# Help: Chauvet Obey 40 Issues



## Studio764

I recently scored a lightly used Chauvet Obey 40 on e-bay, works OK for simple LED lighting like my Venue PAR 56's, however, the other four intelligent lights are not responding as they should. One will not transition into the next scene correctly, others won't shut off when their scene is over, another will strobe into a scene when it's not supposed to. The slider that operates the Revo III to play it's automatic pattern, will work for a second, then it will go into a default mode. Any help with these issues would be greatful. The DMX controller is an older model, could the signal it is sending be faulty, or not a true signal?
The other lights are 2-AMDJ Tri Phase, and an AMDJ Mystic, all new.
Thanks!!!


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## mstaylor

There are a couple of things that are simple to check. First is proper termination, second isolate one of the funky instruments and use a single new line straight to it and see if it does the same thing. Bring down and use a short cable and see if length is the problem. Are you daisy chaining all the lights together. You may have to use a optomizer and runs to each light. Sometimes different types of lights don't play nicely together. 
Once you have eliminated the DMX possibilities then move to you controller. One more thing you can check is there a setting to change the DMX rate.


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## Studio764

I am daisy chaining with 5ft DMX cords, not sure what an optimizer is and how much they are. I will try to isolate the lights to see if they are in fact operating as they should by themselves. Thanks for the quick reply!


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## mstaylor

If you find that each light runs by itself then go back to the original setup and add one light in the chain until it acts weird. 
Call these guys if you need any additional DMX toys. Doug Fleenor Design 
You can ask what they suggest in actual splitters. They also have the terminators that you may need.


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## tomschwall

*HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

I just purchased a Chauvet lighting system consisting of 8 LEDrain 56 PAR cans and the Chauvet Obey 40 DMX controller to replace an analog incandescent 16 can PAR 38/56 with dimmer packs system. All cables in the new package are DMX. I've daisy chained the cans and connected the controller to the first can in the chain, but no matter what I do, the controller won't talk to the cans. The cans can be made to function properly via their manual settings, but will not respond at all to any DMX controller commands. I've set the DIP switches in accordance with the recommended address settings, and have tried programming a simple scene, to no avail. The DMX controller has 16 channels of control, though the LEDrain cans use only 7 channels. I set the can addresses via the DIP switches at intervals of 17, to match up with the controller. In program mode, the cans do not respond to fader changes, so I can't even see the scene I'm trying to create! The controller seems to work OK, but no commands go to the lights - they just sit there at whatever DIP setting is selected on the fixture. I've tried disconnecting all but one light, addressing it as fixture #1, and still can't get any response from the controller. HELP!!! Shouldn't I be able to simply select a fixture, move the faders, and manually control the fixture parameters? I have not used a terminator plug, but I can't imagine that's the problem. I've followed the manual step by step, and have re-initialized the controller after every failed attempt. Nothin seems to work. I'm really in the dark here! Thanks for any help. Tom


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## tbrennan

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

Hi

I'm not sure if this helps..

Before we switched to Hog 3PC, we used some Chauvet Obey boards. I had the same issue. I had to select a fixture number on the bottom row (There should be about 12 of then, If you select #1, The faders should be starting at CH1) Also, did you check the DMX Polarity switch on the back of the board? 

My issue was on a Obey 70...I also never used the fixture buttons for fixtures. Just used them as pages...


Thanks.


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## JD

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

OK, on the Obey 40, each Scanner/Fixture button on the left is 16 DMX channels wide, so button 1 outputs to channels 1 to 16, number 2 outputs to channels 17 to 32, etc.

To get things running manually, set the fixture DIP switches to address 001 then push the fixture 1 button. at this point each of the 8 faders will output to DMX 001 to 008. 

The page select button will switch it to 009 to 016. 

Now, to a useful configuration:

The easiest way to set this up is to set your fixtures up to start at multiples of 16. so, fixture 1 would be set to 001, fixture 2 set to 017, fixture 3 set to 033 and so on.

Now, each of your fixtures will be on one of the "fixture" buttons. If you select 4 fixtures, then these fixtures will respond together in the manual mode. At this point you can venture into programing them independently. You can set up to 230 scenes with this board.

EDIT: Oh, two other things. Needles to say; 1) make sure your blackout is off and you are in the manual mode. 
2) Also, on the back is a DMX polarity switch. You have a 50/50 chance it is set right. Give it a flip if all else fails.


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## xander

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

Are you sure you have the fixtures in DMX mode and not some stand alone mode?


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## tomschwall

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


xander said:


> Are you sure you have the fixtures in DMX mode and not some stand alone mode?


I appreciate the helpful suggestions. I'm still stuck. I don't find any "standalone/DMX" switch on the LEDrain PAR 56 fixtures, only a "Auto/Music" switch, which I've switched to no avail. I also don't find a "Manual" mode button on the DMX controller. I've tried switching polarity on the Obey 40, and have even tried a different data cable from the controller to the first fixture. I cannot get the fixtures to respond in any fashion to channel fader moves from the controller. I have daisy chained the fixtures, set all DIP switches to 1, activated the "Fixture 1" button on the controller, and the fixtures just sit there locked on red. I can't even get the downstream fixtures to accept manual DIP switch setting changes from the first fixture, when I turn off all the downstream fixture DIP switches and try to run the lights in "daisy chain". No data is going downstream, whether from the Obey 40 controller or from the first fixture. I've also tried sending the DMX cable to each fixture alone, with no success. Every time I try something different, I also switch the polarity, to be sure that's not the problem. I've re-initialized the controller several times. The only thing that works is making manual DIP switch changes on each individual fixture, and then they each do their own thing, with no regard for controller moves. I've been at this for hours, and nothing works! I've been a professional musician for 30 years, have run a 16 can incandescent light system, have operated a recording studio, programmed multi-effects units, etc., etc., and I've never encountered such a frustrating gear issue. I'm about to throw the whole system out in the street. Any suggestions? I called Chauvet, but they're closed right now. HELP!


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## tomschwall

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


tbrennan said:


> Hi
> 
> I'm not sure if this helps..
> 
> Before we switched to Hog 3PC, we used some Chauvet Obey boards. I had the same issue. I had to select a fixture number on the bottom row (There should be about 12 of then, If you select #1, The faders should be starting at CH1) Also, did you check the DMX Polarity switch on the back of the board?
> 
> My issue was on a Obey 70...I also never used the fixture buttons for fixtures. Just used them as pages...
> 
> 
> Thanks.


Thanks. Nothing's working. See my continuing post.


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## tomschwall

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


JD said:


> OK, on the Obey 40, each Scanner/Fixture button on the left is 16 DMX channels wide, so button 1 outputs to channels 1 to 16, number 2 outputs to channels 17 to 32, etc.
> 
> To get things running manually, set the fixture DIP switches to address 001 then push the fixture 1 button. at this point each of the 8 faders will output to DMX 001 to 008.
> 
> The page select button will switch it to 009 to 016.
> 
> Now, to a useful configuration:
> 
> The easiest way to set this up is to set your fixtures up to start at multiples of 16. so, fixture 1 would be set to 001, fixture 2 set to 017, fixture 3 set to 033 and so on.
> 
> Now, each of your fixtures will be on one of the "fixture" buttons. If you select 4 fixtures, then these fixtures will respond together in the manual mode. At this point you can venture into programing them independently. You can set up to 230 scenes with this board.
> 
> EDIT: Oh, two other things. Needles to say; 1) make sure your blackout is off and you are in the manual mode.
> 2) Also, on the back is a DMX polarity switch. You have a 50/50 chance it is set right. Give it a flip if all else fails.


Thanks. Nothings working. See my Reply below.


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## xander

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

This is what I mean by DMX mode: from the user manual p. 8

> Operating in a DMX Control mode environment gives the user the greatest flexibility when it comes to customizing or creating a show. In this mode you will be able to control each individual trait of the fixture and each fixture independently. The LEDrain™ 56 uses 7 channels of control.
> Note: *DIP Switch 10 must be turned on to activate DMX control mode.*
> Note: Older 8-dipswitch version must have dipswitch 8 turned off to activate DMX control mode. Dipswitches 1-7 set the DMX address, and the maximum address is 127.


I hope this solves your problem. If it doesn't, I would read over the manual to make sure you have all of the settings correct for what you are trying to do. If you don't have a paper copy of the manual it can be found here.

-Tim


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## BillESC

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

Chauvet may be closed, but I'm not. Give me a call.


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## neilpalf

*Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*

*I have been trying to set the "FADE TIME ASSIGN" to only affect the Pan and Tilt but cannot get it to complete step 5. The following text is lifted directly from the manual.*​ 
*FADE TIME ASSIGN (OPTIONAL SETUP)*
You can choose whether the board’s fade time during scene execution is implemented broadly to all
output channels or only to the Pan and Tilt movement channels. This is relevant because often you
will want gobos and colors to change quickly while not affecting the movement of the light.​

*Action *
1) Turn OFF the controller.​
2) Hold the *BLACKOUT *and *TAPSYNC *buttons simultaneously.3) Turn ON the controller.
4) Press the *TAPSYNC *button to toggle between the two modes. Either all channels (A) or select channel Pan & Tilt only (P)

5) Press *BLACKOUT *and *TAPSYNC *to save settings. All LED’s will blink to confirm.​

No matter how I try, and I have tried every combination of pressing the BLACKOUT and TAPSYNC buttons, I cannot get the LEDs to blink to confirm this setting has been made. Also, does anyone know if this is a permanent change or will I need to set it everytime I power up the DMX controller.

I have emailed Chauvet but, as yet, they have not replied.
​


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## neilpalf

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*

If there is a 512 dip switch on the back of your light, put it to the on position. If they are anything like my LEDRain 64's a light will come on on the back.

This means they are in DMX mode.


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## neilpalf

I think this is what you need.

FADE TIME ASSIGN (OPTIONAL SETUP)
You can choose whether the board’s fade time during scene execution is implemented broadly to all
output channels or only to the Pan and Tilt movement channels. This is relevant because often you
will want gobos and colors to change quickly while not affecting the movement of the light.

Action

1) Turn OFF the controller.
2) Hold the BLACKOUT and TAPSYNC buttons simultaneously.
3) Turn ON the controller.
4) Press the TAPSYNC button to toggle between the two modes. Either all channels (A) or select channel Pan & Tilt only (P)
5) Press BLACKOUT and TAPSYNC to save settings. All LED’s will blink to confirm.


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## uriahdemon

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


xander said:


> Are you sure you have the fixtures in DMX mode and not some stand alone mode?



I have exactly the same issue with my Obey 40 and have gone through all the advice on this thread........ very useful thanks !! but not resolved as yet.

But I think this may be the issue i.e. getting the fixtures into DMX mode. All my fixtures are addressed via dip switches. Should there be a unique positioning for these in addition to the normal addressing in order to get them into DMX mode. And if the reply is yes I am in difficulty with some fixtures as I dont have the manuals.

Any help to conclude this issue would be very much appreciated.

Rgds

Mac


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## chausman

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


uriahdemon said:


> But I think this may be the issue i.e. getting the fixtures into DMX mode. All my fixtures are addressed via dip switches. Should there be a unique positioning for these in addition to the normal addressing in order to get them into DMX mode. And if the reply is yes I am in difficulty with some fixtures as I dont have the manuals.


 
Which fixtures? 

Welcome to CB! If you'd like, you can go introduce yourself in the new members forum!


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## uriahdemon

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


chausman said:


> Which fixtures?
> 
> Welcome to CB! If you'd like, you can go introduce yourself in the new members forum!



Hi, Thanks for getting back to me.

The fixtures are - 

Equinox Quadzilla X 2 - I want to run them together
Acme Dynamo X 4 - On seperate channels
UV Cannon Led Par 151 (cant see any manufacture name)
PAR 56 LED spot - again I cant see any manufacture name
KAM Mighty Kaleido Laser

I have assembled the above just to get things up and running and will be looking to add more in a few weeks.

Again, thanks for your help.

Rgds

Mac


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## jglodeklights

*Re: HELP! Chauvet Obey 40 won't talk to LEDrain 56 cans*


uriahdemon said:


> Hi, Thanks for getting back to me.
> 
> The fixtures are -
> 
> Equinox Quadzilla X 2 - I want to run them together
> Acme Dynamo X 4 - On seperate channels
> UV Cannon Led Par 151 (cant see any manufacture name)
> PAR 56 LED spot - again I cant see any manufacture name
> KAM Mighty Kaleido Laser
> 
> I have assembled the above just to get things up and running and will be looking to add more in a few weeks.
> 
> Again, thanks for your help.
> 
> Rgds
> 
> Mac


 
1. Use the internet to find manuals and ensure that all devices are addressed in a way that enables DMX mode. 

2. Make sure you have hard reset the Obey 40 to rest all faders to 1:1 versus mapped configuration.

3. Start playing with fixtures you have/can find manuals for to locate where, if applicable, the fader altering the control channel needs to be set to enable DMX control of the fixture.

4. For the fixtures without manuals, you may be SOL. Hopefully they use a standard binary configuration for the dips (if they have dips). Then you can just play, possibly a lot, until you find the control channel. It is often the first or last, but that can get tricky if you can't find out how many DMX channels the fixture uses and in what mode.


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## uriahdemon

Thanks to those who have helped out so far. You will be glad to know that I have sorted most things out with only one unresolved issue.

My problems were two fold i.e. I was not setting the dip switches correctly to enable DMX control and I was setting the pins the wrong way round i.e. instead of OFF I was setting to ON. The switches all seem to be either one way round or the other.

So only one outstanding problem and that is with a Par 64 UV cannon. I cant find the right switch info. The name on it is zoom engineering but on searching the internet it was a UK company that closed down some time ago. I can get the controller to talk to the light on 2 channels but regardless of how I set them I cant get both full and constant as opposed to dimmed and strobed (what I am getting now).

So if anyone can help with the final problem (for now) that would be fantastic and thanks to those who have helped so far.

Rgds

Mac


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## mstaylor

Can you take a picture of the dipswitch controls?


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## uriahdemon

Hi Michael,

Thanks for your reply.

I will get some pictures up tonight (if I can suss out how to do that).

Hopefully you may be able to come up with an idea...??

Rgds

Mac


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## uriahdemon

Hi Michael,

Pictures as requested and hopefully you can help please.

Rgds

Mac


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## DuckJordan

uriahdemon said:


> Hi Michael,
> 
> Pictures as requested and hopefully you can help please.
> 
> Rgds
> 
> Mac


 
DMX mode on those fixtures is with dipswitch 10 in the on position I believe, then you need to set the address using 1-9.

Edit: sorry, looks exactly like the standard LED par 64 I used,

It may be 3-4 channel fixtures. Let me do some specific research on a generic.

ON doing some research they could be a single channel unit.


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## uriahdemon

Thanks for your help.

I have tried the DS 10 on and that is when I can only get full but on strobing. The only constant I can get is on only 50% light.

If it is a single channel any idea what channel that is likely to be please....??

I have been through many of them but with no joy as yet.


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## tomschwall

uriahdemon said:


> Thanks to those who have helped out so far. You will be glad to know that I have sorted most things out with only one unresolved issue.
> 
> Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. I've got my 8 LEDRain 56 cans working very nicely now with the Obey 40 controller. I have the light cans set up in pairs, so that each "fixture" actually consists of 2 light cans working together in tandem (one on the left tree and one on the right tree).
> 
> I've learned a few things: Use only DMX cables all the way through your setup. Always double check the polarity, as the lights may seem to be working, but if the polarity is wrong, they won't respond 100% to controller commands. Often times at start up, you have to "exercise" the faders (slide them back and forth to their extreme limits) to sort of re-set the controller-fixture dialogue, if that makes sense. Finally, be sure that your DIP switches are set correctly, with intervals of 16 between each fixture address.
> 
> Now my next challenge is to find a foot controller to perform some basic light control functions, such as activate chase, activate music tap, blackout, and activate some simple static color scenes. Any ideas on a compatible foot controller? From my research so far, it seems that a MIDI foot controller may be the only way to go. I'd love to find a simple foot controller to make some simple light scene and chase changes. Please post if you've had any success using a foot controller with the Obey 40. Thanks.


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## Zolee

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*

*FADE TIME ASSIGN (OPTIONAL SETUP)*

*Action*

1) Turn OFF the controller.
2) Hold the *BLACKOUT* and *TAPSYNC* buttons simultaneously.
3) Turn ON the controller.
4) Press the *TAPSYNC* button to toggle between the two modes. Either all channels (A) or select channel Pan & Tilt only (P).
[ Set to P*** ].
5) Select one of the fixtures: *FIXTURE 1~12* (this will be the fixture that you want to modify the channels for).
6) Move the *SPEED* fader to select the physical slider (control channel). [ P01* ~ P16* ]
7) Move the *FADE TIME* fader to activate ( y ) / deactivate ( n ) this function. [ P**y or P**n ].
8) Press *MIDI/ADD* to save the setting. All LED’s will blink to confirm.
9) Repeat steps 6~8 until all of the faders ( 1~16 ) have been assigned for the fixture.
10) Press *BLACKOUT* and *TAPSYNC* to exit physical fade time assignment mode.

Hope it helps.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*

Well, i hope someone can help. I purchased a brand new Chauvet Obey 40 controller and had it for approx. 2 weeks. I've been controlling both of my lights with no problems. I removed and sold one of the lights and reset my controller to clear out the programmed chases and scenes. However, now i can't control my one light. When i shut down the controller, the light shuts down. When i turn it back on, the light comes on but it does it's own thing, like demo mode or something. The controller is set to channel D 1 and i turn on fixture one but nothing happens. I tried two brand new DMX cables with different lengths...nothing.


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> Well, i hope someone can help. I purchased a brand new Chauvet Obey 40 controller and had it for approx. 2 weeks. I've been controlling both of my lights with no problems. I removed and sold one of the lights and reset my controller to clear out the programmed chases and scenes. However, now i can't control my one light. When i shut down the controller, the light shuts down. When i turn it back on, the light comes on but it does it's own thing, like demo mode or something. The controller is set to channel D 1 and i turn on fixture one but nothing happens. I tried two brand new DMX cables with different lengths...nothing.



1) Check the mode on the light itself. 
2) Check the address on the light / set it to A001 (default for fixture 1)
3) Lightly tap your finger on the board. (More than once, I have accidentally ended up in audio trigger mode on a Chauvet  )
4) Do a factory default on the board.
5)


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> 1) Check the mode on the light itself.
> 2) Check the address on the light / set it to A001 (default for fixture 1)
> 3) Lightly tap your finger on the board. (More than once, I have accidentally ended up in audio trigger mode on a Chauvet  )
> 4) Do a factory default on the board.
> 5)


Well, it's weird because i put the light in dmx channel 1, but when i tap the light pole, it changes on it's own. It doesn't seem to be reading the DMX signal. This happened when i did a factory reset to clear all scenes and chases.


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> Well, it's weird because i put the light in dmx channel 1, but when i tap the light pole, it changes on it's own. It doesn't seem to be reading the DMX signal. This happened when i did a factory reset to clear all scenes and chases.



Although, you did not specify the light type, if it is a Chauvet, most of those have an "audio" mode and a built in microphone. It sounds like the light itself may be in the wrong mode, not the board. In "audio" mode, it will not respond to DMX.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> Although, you did not specify the light type, if it is a Chauvet, most of those have an "audio" mode and a built in microphone. It sounds like the light itself may be in the wrong mode, not the board. In "audio" mode, it will not respond to DMX.



It's seems like it's defaulting to that mode because i scroll the menu to the dmx setting, then i select channel 1, but nothing happens. i have a chauvet radius 2.0 light


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> It's seems like it's defaulting to that mode because i scroll the menu to the dmx setting, then i select channel 1, but nothing happens. i have a chauvet radius 2.0 light



Pages 10,11, and 12 cover the settings ( http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/Radius20_UM_Rev01_WO.pdf )
The most common goof is just not hitting the enter button after setting it to 512 and then again after setting it to d_1
Not impossible that the light failed, but I don't think so. 
Definitely the light as compared to the controller.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> Pages 10,11, and 12 cover the settings ( http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/Radius20_UM_Rev01_WO.pdf )
> The most common goof is just not hitting the enter button after setting it to 512 and then again after setting it to d_1
> Not impossible that the light failed, but I don't think so.
> Definitely the light as compared to the controller.


I did exactly that...scrolled to 512, hit enter, then scrolled to channel 1, and hit enter. When i switch the polarity switch, it seems to controll very mininal aspects, but when i put it back to what i've always used, it won't work.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*

Should I be unplugging my DMX cables when programming the channel or it doesn't matter?


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> I did exactly that...scrolled to 512, hit enter, then scrolled to channel 1, and hit enter. When i switch the polarity switch, it seems to controll very mininal aspects, but when i put it back to what i've always used, it won't work.



The reverse polarity switch inverts the DMX signal and the usual result is that all channels see noise data and may produce minimal responses. The fact that you get that much tells me that the board is putting something out and the light is trying to interpret it. So, as long as your cables are good, and nothing has really failed, then it sounds like an addressing issue. You are setting the DMX address of the light to 001 and the fixture 1 button starts at 001, so they should line up. 

There is however one last thing to check for- I believe the Obey 40 allows for some soft patching. (Assigning faders to channels out of sequence.) The "factory default" should have cleared that, but you can never be sure. Unfortunately, this can be tricky to sort out since you only have the one light and it only looks at three channels, and there are 512 possible channels. Outside of hit & miss, the only way to sort this out would be to connect the board to a known working light or dimmer pack and see where the channels are ending up. 

Still, make sure you did a full default on the board before you go any further. (See page 11 of this book: http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/Obey-40_Rev5_UM_ML_WO.pdf ) "Resetting the system"


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> Should I be unplugging my DMX cables when programming the channel or it doesn't matter?



Should not matter.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> The reverse polarity switch inverts the DMX signal and the usual result is that all channels see noise data and may produce minimal responses. The fact that you get that much tells me that the board is putting something out and the light is trying to interpret it. So, as long as your cables are good, and nothing has really failed, then it sounds like an addressing issue. You are setting the DMX address of the light to 001 and the fixture 1 button starts at 001, so they should line up.
> 
> There is however one last thing to check for- I believe the Obey 40 allows for some soft patching. (Assigning faders to channels out of sequence.) The "factory default" should have cleared that, but you can never be sure. Unfortunately, this can be tricky to sort out since you only have the one light and it only looks at three channels, and there are 512 possible channels. Outside of hit & miss, the only way to sort this out would be to connect the board to a known working light or dimmer pack and see where the channels are ending up.
> 
> Still, make sure you did a full default on the board before you go any further. (See page 11 of this book: http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/Obey-40_Rev5_UM_ML_WO.pdf ) "Resetting the system"


Ok, let me see if I've understood you...By doing a factory reset, I've put the faders and channels out of sequence? So, i would need to re-program the channels and faders? When I've tried to address the light with the proper DMX channel, I had my DMX cable plugged into the controller with everything on...should i disconnect the cable before addressing the light?


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> Ok, let me see if I've understood you...By doing a factory reset, I've put the faders and channels out of sequence? So, i would need to re-program the channels and faders? When I've tried to address the light with the proper DMX channel, I had my DMX cable plugged into the controller with everything on...should i disconnect the cable before addressing the light?



No, defaulting should have put it in sequence, but sometimes defaulting itself messes up. As the book says, it could take up to 30 seconds to complete the default. As for having the DMX connected, that should not be a problem. DMX only communicates in one direction: from the board to the fixture. If there is any concern with the fixture software, turning it off and then on again should reset it.


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> No, defaulting should have put it in sequence, but sometimes defaulting itself messes up. As the book says, it could take up to 30 seconds to complete the default. As for having the DMX connected, that should not be a problem. DMX only communicates in one direction: from the board to the fixture. If there is any concern with the fixture software, turning it off and then on again should reset it.


Thanks for all your help and patience. I'll work on it again. I've got new dmx lights coming in so i will try those


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> Thanks for all your help and patience. I'll work on it again. I've got new dmx lights coming in so i will try those



UPDATE:
I hooked up some other DMX lights, then i hooked up the Radius 2.0. Now, all the lights can be controlled. I don't get it, the radius 2.0 was not even reading the controller when connected by itself. But when i connected it in a chain, they all work together. I guess that particular light has to be connected to others for it to work in DMX


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


DJZ said:


> UPDATE:
> I hooked up some other DMX lights, then i hooked up the Radius 2.0. Now, all the lights can be controlled. I don't get it, the radius 2.0 was not even reading the controller when connected by itself. But when i connected it in a chain, they all work together. I guess that particular light has to be connected to others for it to work in DMX



Are you using a terminator after the last device?

DMX is designed to have a terminator at the end of the chain, otherwise the signal can echo in the cable and be obscured. A single device usually will still work fine but in this case the signal may (for lack of a better analogy) be to loud to be heard. Adding devices usually loads things down a bit. In fact, there is a limit (around 32 devices) to how many can be on the chain. In any case, the last device should have a terminator. 

Chauvet used to include a "DMX primer" page in their manuals, looks like they stopped doing that! It explained about terminators.
Here's an old manual for a Q-spot. The "primer" page is on 14. http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/q-250_ug-60.pdf


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## DJZ

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*


JD said:


> Are you using a terminator after the last device?
> 
> DMX is designed to have a terminator at the end of the chain, otherwise the signal can echo in the cable and be obscured. A single device usually will still work fine but in this case the signal may (for lack of a better analogy) be to loud to be heard. Adding devices usually loads things down a bit. In fact, there is a limit (around 32 devices) to how many can be on the chain. In any case, the last device should have a terminator.
> 
> Chauvet used to include a "DMX primer" page in their manuals, looks like they stopped doing that! It explained about terminators.
> Here's an old manual for a Q-spot. The "primer" page is on 14. http://www.chauvetlighting.com/products/manuals/q-250_ug-60.pdf



I when i hooked up the Radius 2.0 by itself, i tried it with and without a terminator and the light would not DMX. Once I hooked up the light in a DMX chain, all the lights, including the radius 2.0 works fine. I have not connected the terminator because i'm only running 3 lights on a chain with short cables between them. Seems to be working fine.


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## JD

*Re: Chauvet Obey 40 problem.*

My, that is an odd one. The concern I would have is that even when it is working, there is a problem sleeping which may wake up. As they say with DMX problems, "It works until one day it doesn't."

There are a few things that come to mind. One is what is know as a frame-rate error. Since this is not adjustable on the Chauvets, I won't bother with all the technicals other than to say it is more common when mixing brands. One would expect products from the same brand would have that worked out, but then again, we are talking China, so who knows.

The second has to do with the fact that DMX cable works like a "transmission line." (one of the reasons you should never use microphone cable to run DMX, although some do without problem.) Because it is a transmission line, it's tuning can be altered depending on how long it is and how many fixtures are on it. Again, another reason there is a fixture and distance limit. 

The DMX signal is hearty enough that these things should not matter as long as its good cable, properly terminated, and within fixture and distance limits. The fact that you have a problem indicated something is wrong with the way the DMX is being generated (board) or received (fixtures.) 

Is it something to worry about? Not as much as something to keep in the back of your mind. I would try mixing up the arrangement and seeing what works and what doesn't. That way you will not be surprised at a job someday. If all your other fixtures work ok alone, then the Radius is what is compromised. If you have problems with other fixtures, the the board is what is compromised. Could be there is a certain batch of the Radius fixtures that are just out of spec.


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