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[jharlow]

Looking for some recommendation for a light board. First off, the budget is for a Church, so already you should know, we are not with unlimited funds We are currently in a temporary venue so after the service, we must pack all the equipment.

What we are looking for is

16/32 Channel board (Currently looking at getting 8-12 Lights, mostly PARs)
Programmable scenes with Battery backup
Portable
120 Volt (standard power plug)
Master slider
Electronic a plus (LED with % of light on the current channel)
Fade Control and timer

Recommend brands, models, dealers please. Also if you know of places that sale used stuff on the web, that would be great too.

Sorry a newbie to all of this... We currently have a board with these options however we have to return it in a few weeks. Any suggestions, comments, questions?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Nick S.]

I can personally recommend the Zero88 Alcora, a small (and quite cheap) console made by Zero88 - it's got an RRP of $790. It fulfills all but one of your criteria:

12/24 or 24/48 Channel board available
Programmable scenes, writes to "hard" memory, so battery backup not needed (I've had cues on one Alcora stay on for well over a year without any power)
Portable with carrying handle
120 Volt (US Version)
Master slider
Fade Control and timer

However, it doesn't have LED reading for percentages of the lights (the LED on it shows the cue number)...

[Rob Timmerman]

As far as consoles go, I'm a fan of the Leprecon 624 for smaller shows.  Simple, capable, and rugged.  Goes for around $1k for the DMX version.  

Do you already own dimmer packs, or will you be getting them when you get the console?

[jharlow]

Will be purchasing dimmer packs as well. Do dimmer packs need to match the console?  Thanks for both of the recommendations.

[Nick S.]

No, dimmers don't have to "match" the console, if by match you mean be the same brand - as long as the dimmers are controlled by DMX (and have the relavant features associated with DMX, namely the ability to select a start address) you'll be OK.

However, getting the same brand of console and dimmer might give you extra features, such as dimmer diagnostic information being displayed by the console (however, this feature is normally found on more advanced consoles than the type you're looking to purchase).

It is still worth checking with both manufacturers if there are any known problems with your chosen dimmer and console before purchasing though...

[Rob Timmerman]

If you are purchasing dimmers and a console at the same time, you have a few more options.  Depending on which console you get, you may have the option of using MPX instead of DMX, saving some money, but losing some upgradability in the future.  Microplex limits your options to NSI, Leprecon, and Lightronics, but saves you money on cable (uses ordinary mic cable instead of more expensive DMX designed cable), dimmers, and consoles.  If you need to upgrade in the future to interace with DMX devices, you can get a MPX-DMX convertor for about $300.  Given that you'll save about $100/widget by going MPX instead of DMX, that might be a cost-effective option.

Dimmer packs to look at:
Leprecon LP-360 series
NSI/Leviton DDS series
Lightronics AS series (afaik, LMX=MPX)

fwiw, Rob

[Ray Abbitt]

Rob T wrote on Wed, 21 April 2004 16:50

If you are purchasing dimmers and a console at the same time, you have a few more options.  Depending on which console you get, you may have the option of using MPX instead of DMX, saving some money, but losing some upgradability in the future.  Microplex limits your options to NSI, Leprecon, and Lightronics, but saves you money on cable (uses ordinary mic cable instead of more expensive DMX designed cable), dimmers, and consoles.  If you need to upgrade in the future to interace with DMX devices, you can get a MPX-DMX convertor for about $300.  Given that you'll save about $100/widget by going MPX instead of DMX, that might be a cost-effective option. fwiw, Rob

Actually the cost of the convertors has dropped thanks to John Emerson. http://www.dmx-tools.com/productindex.html His DMX-lator I (DMX-MPX) and DMX-lator II (MPX-DMX) are available for under $200 each. He's also coming out with convertors for DMX-10v analog (and vice versa) and DMX to/from AMX192. Or if you want to go real cheap, he even has schematics on his web pages and will even help anybody that wants to build them themselves.

(I don't work for John, I'm just a satisfied user of his products)

-ray

[jharlow]

Does this model save the scenes even when power is removed from it? At this point I believe we are lending towards this model and that is option is a requirement. Also any recommended dealers that will be able to work with a church?

[Rob Timmerman]

Most (all that I've run across)of the current smaller memory boards store their memories in a nonvolatile memory. No backup batteries, no memory loss.  The Leprecon 600 series is one of these, able to retain memories even if the power is disconnected.

[jharlow]

Any thoughts on NSI/Leviton Boards, model MC7024?


I like the Lepercon,but this board is more reasonable price.