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Chapter 5: Dimmers - Control Cable - Controllers - Lighting Languages |
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Chapter 5
Intensity Control
Dimmers - Control Cable - Controllers - Lighting Languages
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To being able to control the light is the chief function of a lighting designer. Intensity is one of the most fundamental properties of light that we desire to control. The simple difference between dark and bright is vitally important. It used to be that managing a show's lighting system was with a few switches and handles. Times have changed. Shows are much more complicated and the enormity of the amount of dimmers and channels that need controlling has grown exponentially. This has brought us firmly into the land of the computer and unless yours is a small, simple system, you probably are going to be using a computer lighting controller.
An overview of the components to the control system follows: First is the actual Lighting Controller. This is where the programmer puts the artistic wishes of the Lighting Designer into information to the controlled sources. The Lighting Controller then has to get that information to the dimmers and other devices that are controlled. Today, usually a control cable accomplishes this. Wireless systems have emerged, but while a fun and great idea, they are a little costly and new to people. The last is the actual devices controlled by the lighting controller. Typically, these are dimmers, moving lights, color scrollers, DMX irises, gobo rotators and fog machines.
I would like to take a moment to explain the difference between a dimmer and a channel. Back in the day, when I was young, a dimmer and a channel were practically the same thing. For instance, "Slider One" controlled "Dimmer One" on the light board. Today this is no longer the case. "Slider One" (Channel One) on a lighting controller may operate a number of different dimmers or devices. The device numbers may be soft patched (assigned in the computer) to any channel desired. To put it simply, if there are 24 different dimmers of blue all over the place, but you want them to all come up in channel one, you simply soft patch them that way. This brings up the subject of addressing. Each digitally controlled device must have an address. This address tells it what "dimmer" number it starts with. This is set at the device itself. A handy by-product of this is that you can have a many satellite dimmer packs addressed to the same numbers and they can act as one. Sometimes it is a very economical way of producing a much larger dimmer.
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Different Types of Control Boards and Dimmers
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MANUAL LIGHT BOARDS - Two-scene, preset, light boards are generally the simplest light boards to manage. As long as the lighting is not very complicated then it is probably the way to go. The basic function of a two scene, preset board is to be able to have a "live" scene and a scene "on deck". "Live" means that the settings are what we actually see onstage. "On deck" means that there is a look waiting to be used. You can then cross fade from the "live" scene to the "on deck" scene. This will now make the "on deck" scene the "live" scene and what was the "live" scene is now able to be changed to become the next "on deck" scene. This is how to go from look to look (cue to cue) on a manual two-scene preset.
When deciding which light board to use, remember that each is a little different. You usually can get them in 8-, 12-, 16-, 24- and 36-channel configurations. Once you go above 36-channels, you should really be looking at a memory board (controller). |
Artistic side note...
If there is something you want to do artistically, do not let a limitation of knowledge about how to achieve it stop you. Learn how to manipulate those boards. There is very little that they cannot do. Sometimes it is better to have a designer and a board operator. This way each person can really concentrate on his or her part of the job. Some folks like to do both themselves | |
MEMORY CONTROLLERS - Memory boards are for larger and more complicated productions. While they generally give you the opportunity to use individual sliders to bring up individual dimmers they also offer wonderful ways to group dimmers together that make working larger setups so much easier. The most important part of a memory board is that it also allows you to pre-program cues in a sequential manner. This ability lets an operator hit a "go" button, which then execute a cue. This cue may change one channel or possibly hundreds at one time. It can manipulate channels in a way that no human's ten fingers can.
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The best way to self-educate is to visit the manufacturer's sites and read, read, read. Some of the manufacturers I suggest are ETC, Leprecon and Leviton/NSI. |
MOVING LIGHT BOARDS - When you get involved with moving lights, you will find a need for either a proprietary light board just for the moving lights or a high-end memory board. Moving lights use such a large amount of channels for all of their functions that there really is no way for a two-scene-preset or a small memory board to handle them. You will also find that a joystick is tremendously helpful in getting the light to where you want it. A moving light is generally a unit that has a moving head or a mirror that moves that lets you place the light in different places at different times. It also has the ability to change color, textures, speed and gobos (images). It is very easy to get lost while programming them. Allow for a large amount of practice and programming time. |
ALL PURPOSE LIGHTING CONTROL - Light board sizes and functions vary between manufacturers. While many of them are proprietary to just conventional dimmer or moving lights, there are high-end boards that can do it all. A larger budget is usually needed for this, but just like the PC market, they get cheaper every day. |
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<PC BASED CONTROL - A PC Lighting Controller, as the name suggests, is simply lighting software on a PC rather then on a proprietary light board. In other words, instead of a traditional lighting board, a laptop or a desktop computer is used to run the lights. One advantage is the computers tend to be able to run a lot more channels for less money. The initial downside is getting used to using a mouse for so many functions. It really comes down to personal taste. Some people love it while some people do not. I have had some major successes in doing very complicated cueing with this type of system. The software programs are advancing quickly, including using touch screens almost as if your "Magic Sheet" came alive. It is with this new attribute that I am becoming quite excited about these new systems. I do predict that they will become more and more popular, especially with the dropping prices of laptops.
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LANGUAGE CONVERTORS - translate the data "languages" used by different pieces of equipment. Lighting systems communicate with each other. The light board and the dimmers, color scrollers, fog machines etc, have to understand each other. Just as humans have different languages so do lighting systems. The most common are DMX, AMX, MPX and Analog.
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Satellite Dimmer Packs - are a small and convenient way of getting a small group of dimmers in a particular location. Generally grouped in amounts of 4 or 6 dimmers per pack, they mount where the lights are hung. They are based on a 20-amp circuit per 3 or 4 dimmers. Pay careful attention to the different units as they have different maximums of wattage per pack and dimmer. The control wire will daisy chain from one pack to the next. You can get them in Edison and stage pin configuration. |
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Wall Mount Dimmer Packs - generally are installed racks that mount right on to the wall. They also are generally wired so that the circuits are hard wired right into the dimmers. |
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Rack Mounted Dimmer Packs - fit into a sound rack. You can get them in different power capabilities, languages and plug inputs.
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Portable Racks are self-contained racks that can be brought from place to place. |
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Touring Racks - is a larger portable rack that is on wheels so that it can be moved from gig to gig. |
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Installation Racks - are permanent groups of dimmers. | |
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