Control/Dimming 2 ETC Expresses

artable

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Expressi? Expressisese? Anyways...
My HS theatre has two ETC Express consoles. A smaller one in the backstage prompt corner, and a larger one in the booth. Both are next to DMX nodes (Which are broken... Somehow. But my failure to understand the way DMX nodes work is another matter entirely.). Is there some way to connect the two somehow? Having two independently working boards connected to the same dimmer packs seems quite silly (Also, It doesn't seem like a possibility.). Right now, either board can be connected to the dimmer packs at once with a zillion foot DMX cable.
The question: I was wondering if it was a possibility to somehow link the two boards, hopefully using working DMX nodes *if* they get fixed. It would be convenient to use the backstage board as a sophisticated RFU, or allow an SM or ASM in the prompt corner to monitor the show in new and informative ways. Right now, we've hooked up the smaller board in order to put the audience onstage for a small production.
Ant tips about what could cause DMX nodes to fail would be awesome too. I don't know if they were ever working in the first place though.
If I have attached the Users manual for the ETC express consoles. Both consoles use this users manual. I appreciate any advice or knowledge anyone has to share! Thank you!
 

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I don't know what two express consoles will do if you run them both on the same ETC Net network... odds are nothing good will happen. The express is not capable of sharing show files and control like more modern consoles. Only thing you could do is get a DMX merger and use it that way... however you won't be able to use one console to control the other. The two consoles won't have any idea the other one even exists.
 
That's what I thought. Shame. Still, it's better than relaying cable for every small show.
 
They might be dumb in the sense that they can't see each other but I would assume that you could control the lights if both were hooked up. One taking over if something is changed and visa versa or maybe not it would be a fun experiment.
 
Yeah. My guess is that it'd look a little bit like running two cues simultaneously on one board. Except without cues and two boards.
 
Odds are, your DMX "nodes" are just plain Installed DMX lines with a 5-pin XLR jack. Odd are also good that there is one hardwire line from the booth to the dimmers and one from the stage location to the dimmers. If they are installed in a DMX compliant way, the two ports are not connected to eachother at all, and they feed separate inputs on the dimmer rack.

If the DMX ports are not functional (you can't control the dimmers when plugged into them) then you likely have a high-impedance air-gap somewhere in the line. As most installs such as this have the DMX lines hardwired into the dimmers, unless someone has messed around in the rack, it should still be connected. Some installs though, have a DMX input port next to the rack so that you can change control inputs without opening up the rack. Assuming you have installed racks. With portable or touring racks, they often have DMX ports in the rack.

It is also possible that the DMX connectors on the wall boxes have been damaged and just need repairs. Could be as simple as re-soldering, or may need an entirely new connector.

As far as getting the two desks to talk to eachother, that's not gonna happen. You could possibly use a DMX merger, but control will be limited and kinda funky. It would also require being able to get to the DMX lines from each console to connect to the merger. Without such a device, it is going to be a one-at-time kind of deal.
 
ETC net 2 DMX nodes. All of them have two male 5 pin dmx inputs/outputs. I took a look at the master node, and it says that he system is "ok". I'm sure that's not enough information for you though.
 
What numbers do the screens show on the node? Are you coming out of Universe 1 on the board and into universe one on the node? If you're going into the second port (depending on how it's configured....) you might be sending dimmer data to the great beyond. Pictures would be helpful here.

In terms of having both consoles on the network at the same time, it depends on the priority settings on the nodes. If the nodes have the same priority, then the nodes work on an HTP basis by default, with the highest level from each source at that priority "winning".
 

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