Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 22

Thread: Wireless DMX... questions

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    1 hr from everything in SoCal
    Posts
    2,753

    Default Wireless DMX... questions

    Hey guys, has anyone used wireless DMX? For my Halloween setup, I am tired of running cables and even more tired of sussing out long cable run issues. I'm thinking of ditching my all wired setup and going with wireless DMX for my long runs. My first question is, how reliable is it? Next, if I have three lights right next to each other, can I have the first one in the daisy-chain use the wireless and then use 1ft cables for the other two (basically using a wireless receiver for each small group of lights)? If I can use a wireless receiver for each group of 2 or 3 lights, do I need a terminator or is that only with longer runs? Are there any limitations? lastly, any recommendations?

    Thanks!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Northern Indiana
    Posts
    921

    Default

    I have used the "donner" branded Chinese units for over two years with no problem. I only use them on non-critical gigs or for a fixture thats hard to run a cable to that is not mission critical. They have been very reliable for me. I have some buddies that do much larger and more frequent shows. They've had good luck with them also. They seem to drive long runs just fine. Short daisy chained groups are no problem. I usually only run terminators on long runs. Good practice is to terminate every run.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    1 hr from everything in SoCal
    Posts
    2,753

    Default

    Thank you for your recommendation! The Donner set was what I was looking at. It seems to have the highest rating on amazon for that price range. I pulled the trigger and picked up an 8 piece set. I have been hesitant to try wireless because of connection worries but I am finding that I am having issues with my runs as I add more fixtures. This last year, I decided to run two universes instead of one and that helped but I keep adding more devices and fixtures. No doubt my issues are caused by long runs, cheap dmx cables and cheap fixtures (I can't justify paying top dollar for pro equipment for just an annual "gig" that doesn't pay). Looking at this, this wireless set is about the same price as I would pay for pro grade DMX cables. This will make set-up and tear down faster too. Anyway, thanks!

  4. #4
    mixedgas's Avatar
    mixedgas is offline Creaky Old Award Winning Bastard Technologist
    Infinitus Excellentia Ion Laser Dominatus
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    A lab with some dripping water on the floor.
    Posts
    9,890

    Default

    How do you "pair" or program the Donner sets?
    Steve
    Qui habet Christos, habet Vitam!
    I should have rented the space under my name for advertising.
    When I still could have...

  5. #5
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    1 hr from everything in SoCal
    Posts
    2,753

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by mixedgas View Post
    How do you "pair" or program the Donner sets?
    Steve
    My set should be arriving by tomorrow. I ended up getting the 8pc set and an additional xmitter/receiver package. So I am sure that I will need to pair a few of the receivers to the other transmitter. I'll try them out and let you know, unless someone else answers you first.

  6. #6
    mixedgas's Avatar
    mixedgas is offline Creaky Old Award Winning Bastard Technologist
    Infinitus Excellentia Ion Laser Dominatus
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    A lab with some dripping water on the floor.
    Posts
    9,890

    Default

    Thanks..

    Steve 15 characters are needed...
    Qui habet Christos, habet Vitam!
    I should have rented the space under my name for advertising.
    When I still could have...

  7. #7
    Bradfo69's Avatar
    Bradfo69 is offline Pending BST Forum Purchases: $47,127,283.53
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Wilmington, DE
    Posts
    6,202

    Default

    I have the Donners and have used them for years flawlessly. I had one bad unit arrive in about three sets I've purchased. Steve - there are about 6-7 possible "frequencies" you can set them to that correspond with tiny colored LED's inside the units and you can change them with a paperclip. So another words, scroll through the transmitter colors pushing a tiny internal button with a paper clip - say "blue" and then use the paper clip to change the receivers all to blue. If you need to run other universes or, control something with a second transmitter, just use another color for that set - say, yellow or red or something. Easy peasy.
    .
    .
    Edit: And yes... you can send the wireless signal to one light and then hook up other lights with short sections of DMX cable.
    Last edited by Bradfo69; 06-04-2018 at 15:45.
    PM Sent...

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    1 hr from everything in SoCal
    Posts
    2,753

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by Devid43 View Post
    Hey guys, has anyone used wireless DMX? For my Halloween setup, I am tired of running cables and even more tired of sussing out long cable run issues. I'm thinking of ditching my all wired setup and going with wireless DMX for my long runs. My first question is, how reliable is it? Next, if I have three lights right next to each other, can I have the first one in the daisy-chain use the wireless and then use 1ft cables for the other two (basically using a wireless receiver for each small group of lights)? If I can use a wireless receiver for each group of 2 or 3 lights, do I need a terminator or is that only with longer runs? Are there any limitations? lastly, any recommendations?
    I too have an extensive halloween setup with close to 30 lights/devices and I was also tired of cables. I used the Donner transceivers and I found them be a poor substitute for cables when it comes to fast changes in levels. When it came to lightning flashes and stuff, the wireless DMX was a little delayed and some lights didn't flash. If I made gradual changes to the DMX channels, they work fine.

    To answer your question, yes, you can hook a DMX receiver to one light, and then use short cables between lights that are close together. Always use a terminator for each wireless string you have (terminators are cheap!).

    The other thing that bugged me about wireless was I found the range to be subpar. Overall, I wasted money on my Donners and I am probably going to unload them soon because they don't suit my needs.

    For long cable runs, I would actually recommend CAT5/6 and using ethernet-to-DMX adapters. They seem way less susceptible to interference. I have a long 50' run and the lights beyond that run always seemed a little wonky. Any little blip would caused flickers or drops. After switching to CAT6, no issues. CAT6 is WAY cheaper than really high quality DMX cables (which you would want for a long run).

    Summary: maybe a more expensive wireless DMX setup is better but I tried the Donner DMX transceivers and was very disappointed and ended up not using them because they didn't suit my purpose.

    My setup, to give you an idea of scale, value changes, and cable run lengths to see if your DMX needs are similar.
    Last edited by absolom7691; 08-11-2020 at 20:53.
    If you're the smartest person in the room, then you're in the wrong room.

  9. #9
    Bradfo69's Avatar
    Bradfo69 is offline Pending BST Forum Purchases: $47,127,283.53
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    Wilmington, DE
    Posts
    6,202

    Default

    Quote Originally Posted by absolom7691 View Post
    The other thing that bugged me about wireless was I found the range to be subpar. Overall, I wasted money on my Donners and I am probably going to unload them soon because they don't suit my needs.
    Let me know when that time comes. I have a set sitting in my shopping cart with Amazon but haven't pulled the trigger yet. Do you have the black or the chrome?
    PM Sent...

  10. #10
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    1 hr from everything in SoCal
    Posts
    2,753

    Default

    edited.... I might​ be keeping them
    Last edited by absolom7691; 08-22-2020 at 18:50.
    If you're the smartest person in the room, then you're in the wrong room.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •