How to decide on lighting controller

Compu show.
what is your overall budget?
Sincerely and welcome to the forums,

We are spending approximately $8,000 on lighting including 12 led par 64s, 3 mini moving heads, 5 colour led bars, follow spot, mixing board, dimmer packs, haze machine. We are also doing some sound and video upgrades for a total of approx $20,000.

Are you opposed to computer controlled Lighting? We have several options. We also have some good hardware options. Magic 260 is a good controller. but the software's can do more and i believe in a shorter amount of time. But that's just my opinion. some people programmer faster on different controllers. Let me know what your thinking.
Sincerely,

Hey James we are more inclined at this point to steer away from computer controlled processes. All our av team are volunteers and they are more comfortable with sliders and buttons as we run a an analog mixing board.
michael

Hi Maw,
The console is pretty much the engine of your lighting rig.
Its like buying a Porche with a hundai engine??

and yes there are consoles that are inexpensive but what you need to look at is you have
20 inteligent lighting fixtures
dimmer packs = par cans
haze machine
Follow spot will not be on console

That alone calls for a Magic 260 or better.
Magic 260 controls 24 fixtures.
I would go so far as to say that the magic 260 will be the least expensive console for your rig in our line of consoles.

best regards,

I have some DMX follow spots. They control color and intensity. Focus, iris and aim are all handled by resident meatbags behind the fixture.

But I digress.

Computer controlled can be the way to go. Even if you've got die-hard analog junkies(I love analog audio), products like Compu Show, once set up, are great to use and super friendly. Well, maybe Compu Live, which I am going to download and learn between now and my next show gig, which will be for a trio of industrial bands.

Costs? Well, if you consider what you get in software vs. what you'd have to spend on a desk, well, software usually wins. Also, you can label stuff better in software, letting even newbies with short training feeling comfortable fast.

Not to discount what John is saying, but I would think if you're already at the limit with the recommended console, carefully consider that before buying. The right match now may be a big mistake if you're planning future upgrades, depending on the ugprades. It's often better to purchase at least one level over what you need now to allow for growth and expansion. The other option is to expand, buy a second desk and then deal with selling off the old one.

So, keep in mind that Elation has software and hardware solutions.

To John and Chris, what would you guys recommend for us in terms of both a console and computer controlled software, and with the latter what do I need in hardware to support the software?
I really appreciate your help with this!!!
michael walker
operations pastor
christian victory church

Hey guys I have been looking at the elation showdesigner1....thoughts on this unit? From what you have said the magic 260 is not big enough for us to grow with...would this unit? But still open to the software side of things; I have been watching some tutorials and can see the advantages!
thanks michael

hi maw, the Show designer is only a 16 fixture console. the magic 260 is a 24 fixture console.
The Show designer 1 is really nice, it is easy to use and has chase show and scene modes.

You can't really use a show designer or magic 260 with a software.
because they are both controllers.

It's either one or the other.

Software hardware combination I would highly recommend Emulation and Midi Con. Makes a great power full console with 48 fixture control

I agree with Elation Pro. Emulation with a MIDIcon is a very good combo for control.

Guys, forgive me for asking perhaps naive questions....but if I went with emulation software do I still need a separate board to run the light or can I set up and operate the lights from the computer through the software? Secondly the idea of having some preset scenes, washes, chases is very appealing to help us get started; does emulation come with any of that. I am leaning to the software from what I am seeing particularly given the cost to get something like showdesigner 1 which is probably not big enough for us to grow with and the huge cost jump in showdesigner 3 which is beyond our budget...unless there is something in between I am missing with respect to intelligent controllers? Again thankyou gentlemen for your help with all this!!! michael

I can understand that you want something on the hardware front. A lot of churches that I have worked in need the ability for basically anyone to be able to walk in and throw up a couple of faders to get some light on. I also work in a lot of schools that need this as well.

Thinking down that same line of thought, I am MUCH faster programing wise on a hardware console then a software based one. I have been getting spoiled lately and been given GrandMA 2 Light's to work with . Physical interfaces setup to do lighting control and only lighting control can be much more ergonomically friendly.

So with the above in mind, have you looked at the Show Designer 2? It is expandable up to 48 fixtures, so you have room to grow. It is a hardware controller, so you can assign the faders to be scenes and bring up groups of lights as needed for people. You also don't have to worry about someone having to turn on a computer, launching the right program, hoping everything is connected correctly, and then having them hit the right thing to try and turn on just a basic stage wash. Lastly, you can save your settings and/or different settings to compact flash cards so you don't have to worry about someone blowing out the board. Different settings would be great for when you simply need lights up and down and don't want anyone trying to mess with the moving lights (just leave them unpatched in that show). Cost wise, it is also half as much as an SD3 (MSRP price wise).

Personally, I think that is your best bet for the situation you are in.

I'm dealing with a local school. I'm trying to learn their system, while trying to modernize them.

With the right set-up, it shouldn't be a big deal to get people to walk up to a properly set up software solution and start getting things happening.

Coupled with that, I intend to do training each year, at least twice a year. I also intend to be at virtually all school events to help ensure this stuff works properly. However, when my youngest leaves that school(that kid just got born, so it's gonna be a a while), I'm moving on/elsewhere. As my kids spread out across multiple schools, I'll be involved in helping multiple schools get modern and efficient.

Hello, I am currently using the dmx192 and have a few questions about an upgrade. We currently are using 22 irradiant vivid 2's for multiple uses and 8 source 4's. I am looking for something with better response when doing a live show ex. weddings. Most importantly i need something thats not going to blackout when shifting from chase/auto to a plain scene..thx

Hello Craig, Sorry for the delay. Your looking to upgrade your controller. Do you still want a hardware controller or are you willing to use a PC or mac for lighting control? Let us know.
Sincerely,