lonemorf Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 About a year ago I posted a thread about a rig I was assembling for my daughters school, and I got some quite harsh feedback of what I had in mind. So advice taken on board, and the collection is growing. We have got control sorted, with a GrandMA OnPC command wing (nice guys at Ambersphere sorted my daughter a days training out, which was *really* nice of them), and the fixture list is now looking better, I have binned the GoldenScan HPEs, and been building as per below 6x Mac 300 washes4x Miniscan HPEs 36x RGB Cans2x Stage Zoom 1200s Now, I have been buying up as much DMX cable as the ever dwindling funds allow, but the long runs that are going to be needed in the future are making me start thinking that Wireless DMX may be an option. Now, I have had a google and there seem to be mixed reviews. Is this down to the product? Cheap ebay stuff = bad, something decent = good? If so, whats decent? What are people using with success? Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timsabre Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 You can't beat a piece of wire for reliability... if your problem is simply lack of long DMX cables, wireless DMX is not the correct solution. Wireless DMX comes into its own where you can't run cables, e.g. lighting the architecture in a church or round a building or in a public space where cables would be a hazard. If it is permanently in or not moved very often, use cat5 cable (computer network cable) to make up your long runs, it's cheap but won't take a lot of pulling and flexing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonemorf Posted August 9, 2015 Author Share Posted August 9, 2015 Cat5 for DMX? Forgive my ignorance, but isnt impedence important to DMX cable? If not, hell, Im in!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbuckley Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 Cat5 for DMX? Forgive my ignorance, but isnt impedence important to DMX cable? If not, hell, Im in!!!Cat5 is fully approved for DMX (actually, DMX512-A, the latest standard) with a colour scheme, and RJ45 pinouts and everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonemorf Posted August 9, 2015 Author Share Posted August 9, 2015 Well, thats that decided then!. Just out of curiosity, I read a load of articles on the difference between audio XLRs and DMX XLRs, and some differences in their reliability in a DMX chain - how has it come about that cat 5 (next to zero impedence) has become useable in the DMX world? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrV Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 Well, thats that decided then!. - how has it come about that cat 5 (next to zero impedence) has become useable in the DMX world?Where did you get that from?! Cat 5 characteristic impedance is 100ohms and DMX uses RS485 which is based on 120ohms so they are not very different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonemorf Posted August 9, 2015 Author Share Posted August 9, 2015 Put that down to being corrected, and learning something new everyday! Drum of Cat 5 it is!Thanks all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musht Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 3 vs 5 pin thing with DMX comes down to historical cost, 3 pin connectors were already in wide use for audio and a lot cheaper than 5 pin, only 3 pins used so some people started using 3 pin for DMX Reliablity problems probably down to ultra nasty cheap 3 pin XLRs. https://www.etcconnect.com/Support/Articles/DMX-Over-Cat5.aspx Cat5 dosen`t have zero impedance , its somewhere round the 100 ohm mark think. Don`t solder or screw down solid core,use punch downs. Do buy several boxes, solid core by box lot cheaper than stranded by reel, and pull them all at the same time, they`ll all get used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Allen Posted August 9, 2015 Share Posted August 9, 2015 The Quarry Amphitheatre in Perth, Western Australia put in four Swedish W-DMX units as part of their lighting upgrade, three units performed as disco lighting controllers with random strobing, so had to be replaced with cabling on the afternoon of a show, and the units sent back for repair. For such a small venue, they should never had considered wireless DMX as they had to run power to all stage and FOH positions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitlane Posted August 10, 2015 Share Posted August 10, 2015 Go to the PLASA Technical Standards page and download ANSI E1.27-2 - 2009 (R2014) which is the Recommended Practice for permanently installed DMX cables. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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