hey guys this is a post from the ADJ forums of a buddy of mine and he was wondering:
"I'm in the process of making some modifications to my rig, and will have the need to operate DMX dimmers in conjunction with my regular fixtures.

Now, I operate my rig during live musical performances, where set lists are not always followed and there is a consistent need for the addition of punches and scene selection on the fly. So, cue lists are basically out of the question.

I currently use the Show Designer to operate the intelligents and another system to operate traditional par cans. I'm looking to consolidate the rig into an entirely DMX operation, but will still have the need to introduce 'punches'and specials on the fly in conjunction with my regular intelligent scenes.

While the show designer does not have submaster momentary bump buttons to meet my needs, is there some other way to retain the operation of my programmed scenes and then add punches and par specials on the fly?

Could I just add the dimmers as another fixture or two, and then use the faders on the fly?

My initial thoughts would be to only keep the dimmers active under the 'fixture' section, but I can't remember if my intelligents will still respond to scene commands if they are not active under the 'fixture' section.

As always, thoughts are greatly appreciated!"
thanks to anybody that can lend any advice. sincerely,

Hi Jingles.

The showdesigner 1 and Showdesigner 2 are basically moving light consoles, the really are not intended for shows where a user will be using both intells and par cans on the fly.
All the SD1 and SD2 can do is moving lights, plus par can chases.

This is why we deleloped the Show Designer 3. The SD3 will do everything your buddy needs. Its intended for both Intels and par cans plus cue stacking and playback faders.

Best regards,

Hey John/Jingles - Thanks for the assistance and information. I would love a SD3.

So I take it that if I were to add a DMX dimmer as another fixture and only keep the dimmer selected under the 'fixture' section (for live on the fly control via faders), my moving lights would stop responding to scene/chase commands because they are not selected as 'active', correct?

I guess the easiest route would be to get a second smaller DMX par controller and just run two separate DMX systems, but that entails another data run.

Looking at the DMX Operator Pro, I notice that it only supports 8 fixtures. I already have 8 fixtures, but need to add dimmers. So, do DMX dimmers count as fixtures or are they in addition to the 8 moving fixtures?

You guys rock.

hey lightech! NP.also the op pro supports eight intels and eight par cans aswel. there is a seperate side of the console strictly for pars! that might suit your needs better, check out the manual online and see if it does anything for you. sincerely,

Looking at the OP PRO manual, I do not see any type of 'beam preset' function.

This is a crucial feature that I need to be able to work in a variety of locations without having to re-program dozens of scenes. With beam presets, I only have to modify a handful of settings to have dozens of scenes updated automatically because those scenes reference those beam presets.

Am I correct in assuming that this console does not offer this feature?

i don't believe it does but im not 100% on this.
sounds like you need Compu Live! lol j/k. or a SD3!