actually jthtiger we tell all of our sales guys to spec. in a DMX opto branch for almost every rig they sell. why? cause it is always best to have your lights electronially isolated. say there is a big thunderstorm that hits and lighting strikes the building im willing to bet you that one of the first things to fry out would be the DMX driver chips in the lights cause they were not isolated. think of it as a surge protector for DMX. snakeman welcome i agree with what jthtiger said i was just adding my two watts on the splitters. so i recommended you still get one. sincerely,