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Topic: fogger remote DMX addressable??? questions.. - Page: 1

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geposted Thu 12 Apr 12 @ 12:03 pm
Hi,

the "DMX Addressable Remote" has nothing to do with the remote control ;) (It's too small to hold the XLR-connector...)
You can start the fogger with the remote OR you can control it via DMX.

On another website I found a somewhat better description:

* Voltage: 120V / 60Hz - 1500W
* DMX addressable
* Wireless remote control (included)
* Weight: 17lbs
* Dimensions: 13" l x 12" w x 6" h
* Fluid capacity: 0.75 gallons
* Visual FOG FLUID Level Indicator
 
cool thanks, i have noticed on the meteor website, that some foggers are listed as "DMX addressable" and others are listed as "DMX: 1 Channel", can you or anyone please tell me the difference?? thanks.
 
I don't think that there's any difference.
"DMX: 1 channel" means it needs 1 DMX-channel to operate (Smoke on / off). These days all DMX-equipment is addressable. Actually I've never seen one with a fixed channel. So even the ones with "DMX: 1 Channel" is addressable.
 
i wonder why theyre listed differently??

i know a lot of poroducts use a set number of channels to work in dmx mode e.g they need to have 3, 7, 12 etc... channels assigned to that one item for it to run correctly, but im still new to dmx so still confused and wondering about a lot.

is dmx 512, any different to dmx addressable or dmx: # channel??
 
:D. Never mind: took me some time to figure things out. Meteor is not so consequent in their descriptions to me.

DMX(512) is a communication protocol that is the same as the RS485-protocol (which is the less faulty and faster successor of the good old RS232. Remember that?) 512 stands for the amount of channels that can be send through a single cable. So with 1 cable you can control multiple devices, as long as they don't need more than 512 channels.

I've got a few things that are DMX-controllable. My fogger is an Antari ZX1500 that respond to only 1 channel. (Fog on / off)
Then I've got some scanners that need 5 channels each: Pan, tilt, gobo change, rotate gobo and dimmer/shutter. If I connect those 2 to one cable I have to make sure that the fogger-channel and any of the scanner-channels are different. Otherwise it could happen that if I change a gobo on the scanner my fogger starts spitting....
So for example: The fogger is addressed to channel 1 and the scanner to the channels 2 to 6. This means that an instruction send through channel 2 will only make the scanner work and leave the fogger as it is. Sending an instruction through channel 1 will make my fogger smoke, but nothing happens with the scanner.

If you know how this works, addressing is easy. Any device in the chain is addressed 1 channel higher than the last channel of the previous device. (You can miss-use that: 2 identical devices set to the same channels will respond the same....)

The protocol is very basic: All it does is sending a value between 0 and 127, so you are able to control a mirror (from the scanner) in 128 steps.
In case of the fogger you only need on / off. This means that any value between 0 and 63 will stop the fogger and a value between 64 and 127 will start the fogger. With foggers that support it you can control the level of smoke by sending a higher or lower value.

Addressing the device can be done in more than 1 way: The more luxury devices have simple up / down-buttons to set the first channel to respond to. If the device (fixture, btw) needs more channels it wil set those up on its own. The more difficult way is with DIP-switches: Martin (what's in a name...) has got a calculator that will tell you how to set them up to your desired channel: http://www.martin.com/service/utilities/dipswitch/index.html
The switches stand for a binary value: the first one stands for 1, the 2th for 2, the 3th for 4, the 4th for 8, the 5th for 16 a.s.o. The last one is 256. By switching the proper DIP-switches to ON you can make any number between 1 and 512.

DMX in short :p
 
ok so that i understand.. and yes i remember rs232 lol i still use it for certain things (none dj related)

so basicallly all dmx items run using the 512 protocol, the listing of "DMX addressable" denotes only the fact that the machine is controlable by the DMX 512 protoco,,l and when listed as DMX: # channel, this depicts the number of channels used by the feature to operate to its full capability?
 
Basically: Yes ;)
 
sweet, so thats the basics... now, how do a assign addresses?? ive not actually got my lights and fogger setup atm as i need to buy some cables and a controller, but im assuming it goes like.... daisy chain everything together. flip the selector switches to determine the channel range, then address the controller to the same ranges for the itmes?

or is it, flip everything to work in 512 mode, then set up channel addresses on the controler??
 
Hi Blue

Most DMX effects will either have a set of dip switches or an led display with push buttons which control things like internal pattern sound mode and so on for their stand alone use and also the start address for that item. You will need to refer to the manuals that came with your equipment to see how the address is set for each bit of equipment as the method will vary between different manufacturers. If it uses say 5 chans the start address will be 1 then you set the start address of the next item at address 6 and so on down the line. If you have a number of identical units that you want to do exactly the same thing you can set them to the same start address. The start address must be set and the effect must be selected for DMX control or it wont work.

Most DMX controllers and mixing consoles will allow you to assign each fader or switch to a DMX address so you can set the controller just how you like it. They also have memory functions so you can set up several scenes and then just step throug your scenes at the push of a button or automaticly via sound or timed trigger to form chase patterns.

They can be time consuming to set up but once its done the operation of them is nice and easy.

cheers

Daz
 
It also depends on how you want to control your lights. I'm using a second laptop with FreestylerDMX. This is freeware controller software. You need to buy a USB-DMX interface, but it is very flexible, free programmable and you can program your scenes in advance. Also a simple S2L-function is included. Scott (SBDJ) has created some plugins to connect VDJ to Freestyler.
A lot of fixtures are already created but you can make them yourself. What I like about the program is that you can add pics of the fixtures and name them so you have no doubts which fixture you are using or changing.
 
thanks guys, Daz, its good to hear from you buddy... its been a while, hows things going? hope your well.

@martin, i was planning to go the usb/dmx route also. i would rather use a second laptop than a controller board. ill check out freestyler once i get my usb>dmx cable and hook my lights up.

so far in my dmx family, i have, 2 x chauvet micro barrel CH-620, 2 x Revo 1, 1 x LFX Revolver, 1 x FM-1510 fogger and 1 x chauvet DMX-4 dimmer. atop this i have 2 x jb light splash, 1 x acme penguin, 1 x cruizer blade and 2 x geni T-max 6 stand alones for added extras if needed.

now all i need, is a usb>dmx cable.... and erm...5 x dmx cables... then ill be good to go i think... :D
 
For the "Not-DMX-Capable" fixtures there's a different solution: The switchpack. It's like a dimmerpack, but all it does is turning your fixtures on and off. Works for me.
Check the freestylerDMX-site for compatible USB-DMX-interfaces. I've tried the Velleman kit, but it's too slow if you use more channels so tonight I ordered the Enntec USB Pro-interface.
If you need any help creating fixture-files, send me a PM. I found out I could create a decent fixture-file by just reading the fixture-manual...
If you are keeping your cables not too long you could work with standard XLR Male - XLR Female cables as long as you end with a terminator. (You can make one yourself with a XLR Male and a 110 Ohm / 1 Watt metal film resistor (or 2x 220 Ohm 0,5 W) between pin 2 and 3). For me this works up to 20 mtrs.
 
thanks martin, the dimmerpack i have (well almost, collecting in the morning), am i correct in thinking i can use this to turn on and off regular stand alone lighting also? i was under the impression that the dimmerpack did two things.

1. acted as a multiport power socket
2. switched on dmx lighting as per programming.

does the dimmer pack allow me to controll power switching of regular standalone lighting via dmx? if so it will open up so many more possibilities for programing my lighting.

please will you let me know how the enntec kit works out? im not sure what my price range is going to be and there seems to me a lot of systems on the market which i have considered but am not sure about.

my cables i plan to keep to the shortest length possible. i plan to buy additional dmx connectors and cut cables down to lengths that suit distances to perfection, thus reducing lag on the system. im also planning on purchasing a triangle truss to hold my lighting so i think 20m is around the same distance as i will be totaling once everything is up and running.
 
Hi Blue
Doin good mate.

As long as the dimmer pack you are getting is DMX you can control what you like with it.

Another thing you might want to look at for individual effects is an aftermarket dmx board that can be fitted into an older effect to make it DMX controllable. Have a look at Maplin or CPC to see whats around.

Cheers
Daz
 
Dazmax wrote :
As long as the dimmer pack you are getting is DMX you can control what you like with it.


Phew!! That's risky! If you accidentally switch a channel only half open with a fixture that contains a transformator (something with LED or a 12 or 24 V-lamp) you could get serious damage...
It's OK if the dimmerpack can be set to Switch-mode. If not, don't take your chances and get a switchpack. Check your manual.

I've used the Showtec dimmerpacks. They can be set to switch- or dimmode. In dim-mode your can connect regular PAR's. In switchmode, it will only turn fixtures on or off.

You won't get lag from longer cables. You will get lag from "wrong" USB-DMX-interfaces. So far I used the Velleman USB-interface, but it only works proper with a max of 96 channels and a fix provided by one of the Freestyler Forum visiters. That's why I ordered the Enntec. (Will take a week or so before it arrives)
 
being new to dmx im not really sure if my lights have transformers... or if my relay pack can be se to switch mode.

this is the manual for the dimmer/relay

http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/DMX-4_UG.pdf

my lights are ALL bulb lights atm, untill i go collect my revo 1's so not sure what, if any, would have a transformer.

@daz, glad to hear your ok. i hear there was some riots or something out there over fule prices hitting 7p a litre? or was it 7p a gal?? lol...
 
You're good. This pack can be set to either dimming or switching mode:

OPTIONAL DIMMER/RELAY SETTING
1) Press the MODE button until the display reads {Annn}, where n represents a number between
001 and 512.
2) Press the MENU button until the display reads {S-nn}, where nn represents either (oF) for
switching off or (oN) for switching on.
3) Press the ("Up" Button) and ("Down" Button) to toggle between {S-oN} and {S-oF}.
 
so i follow those instructions to set the pack to switching mode... then do i have to enter the channel number of each item to programme it?? oh and does each item onnly require 1 channel? or does it need two? one for on and one for off!
 
These instructions came from the manual... ;) See page 7 for setting up your channels (you've got 3 options, but option 3 is probably your choice. You can control 4 different fixtures independently) You only have to enter the first DMX-channel, and it will set the next 3 channels itself. So if you set the first channel on channel 1, the next channels will be 2, 3 and 4. Set he first channel to 228 and the next channels will be 229, 230 and 231. You don't have to set that up on the Chauvet. Of course you do need to set that up in the controller(software). There you have to tell for any channel what kind of control it has to do.

Any on/off function requires only 1 channel:
Martin FourS wrote :
The protocol is very basic: All it does is sending a value between 0 and 127, so you are able to control a mirror (from the scanner) in 128 steps. In case of the fogger you only need on / off. This means that any value between 0 and 63 will stop the fogger and a value between 64 and 127 will start the fogger.
 
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