OK: Horizon Software: Good stuff, from what I've heard. But I would NEVER take a PC software console over a hardware console for conventional. For movers, I'd take Hog PC. But never for conventional. It's a matter of stability, IMO. You have to think about how often PC's crash or mess up. Consider that.
I really have to thank someone for making me look in to the SmartFade, I really like it after playing with it. It's extraordinarily easy to use, and priced lower than it's NSI and Leprecon counterparts.
I would do the horizon with a wing way before going with the smartfade. The smartfade is a jazzed up two scene, and there is really no point to running without a monitor anymore, especially with any type of scroller or any other light with an attribute of any type. PM Van on this board (or he will be around). He has alot of experience with the horizon system. If all you have on the PC is the horizon system, and you don't have it hooked up to the net, it should run for a very long time without any issue. That being said, don't buy a POS computer.
I prefer the scroller route, but to each his own. I believe the a par64 with a 1k lamp in it is brighter then anything most comparably priced LED's will run.
You will need an opto splitter if you do not have a DMX through on your dimmers or if it does not have a through your console only has one output (which I believe the MX does not have). Any DMX opto isolator splitter will work, the DF one you post will work great, though you can get them cheaper if you look around a bit.
several companies make them and they are insanely easy to use, just plug the line from your board into the in and in the outs one line to the dimmers and one to the chain of scrollers/led pars. But if you have a dmx through on your dimmer rack (as just about all do) that rout would be free which is even better.
As for the par/vs led, since the space is significantly smaller I think leds would be a better bet, mainly because the lack of noise involved which would be very noticeable with the scrollers.
Nothing can beat scrollers or straight gels for amber and "warm white," but the scrollers are going to make an intolerable amount of noise in your small space. I am at a loss. Another option that has not been suggested yet is this: Get enough par cans to create a RAB (Red Amber Blue) was across the stage (3 cans per area), so that you can use amber, blue, red, or any shade of those colors mixed together. I'm thinking that you really won't be pulling out solid green much, and a RAB mix makes much more theatrical colors. So, if you have 4 lighting areas across the stage, you get 12 par cans, 3 for each area. But this again brings up the issue of 3 control channels of colors which your system does not support.
So basically, LED pars will get you all colors except a warm amber and a warm white, both of which are pretty critical to theater. If you've ever used RGB cyc lights you know what I mean, and you know what kinds of colors you can make.
Nothing can beat scrollers or straight gels for amber and "warm white," but the scrollers are going to make an intolerable amount of noise in your small space. I am at a loss. Another option that has not been suggested yet is this: Get enough par cans to create a RAB (Red Amber Blue) was across the stage (3 cans per area), so that you can use amber, blue, red, or any shade of those colors mixed together. I'm thinking that you really won't be pulling out solid green much, and a RAB mix makes much more theatrical colors. So, if you have 4 lighting areas across the stage, you get 12 par cans, 3 for each area. But this again brings up the issue of 3 control channels of colors which your system does not support.
So basically, LED pars will get you all colors except a warm amber and a warm white, both of which are pretty critical to theater. If you've ever used RGB cyc lights you know what I mean, and you know what kinds of colors you can make.
Well, if you have two lights in the rest of your rig that are never turned on separately, you can patch those two together. On the Strand MX in our blackbox (it's the actor's console for when they're doing theater projects, our actual show console is an express 250 up in the booth), we have up to 3 fixtures/3 dimmer channels patched to one fader. This way you could free up some faders.
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