What is needed to connect standard 3/5-pin dmx to a ETC Net2 House?
- Thread starterIvory
- Start date
Thread moved to the Lighting Forum so it is located in the appropriate place. Be sure to stop back by the New Member Board when you get a chance and introduce yourself to the group.
~Dave
~Dave
I think the Net3 gateways no longer natively talk Net2 but need to be special ordered. My 4 port was a special order as example.
@ the OP.
Yes, you will either need to connect via DMX cable directly from the console, or use a Node.
If you have a Net2 node currently, you need to enable Net2 in the setting (shell) of the Element. You then need to get the node configured so the DMX ports are outputting DMX on whatever universes you desire, though 1 & 2 would be typical. Now come the questions, with suggestions attached.
- I'd initially run a direct DMX cable from a DMX port on the Element to the iCue, making sure the device is patched to a channel in the console, with the correct profile and simply test the device to make sure it's responding to console instructions. Then deal with the nodes.
- Is your system an Ethernet system ?, are there Cat 5/RJ45 jacks distributed throughout the facility ?. If so, what happens when you plug a node into a Cat5 jack ?, does it power up and maybe say something like "Output 1-512" above one of the ports ?, and "513-1024" above the second ?. If so, then the node is seemingly ready to transmit to the device and all that's needed is a cable.
- If your node is not configured to send DMX,, doesn't see the network, etc... You will need to setup and configure the node. This is done with ETC software called "Network Configuration Editor" and is something you can install on the Element (or a PC connected to the lighting network). The NCE user manual is here: ETC | Stage Lighting Solutions | Theatrical & Rigging Equipment
You then configure the node so the DMX ports are outputting DMX in the desired universes and dump the config to the node. In theory, the node is now talking to the console and you will (hopefully) see that info reflected in the screen on the node (assuming 2 port. Legacy 4 ports only have LED indicators).
jstandfast
Active Member
The previous poster omits the fact that your going to need a 24v power supply to run the IQ. You'll actually connect your DMX to the power supply( 5 pin XLR ) ,and run power/data to the IQ itself on 4 pin XLR. The IQs are not snobby, they'll work from almost any 24v supply, I run mine on Wybron Forerunner supplies all the time.
Although its not a great idea in general, it is possible for Net2 and Net3 to exist on the same network. A theater I volunteer at just upgraded from Emphasis last year to Ion. The Sensor racks and the original Net2 nodes are still run in Net2, and the Net3 nodes from a few years back run in which ever mode they were configured for last. The CEM+s could have been switched to Net3, but it was decided they wanted every node to be capable of DMX input, and to be able to use the Emphasis server in a pinch (it is still used as the node config host).
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