The Future Theatrical Electrician

The Digital Theater: New Connections in Lighting

Technology You Must Understand to be Employable in Five Years

The Overview-Tom Wilson, V.P. Sales, Strand US
Tidbits of information from the overview:

The original name for the Light Palette was coined by Tharon, who said, “all I want is a board that can do what 4 Road Boards, and 5 Electricians can do.” So the first prototype was the 4RB5E.
There was a story about how a building designer tried to dedicate lighting instrument in a three space building by putting a different connector on the instruments in each space. The first thing the electricians did when they moved in was to build a mess of adapters. The moral of the story is: Dedication of instruments by designers will always be thwarted by technicians who can build adapters.
The difference between Preset and Tracking memory boards was explained. Preset boards have a blank slate each cue, and Tracking boards only record the difference in levels of things that change. (The metaphor of a sailboat was used to illustrate this- a sailboat sets a course and trims sails to maintain it, like a tracking board. When it comes about all sails must be reset before trimming can resume, like a preset board.)
A story about the advent of the Edkatron Dimmer (named after Century’s President, Ed Cook) illustrated a point about investigating manufacturers before buying equipment you plan on keeping for the long term. Tom told about how Ed liked to buy surplus material from the Army, and one day came back with 55 gal. drums of SCR’s made by Motorola to Army spec. He told his people to “build a dimmer around these.” They did, and shipped thousands of Edkatrons. In those days Tom was a Customer Service guy and when the SCR’s failed he would just go to the shelf and ship a replacement to the customer. One day he noticed that the shelf was getting low, and when he asked the Parts guy to order more he was told that they “haven’t made those in years”. This led to an expensive re-design by Century, and a more involved retro-fit for the customer. Thus, investigate your manufacturer and their process before laying out the big bucks for an item you hope will last for years, and don’t buy it if it will be insupportable in no time.

Smart Dimming-

Peter Rogers, V.P. Marketing, Strand Canada.
”Everything that’s old is new again” - What’s available in most modern dimming systems. · Early dimmer/circuit systems actually cut back on the features that dimmers could offer, but now with the advent of microprocessors in the racks the old features are on the way back, and more. Digital Dimmers now offer:

complete control over how an individual dimmer fires (this may be a detriment in some cases where the dimmer is set to come on at full. Old dimmers rarely came to full at the top of the wave form, so there was some heat-up time for the filaments, new ones always do which can shorten the lives of lamps, so some delay had to be programmed in ).
a wide range of High Performance device modules available.
fast response in line regulation (they control the voltage at the pig-tail, not at the dimmer rack).
Back-up cues recordable at the rack (with the playback option there, too. So if the board goes down, back-up can be run from the racks).
wide range of Control options.
multiple DMX inputs (for house lights, effects consoles, remote control, etc.) Useful for touring co.’s to plug into FOH positions, or to bring in a R-n-R desks. Offers more options into dimmers.
multiple protocol support.
inputs may be patched to any or all dimmers.
precedence or selection on some systems.
2,000-step fade resolution enhancement, “puts the Art back into fading,” like the old days of the guy doing the actual fade and watching it on-stage.
analog inputs into 8-40 dimmers to run worklights, cuelights, or non-dims.
hand-held remotes.
architectural controls allow up to 8 presets/room, slider control, slider/preset, and preset recall stations. AV interface cards allow system interfaces.
report computer links allow the dimmers to tell a PC if a load has changed, and how (lamp out, wiring short, etc.), and can report to the PC or control console. Full remote rack configuration and setup available, along with phase monitoring.
Dimmers available:
- Duel 2.4K
- Single 6K or
- Single 12K
Other kinds of Dimmers:
- IGBT , power transistors that offer full wave form for low voltage control.
- Batten-mounted
- DC dimmers (no wave form worries here)
- all are expensive (just so you know)
Advanced functions:
- fade profiles for each individual dimmer from non-dim to user defined.
- analogue outputs
- true contractor modules
- hand-fired available for full control of low-voltage loads.

Smart Controls-

Kirstin O’Leary, Product Manager, Strand USA.
Controllers used to follow the needs of dimmers. With the advent of color scrollers, moving luminares, etc. we’ve overextended the programs of traditional theatrical lighting controllers. The example of the new generation of Light Palette offers this: Old Controller attributes saved:

command language the same
control layout the same as far as displays, submastering, playback faders, macro buttons.

New Stuff:

dedicated controls for automated equipment.
additional display screens.
fixture library for patching.
Increased capacities, up to 2000 ques of up to 12 parts each.
2000 channels.
999 groups.
special functions.

Using the controller:

To patch the fixture: [mux#]@[channel#]@[fixture#](from library)[*] This allows you to control all of the attributes of a fixture with just the channel #.
To set a cue: enter the channel # and control the intensity with the intensity wheel (like old boards), the pan/tilt with the trackball, and four dials set by fixture type can control color, iris, focus, gobo, etc.
Create show with group libraries, recording submasters, effects, and cues just like the old consoles.
Run the show just like you do now.

Special Functions:

last action playback (overrides normal highest level function of submasters).
auto-move while dark (primarily for theatre-board looks at next cue, and makes changes while unit is off-replaces need to program in specific dark cues).
separate attribute timing (ability to cross-fade colors at different rates than intensities, for example).
configurable fixture libraries (accepts input from programming, user, or information from mfg.).

Effects:

recorded as with old boards, in steps, but instead of simple lists of channels, now you can record entire looks as steps up to 99 steps, and link to additional effects to continue if necessary.
configurable dials ease programming of effects.
larger selection of display formats.
more inputs to board (i.e.: MIDI, analog, DMX, etc.)

Advantages:

Shorter learning curve.
Quick set-up.
Simple, direct control.
User configurable system.

Automated Lighting Fixtures-

Tina Malakey, Sales Rep, Clay-Paky Automated Luminares.
“What they are, and what they ain’t.”

They ain’t “a frill” (yeah, right)
nor are they looking to replace existing instruments.
They are technology that covers the range from special to wash.
They live in a plot.
What’s changed is the processing and communication with the console.
Her example is the top of the line Clay-Paky Golden Scan 12K HMI moving fixture.
- It is 110 lbs.(which is heavier and larger than, say, a moving yoke fixture, i.e.: a Vari-lite)
- includes an onboard linear dimmer (so you don’t need to eat up a house dimmer)
- up to 113 dichroic color washes
- 66mm pattern wheels, frosts, prisms, and the patterns can rotate at up to 155 RPM.
How they work:
- They are 12K HMI sources that are 5600°K (as opposed to 3200°K for Leko’s) which is very complimentary and, in fact, adds texture to the lighting look (sounds like rationalization to me).
- They are controlled by manipulating 12 attributes (dimming, pan, tilt, iris, color, rotate, focus, diffusion, and four others that she never mentioned).
- The colors mix two ways; Dichroic Flags, and Dichroic Real.
  - flags are the coolest, but take 6 servo motors and more space.
  - real take 3 wheels and use “C,Y,N mixing” (whatever that is).
Maintenance:
- Must be periodically vacuumed out, shorter intervals if used with lots of fog or in dusty atmospheres.
- Lenses and dichroics must be kept clean.

Other notes:

List price for the top-o’-the-line Golden Scan is $7000.
If you use a custom pattern that floats around a venue there is the ability to “index” the pattern to keep the focus and orientation constant.
Theatrical shows that are currently use the Golden Scan are best represented by Luc L’fountaine’s design for the Vegas Cirque d’ Soleil.

The Ethernet: A Revolution in Communication-

Peter Rogers, VP Marketing, Strand Canada.
When Strand first started dealing with the complexities of having to control not only dimmers, but scrollers, moving fixtures, and who knows what-all else, they realized that there would be a problem dealing with that much data transfer. In trying to deal with that complexity they looked at how their office system dealt with those requirements and decided to adapt that kind of Ethernet system.
What Ethernet Offers:

Full Data Distribution
On a Single Cable in a closed network
New System Support 10/100 BT & 10 BT Ethernet
Duel VGA video
MIDI in/thru/out
Multiple DMX universes
Focus/console/ASCII remote
Local Slider and Button Control

Remote Nodes:

Supplies taps for Computers & Consoles
Full function Smart Nodes for video, multi, and DMX access
Basic Nodes with DMX in/out ports

Thinet 10B2 system:

two-point wiring system
Max. cable run of 600’
can’t connect multiple 10B2 systems
Can be “starred” with very expensive “ Partitioning Repeater”
Rugged connector
Good for touring applications

10/100BT “telephone system:

Twisted-pair wiring
Uses star wiring
Uses a hub
Max. cable run of 330’(firm)
Uses low-cost RJ45(modular phone plug-kinda cheesy)
Supports 10B2 Wiring or Fibre Optic Backbones

DMX Data Distribution over Ethernet (System Topology) Final Notes:

Fibre Optic or Category 5 telephone wire is best for installations (co-ax won’t support 10BT). Of the 2 Fibre Optic is best for length and against EMF interference, but it’s most expensive.
Nodes that are full service are @$3000.
Nodes that are DMX only are@$1500.
Data transfer rate of 10 Meg/sec are plenty enough for up to 5 consoles and their dimmers.

Putting These Technologies to Work-

Dennis Hudson, M.E. San Francisco Ballet.
The object is to make it all work for the designer, who has the least amount of time of anyone to create his/her vision. He works with Local #16 IATSE in SF, and credits George Pantagis with training most of the areas best electricians. He gave a short history of protocol standards, beginning with the analog 0-10v. He accedes that DMX isn’t the best standard, but the fact that it is supported as an industry standard means that whatever comes in the door can help the designer realize their vision. It’s a one-way protocol (it sends a signal out, but does not return a signal for error checking). The only limitations are cable length, and that both ends must be terminated. It packages information then sends information out in packets, and continues to send out the same packet until a change is made (kind of like a tracking board). Ethernet sends and receives information continually. If there is an error the end of the line can “request” the information again. With all of this technology our documentation involves not only the Hookup to keep track of Control and Dimmers, but the Topology of the Ethernet system. Following the DMX signals from controllers to dimmers, scrollers, moving lumanaires, etc. Sometimes its’ a case of finding the problems and working around them, so we must keep track of not only what we have, but how much “work around” we have. The first link in this chain is the Opto- splitter right off of the Controller. Because its’ “starred” you can remove elements that are not in use, or route around trouble spots. How to Troubleshoot:

Terminator resistor (an XLR with a resistor between pins to terminate the line) to isolate problems.
DMX meter to analyze packet problems.
A good book like USITT’s DMX standards book to help figure it all out.
On a higher level, an Opto-splitter not only enables swapping, but protects the Controller in case of catastrophic failure from voltage coming back up the data line.

Things to learn to make yourself valuable to the new technology:

Drafting & some sort of Drafting application
Some sort of Spreadsheet application
Database management
Visual Basic for programming
HTML

Job Opportunities for the Future

Panel Discussion lead by Larry French, Consultant with A & G.
Panel members were all of the presenters: David Elliott, LD for UC Berkeley, Tom Wilson, Peter Rogers, Kirsten O’Leary, Tina Malakey, and Dennis Hudson.
Dennis says that before too long theatre will need a systems manager for intra-theatre Ethernet. Number management is becoming more important, too. Now Designers have assts. for drafting, for moving lights, and for keeping track of all of those numbers. Now its’ just as important to know which options not to use as which to use. Lamp sources are new technologies to keep on top of. New advances in Gas and pressurized sources and their controllers are coming out every year. 3D modeling systems, and WYSIWYG design processes are expected to aid in set-up time. Automated tracking systems are becoming very big (where the performer wears a DMX transmitter which sends a signal to an automated luminare which is programmed to follow that signal).
The question becomes, “Where do we send students to help them up to speed on the technology without having the actual equipment ourselves?”

Have manufacturers and distributors come in for seminars to schools.
Books on specific equipment.
Seminars such as this.
USITT & LDI conventions seminars.
To work out in the field.
To get experience with Architectural Drafting and CAD systems (theatrical drafting is too unstructured).
David is working on UC Berkeley being a focal point of this kind of education.

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