Scott Lumley
Active Member
Hello Control Booth Community,
I've watched these forums for a while now, and finally got around to making an account, but this is the first time I've posted. I have a question about supplying power to ETC ColorSource PAR's.
Currently, we are powering them through non-dim circuits that have standard edison style plugs. Recently though, I've been reading a lot about how bad it is to run "smart" fixtures from a dimmer that is set to "non-dim." Today, I got curious because I didn't think we had any relays in our dimmer room, so I took a look, and it appears that they are dimmers set to "non-dim." If I am right, then this is bad.
Now for my question. If I purchased smart plugs, like the ones you would buy for your home and control from your phone to turn on and off devices, would that be a cheaper alternative to something like the ETC ColorSource Relay (wired version)? I know it would be cheaper, but would it somehow impact the lights negatively?
Please don't attack me, I wouldn't be asking if I could easily go out and buy the more superior device (CS Relay). Yes, I would rather have a relay device made for stage lighting, but I don't live in a perfectly functioning theater. I am going to push for the CS Relays, but if I can't get approval for that, I want an alternative. I get hassled just trying to buy lamps for the conventional fixtures. I have been asked multiple times, "do you really need to buy these lamps?" My response is always "no, as long as you don't mind watching the performance in a blackout."
We only have 12 of the lights, but sometimes they get split up across a couple different rooms depending on the events we have going on. Some of the rooms, I can easily just unplug the lights at the end of the event. Other rooms, I must pull out a ladder, which also may require moving physical objects such as audience seating, or run an extension cord down from the ceiling and across to a plug at floor level, which is a huge eye sore for the production. In the main theater, we do not have a fly system, so it would require running up to the catwalk each time.
For those curious, we have a Colortran/NSI/Leviton lighting system. Yes, we run multiple protocols (ColorNet, Luma-Net, and DMX) that all get converted by a magical little temperamental network protocol converter to output to our dimmer racks as DMX. We have a couple different dimmer modules, one is Leviton 4-0012E and the other is 4-0023E each for use with Colortran iSeries e Dimmer Racks. Some of these modules are set to be non-dims with 40% set as the non-dim activation. They are setup to power some fluorescent and LED lighting in our catwalks, stairwells, and entryways and seem to mostly work well for those, but I fear they may cause harm to our ColorSource PAR's, which are more expensive to fix.
Sorry, I talk too much, but I greatly appreciate any advice you all may have. And please remember to be kind. Thanks!
I've watched these forums for a while now, and finally got around to making an account, but this is the first time I've posted. I have a question about supplying power to ETC ColorSource PAR's.
Currently, we are powering them through non-dim circuits that have standard edison style plugs. Recently though, I've been reading a lot about how bad it is to run "smart" fixtures from a dimmer that is set to "non-dim." Today, I got curious because I didn't think we had any relays in our dimmer room, so I took a look, and it appears that they are dimmers set to "non-dim." If I am right, then this is bad.
Now for my question. If I purchased smart plugs, like the ones you would buy for your home and control from your phone to turn on and off devices, would that be a cheaper alternative to something like the ETC ColorSource Relay (wired version)? I know it would be cheaper, but would it somehow impact the lights negatively?
Please don't attack me, I wouldn't be asking if I could easily go out and buy the more superior device (CS Relay). Yes, I would rather have a relay device made for stage lighting, but I don't live in a perfectly functioning theater. I am going to push for the CS Relays, but if I can't get approval for that, I want an alternative. I get hassled just trying to buy lamps for the conventional fixtures. I have been asked multiple times, "do you really need to buy these lamps?" My response is always "no, as long as you don't mind watching the performance in a blackout."
We only have 12 of the lights, but sometimes they get split up across a couple different rooms depending on the events we have going on. Some of the rooms, I can easily just unplug the lights at the end of the event. Other rooms, I must pull out a ladder, which also may require moving physical objects such as audience seating, or run an extension cord down from the ceiling and across to a plug at floor level, which is a huge eye sore for the production. In the main theater, we do not have a fly system, so it would require running up to the catwalk each time.
For those curious, we have a Colortran/NSI/Leviton lighting system. Yes, we run multiple protocols (ColorNet, Luma-Net, and DMX) that all get converted by a magical little temperamental network protocol converter to output to our dimmer racks as DMX. We have a couple different dimmer modules, one is Leviton 4-0012E and the other is 4-0023E each for use with Colortran iSeries e Dimmer Racks. Some of these modules are set to be non-dims with 40% set as the non-dim activation. They are setup to power some fluorescent and LED lighting in our catwalks, stairwells, and entryways and seem to mostly work well for those, but I fear they may cause harm to our ColorSource PAR's, which are more expensive to fix.
Sorry, I talk too much, but I greatly appreciate any advice you all may have. And please remember to be kind. Thanks!