Control/Dimming Suggestions for Ion problem

[deltaleader]

Hello Controlbooth, my school just got a new ECT Ion to replace the Colortran 48\96 we had, and I am trying to get our moving light working with it.
I have patched it ( an Elation Focus Spot 250r 8bit) into channel 200, with the addresses 200-208, found the correct device attributes and everything. When I plug the device into the dmx port in one of our torms, I had to use a DMX 5-to-3 pin adapter. it indicates that it is recieving data, but does not respond to any commands from the encoder wheels. In the patch display, I checked the device to be controlled by DMX, EDMX, and A-somthing, as well as default.
Within the Focus Spot's own display and settings, I have enabled the device to be controlled by a controller,

Since the previous board was a Colortran, ColorNet was used to control the dimmers. And because of that, the Ion controls the dimmers by DMX ony, not ethernet or ETC's version of it.

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!!

 

[sk8rsdad]

• Are the Ion, the dimmer rack and the stage jack all on the same universe?
• Is everything directly connected or is there a DMX splitter in the building wiring that might be responsible for illuminating the DMX indicator on the fixture?
• Are there 2 DMX cables connected to the Ion, or just 1? If there are 2 DMX cables connected to the Ion then it is likely the jacks on stage are in another universe. Try patching to 2/200 instead of 200.
• If that fails, try eliminating the building wiring by directly connecting an Elation to one of the Ion DMX ports. Confirm which DMX universe the port is configured to support and patch accordingly.

 

[xander]

Have you by any chance patched each individual dimmer to individual channels? Like you would on the colortran? If this is the case, then you will be able to control the fixture with each channel, but not the encoders. What you have to do is patch the whole fixture into one "tombstone" (I believe is what ETC calls them). This will assign one fixture channel to the whole unit, instead of a channel for each attribute, and then calling up that one fixture will allow you to use the encoders.

If you have patched it correctly, disregard the above...

-Tim

 

[sk8rsdad]

Following up on Xander's observation, there are 2 fixture definitions for the Elation Focus Spot 250R, one for 16-bit and one for 8-bit. There are also fixture personalities for the Focus Spot 250 which are quite different from the 250R. Make sure which ever one you choose matches the settings on the unit.The release notes say:

Set menu option Fine to Off for 16 bit movement Ch 1 - Set menu option
DEGR to 630 for this channel to work correctly Ch 9 - Set menu option
DLOF to On for this channel to work correctly

 

[SteveB]

I had to use a DMX 5-to-3 pin adapter. it indicates that it is recieving data, but does not respond to any commands from the encoder wheels. )

To get best use (and possibly ANY use) of the ML's with the encoders and/or any of the ML functionality of the console, you need to patch them as ML's.

In Patch, select a SINGLE console channel (200 in your case) that you want the Elation to work under. This channel will be the intensity channel and all other functions of the fixtures will be part of what is know as a composite channel.

In Patch, navigate to Type, then Manufacturer, then find Elation and pick the appropriate personality. After choosing the fixture, go to Address and select an appropriate address that is not in the range of the dimmers on that universe. Note that Ion assigns addresses in a range needed for the fixture. You can also range patch by selecting all the Elation channels (if you had 4 fixtures as example) by typing 200 thru 204 Enter and repeating the above steps. Ion will assign all correctly.

IN Live, when you type Ch 200 Full Enter, the encoder wheels populate with the attributes for the fixture.

Also and in general for use of the Ion on a pure DMX system, you would have disabled any network functions in the shell, including Net3, Net2 and ACN, leaving the console as straight DMX. Then you would not be dealing with it on a fixture by fixture basis. If you aren't clear about this, perhaps give ETC tech support a call at 800 688-4116.

 

[deltaleader]

• 
  1. Are the Ion, the dimmer rack and the stage jack all on the same universe?
  2. Is everything directly connected or is there a DMX splitter in the building wiring that might be responsible for illuminating the DMX indicator on the fixture?
  3. Are there 2 DMX cables connected to the Ion, or just 1? If there are 2 DMX cables connected to the Ion then it is likely the jacks on stage are in another universe. Try patching to 2/200 instead of 200.

• 
  
  1. I think the dimmer and ION are on the same universe, but
  2. There IS a separate DMX splitter independent of the ION, but I think it is for the dimmer racks.
  3. Only 1 going into the back of the ION. The cable runs onto the wall to the aforementioned DMX splitter-thingy (sorry for the unprofessional lack-of-a-term term...) Does this mean that the Ion only puts out 1 universe? Tomorrow I will try out the 2/200 address assignment.
  
  
  

  • If that fails, try eliminating the building wiring by directly connecting an Elation to one of the Ion DMX ports. Confirm which DMX universe the port is configured to support and patch accordingly.

  
  Yeah, I hesitate to do this because whenever I did this on the Colortran, it froze and subsequently died... we scrimped and saved for this board, an i'd like to keep it alive as long as possible... but i will keep this in mind as a last resort.
  
  

  Following up on Xander's observation, there are 2 fixture definitions for the Elation Focus Spot 250R, one for 16-bit and one for 8-bit. There are also fixture personalities for the Focus Spot 250 which are quite different from the 250R. Make sure which ever one you choose matches the settings on the unit.

  
  I have the 8bit attributes enables both in the fixture and board. And Yes, I made sure that it was the 250r model.
  
  

  Also and in general for use of the Ion on a pure DMX system, you would have disabled any network functions in the shell, including Net3, Net2 and ACN, leaving the console as straight DMX. Then you would not be dealing with it on a fixture by fixture basis.

  
  So do I have to go into the board and make sure it is operating on a purely DMX basis? It is not plugged into a net3 or net2 or ACN cable, and it shows on the screen "user 1 offline", meaning offline of the internet and Ethernet.
  
  Thank everyone for the suggestions! I am so thankful for pros like yourselves helping out a relative noob like me. Thanks!

 

[millamber]

So do I have to go into the board and make sure it is operating on a purely DMX basis? It is not plugged into a net3 or net2 or ACN cable, and it shows on the screen "user 1 offline", meaning offline of the internet and Ethernet.

The User 1 Offline might be your problem. Offline means the console is running in offline mode and thus not outputting DMX. Exit Ion and when you get back to the shell start back up as Master. That should help.

 

[Corbettlight]

I don't see why connecting the light directly to the console would hurt anything. Maybe your Colortran was just buggy.

 

[starksk]

1. I think the dimmer and ION are on the same universe, but
2. There IS a separate DMX splitter independent of the ION, but I think it is for the dimmer racks.
3. Only 1 going into the back of the ION. The cable runs onto the wall to the aforementioned DMX splitter-thingy (sorry for the unprofessional lack-of-a-term term...) Does this mean that the Ion only puts out 1 universe? Tomorrow I will try out the 2/200 address assignment.

If there is only one cable connected to the console and that is running to a opto-splitter that also sends information to your dimmer racks, changing the universe in the patch is most likely going to not improve the situation because that port will only output one universe at a time.

Yeah, I hesitate to do this because whenever I did this on the Colortran, it froze and subsequently died... we scrimped and saved for this board, an i'd like to keep it alive as long as possible... but i will keep this in mind as a last resort.

This should have no effect on the console's performance (unless there is power coming back on the line, which is unlikely) and would be a good troubleshooting step. If you can connect directly to the console and get control using the second port, you can then begin to look at the wiring inbetween the console and the device in the other situation. If you choose to take this step in troubleshooting, you will want to confirm what universes are outputting on which ports. If you haven't changed them from the defaults, then port 1 will be universe 1 and port 2 will be universe 2. This means you will need to patch the device as 2/200 to control it starting at address 200.

I have the 8bit attributes enables both in the fixture and board. And Yes, I made sure that it was the 250r model.

Making sure that you have selected the right mode on both the fixture and the console is a good step, also make sure that your start address is set to what you intend it to be. (Which is apparently 200?)

So do I have to go into the board and make sure it is operating on a purely DMX basis? It is not plugged into a net3 or net2 or ACN cable, and it shows on the screen "user 1 offline", meaning offline of the internet and Ethernet.

The User 1 Offline might be your problem. Offline means the console is running in offline mode and thus not outputting DMX. Exit Ion and when you get back to the shell start back up as Master. That should help.

If you are not using ethernet (as you have said in previous posts) then this should be of no concern to you. For more information about the offline vs. user offline see this post. [EDIT:] See attached PDF file for a quick explaination of each status indicator[/EDIT]

Thank everyone for the suggestions! I am so thankful for pros like yourselves helping out a relative noob like me. Thanks!

As SteveB suggested, if this is unclear, or presents additional questions, please give us a call at 800-688-4116 during our normal business hours (8-5 CDT M-F) and we can help figure out exactly how things are interacting and talk you through the best solutions.

 

[kiwitechgirl]

You haven't somehow got a pin-swapped adapter, have you? Might be worth checking that the wiring inside your 3-5 is correct...

 

[xander]

Just wondering if the OP could update us on his status? Did you solve your problem?

 

[deltaleader]

I'm not sure if it is a faux pas to bring back posts this old, but i realized that i never posted my solution. It turns out that the Colortran Viewpoint system that, independent of the Ion desk, controls the lights from wall panels around the theater restricts all DMX-512 data to only 199 addresses. only 1 through 199 can be used. For what reason, I don't know, but it does. I ended up having to use addresses below this number, and it worked after that. It's a little frustrating that the company selling the light to us assured us that our system, which they installed, would handle it just fine without having to take up addresses used for dimmers. Oh well. Use the Focus Spot in our previous show and it worked wonderfully! Thanks for all the help, and i apologize if i broke any unspoken rules about resurrecting old threads. Again, Thanks for taking the time to help out those who are just getting started! I really do appreciate your time!

 

[derekleffew]

Thanks for the update, deltaleader. Too many times a question will be asked, solutions proposed, and then...nothing. Personally, I don't mind a necropost, provided it furthers the topic.