreened DMX-1 and DMX-2. Again, no mention of Multiplex or RDM there. Ditto for the RS-485 driver daughter board inside the Strand 300.

Thanks again for your assistance.
Much appreciated!!
J JinglesForum Admin
ok. but no the multiplex would most likely fry out the my dmx interface as it is known to do so on the elation compu Live USB to DMX interfaces. BUT as long as you can set the dimmers too DMX-512 you should be able to use MY DMX.
but if the outputs are 5 pin dmx then you will need to purchase a 5 pin to 3 pin cable turn around which we sell through our Accu cable series.
Here is an example of a 1600x900 20 inch monitor display with my dmx and 48 dimmers patched.

Hope that helps.
Sincerely,
FM Former Member
For future lurkers similarly situated, I am pleased to report that the MyDMX works just fine with the Strand CD-80sv dimmer pack.

We (our church) got a cheapo new PC from a Big Box store, and sprung for a new touchscreen monitor. Total budget: $900 including the MyDMX. Would have been less, but too many unknowns invovled trying to repurpose an older available PC. And personally, I'm not sure we needed the touchscreen, but that's what they wanted.

We did have to re-wire the 5-pin XLR on the Strand cable to the 3-PIN used by the MyDMX. But otherwise, very simple to get the lights back on under human control.

I'm sure our light & sound guy will have some more questions re: operation, so I'll alert him to this wonderful forum. But my part looks done.

Again, thanks for the assist!
S Studio42 (Guest)
Good job on the 3-5 wire DMX adaptors. Nice and easy. You might want to get a few more adaptors just in case unless you're in a fixed location.

That's the good thing and bad thing about DMX. 2 standards, but only 3 wires used anyways. 5 pin DMX is really a waste of money, but it is what it is.

Oh, the touch screen will be handy. Go to the User window and tap the scene you want. Much better!

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