colorkinetics

The baby of the STICK family.

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radcom
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colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

Can someone tell me if the GU-2 would be compatible with a Philips DMX compatible Data Enabler?
http://www.colorkinetics.com/support/us ... nabler.pdf
nick
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by nick »

Hi,

Thank you for your question. Any device which can receive and understand DMX signals is compatible with our DMX controllers. Looking at fig 6., page 2 of the pdf, you can see that the DMX controller (i.e. Stick-GU2) connects to the colorkinetics device using an RJ45 cable.

The Stick-GU2 has a 5 pin Euroblock socket at the back, so you will need to strip an RJ45 cable at one end and connect the correct cables (DMX +, - and GND) to a Euroblock plug. See further details on connecting it here.
https://storage.googleapis.com/nicolaud ... eet_en.pdf

An alternative is the Stick-GA2, which comes with an RJ45 socket for DMX out. This will enable you to connect an RJ45 cable more easily.
https://storage.googleapis.com/nicolaud ... eet_en.pdf

Kind Regards,

Nick.
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radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

Can't wait to give it a try,
Thank you
radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

I have now connected the GU2 to the color kinetics data enabler and there seems to be no communication.
Enabler works when connected to iW (intelliwhite) Cove powercore and using previous analog DMX switch. I am trying to convert enabler to ebay purchased icolor (RGB) cove fixtures and use a Stick controller. These seem to be my possible problems:
Enabler is programmed for 2 channels and not RGB
DMX wiring is reversed
RGB cove fixtures have been previously addressed out of range
Defective RGB fixtures
Enabler is not RGB compatable
Preloaded program on GU2 not compatable
After testing wiring do you have any suggestions what to do next?
nick
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by nick »

Hi,

Thank you for your message. You said you are trying to get it working with a icolor (RGB) cove fixtures. Is it these?

http://www.colorkinetics.com/ls/rgb/covemx/

On the Phillips datasheet it says "Color-changing and IntelliWhite® lighting fixtures using Powercore technology from Philips ColorKinetics (excluding iColor® Accent Powercore)."

I have bolded the text that suggests it is not compatible with the Data Enabler. You may want to check with Phillips.

Datasheet:
http://www.colorkinetics.com/support/da ... cSheet.pdf

Kind Regards,

Nick.
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radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

Great Greetings Nick,

Here is the link to the fixture I am trying to connect to the data enabler and the GU-2.
My fixtures have the part number 123-000004-01 which seems like an older version of the one you have link to.

http://www.colorkinetics.com/.../iColor ... cSheet.pdf

It says on my cove fixture "use only with data enabler #106-000003", which is what I have so I don't think compatibility is the problem. I will call Philips and double check though. I will also verify the DMX pin configuration on the RJ45 jack, I can't seem to find any documentation on that. Assuming fixtures and enabler are in working order how do I investigate address range? I don't have the part to readdress fixtures so is there a way to program the stick to send a command to all 512 address's? Do I have to slide each bar up individually in the ESA software or can it be done globally? Do I need to include different universes too?
Thank you very much for your help
radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

I have verified enabler/light compatibility and DMX pin configuration with Philips. Now I think I need to either readdress the fixtures and/or find a way to send a command to every conceivable address option. Is this even possible?
Thank you for your time
nick
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by nick »

Hi,

That's good news that Phillips have verified compatability.
DMX wiring is reversed
Have you got a DMX Tester to test the output through the RJ45 plug on the cable between the Stick-GU2 and Data Enabler? If not, a low cost RGB LED fixture addresses to channel1 will show you if there is signal. It's possible to get DMX cables with RJ45 sockets at one end and DMX 3 Pin XLR plugs on the other. See attached image.
RGB cove fixtures have been previously addressed out of range.
The datasheet of the DataEnabler says "All Color Kinetics lights are addressed to DMX number one at the factory". Have you got the software to check which DMX address your fixtures are addressed to?
Preloaded program on GU2 not compatable ?
By default, the Stick-GU2 demo scenes will output an RGB DMX signal starting from the base address 1. There is no DMX channel information on the iColor Cove MX SpecSheet. This usually means it will understand standard 3 channel RGB DMX information (i.e. channel 1: red, channel 2: green, channel 3 : blue) but it may be worth checking with Phillips just to make sure?

Kind Regards,

Nick.
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radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

I have now addressed my 4 icolor cove fixtures and programmed my first scene using ESA2. It is a simple flame scene that has 1278 steps over the 12 channels. Does anyone know how much memory a scene like this takes? I have programmed it to turn on at sunset but have not tested it yet. How does the stick know what time it is? I see no option to set a clock.
radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

I have figured out how much memory I can load by trial and error. It seems my flame program uses up most of it. By compressing the time I have been able to use up 5 of the 8 presets with programs. Does anyone know if the memory is based on the number of steps? I would assume it would be steps plus number of channels that are being altered determines the programs total data. It also seems that the time clock feature in the software does not apply to the GU2. I see in the instructions and on the control a place for the dry contact closure. Opening the unit up I see that I will have to solder on to the circuit board to connect the wires. Is this standard practice? If I do manage to connect to the dry contact I would wish to connect it to a timer to trigger the unit on and off. Is this what the contact closure is for or does it just change between scenes? What are the voltage limitations for the contact closure? I would assume 6 volts just like the controller. If I tap the controllers power supply and feed it to a stand alone timer that has contact closure I would want the Stick to go on to it's last scene, then when the contact opens I would want the Stick to turn off. Is this scenario possible?
Thank you everyone that has helped, it only took a year and a half but I have got all these amazing devices that I have collected of E-bay working together. The flame scene is what I had always envisioned and I can't tell you how blown away I was when I discovered that it is a preset scene in the Stick. What a bargain.
William
radcom
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Re: colorkinetics

Post by radcom »

I have now connected my system in a working environment for a client. The Stick is connected to the Color Kinectic driver via a Cat-5 wire that is just under 100' in length. The only problem I am having is the with the contact closure feature. I am using a stand alone Leviton wall box timer to trigger the system on at sunset. The system worked perfectly when I connected the timer directly to the Stick but when I added in the 100' run of CAT-5 the Stick is seeing too much resistance and thinks it is an open circuit. It will turn the system on but not off. If I touch the contact closure leads together at the Stick it function flawlessly. The timer I am using adds @ 3 Ohms resistance to the circuit. The solution I see is one of four options, find a timer that has less resistance, add in a mini relay between the timer and the Stick, or relocate the timer closer to the Stick, or upgrade the Stick power supply. Does anyone know if upgrade the Stick power supply would have any impact? Right now I am using a 6 Volt 350mA unit where the positive and negative are powered by single conductors of the CAt-5. If I provide more power on the input of the Stick will it therefore provide more power to the contact closure?
Tank You
Will
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