AC4 DMX Ethernet Gateway
Contents
1. N ASTERA USER MANUAL DMX Ethernet Gateway AC4 Manual Version 4 0 10 Release Date September 18 2014 Astera LED Technology GmbH Address Nahestrasse 68 70 55593 R desheim an der Nahe Germany Tel 49 0 6536 355361 Email sales astera led com 1 Table of Contents T1 jTable OM COHterits iacis taeca orestis lusto eril a acsi la hadetosasmunaianacemanatiiatencniaes Misael 2 EEG p SNEAS 3 3 TOUICK Stainer egeo turo anda ores b dae Dakota nitate idus DA scan E 4 3 t Advantages a au Dune iuit vim in iet dto a es 4 2 _ STOVER CW Loc sodio ec cca cates Be reni sem aod usqne s C ei M n M d pU 5 33 BUECORIS aayon nana e Lnd onu aes antes cdd Ded cit o a bsec daa idee Etat e Aie ue Eo 6 4 UOperatioriz cse cetetee teet pie et er ei tete a a eive te periode eret Teo eeu n 7 4 1 Selecting the input signal enne nn nnne en 7 42 Connecting lightSOUlCOS we anrea ananasa a EE EREE RS S 7 4 2 1 Define the output ModE sss ernten ee rnah eE aE EIR 7 4 2 2 Define the amount of connected pixels essen 8 4 3 Testing the nStallatlOn nssr estat antes ect oq D os ian cet fa duoi uad aimi outs d idit ds 8 5 Advanced Operationz tea aei o eh 9 5 1 Configuration of connected lightsources or controllers eeseeeseessss 9 5 1 Firmware update of connected lightsources or controllers seesessssss 9 5 1 INetworkSettiliB2. OUT 1 MODE OUT 2 MODE etc Than input a selection DMX if you have connected DMX fixtures to this output ASTERA250 if you have connected an Astera lightsource or controller that supports this stand ard ASTERASOO if you have connected an Astera lightsource or controller that supports this stand ard Note the AC4 has 4 outputs and you have to select the signal of each of the 4 outputs It also means that you can connect DMX fixtures to one of the outputs and Astera250 fixtures to another output 4 2 2 Define the amount of connected pixels Hold the Menu button for 3 seconds to enter the menu Press the button until you reach OUTPUT SETTINGS and confirm with Enter Press the button until you reach OUT 1 PIXELS Select the amount of connected pixels This is important to display the AC4 s effects correctly If you do not have any lightsources connected to one of the outputs leave this number as O When running the DMX mode you can choose between 0 and 170 connected pixels of each of the ouputs for a total of 680 ouputs When in the Astera250 mode you can also choose between 0 and 170 connected pixels of each of the outputs but you will have a better refresh rate and automatic er ror correction When in the Astera500 mode you can choose between 0 and 250 pixels so you can connect up to 1000 different lightsources to the AC4 to display complex effects over a large amount of pixels 4 3 Testing the installation The ACA has a range
3. but the battery will last up to 24 hours NORMAL the lamps are normal brightness and the battery will last at least 8 hours HIGH BRIGHTNESS The lamps are set to a brightness that is stronger than usual but will drain the battery quickly BELONGS TO SET Assigns the lamp to 1 of 255 sets so they can easily targeted WHITE CORRECTION turns the white correction on or off WHITE CALIB RED adds or reduces the amount of red when displaying white light WHITE CALIB GREE adds or reduces the amount of green when displaying white light WHITE CALIB BLUE adds or reduces the amount of blue when displaying white light AC FAILURE sets the behaviour when no AC signal is detected power outage etc EMERGENCY LIGHT If no AC signal is detected the light turns white NO ACTION The playback continues as before BLACKOUT If no AC signal is detected all lights are turned off CONTRAST sets the contrast of the display between 1 and 48 OUTPUT SETTINGS OUT1 MODE sets the outgoing protocol of data output 1 see Chapter 5 1 1 OUT2 MODE sets the outgoing protocol of data output 2 see Chapter 5 1 1 OUT3 MODE sets the outgoing protocol of data output 3 see Chapter 5 1 1 OUT4 MODE sets the outgoing protocol of data output 4 see Chapter 5 1 1 OUT1 PIXELS sets the amount of pixels of data output 1 see Chapter 5 1 2 OUT2 PIXELS sets the amount of pixels of data output 1 see Chapter 5 1 2 OUT3 PIXELS sets the amount of pixels
4. of data output 3 see Chapter 5 1 2 OUTA4 PIXELS sets the amount of pixels of data output 4 see Chapter 5 1 2 LAMP CONFIG sends configuration data to lightsources or controlers see Chapter 5 1 LAMP UPDATE sends the firmware update file to lightsources or controlers see Chapter 5 2 NETWORK SETTINGS IP MODE sets the way PC and AC4 communicate 2 x AUTO IP allows to be detected by a DMX or Artnet software as an 2 x IP address 10 x AUTO IP allows to be detected by a DMX or Artnet software as an 2 x IP address CUSTOM IP Set an IP address in the AC4 which can be detected by the PC DHCP Communicate over a DHCP network CUSTOM IP Choose the AC4 s IP address only relevant when choosing the IP mode csustom IP CUSTOM NETMSK Defines the Netmask under which the AC4 is operating SERIAL shows the serial number of the unit FIRMWARE VERSION shows the firmware version or the unit HOURS shows the number of hours the unit has been played P and charged C RF LINK an advanced function for testing the signal strength together with the ARC2 RADIO PIN The Radio Pin makes it possible for different customers to operate their lamps at the same place without influencing other lamps The 4 digit pin can be set to a unique value and paired with selected lamps To activate the radio pin choose a pin on AC4 and the ARC2 re mote control then press PAIR WITH LAMPS on the ARC2 FACTORY RESET Resets all settings of the menu to its facto
5. of pre programmed effects which can be used to test if the connected lightsources are fully working and are set up correctly Also the pre programmed effects allow a standalone operation without a DMX or Artnet source Leave the menu by pressing the Menu button until you see ONE COL FADE Press the Enter button once and use the and buttons to switch between programs SPIRAL 4 COLORS is good to test if the addressing of the connected lamps is set correctly Confirm this program with the Enter button To check if all Red Green and Blue LEDs are working select the One Color Static program and confirm with Enter Then press the Color button and select Red Green or Blue All connected lightsources should show exactly this one color You can find an overview over all pre programmed effects in the appendix 5 Advanced Operation 5 1 Configuration of connected lightsources or controllers Since most connected lightsources do not have a data port display our keyboard to input advanced commands such as individual DMX addresses pixel count color calibration etc the AC4 can be used to send these commands to a single lightsource or several lightsources connected in a chain To transfer this information to the lightsources edit the configuration file cc9 file dopy it on a micro SD card and insert it into the SD card slot Then hold the Menu button for 3 seconds to enter the menu choose Output Settings then Lamp Config and confirm with En
6. C2 C1 C2 C1 C2 C3 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 none C1 C2 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 This instruction manual is part of the device and persons operating the device must have access to it at any time Safety precautions mentioned in the instruction manual have to be If the device is being sold this instruction manual has to be included observed Translations If the device is being sold this instruction manual has to be translated into the national language of the destination country If discrepancies occur in the translated text the original instruction manual has to be used to solve them or the manufac turer has to be contacted 2013 Astera Led Technology GmbH All rights reserved R desheim an der Nahe Germany
7. DMX TAB Several different DMX tables can be chosen RGB S RGB S For each pixel there are three channels RGB and one channel stroboscope RGB RGB SS For each pixel there are three channels RGB and one channel stroboscope EFFECT MODE FIX The 4 user colors are controlled by one channel per color generates basic colors EFFECT MODE RGB The 4 user colors are controlled by three DMX channels each STROBE Sets a series of strobe effects SINGLE One DMX channel is supplied for the control of the stroboscope function and all pixels will strobe Identical When using this setting DMX TAB should not be set to RGB S RGB S MULTIPLE For each pixel the stroboscope can be controlled individually OFF Stroboscope is turned off globally One DMX channel is supplied for the control of the stroboscope function and all pixels will strobe Identical When using this setting DMX TAB should not be selected DMX FAIL This model is capable of detecting a loss of AC power if plugged in It might be desirable to make the unit react on those conditions HOLD The output keeps unchanged the last received DMX frame is displayed EMERGENCY LIGHT LEDs turn white until AC power is restored BLACKOUT LEDs turn dark in case of AC power loss AUTO PROGRAM plays the program specified in AUTO SETTINGS PROGRAMS GERNERAL SETTINGS LED POWER Three different power schemes can be set to optimize the playback MAXIMISE RUNTIME the lamps are less bright
8. OWER 0 OFF status LED Sockets slot for SD cards currently not used data out 1 data out 2 Input Artnet data out 3 via RJ45 data out 4 Artnet IN Data OUT USB port 3 3 Buttons MENU COLOR SPEED BRIGHT ENTER PROG ON OFF C1 C2 C3 C4 USER COLORS Go back one level If pressed gt 3 second enter menu For details on the menu see Chapter 6 When in the menu Navigate through the menu and adjust parameters like fade speed brightness Change the speed of the light effect A time between 0 09 sec onds and 9 minutes 11 seconds can be set It reflects the dura tion of the selected program The brightness of the LEDs can be changed from 0 100 in 10 intervals By holding down the Change program color transitions When in the menu Choose menu item save edited value or start sending a value Press gt 3 seconds to power on press short to power off All programs consist of one to four user colors except in RAINBOW program which uses predefined colors that cannot be changed For example if PROGRAM is set to SIMPLE RUNNING the background color will be C1 and the color of the running pixel will be C2 The following standard colors are available RED ORANGE YELLOW GREEN CYAN BLUE MAGENTA PINK WHITE WARM WHITE COLD BLACK If a larger selection of colors is required there are two possibilities 1 choose from a predefined list of INDEX COLORS hold down
9. color key C1 C4 for one second 2 enter the menu and set colors by their RGB values located under AUTO SETTINGS gt USER COLORS 4 4 1 Operation Selecting the input signal Hold down the Menu button for 3 seconds to enter the menu Confirm INPUT SELECT with the Enter button Than select the input AUTO choose the input automatically from the latest signal ART NET receives Artnet signals from the RJ45 port looks like a Ethernet cable For this you need a PC with ARTNET software such as Madrix e cue etc STANDALONE uses signals from the AC4 s software itself For example you can run basic program effects like RAINBOW ONE COLOR FADE SPIRAL 4 COLORS etc and customize them later with colors fade speed etc REMOTE CONTROL plays the same effects that STANDALONE can play but the effects are chosen from the ARC2 remote control sold separately WIRELESS DMX DMX signals can be transmitted from an ART3 wireless DMX transmitter sold separately to the ACA The ART3 transmits 1 DMX universe 4 2 Connecting lightsources Strings of LED lightsources can be connected to each of the AC4 s 4 output sockets After connecting them the output mode and the amount of connected pixels have to be defined in the AC4 s menu 4 2 1 Define the output mode Hold the Menu button for 3 seconds to enter the menu Press the button until you reach OUTPUT SETTINGS and confirm with Enter Press the button until you reach
10. nsity power scheme speed fade directions etc NTENSITY Sets the brightness of the LEDs PEED Sets the speed of the programs ADE Sets the Fade between program steps DIRECTION Adjusts direction and looping of programs FFW LOOP Programs run in normal forward direction when a program is finished it starts again REV LOOP Programs run in reversed direction when a program is finished It starts again FWD Programs run in normal forward direction when a program is finished execution is stopped REV Programs run in reversed direction when a program is finished it stops CHASER Set different color chasers CHASER SPEED Sets the speed of the color chaser GROUPS Assigns the lamp to 1 of 4 groups so they can easily targeted OFFSET Offset defines where the LOCAL GROUP starts Usually this is set automatically by the lamp depending how many other lamps are in a group CHAIN SIZE Choose how long the chain should become PCS IN CHAIN Choose the position the unit should take in the SET SIZE Choose how long the set should become POS IN SET Choose the position the unit should take in the set USER COLORS Settle RGB colors and the brightness DMX SETTINGS MX ADDRESS Sets the DMX address CHANNELS Sets the amount of channels that is used to control 1 unit 1 RGB channel means that the whole unit has the same color A larger amount of channels mean that one unit displays several colors at the same time
11. rbage at the end of its lifetime Make sure to dispose is according to your local ordinances and or regulations to avoid polluting the environment BATTERIES Don t throw empty batteries into the garbage Bring them to a collecting point for used batteries Technical Specifications Power supply Input voltage Power supply unit Protocols Input protocols Output protocols Controlling Built in controller DMX RF Control Radio Frequency Range Frequency Housing Material Size Weight Environment Operation Temperature Storage Temperature Environment 18 Input 1 100 240VAC 50 60Hz Input 2 29VDC 2 5A built in Artnet ARC2 ART3 DMX Astera250 Astera500 Backlit display with 5 buttons Wireless DMX via Astera ART3 Transmitter Over Astera s ARC2 Remote Control 50m up to 300m 868 000 MHz 869 750 MHz Plastic L220 x W150 x HW45 mm L8 7 x W5 9 x H1 8 0 450 kg 1 2Ib 5 40 C 25 C 55 C Indoors 10 Appendix Overview of Programs Name ONE COLOR STATIC TWO COLOR STATIC THREE COLOR STATIC FOUR COLOR STATIC ONE COLOR FADE TWO COLOR FADE THREE COLOR FADE FOUR COLOR FADE SIMPLE RUNNING DOUBLE RUNNING TWO COL RUNNING FLAG RUNNING DOUBLE FLAG RUNNING SPIRAL 4 COLORS SPIRAL 2 COLORS RAINBOW FIRE ROTOR ROTOR SPLIT 2 ROTOR SPLIT 4 Light Effect All pixels show the same color Same as ONE COLOR STATIC but not all pixels show the
12. rol Artnet Use an Artnet software to display complex effects and shapes with the connected lightsources Standalone The AC4 has 20 basic effects pre programmed that can be customized in speed fade colors etc Refer to Appendix 1 for a list of the effects Output protocols DMX Control 4 universes of DMX lamps Astera 250 Control up to 4x170 Astera fixtures with the Astera 250 protocol which has a higher refresh rate and is more stable than DMX Astera 500 Control up to 4x250 Astera fixtures with the Astera 500 protocol which is more stable than DMX and can control more fixtures than DMX 3 1 Advantages Flexible The can be used to control a large range of LED lightsources from a large range of control protocols The controller features different input sockets and a SD cardslot to play pre recorded se quences Navigation between the numerous settings can be done over the built in control console Powerful The ACA can control a huge number of individually controllable lightsources Power can be distributed through the ACA or can be directly routed to the lamps Supports standards The ACA supports Artnet and DMX standards as well as Astera s standards Throught its RF receiver the AC4 can be easily integrated into setups of Astera fixtures and can be controlled wirelessly out of the distance 3 2 Overview Control panel back menu navigate through menu confirm MENU xd ENTER COLOR SPEED BRIGHT PROG ON on off P
13. ry defaults Confirm with enter or abort with the menu button 7 Troubleshooting Faulty condition Cause Troubleshooting The display of a unit is showing BLACKOUT and there is no light output Installation was switched off by the ARC2 Take the ARC2 press the power button and select LIGHTS ON No LED light of the connected lightsources when the unit is switched on Cause 1 The AC4 does not have the correct input Switch INPUT to one of the AC4 s pre programmed effects such as ONE COL STATIC to make sure that everything else is set correctly If this works try re adjusting the input values refer to chapter 4 2 1 Cause 2 Lightsources are not connected correctly Dis connect and re connect the lightsources Cause 3 Output is not set correctly Set the output mode and amount of output pixels in each output socket refer to chapter 4 2 2 Some of the connected lights behave incor rectly but others are correct Output is not set correctly Set the output mode and amount of output pixels in each output socket refer to chapter 4 2 2 System cannot be turned on Power cable not connected correctly Connect both power cords to the AC4 16 8 Disposal Follow local ordinances and or regulations for disposal Ory H H PACKAGING The unit is shipped in protective packaging This packaging can be recycled UNIT Don t throw the unit into the ga
14. same color they are divided into 2 3 or 4 parts All pixels show the same color but the color changes between all four USER COLORS Same as ONE COLOR FADE but not all pixels show the same color they are divided into 2 3 or 4 parts All pixels have C1 color except one that is running over them with C2 Same as SIMPLE RUNNING but two pixels are running over the background in opposite directions Same as DOUBLE RUNNING but the two pixels are of different color A flag consisting of three color stripes is running over the background Same as FLAG RUNNING but two flags are running in opposite directions The color of all pixels is changing pixel by pixel from one color to the next If the geometry of the unit allows it the direction is circular Same as SPIRAL 4 COLORS but the movement starts at both and in opposite directions and moves back after all pixels are changed A moving rainbow is shown on the units A flickering fire like effect is displayed C1 is the background color randomly pixels flash and flicker with C2 The rotor programs are much like the FADE programs but if the units are of tower like shape then a clockwise running rotor can be seen Same as ROTOR but two rotors in opposite directions are running Same as ROTOR but four rotors in opposite directions are running ES Used colors C1 C1 C2 C1 C2 C3 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1 C2 C3 C4 C1
15. scaisi a edente eie dense 9 6 iset ngs of the MENU meee ces museo htt deus itn dee n ura eC aeu mue edt tdi 11 ZT SMOUDIESH GOING eoe ete it bom eatis aite TS 16 8 DISDOSdli citus fede ianctdstestermiutaeudoti ten Trabant tetra 17 9 Technical Sp cifications uod riter ed an o Pace o et qe too nares a data 18 10 Appendix Overview of PrOgBFalTiss 2 addu eo tici sedeo it vi Ped dose i Desa aae eertc eo d 19 2 Safety Before you operate the unit read this manual carefully Make sure to keep the manual in case you need to consult this manual again or you give the unit to another person Always make sure to include this manual if you hand out the unit to another person Keep in mind that this manual cannot address all possible dangers and environments Please use your own caution when operating Only qualified personnel may repair this product Don t open the case Do not operate the unit in areas with high temperature condition or outdoors It will cause abnormal function or damage the product 3 Quick Start Astera s AC4 is an advanced LED controller that can handle a range of protocols and control up to 1000 lightsources For an easy navigation among its functions and for addressing of the lamps the AC4 has a control panel with display Input protocols ART3 Astera s Wireless DMX transmitter can send data from a remote DMX console to the AC4 controller ARC2 Control the connected lamps from the Astera remote cont
16. ter The configuration file will be sent to the lightsource 5 1 Firmware update of connected lightsources or controllers In the same manner as configuring described in chapter 5 1 you can send a new firmware to lightsources and controllers This might bring additional features and erase bugs You can connect multiple devices to the AC4 and update all of them at the same time To transfer a new firmware to the lightsources or controller copy the firmware onto a SD card and insert it into the SD card slot Then hold the Menu button for 3 seconds to enter the menu choose Output Settings then Lamp Update and confirm with Enter Choose the new firmware and confirm with Enter The firmware file will be sent to the lightsource When having several controllers connect ed in series the update will take longer Therefore the display will Show SENDING completed 1x Wait until the number before the x equals the number of connected devices To update 4 controllers connected in series to the AC4 wait until the display shows 4x Press Enter after the right amount of x has been reached 5 1 Network Settings If you have connected one or several ACA units to a computer you need to define network settings of your DMX Artnet software and of your ACA controller Please refer to manual of your software how to connect to devices such as the ACA that are connected via an IP network Software we recommend to use for testing your AC4 in a net
17. work environment is DMX Workshop from Artistic License www artisticlicense com downloadable from their website free of charge The AC4 allows several ways of Network communication known as IP modes 2 x auto IP allows to be detected by a DMX or Artnet software as an 2 x IP address 10 x auto IP allows to be detected by a DMX or Artnet software as an 10 x IP address custom IP You can choose any custom IP address of the AC4 and then connect to it via your DMX or Artnet software Go to menu gt Network Settings gt Custom IP to define the address DHCP The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol allows automatic detection by the PC Make sure to set the subnet mask as well 6 Settings of the MENU Hold MENU key for 1 second to enter the menu While in the menu confirm with enter and use the menu button to go up one level of the navigation While the system is waiting for a selection you cannot go up one level INPUT SELECT WIRELESS DMX The unit uses the RF signal sent by the Wireless DMX Transmitter ART3 REMOTE CONTROL The unit uses the RF signal sent by the ARC2 Remote Control STANDALONE The unit ignores all incoming signals and can only be operated through its control panel ART NET The unit uses the Artnet signal arriving from the RJ45 port AUTO The unit operates in auto mode and chooses any incoming signal AUTO SETTING ROGRAM Chooses one of 20 pre defined programs that can be customized with colors inte
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search