Stage Lighting Controllers

Stage Lighting Controllers

Stage performances are not the same without the proper lighting. Lighting controllers are used to remotely control the light on stage so that the important elements of the presentation are highlighted.

Lighting controllers manage the different lighting components on and around the stage. The controllers direct the on and off function of the lights, dim or make them brighter, or make the lights change color during different stages of the show.

Different types of controllers have different functions, but all of them allow the lights to be automatically changed without the need for a person doing it.

• Sound active - The lights are altered along with the changes in the music or sound.
• Foot pedal - The light can be changed with a pedal controller that is on stage.
• Midi notes - A midi controller is played to pre-create the lighting that will be used during the show on stage.
• DMXIS - This is a PC application that controls lighting with the help of a software.

The DMX console piece is 19 inches in standard length. The product size is approximately 19 x 5 x 2.5 inches (L x W x H). The products usually weighs around 3.5 pounds.

Standard DMX consoles use wires to connect the central device to the lamps. If you prefer to go wireless, you can use this DMX wireless transfer. It wirelessly sends out the signals from the central unit to the lamps. The receivers are plugged into the stage lamps and are controlled from a distance without the help of wires.

Light dimmers are used to lower the brightness of the light. The ones used on stage and in the theatre lighting are high-power units and are used by digital control systems like DMX.

The software that controls the lighting is downloaded on the computer. The USB adaptor connects to the computer and transfers the information from the software to the DMX console unit.

Different types of consoles include:

• Basic LED Consoles - Designed to function for LED fixtures.
• ML Consoles - Controls basic moving lights.
• PC-based Consoles - Have a wide range of fixtures where they can be patched with the channels as the determining factors for the models.