On last newbie question and then I'm off to the big boys forums lol

[Roxxxtar]

I did my first run through today, and suprisingly, everything worked well.

Showtime Central

48 channels

 

Here is my question.

I plan to run a timer as suggested to turn on/off the show. My understanding was/is that once the #1 controller goes off, so do the rest. Therein lies my problem. When I unplugged controller 1 from the outlet, (timer not hooked up yet) controller 2 still had power, and the lights stayed on.

 

What the.......?

[EmmienLightFan]

When you unplug the first controller it removes power to the Showtime Central so none of the lights will be controlled. If you remove the power to the Showtime Central when the lights are on then the lights will stay as they were when they last received a signal from the Showtime Central.

You need to turn the lights off before you remove the power. You can add a clean-up sequence that plays at the end of your show and has a long fade down.

[Roxxxtar]

But if I'm running my show on a loop, and it's in the middle of a show when it's time for the timer to shut off....?

[mcha]

It will still cut the power to the lights through the Cat 5.  Make sure that the unit you have on the timer is the same one that you have the cat 5  coming into from your showtime source.  Being that you have 3 controllers and they are daisy chained, you need to cut the power at the first controller that is receiving the show info, not necessarily controller 1.

[LOR Staff]

When you unplug the first controller it removes power to the Showtime Central so none of the lights will be controlled. If you remove the power to the Showtime Central when the lights are on then the lights will stay as they were when they last received a signal from the Showtime Central.

You need to turn the lights off before you remove the power. You can add a clean-up sequence that plays at the end of your show and has a long fade down.

This is not true.  When controllers stop receiving data signals they turn all lights OFF.

 

With a typical network cable we use the center pair of wires (the blue pair, pins 4 & 5) to transmit/receive data. We then use pins 3 & 6 (the green pair) to transmit power to accessories. The other wires we don't currently use. 

The ShowTime Central components (the miniDirector and FM transmitter) get their power from the first controller over the network cable. If the first controller is turned off then power can sneak across the network cable from any other controller along the controller daisy chain. 

We use a "special cable" to break the power path so power can't sneak across from other controllers other than the first. Now you can turn off the first controller and ShowTime Central will also shut down. 

Where do you get one of these "special cables"? We can certainly provide one from Light-O-Rama but it's faster and much less expensive to modify and existing network cable. 

With a network cable you want to make special, peel back the cable jacket about an inch at some point (an Xacto knife comes in quite handy) and cut one of the green wires. Since power flows over the green pair, you've broken the path. Seal up your splice and you're done. I'd suggest putting a piece of colored tape at each end of this cable so you know it's a "special cable" in the future. 

Now you can put a timer on the first controller and use it to turn on/off your entire display, including the ShowTime Central, no matter how many controllers you have. The controllers are smart enough to know that if they don't get any data signals to turn off all the electrical circuits. 

 

Remember, this cable goes between controller 1 and 2, not between the central and controller 1.

[mcha]

Mike - Is this 'special cable' the one that is included with the starter package?  I have not modified any of the additional cat5 that I have purchased with the expanded set-up to subsequent controllers and don't have the problem of the controllers staying on that aren't hooked up to the timer. The original 'green' LOR cable runs between controller 1 and the Mini director, not between 1 and 2.

[gorichgo]

This is not true.  When controllers stop receiving data signals they turn all lights OFF.

 

With a typical network cable we use the center pair of wires (the blue pair, pins 4 & 5) to transmit/receive data. We then use pins 3 & 6 (the green pair) to transmit power to accessories. The other wires we don't currently use. 

The ShowTime Central components (the miniDirector and FM transmitter) get their power from the first controller over the network cable. If the first controller is turned off then power can sneak across the network cable from any other controller along the controller daisy chain. 

We use a "special cable" to break the power path so power can't sneak across from other controllers other than the first. Now you can turn off the first controller and ShowTime Central will also shut down. 

Where do you get one of these "special cables"? We can certainly provide one from Light-O-Rama but it's faster and much less expensive to modify and existing network cable. 

With a network cable you want to make special, peel back the cable jacket about an inch at some point (an Xacto knife comes in quite handy) and cut one of the green wires. Since power flows over the green pair, you've broken the path. Seal up your splice and you're done. I'd suggest putting a piece of colored tape at each end of this cable so you know it's a "special cable" in the future. 

Now you can put a timer on the first controller and use it to turn on/off your entire display, including the ShowTime Central, no matter how many controllers you have. The controllers are smart enough to know that if they don't get any data signals to turn off all the electrical circuits. 

 

Remember, this cable goes between controller 1 and 2, not between the central and controller 1.

 

Is there a Youtube or tutorial video on how/where to cut the wire?

[LOR Staff]

No, we don't include a special cable unless you order it.  If you ordered one it would be marked.

 

Just modify the cable from 1 to 2 as specified and mark it.  It's easy to do, and a LOT cheaper than if we do it for you

[scubanimal]

 my post was moved for me to a new thread - thank you.

Edited November 19, 2015 by scubanimal

[mcha]

Thanks Mike.  The check is in the mail for the advice!

[Dcroc]

I think it's cute when the young ones think they are all grown up and one of the "big boys".  This is my second year, and I firmly believe I will be a newbie for years to come.

 

But.....good luck with that.

[George Simmons]

I'm still failing to understand the purpose of including a timer in the network topography in the first place. Seems like an awful lot of effort (and potential for screw-ups) to basically accomplish, uh, what?

[mcha]

I use the timer with the mini director.  Show is on SD card that continues to loop in the controller, not on computer set to specific times. Therefore, I don't want to manually turn the show on and off each day - timer is needed.