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COMPACT PORTABLE DIMMER
OWNERS MANUAL
XC-42
Revision 0.2
06/12/2007
www.lightronics.com 20070612 drp
Lightronics Inc. 509 Central Drive Virginia Beach, VA 234354 757 486 3588
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Page 2 of 12
XC-42 COMPACT DMX DIMMER
Version 0.2 OWNERS MANUAL 06/12/2007
TABLE OF CONTENTS
XC-42 UNIT DESCRIPTION 3
INSTALLATION 3
POWER REQUIREMENTS 3
LOCATION AND MOUNTING 3
LOADS AND LOAD CONNECTIONS 3
DMX CONTROL SIGNAL CONNECTIONS 3
OPERATION 4
SETUP AND OPERATING CONFIGURATION 4
FACTORY DEFAULT CONFIGURATION 4
DISPLAY STATUS INDICATORS 4
MENU ACCESS AND USE 4
QUICK PACK ADDRESSING 4
CHANNEL TEST 4
DIMMER SETUP 5
CHANNEL ADDRESSING (SOFTPATCHING) 5
TO SET CHANNEL SOFTPATCH ADDRESSES 5
CHANNEL LIMITING 5
RESPONSE CURVE SELECTION 5
CHASE OPERATION 6
SETTING CHASE PATTERNS AND PARAMETERS 6
CHASE PATTERN SELECTION 6
CHASE RATE 6
CHASE FADE 6
CHASE BRIGHTNESS 6
SYSTEM SETUP 6
CONTROL SOURCE SELECTION (CnFG) 6
SELECTING A CONTROL SOURCE 7
OTHER SYSTEM SUB MENUS 7
XC-42 WIRELESS OPTION 8
DESCRIPTION 8
INSTALLATION AND SETUP 8
LINKING TO A WIRELESS EQUIPPED CONSOLE 8
TO LINK AN XC-42 TO A CONSOLE 8
UNLINKING AN XC-42 FROM A CONSOLE 8
TO RELEASE THE LINK AT THE XC-42 9
TO RELEASE ALL LINKS AT THE CONSOLE 9
SETTING THE XC-42 TO WIRELESS MODE 9
MENU AND DISPLAY OPERATION DIAGRAM 10
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR 11
TROUBLESHOOTING 11
FUSE REPLACEMENT 11
SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES 11
WARRANTY 12
www.lightronics.com 20070612 drp
Lightronics Inc. 509 Central Drive Virginia Beach, VA 234354 757 486 3588
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XC-42 COMPACT DMX DIMMER
Version 0.2 OWNERS MANUAL 06/12/2007
XC-42 UNIT DESCRIPTION
The XC-42 is a four circuit compact dimmer with a
load capacity of 1200 Watts per circuit. Each circuit
is protected by a 10 Amp fuse. It can be controlled in
several ways - the most common being DMX-512.
Other control modes are also provided for stand alone
operations. These include individual channel control
and chaser functions. Individual circuits may be
operated as non-dim (relay) circuits. Individual
circuits may be set for one of several response curves
and may be limited to less than full intensity. In
addition to full soft patch capability there is a quick
pack address function which enables rapid setup.
The XC-42 can optionally be provided with a wireless
DMX receiver.
INSTALLATION
POWER REQUIREMENTS
The XC-42 operates from two separate 120VAC, 20
Amp service feeds. Each feed must supply a
NEUTRAL and a safety GROUND. The unit is
provided with power cord stubs containing Edison
plugs for this purpose.
LOCATION AND MOUNTING
Locate the unit in a well ventilated area away from
moisture and heat. The unit should be operated in free
air to ensure good air flow around all sides. Do not
block any of the vent holes.
THE XC-42 COMPACT DIMMER PACK IS
INTENDED FOR INDOOR USE ONLY.
Two 1/2" diam. holes are provided at the top of the
unit for a lighting bar pipe clamp and a safety cable.
LOADS AND LOAD CONNECTIONS
Lighting fixtures connect to the 4 duplex outlets on
one side of the unit. They are designated as "A"
through "D". There are two load connections per
circuit. Each circuits is referred to as a "channel". A
diagram is provided on the unit which identifies each
channel.
LOAD CONNECTIONS
Each XC-42 channel has a 1200 Watt MAXIMUM
rating and is protected by a 10 Amp fuse. 10 Amps
equates to 1200 Watts at 120VAC. If you operate a
channel at 1200 watts then you are very close to
blowing its fuse. This will occur if AC line voltages
are high or you have power surges. Other conditions
which may cause the fuse to blow include turning a
cold lamp quickly on to full intensity.
A practical working load is 1000 Watts per channel.
DMX CONTROL SIGNAL CONNECTIONS
DMX control is connected via the male 5 pin XLR
connector located in the end of the dimmer. A female
5 pin XLR is also provided so you can chain the
connection to other dimmers or other DMX devices.
Wiring information for the XLR connectors is shown
below.
DMX OUT
DMX IN
FEMALE
MALE
XLR PIN # SIGNAL DESCRIPTION
1 DMX Common
2 DMX Data 3 DMX Data +
4 Not Used
5 Not Used
www.lightronics.com 20070612 drp
Lightronics Inc. 509 Central Drive Virginia Beach, VA 234354 757 486 3588
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Page 4 of 12
XC-42 COMPACT DMX DIMMER
Version 0.2 OWNERS MANUAL 06/12/2007
OPERATION
SETUP AND OPERATING CONFIGURATION
All operating functions and settings for the XC-42 are
menu controlled using the LED Display and the 4
buttons located near it on the back surface of the unit.
DMX VALID
WIRELESS
STATUS
PACA
MENU
NEXT
SELECT
FACTORY DEFAULT CONFIGURATION
The XC-42 is supplied with a factory default setup
configuration. The unit may be reset to this condition
by keeping the SELECT button held down while
power is applied. The display briefly shows
FACt
while the reset is being performed. The XC-42 is set
as follows when a reset is performed:
1. The unit is set for DMX (
2. The DMX pack address (
address 1 (
P001).
5Pin) operation.
PACA) will be set to
3. Softpatch is set to DMX addresses 1 - 4
4. All channels curves are set for incandescent
dimming (
5. Channel limiting is turned off (
Dim).
255).
6. Chase functions are set as follows:
Pattern #:
Rate:
Fade:
Brightness:
7. The architectural Unit ID is set to
01
004 (1 sec. per step)
050 (%)
100 (%)
01
8. Power type is set to AUTO
DISPLAY STATUS INDICATORS
The LED display shows a dot near the upper left
corner when a valid DMX signal is being received.
If equipped with the wireless option, another dot at the
top of the display indicates the status of an active
wireless link.
www.lightronics.com 20070612 drp
Lightronics Inc. 509 Central Drive Virginia Beach, VA 234354 757 486 3588
MENU ACCESS AND USE
Hold the MENU/NEXT button down for aprox. 5
seconds to gain access to the complete menu system.
If there is no button activity for 1 minute while inside
the menus then the unit will revert back to the normal
display (
PACA).
To exit from anywhere in the menus - Hold down
MENU/NEXT for aprox. 5 seconds. The unit will
revert back to the normal display (
PACA).
A flow diagram of menu/display operation is provided
at the back of this manual.
QUICK PACK ADDRESSING
The XC-42 has a quick DMX address setup which
enables you to set the starting address of the pack (the
address for channel "A") without accessing the rest of
the menu system. When this is used, the remaining 3
channels ("B", "C", and "D") are set to the next
consecutive addresses.
During normal operation the LED display toggles
back and forth between
address such as
P001. Use the and buttons
PACA and the current pack
to set different pack address. Push SELECT to
save the setting when done.
PACA P001
If you set the pack address to
will run in soft patch mode. In this mode you can set
ANY channel of the pack (A - D) to ANY DMX
address (000-512) by using the dimmer setup (
menus. See
CHANNEL ADDRESSING for details.
CHANNEL TEST
You can test the operation of each dimmer channel by
pushing MENU/NEXT. The display will show the
intensity of channel A (00 - 99%) as shown below.
-00
Use to adjust the intensity to the desired level.
Push MENU/NEXT to advance to the next channel
(Channel B). The dimmer will return to its normal
display when you go past the last channel.
P000 then the unit
dSEt)