sPDS-60ca Product
Guide
9
Setting a Base Light Number
Setting the base light number assigns a reference light number to the sPDS-60ca
device. Connected nodes are automatically assigned light numbers consecutvely,
beginning with the base light number. Nodes connected to port 1 are addressed first.
sPDS-60ca devices are factory-addressed with base light number 1.
In DMX networks with multiple sPDS-60ca devices, some care must be taken when
you want each each node in your network to receive a unique light number. For
instance, your lighting network may have three sPDS-60ca devices, each with 25
connected iColor Cove EC fixtures. To ensure that each node receives a unique light
address, assign base light number 1 to the first sPDS-60ca, base light number 26 to
the next device, and base light number 51 to the third.
►
To set the base light number:
• Press the menu’s Up or Down button until you arrive at the desired base light
number. (Press and hold either button to scroll rapidly through the numbers.)
Grouping Nodes
You can group consecutive nodes together so that they operate in unison. All nodes
in a group receive the same light number, and therefore the same set of DMX
addresses. Grouping multiple nodes together decreases the total number of unique
addresses that your installation requires, and can allow you to achieve desired effects.
Understanding Group Settings
By default, sPDS-60ca has a group setting of +01, which means that each group
contains one node. With a group setting of +01, each node receives a unique light
number and is controlled individually. A group setting of +02 means that each
group contains two nodes. With a group setting of +02, each pair of consecutive
nodes receives the same light number. A group setting of +03 means that each
group contains three consecutive nodes, and so on. The maximum group size is 20
nodes, but you can set a group setting of ALL to assign the same light number to all
connected nodes (all nodes work in unison).
For Ethernet-based video displays in which each fixture node functions as a pixel, you
can increase the group size to increase the apparent size of each node. For example,
a rectilinear video display with 10 nodes on a side contains 100 total nodes. By
default, each node is assigned a unique light number can be controlled individually. If
you change the group number setting to +04, each set of four consecutive nodes is
assigned the same light number, proportionally increasing the size of each pixel in the
video display.
E
Group numbers that divide evenly into
the total number of nodes in a run ensure
consistency of presentation. A consistent group
size can be important for the proper display
of video and other dynamic light show content.
Group sizes that do not divide evenly into the
total number of nodes leave an inconsistently
sized group at the end of a run. For example,
assigning a group number of 7 to a run of
17 nodes creates two groups of seven nodes
each and one smaller group of three nodes
(7 + 7 + 3 = 17).
sPDS-60ca 24V
iColor Cove QLX
4
3
2
1
5
6
7
8
Group setting is +01
(one node per group)
sPDS-60ca 24V
iColor Cove QLX
2
1
3
4
Group setting is +02
(two nodes per group)
E
Make sure that the base light number
allows enough DMX addresses for all
connected nodes, or the installation will not
function properly. For example, 50 connected
RGB nodes require 50 light numbers when
each node is controlled individually. Therefore,
the base light number should be 121 or lower.
