RC4Magic Series 3 Wireless Dimmer Quick Start Guide
Page 6
Assign DMX Channels
You probably don’t want to run all your wireless dimmers on DMX channels 1 through 4.
RC4 OneTouchTM makes it easy to assign any DMX channel and dimmer curve to any
dimmer with a single press of a single button. You need a working DMX controller and
transmitter, an RC4Magic dimmer that is set to the same System ID as your transmitter,
and a bent paperclip or other small tool for pressing small recessed buttons.
Start by clearing all your DMX channels to zero on your controller. Be sure this includes
any “special” channels, like house lights and work lights, and be sure you are not using
fixture profiles that “home” some channels at levels other than zero. For example, some
moving light fixture profiles will send X and Y motion to a midpoint when the console is
“cleared.” That midpoint is not zero; for our purposes, you need actual zero.
If you are unsure if all channels are really at zero, check your DMX line with
a tester, like a Goddard DMXter or a Fleenor Gizmo. These are very handy
devices to have around, for all kinds of reasons. Put this on your wish-list!
Now, bring up the level of one DMX channel –any channel you like –to 30% (if you can’t
decide on what channel to try, use channel 92). If you’re using a simple fader, put it about
1/3 of the way up. If you can type in a channel level, use 30%. Now, go to your RC4Magic
dimmer and press the SetA button. You’ll see the DimA indicator come on at about 30%
brightness. When you let go of the button, the dimmer should stay on. It is now assigned
to the channel you have up.
Fade the channel up and down from your DMX controller. The wireless dimmer will track
it exactly. It will remember your channel assignment after you cycle the power. It
remembers forever, until you change it.
If the dimmer came on brightly when you pressed the button, and did not
stay on after you released the button, the data connection to the transmitter
is not working. Go back to the previous steps and get it working with default
settings for wireless control on DMX channels 1, 2, 3, etc.
Setting the channel to 30% tells the dimmer to use a combination of options that make
LEDs look great, ideal for viewing the little indicator on the dimmer device itself.
You can set the channel to levels other than 30% to select configurations that are
optimized for other kinds of loads. Each dimmer can be set to a channel, curve, PWM
frequency, and RC4 Digital Persistence level, accommodating the different needs of
multiple loads connected to the same device.
