Control/Dimming Urgent -Laptop Light control

[Gaurav]

I am designing light for dance show which has long India tour.
Every venue will have different lighting consoles and less get in time .
To save time and inconsistency, Please, I need some suggestion and guidance for the project success.

1. I generally design my shows either Strand 520i or ION/EOS. I am looking for the USB- DMX light controller which has the facility of GO button for triggering the cues and dimmer curves like the said consoles. I heard about Magic Q. Is this controller has the function or which one is the best.
2. The whole tour has very less budget so possibly not looking for expensive controller.
   
3. What do you mean Open USB DMX.

Looking forward for the reply

Thanks
G

 

[derekleffew]

... What do you mean Open USB DMX.

The Enttec Open DMX USB. But spend the extra drachmas on the DMX USB Pro. It's a better device and works with more software.

Here is a list of what software it supports. Some are free; some cost up to USD 500. Probably all, or nearly all, of them will allow you to program a cue stack and trigger off a single button press. But none of them will be identical to the Strand or ETC method of operating.
Chamsys MagicQ is probably the most full-featured, but overkill if you aren't using moving lights. Same for Martin's M-PC.

Perhaps someone with experience can state which software on the Enttec list is closest to 520/Eos methods?

.

 

[Gaurav]

Thank you very much for the information. Could you please explain me , why Magic Q is bit tricky if I am not using Moving lights ?
My lighting plot has only generics , and I already have Magic DMX basic of chamsys , Do you think it will be sufficient for the show which has 95 fixture rig.

Thanks
G

 

[len]

One general consideration with pc based controllers: They can be cumbersome to program conventionals. it's a lot easier to program movers with them. I would suggest that you look for something that has a hardware interface/input, etc. at least for programming the show.

Most pc based solutions allow you to assign any key as a "go" etc. Just make sure that there's a way to skip ahead or go back in case you hit the go key prematurely.

As a pc control user, the arrow keys can be useful for that, space bar as your go, etc.

 

[Gaurav]

hardware interface/input, etc.
Could you please explain bit more
G

 

[dbaxter]

The Enttec USB Pro or the DMX King ultraDMX micro will allow you to you to use Cue Player Lighting software to run your show.

 

[jagwirez]

The Enttec DMX USB Pro works well, but I am now in huge support for the DMXking UltraDMX Micro. Mostly because of the small size compared to the Enttec. I have gotten it to work smoothly with MagicQ and LightFactory v2. Remember when you install it, you need to install the USB-Serial driver first, and then install the USB DMX driver, but all the instructions are at their website. You can get info at dmxking.com. You can usually find the micro on ebay for a better price. Most of them are sold from New Zealand, which usually tacks on $15 shipping. But the latest that I have seen is one for $40 and free shipping (auction only), Dmxking Ultradmx Micro USB DMX Enttec Pro Compatible | eBay. Either the Enttec or the DMXking will get the job done. You'll like them both.

 

[AhClem]

I manufacture the BlueLite X1-Mini (full disclosure) and I'd like to suggest that you take a look at a our product. You can download our software to become familiar it's operation (prior to purchasing the X1-Mini hardware) and if you'd like to experiment you can download the free 'student version' of the Capture Polar visualization software and control a virtual stage using the BlueLite software.
You can use any DMX console as an external control surface (if you prefer to use one rather than a keyboard/mouse control) so you don't need to worry about finding a specific replacement unit duing your tour, should you ever have a hardware console breakdown (we know those never happen :shock .
I'll be happy to answer any question you may have so feel free to e-mail or PM me.