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Author Topic: Wich DMX software to use?  (Read 2035 times)

Alexandre Pelletier

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Wich DMX software to use?
« on: October 07, 2020, 11:01:15 PM »

Hi, I'm a student helping the A/V guy at my school and we have an old elation compu 1024ec interface to control 4 moving heads and we use elation compu live 2006 on an old windows xp laptop to control that but windows xp is really old and the software isn't really working on newer versions of windows so I would like to know are any of you familiar with this interface or software and know if we should buy a new interface, try to run it on Windows 10, try other softwares, or stick with what we have?

Thanks in advance.
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Jeff Lelko

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Re: Wich DMX software to use?
« Reply #1 on: October 08, 2020, 08:27:55 PM »

Hi Alexandre, and welcome to PSW.  A few things to consider:

1) If it's not broken, don't fix it.  Windows XP is certainly dated but not yet 100% obsolete.  The IT experts here can certainly explain why surfing the web with Windows XP might be ill-advised, but otherwise if all the computer does is run CompuLive and still does so reliably I wouldn't mess with it.  I still occasionally shoot pyro with a Panasonic ToughBook running Windows XP - just proof that old doesn't necessarily mean bad so long as reliability isn't compromised.

2) If you're going to spend money on an upgrade, make it count.  There are lots of modern lighting control programs that could significantly benefit you, especially if you do or plan to control more than just 4 moving heads.  A lot of these have programming and playback wings available for tactile control which really helps. 

3)  ETC is more or less the gold standard when it comes to theatrical lighting control.  Their software offering is called Nomad and their basic USB-DMX interface right now is the Gadget II.  I own this setup myself for instances where pulling out my full-sized console isn't necessary.  ETC also offers a student bundle of this (last time I checked) for only $250 - very hard to beat for the name, support, pedigree, and capabilities that you'll get for that money. 

4) Speaking of money, how much budget do you have to spend?  Professional lighting solutions get expensive fast. 

Hope this helps!
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John L Nobile

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Re: Wich DMX software to use?
« Reply #2 on: October 09, 2020, 11:04:12 AM »

If the software works for you and you want to get by with a very small investment, re-install Windows XP from scratch and just use that computer to run your lighting app. The computer will run like it was new. If you can swap out the HD for an SSD and add more RAM, even better.

If you have money to spend, it's different story and I defer to members that actually know about lighting. I'm just an operator.
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ProSoundWeb Community

Re: Wich DMX software to use?
« Reply #2 on: October 09, 2020, 11:04:12 AM »


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