Automated Fixtures What is this?

Galen

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My tremendously outdated theater is taking the next couple of weeks to try to incorporate moving lights. I'm borrowing a couple of movers from a friendly vendor today but I'm pretty sure these things are hot, because there's no identification or manuals involved with anything. Sorry to do this the quick and lazy way, but could anybody name this light (and for bonus points, let me know what personality would run it best on an Expression 3?)

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It's a generic Chinese fixture. There is no way anyone other than the owner is going to be able to identify it for sure. These things are pumped out by lots of different vendors in China and most have just enough of a difference that the personalities aren't cross compatible. Your best bet is to get a hold of the person you borrowed them from to get what details you can from them. They should have at least come with a very basic Engrish manual that tells you what channel does which function. From there you'll probably have to build your own profile.
 
No doubt its a chinese one off unit. Doesn't look like a clone of anything, just a standard issue single run unit. No reason why it wouldn't work with your expression 3. Your not going to enjoy the programming process but its doable.
 
My tremendously outdated theater is taking the next couple of weeks to try to incorporate moving lights. I'm borrowing a couple of movers from a friendly vendor today but I'm pretty sure these things are hot, because there's no identification or manuals involved with anything. Sorry to do this the quick and lazy way, but could anybody name this light (and for bonus points, let me know what personality would run it best on an Expression 3?)

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Did it come with chopsticks (left of the fixture)?
 
Did it come with chopsticks (left of the fixture)?
Haha no, those are my personal chopsticks for sushi runs, but that would have been a dead giveaway that they're chinese, as everyone else has said.

Okay, so what I've come up with so far is that most of the personalities do some things but none really handle much, and I haven't had a single one able to bring on the beam itself. Luckily these aren't the lights I'm getting next week, but the owners of those are being similarly cagey about brands.

I have to work on a computer to create/edit personalities, right?
 
Haha no, those are my personal chopsticks for sushi runs, but that would have been a dead giveaway that they're chinese, as everyone else has said.

Okay, so what I've come up with so far is that most of the personalities do some things but none really handle much, and I haven't had a single one able to bring on the beam itself. Luckily these aren't the lights I'm getting next week, but the owners of those are being similarly cagey about brands.

I have to work on a computer to create/edit personalities, right?

It's become a pretty common thing at the bottom end of the market. Depending on the style of fixture you could buy anywhere from 3-10 of a similar generic fixture for the cost of a single name brand fixture. Sure the quality isn't as good, and parts are probably impossible to get. But since you can buy so many more they stretch tight budgets further which can be important for smaller venues and production companies. And when the fixture breaks you just throw it away and pull out the next one.
 
What exactly are you trying to do? Are off-brand, unknown fixtures your only choice?

It's a long story, but today I'm just making certain we can run moving lights with the Expression 3 by using the closest available units. Next week, a nearby center is trading us ten moving lights (4 High End, 2 American DJ, 4 as-of-yet unidentified.)

I've been running through the twelve pre-programmed personalities on the board to see what they'll make the lights do, and the answer is mostly pan and tilt, but I did just get handed an address list for each attribute.

TL;DR I don't have to make this light do anything but I opened the thread to get any information available on it. I'll probably be back with more questions next week.
 
It's a long story, but today I'm just making certain we can run moving lights with the Expression 3 by using the closest available units. Next week, a nearby center is trading us ten moving lights (4 High End, 2 American DJ, 4 as-of-yet unidentified.)

I've been running through the twelve pre-programmed personalities on the board to see what they'll make the lights do, and the answer is mostly pan and tilt, but I did just get handed an address list for each attribute.

TL;DR I don't have to make this light do anything but I opened the thread to get any information available on it. I'll probably be back with more questions next week.

The personalities in the express are going to be useless to you. Unless you are using a VL5 or a Studio Color they won't work. You will have to build a personality for the fixture. If you can't get a channel map easiest thing to do is to punch through dimmer check mode "dimmer by dimmer" and see what you can do.
 
Luckily these aren't the lights I'm getting next week, but the owners of those are being similarly cagey about brands.

This is probably because they don't have a brand name. They are made in a random Won Hung-Lo factory in China. They might have some names like "Move-Head 575", but I have found that this is largely random and isn't written down anywhere other than the fixture itself. I think they draw product names out of a hat and slap them on that day's products. I can see how it would seem suspicious, but more than likely it's just the way these things are shipped. If you're lucky they will have a poorly-translated DMX chart in the box they came in.
 
If your expression 3 has encoders it's pretty smooth once you get down what each channel does.

After you find out the map just make your Fixture Personailty and goto town with your programming.

ETC has legacy software buried lots of clicking and scrolling. Take this and install it on a computer then get yourself a USB floppy and some good HD floppys and build your Personailty then pop it in the Expression and upload the Personailty.

https://www.etcconnect.com/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=10737462837

Now if you don't want to go through all that and or you don't have encoders then it's a lot of + @s and is a pita to do.

GL
 
If your expression 3 has encoders it's pretty smooth once you get down what each channel does.

After you find out the map just make your Fixture Personailty and goto town with your programming.

ETC has legacy software buried lots of clicking and scrolling. Take this and install it on a computer then get yourself a USB floppy and some good HD floppys and build your Personailty then pop it in the Expression and upload the Personailty.

https://www.etcconnect.com/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=10737462837

Now if you don't want to go through all that and or you don't have encoders then it's a lot of + @s and is a pita to do.

GL
Having encoders marginally makes it easier. Not having auto move while dark is your main issue. It's doable but the time it takes is crazy.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
 
Oh man, you should really get yourself an M Touch to save yourself some misery of programming lights on an old ETC.
 

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