Vintage Lighting Identifying an Old Light Board

[Vader0629]

Hello, everyone. This is my first post here, but I've been reading here for a while now.

I am a senior in high school and have really gotten into theatre lighting in the last couple of years. Over the summer our auditorium's light system was updated for the first time since it was built in 1972. To replace our old light board we got an ETC Element 60. All of the stage lights are run through the Element console now, however the house lights (downlights, orchestra, upper & lower balcony) are still run from the old board due to "the architecture of the auditorium."

I've been wanting to find out who the old board was made by and when, but I haven't been able to find anything. The light board doesn't have any markings or references to a company on it. It was installed in 1972 but is rumored to have been "recycled" from another location. I have a couple dozen pictures of various parts of the auditorium and lighting system that I hope can help identify it. I can't get any pictures of the patch panel because it was sealed by the company who installed the new system.

More at:
http://imgur.com/a/GoKIP

Any information on any part of the system is greatly appreciated.

 

[Scenemaster60]

I will have to dig a little to be certain, but first glance says Century.

 

[Amiers]

Going to say Century as well, based on the handles. If they will let you I would take off some faceplates the piano hinges got me very intersted. also you should find a plaque or plate on the back that is rivoted. You also might have a school id tag on there somewhere as well. I dont know if that tag will help or even be there but if it is there should be some record of it in the school old dusty records room.

 

[Les]

The only thing I have to offer is that the "new dimmer rack" you have pictured is not a dimmer rack. It is just a transformer; which probably supplies the new dimmer rack. Once you start doing theatre in other venues or even take a walk through a big box store/warehouse, you'll start seeing those everywhere. Very common in commercial/industrial applications.

The actual dimmer rack probably looks something like this:

(Pictured with door open)

 

[Amiers]

I wasnt going to point that out and take the benifit of the doubt and figured the picture got cropped, to the left of the transformer looks to be the door the the dimmer rack.

 

[Vader0629]

Thank you for the replies.

Going to say Century as well, based on the handles. If they will let you I would take off some faceplates the piano hinges got me very intersted. also you should find a plaque or plate on the back that is rivoted. You also might have a school id tag on there somewhere as well. I dont know if that tag will help or even be there but if it is there should be some record of it in the school old dusty records room.

Unfortunately, I don't think they'd let me take the plates with the handles off. However, I have looked inside the front center plate and can get a picture of it on Monday. I drew up a rough sketch of it. There is an ID tag on the front of the board, but it has a barcode and looks to have been taped on sometime in the last 10 years. I'll write down the number on it on Monday and ask the school librarian about it. While using the "stage master" handle, I've had it come out in my hand. It appears to have a chip built into the bottom, which I should have included in the OP. I'll get a picture of it but I'll post another sketch here in the meantime.

Top-down view of front center plate.

The handles.

The only thing I have to offer is that the "new dimmer rack" you have pictured is not a dimmer rack. It is just a transformer; which probably supplies the new dimmer rack. Once you start doing theatre in other venues or even take a walk through a big box store/warehouse, you'll start seeing those everywhere. Very common in commercial/industrial applications.

Thank you for clarifying that. I've looked up pictures of dimmer racks before and have been confused as to why it didn't look like one. The dimmer rack(s) are in a furnace room that is accessed through the balcony. The door is always locked, and my theatre teacher's key doesn't work on it anymore, so I probably won't be able to get in there.

 

[RonHebbard]

Thank you for the replies.



Unfortunately, I don't think they'd let me take the plates with the handles off. However, I have looked inside the front center plate and can get a picture of it on Monday. I drew up a rough sketch of it. There is an ID tag on the front of the board, but it has a barcode and looks to have been taped on sometime in the last 10 years. I'll write down the number on it on Monday and ask the school librarian about it. While using the "stage master" handle, I've had it come out in my hand. It appears to have a chip built into the bottom, which I should have included in the OP. I'll get a picture of it but I'll post another sketch here in the meantime.

Top-down view of front center plate.

The handles.

Thank you for clarifying that. I've looked up pictures of dimmer racks before and have been confused as to why it didn't look like one. The dimmer rack(s) are in a furnace room that is accessed through the balcony. The door is always locked, and my theatre teacher's key doesn't work on it anymore, so I probably won't be able to get in there.

Hello! Your "Chip thing" may be a PC board edge connector forming essentially the male half of a plug and socket allowing the fader module(s) to be unplugged, swapped, and re-plugged for maintenance / repair purposes. PC board edge connectors are single or double sided depending upon whether or not the board is single or double sided and also upon how many different connections are required. I think you'll find your board dates to a time before "chips" as we know them today. When your board was built, chips were made from potatoes and were a form of snack food. With apologies for being an old guy.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

 

[BillConnerFASTC]

I'd guess century also, but partly based on the ERS in the article photos. Pretty sure that's a Century unit based on sheet metal, venting, and hardware. I could be wrong on that.

(I love the "UNDIMS" label.)

 

[VRommel]

I'd guess century also, but partly based on the ERS in the article photos. Pretty sure that's a Century unit based on sheet metal, venting, and hardware. I could be wrong on that.

(I love the "UNDIMS" label.)

Steve Shelley is here at SETC in the booth next door. We just had a look at this and believe it might be/could be Skirpan, not Century. Can't be sure, but I did use a lot of Century back in those days of my youth and that modular panel with the rotary pots is not a Century design (at least that I can recall). nor do I remember any Century furniture ever having those screw-on encoder knobs.

 

[BillConnerFASTC]

Which makes sense. Skirpan did not have fixtures so it could be Skirpan controls and Century fixtures, though I didn't know Skirpan went after analog boards like this surely was. It was in an era where most consoles beyond the most very basic were one-of designs and fabrications, and the consultant would actually design the layout, labels, etc., and specify which components - sliders, buttons, indicator lights - would be used; and not unusual for different manufacturers to all bid on that design. My first glance and seeing it was in Missouri made me wonder if it wasn't Hub - who was notorious for bidding and building knock offs.

 

[STEVETERRY]

I'd guess century also, but partly based on the ERS in the article photos. Pretty sure that's a Century unit based on sheet metal, venting, and hardware. I could be wrong on that.

(I love the "UNDIMS" label.)

I don't think this is a Century console. I have never seen those plug-in, backlit, edge connector potentiometers on a Century console. Other clues:

1. There is no crossfader, dipless or otherwise. Century consoles of this era woule certainly have had a single-handle autotransformer crossfader.

2. "UNDIMS"--would have certainly been "Non-Dims" an a Century console.

3. The pots are unfamiliar to me and I don't think Century ever used that type.

Steve Shelley is here at SETC in the booth next door. We just had a look at this and believe it might be/could be Skirpan, not Century. Can't be sure, but I did use a lot of Century back in those days of my youth and that modular panel with the rotary pots is not a Century design (at least that I can recall). nor do I remember any Century furniture ever having those screw-on encoder knobs.

Those are not Skirpan pots, although those were also plug-in and backlit.

ST

 

[microstar]

I agree, those are not Skirpan pots. On the ones pictured, the handle rotates the scale, and on Skirpan pots the scale, which was graduated in one-quarter increments, was stationary and the handle with a little viewing window was what moved. Also, the Skirpan plug-in assembly used individual pins and not card edge connectors as shown. The light green paint job on the stage control panel is reminiscent of Hub products.

 

[derekleffew]

Well the big knob in the upper right-hand corner labelled "Potentiometer Illumination" is definitely Superior Electric Co. My best guess for the rest is HUB Electric Co., mostly based on the console is in a high school in Missouri.

(EDIT: Posted concurrently with the above.)

 

[Vader0629]

After seeing HUB mentioned several times, I found some old articles from them online. They picture models very similar to the one I have, but not exact. I took another look at the school article with the picture of the light board and noticed that it had a lamp on it that was very similar to the ones found in the HUB articles.

Now that I think about it, the floor pocket covers on the stage might say HUB on them.

After seeing the lamps in the old pictures, I assume that the "console lights" switch/dial controlled them. The "potentiometer illumination" dial controls the lights in the potentiometers and also the ones above the switches. Does anyone know what the taped off part of the light board could have been for? Also, what exactly are the "UNDIM" switches for? I never used them.

 

[Les]

After seeing HUB mentioned several times, I found some old articles from them online. They picture models very similar to the one I have, but not exact.

... Also, what exactly are the "UNDIM" switches for? I never used them.

I would definitely say it's close enough. Way back when; manufacturers added a lot more flexibility to the layout of the board based on the needs of the space. The console pictured is probably a "standard" layout which could be modified/added to/left alone. That basic trend is still used with things like add-on wings (ex: ETC ION fader wing).

The "UNDIMS" probably control(led) constant power to major lighting positions for equipment such as projectors, scene machines, etc. Think of them as non-dims: power that bypasses the dimmers. Whether or not they're still connected is anyone's guess

 

[BillConnerFASTC]

The non-dims were I'm sure relay controlled circuits. They might have been just for whatever a production needed or maybe works, like on an electric.

I thought Kliegl had the rear illuminated plug in pots. Strand had them but can't say in their consoles, because I use to specify them in stage manager panels.

 

[RonHebbard]

The non-dims were I'm sure relay controlled circuits. They might have been just for whatever a production needed or maybe works, like on an electric.

I thought Kliegl had the rear illuminated plug in pots. Strand had them but can't say in their consoles, because I use to specify them in stage manager panels.

In Canada there were at least two, custom, Ward Leonard consoles with internally illuminated, plug-in fader potentiometers. As to Strand, they had similar pots, with a spring-loaded momentary push to meter function, on their IDM-Q (1973) drum memory consoles, basically a close cousin of the British Thorn Q-File consoles.
Toodleoo!
Ron Hebbard

 

[STEVETERRY]

After seeing HUB mentioned several times, I found some old articles from them online. They picture models very similar to the one I have, but not exact. I took another look at the school article with the picture of the light board and noticed that it had a lamp on it that was very similar to the ones found in the HUB articles.

Now that I think about it, the floor pocket covers on the stage might say HUB on them.

After seeing the lamps in the old pictures, I assume that the "console lights" switch/dial controlled them. The "potentiometer illumination" dial controls the lights in the potentiometers and also the ones above the switches. Does anyone know what the taped off part of the light board could have been for? Also, what exactly are the "UNDIM" switches for? I never used them.

You get the prize--it's a Hub console!

ST

 

[STEVETERRY]

The non-dims were I'm sure relay controlled circuits. They might have been just for whatever a production needed or maybe works, like on an electric.

I thought Kliegl had the rear illuminated plug in pots. Strand had them but can't say in their consoles, because I use to specify them in stage manager panels.

Yes, they did. Linear plug-in pots manufactured by Carter.

Performance-wise, they sucked.

ST

 

[Vader0629]

One aspect of the light board and stage panel that confuses me is the switches labeled "Stage/House/Undim Master" <-> "Off" <-> "Independent." Switching them to "off" turns off whatever they control, but what do "Stage/House/Undim Master" and "Independent" do? Do they determine whether the light board or stage panel has priority for that set if both are on?