HELP! Fed up with Lehigh

Just for the record, Lehigh is not pissed off at anyone nor am I. I have seen this scenario before. I just not the type to let something like this go unchallenged. The CPM312 systems that Celebration Mike referred to is an older version, today we have the most friendly, intuitive Touch Screen Master Station (by the way, Celebration Mike was referring to Houselight Control not the Stage Lighting Console). As a Lighting Designer, I am sure you understand that it is an industry with a whole lot of alternatives out there. One alternative for anyone with a problem with a Lehigh system is to contact Dave Reppert our Service Manager at the number listed above or log on to our website under Service. We have thousands of systems installed around the country and relatively few complaints. I am simply suggesting that should you run into a problem, whether it's with ETC, Stand, Lehigh or one of the other companies, contact the proper party before you give that company a black eye on the blogoshpere.
 
...It happened to Colortran years ago when part of Las Vegas burned down and it was linked to their ENR design...
Whoa there--we're rather sensitive about the discussion of fires in Las Vegas.:(

I'm sure you just missed a word or two, but allow me to clarify. A large hotel/casino's convention center had an installation with new-to-market Colortran ENR dimmers in several dimmer rooms. In fact, the entire property was Colortran, a couple of thousand dimmers, and a mixture of ENR and D192, due to when specs were written. Approximately five years after the initial installation, in one of the convention center's many dimmer rooms, one ENR rack caught on fire. The hotel's fire suppression system worked as designed, and property damage was minimal. No human injuries occurred. Colortran replaced all ENR dimmers on the property with their older D192 models. These were eventually replaced by ETC Sensor dimmers in phases over the next seven to twelve years.

I never drew the conclusion that this incident triggered the subsequent bankruptcy, buyout by Lee, and buyout again by NSI, but I suppose its possible/probable. All involved have moved on, having learned from their mistakes.
 
Yeah it was more of a joke, I don't personally have anything against you or Lehigh, and I didn't see your post as being overly aggressive. I checked out the website after you posted and Lehigh does have some good looking products. I also did a literature request in hopes of finding out more about the consoles. I've been looking for a small slider station for a while now (EDI used to have the Designer Series, but I haven't seen it on their website lately), but all I ever found was DJ oriented stuff. Lehigh has what I'm looking for and I might dig a little deeper and see if I can find a price on one. (PM me if you can help!).

Stageleft, I'd personally like to hear about the Las Vegas fire. I haven't heard that story before. My local community theatre has '95 model ENR racks installed. The card went out in one, but other than that, no fires :).

EDIT: Derek beat you to it.
 
I've gone off on this rant in the past. Some of us on the board only play with big boy toys. Some of us on the board aspire so much to use big boy toys, we think that if it isn't EOS it's crap. That simply isn't the case. There is a lot of good equipment out there that although not suitable for Vegas or Broadway, is perfectly matched for applications like schools and churches. It would be wonderful if we could all have three or four racks of sensor dimmers. But we can't. Many of us can only afford a couple dozen dimmers from EDI, Lehigh, NSI, Dove, and others in that midrange. While we've never been able to agree on which is the best of this range of products, we can all agree it's much better than the Chinese crap on e-bay.

The desire to have the most expensive toys at times leads us to be techno snobs. If you've been around a while you've seen the posts where people complain that good equipment from only a few years back are crap. In the past year I remember threads bashing the Strand 300, Altman 360Q's, and Allan and Heath sound boards... even the ETC Express took a few shots once. We can't all afford the latest stuff. You have to start somewhere, and often it's on older gear that someone hasn't treated right or didn't know what they were doing. Do you know what you are doing with it? Are you sure? It's easy to right something off as being junk, that way you don't have to take responsibility for not knowing how to operate and maintain it. As a good technicians it should be our goal to diagnose the problem and find out why someone thinks it's junk and see if we can help teach them how to use it better. Like Naimad said, Did anyone call the manufacturer's tech support?
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Les
I have learned when hiring techs if they are always complaining about problems with the gear, its probably something wrong with them. Especially when i have used the exact rig the show before and the show after and never had any problems.
 
I have learned when hiring techs if they are always complaining about problems with the gear, its probably something wrong with them. Especially when i have used the exact rig the show before and the show after and never had any problems.



I remember hearing over the comm system once that a problem that was going on with lighting was sourced between the lighting desk and the chair.
 
I remember hearing over the comm system once that a problem that was going on with lighting was sourced between the lighting desk and the chair.
I've heard, and repeated, that line many times. IT/MIS people call it PEBKAC* error.



*Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair.
 
I am the unwilling victim of a Lehigh Collage Expanded Mode CPM Programmable Station. I've tried for a few years to get this thing working, and I've finally given up. The system includes two 3X12 stations, 5 remotes and more bugs than my grade school ant farm.
Since this is installed in a church, budget is always a challenge. I've read through the forum and would love to go out and get a Strand or ETC, (and I plan to get a quote), but based on what I've read, I'm petrified as to how expensive it will be.
The lehigh system has three panels with breakers that control all house lighting and the previously mentioned stations. Any recommendations on a church type system that can control up to 36 light fixtures and offer some basic programmable settings?
Oh yeah, actually working is also a consideration!

Thanks,

Mike
Would you be willing to get rid of a remote faceplate? We did a full remodel and the faceplate walked out the front door!
 
Would you be willing to get rid of a remote faceplate? We did a full remodel and the faceplate walked out the front door!

You are aware this is what is known as A "necro post", in that the last response was in 2008, a full 14 years ago ?
 
Ha! for a second, I read that as C/PM, which was the forerunner of DOS! (painful programming memory) Anyway, there have been a number of threads dealing with the Lehigh dimmers, don't remember any having a happy ending. First question, is this a theatrical or architectural (or mix of both) lighting system?

EIDT: Wow Gaff, you beat me by one minute! Anyway, same things I was thinking.
Err...

That would be CP/M, not C/PM. We need to maintain historical computer nerd accuracy. :)
For extra points, what was the WordStar control key sequence for underscore?

ST
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back