Jon T Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 Hey. I was wondering if there is such a unit that will allow me to plug about 2 or 3 smoke machines together with IEC connectors so I can operate all the machines using just 1 controller?. I dont want to use DMX in the process. any help would be greatcheers jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ike Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 To be honest I'm not very familiar with non-DMX smoke machines however I did think they used an extra low voltage control. If this is the case it would not be a good idea to use IEC connectors for it. If you mean using the controller and IEC cables to simply switch the power on and off I would again advise against this as most smoke machines take time to warm up and do not like being switched on and off. Do you want to be able to control the smoke machines seperatly? If not you may be able to connect them all in parallel to a single controller. If you want separate control over each one you may have to build your own controller. To give you any more information we would probably need the make and model of the smoke machines you intend to use. In short there probably is a way but it probably doesn't use IEC cables. Just out of curiosity why do you not want to use DMX? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon T Posted April 3, 2004 Author Share Posted April 3, 2004 Lets say we are using XLR instead of IEC then. We are using non DMX because where we are putting on the show doesnt have DMX and it is going to be someone on stage controlling the machines. We dont want them running seperatley, we want them on at the same time at different places on the stage. Thats why we want 1 controller to controll all. cheersjon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 It's going to depend a bit on the type of smoke machine. For instance my Le Maitre G100 has a wired remote which works on a 1/4" mono jack. Down two wires they get a smoke on signal, a mains present LED signal, a ready LED signal and a variable smoke control. To allow for remote operation I have modified it by adding a small 12v relay in the handheld box, across the smoke on push button. By adding an external wall-wart which gets plugged into a dimmer output I can remote operate the machine. You'll need to do something similar but without knowing the ins and out of the macines you are using it not possible to advise further. Actually could you not use machines with cabled remotes and bring all the remotes to one place on stage? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jivemaster Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 The cheap disco smokers use mains on the remote you could build a box with a multi pole change-over relay to isolate the smokers cos when one goes off to reheat unless isolated it will inhibit the others. Easy answer is a small pc of wood to press all the remotes at the same time, or is that too low tech!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Light Console Posted April 3, 2004 Share Posted April 3, 2004 Right, I made a remote for my Antari by figuring out how the switch works (IE which cables (out of 3) need to be closed to make it work, and which is for the lamp indicator) !BEAR IN MIND THAT FOR THIS MACHINE, THE SWITCH IS AT MAINS POTENTIAL! From this, a small box was made, with a mains rated relay inside, connected to the Normally Open, or NO connections. This was a failsafe so if the circuit fails, you don't end up with a smoke machine on full! This was then taken to a 8pin din socket, and then to my demux. You could take the leads to a switch remotely. DO NOT COMBINE IEC's OF REMOTES. However, you can have a relay for each as above, or even on one multipole relay, then wire it back to one switch (as long as your power supply was up to it!)Hope this helps.Robert. PS Brian, I have never heard of a wall-wart before, I like that very much! :D Also the Antari above was not a variable output type. If it was, you would need to leave part of the remote intact, and break the circuit over the switch, take that to the relay. I think! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Steve Posted April 28, 2004 Share Posted April 28, 2004 Certain machines let you slave out to another machine so you can control all via one remote, again it depends what you're using Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew C Posted April 29, 2004 Share Posted April 29, 2004 As long as the machine doesn't multiplex the signal, it should be fairly easy. IE the Rosco 1500 uses a 7 core cable and you only need to work out which core does what, and use diodes to combine/split the control signal. (Thinks to self, does it use DC or AC, sorry can't remember) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted April 29, 2004 Share Posted April 29, 2004 Quick note to stress that, as someone else has mentioned, some smoke machines do have mains remote controls. LeMaitre Optimist comes to mind as I once made a remote for one. Be sure to check out exactly what the situation is with your smoke machines before trying to make something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted April 29, 2004 Share Posted April 29, 2004 Brian, It's going to depend a bit on the type of smoke machine. For instance my Le Maitre G100 has a wired remote which works on a 1/4" mono jack. Down two wires they get a smoke on signal, a mains present LED signal, a ready LED signal and a variable smoke control. To allow for remote operation I have modified it by adding a small 12v relay in the handheld box, across the smoke on push button. By adding an external wall-wart which gets plugged into a dimmer output I can remote operate the machine.Do you mean you didn't reverse-engineer the control protocol they use and make your own remote (or DMX interface)??? :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.