Moving Heads

@roggerrabit,

That is a DMX splitter. According to the answered questions, this "takes a DMX universe in and just repeats and amplifies the input signal on that cable and sends copies of it to 4 output connectors." In data networking terms it is a hub, not a switch or router.

Normally DMX devices are "daisy-chained" so if one fails in the line, the down stream devices stop. This allows you to send the same DMX data down multiple XLR-style cables.

As far as pros and cons, it may be better for you to get a copy of the user guide to determine if it fits your needs. Me personally, I would have very little use for it. I only have four DMX devices right now and do not run them to multiple remote locations. To save money on cables, I use XLR-to-Cat5 adaptors.

Bottom line, if it solves a specific problem you are having then that is the pro. If you are getting it just to have a gee-whiz device, then that is your call.
 
I do use a DMX splitter in my garden installation - purely because it makes the wiring simpler, and gives some redundancy so if there's a fault on one of the branches the others aren't affected. That's the only pro really, as Tony mentions it doesn't buy you any channels since it's still 1 universe replicated to each of the outputs (512 channels). There are no specifics to moving heads, DMX is a generic protocol that supports all sorts of fixture types.
 
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I want to add 2 moving heads to my show for 2023 but I am not having much luck finding waterproof moving heads. It rains like crazy in Washington during the winter. What brand should I be shopping for?
 
Do you all use anything like QLC+ for DMX, or just Vixen and Xlights? I'm researching whether the FTDI-to-DMX USB dongle going to QLC is a good idea to test moving heads standalone.
 
It will work with QLC+ yes, I have that too. I use QLC+ to get the channel values I wanted to use in Vixen, since you can control the heads with a virtual desk. Note you can't have QLC+ open at the same time as vixen/xlights since each application locks the serial port.

BTW you can buy an USB->RS485 board (FTDI drivers) for next to nothing - same thing as a basic DMX 'dongle' but doesn't come in a nice box or have a DMX socket on it. These boards basically give you a serial port (named COM port number) from a USB port and convert the serial output to a differential signal.
 
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Thanks Ritchie, I bought a USB-FTDI-DMX thing for about 20 euros, hope it works when I get it. Really hoping I can fully marry together ws2811 and DMX.
 
For WS2811 you will want to add a different controller type. There might be such a thing as a DMX->WS2811 converter but you'd be limited to 170 pixels (1 universe - 170x3=510) plus limited to DMX's refresh rate. Or you might use DMX values to control another controller which itself has built in WS2811 'effects'.

You can absolutely run multiple controller types simultaneously from XLights or Vixen. At my place I run the garden lighting shows over a USB dongle (DMX), then for the christmas show I use Streaming ACN (E1.31) controller. The controller (mine is homemade but most commercial ones also do this) can be configured to output universes of DMX and/or WS2811. I could equally keep the garden lights running off the USB->DMX and have just the pixels from the Streaming ACN controller, but it's more convenient just to have the one connection to the computer. My controller has one universe of DMX for the garden lights and moving heads which connects via a normal DMX cable, then everything else runs on WS2811 data.

Do you have a link to the board you bought?
 
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I don't want to hijack (this is about moving heads--not lighting boards), but I inherited a Chamsys QuickQ 10 board for stage lighting, and a Kulp32 for Christmas lighting. Kulp32 absolutely has 2x3 screw terminals for DMX output (ideally it would have had an XLR header). Xlights and Vixen is good for playing your moving heads to sequences, but QuickQ is better for using faders. If people could marry together their DMX (+dumb RGB) and ws2811 and then be able to use faders on it, that means year-round lighting. And then I want the reverse: save off ws2811 animations as chases and cue stacks on stage, and have those co-exist with the moving heads. Once you have that, you can mix & match applications all night, at home or commercial.
 
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