DMX Wiring
DMX works by connecting 1 or multiple lights to the output of a DMX lighting console or
software with a DMX interface.
DMX lights connect in what is called a “daisy-chain”. Your first DMX cable will plug it’s
male DMX connector into the female DMX connector on your lighting console. The
remaining female connector will then connect to the DMX input on your first light.
You may then connect your next fixture to the output of your first light, and continue the
chain.
32 Fixture Rule
– DMX only allows you to connect up to 32 fixtures in a single daisy
chain for signal strength. Sometimes, depending on the fixtures and cable length, this
number is less (or more).
DMX Cables can be 3-pin or 5-pin. These use the same type of data, and in the 5-pin
only pins 1, 2, and 3 are used. The cable should be a 2 conductor, shielded cable of at
least 110 ohms resistance. Microphone cable is not DMX cable.
Please refer to the diagram below:
For installations where the DMX cable has to run a long distance or is in an electrically
noisy environment, it is recommended to use a DMX terminator. This helps in preventing
corruption of the digital control signal by electrical noise and reflections. The DMX
terminator is simply an XLR plug with a 120 Ω resistor connected between pins 2 and 3,
which is then plugged into the output XLR socket of the last fixture in the chain. Please
see illustrations below:
GAMMA LED Vision – Torrent 760 IP
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