Pearl DLC-C003 Operator's Manual

Pearl 2010

DLC-C003

Instruction for use

Operator’s Manual

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TUTORIAL CONTENTS

1. WELCOME TO THE DLC-C003 3

2. PATCHING 7

3. CONTROLLING DIMMERS AND FIXTURES 15

4. PALETTES 19

5. SHAPES 23

6. MEMORIES 26

7. CHASES 33

8. THEATRE STACK 38

9. THE GRAPHICS TABLET 41

10. RUNNING YOUR SHOW 43

11. ADVANCED FEATURES 46

12. INTRODUCTION TO INTELLIGENT LIGHTING 47

13. INTRODUCTION TO DORTRON’S CONSOLES 49

14. CHANGES IN THE LATEST DLC-C003 SOFTWARE 51

REFERENCE MANUAL CONTENTS

1. SETTING UP THE CONSOLE 58

2. PATCHING 64

3. CONTROLLING DIMMERS AND FIXTURES 70

4. PALETTES 79

5. SHAPES 85

6. MEMORIES 90

7. CHASES 100

8. THEATRE STACK 110

9. THE GRAPHICS TABLET 117

10. RUNNING THE SHOW 121

11. AUTOMATED PLAYBACK (SCRIPT FILES) 124

12. SETUP 132

13. OTHER FEATURES 135

14. THE PERSONALITY FILE SYSTEM 142

15. GLOSSARY OF TERMS 153

16. INDEX 158

Pages in the Tutorial section have numbers below 100. Pages in
the Reference manual have numbers above 100.

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CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1. Welcome to the DLC-C003

This manual is designed to help you get the most out of your DLC-C003
console. We have divided it into two sections.

• This first section is a tutorial which gives you a step by step guide
of how to carry out the most common functions of the DLC-C003. If
you are new to the console, working through this part will give you
a good introduction.

• The second section is a reference manual which tells you
everything there is to know about the DLC-C003.

To help you move between the two sections, we have made the chapter
numbering the same, so if you are using the tutorial and you want
more information, just look for the same chapter number in the
reference manual.

At the back of the reference manual there is a Glossary, explaining
some of the technical terms used in the manual, and an Index which
can be used to find what you need in either section of the manual.

This manual applies to both the DLC-C003 2048 and the DLC-C003

Tiger consoles.

1.1 Setting up the DLC-C003

Before you can use the DLC-C003, you need to connect various things
to it. Ensure the power is off while making these connect ions.

Important: Firstly check if your console has a voltage selector switch

on the back of the console next to the power socket. If it has, make
sure it matches your mains power. You can set it to 230V or 120V.

If you plug in the power with the switch set wrongly, you will
probably blow up the power supply. This would be a Bad Thing To Do
a few hours before a show.

Connect the mains inlet to an AC power supply.
If you are using the optional external VDU screen, connect a VGA

monitor (640x480 text mode) to the VDU output on the back of the
console. You don’t have to use the VDU screen but it does show some
additional information that is not shown on the console display.

Connect the DMX output(s) to your lighting fixtures or dimmers. The
DLC-C003 2048 has four DMX output sockets. The DLC-C003 2048 has
only two DMX sockets, but four DMX lines may be connected to them
using a splitter cable. Chapter 1 in the reference manual has more
details on DMX connections.

Plug in the desk light to the socket on the top left of the console. If you
have a QWERTY keyboard, plug it into its socket. You do not have to
connect a keyboard if you don’t want.

Turn on the power. The console display and VDU screen (if you are
using one) should come alive.

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1.2 Finding your way about on the DLC-C003

The DLC-C003 might initially appear to have an alarming number of
sliders and buttons on it, but don’t be scared of it. The main controls
are:

• The Preset Faders are used to control individual dimmer channels and
fixture intensities. The 2 buttons below the faders are used to select
and flash fixtures. Each fader and buttons is called a “Handle”.

• The Mode select keyswitch sets the operating mode of the console;
Program for programming a show, Run for running the show and
System for configuring the console.

• The Page select roller lets you select different pages of playbacks,
and you can write the playback names on the roller so you know
what’s in them.

• The Master faders control the overall output of the various parts of
the console. You will normally have these set at Full.

• The Playback faders and flash buttons are used to play back
memories you have programmed, when you are running a show.

• The Main display is the nerve centre of the console and shows you
what is going on. The display can show various screens of information.

• The Control wheels are used to set control values on the fixtures,
and to set chase speeds and fades.

• The Menu softkeys (labelled A – G) are used to select control options.
The display next to the buttons shows what each on e will do. The
options for each key change depending on what the console is doing.
Softkey commands are shown in the manual with square brackets like

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this: A [Chase Parameters]

• The Numeric keypad and other control buttons are used to enter
values and change controls on the console.

• The Fixture Page buttons are below the keypad, which select 4 pages
for the Preset Faders.

• The blue Command buttons are used to carry out functions such as
storing memories, copying, saving to disk, etc. These buttons have
lights on to indicate when they are active.

• The Attribute select buttons are used to select which attributes of a
fixture (e.g. colour, gobo, pan, focus) are going to be controlled using
the Control wheels. The buttons have lights on to show you which
attributes are active. The bottom (red) button allows you to reduce the
intensity of a fixture if it loses position during a show.

The VDU screen shows more information than the on-board displays.
It is useful when setting up the console and programming shows. When
entering text or numbers, what you are typing is shown only on the
VDU screen. If you are short of space you can often manage without it
when you are running a show.

The main part of the display shows the output of the console for one of
the types of fixture you are using (you can show different things using
the View button, see page

61). Across the bottom of the display, the
current page of memories is shown. The “A B” at the right side of the
screen shows which functions are currently assigned to the control
wheels.

Today’s date and time

Fixture output values

Function of
left wheel

Function of
right wheel

Memory contents

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1.3 The DLC-C003 simulator

You can download a free DLC-C003 simulator from the DORTRON’s
website, which runs on a PC. This allows you to work on the DLC-C003
even when you haven’t got the real console with you. You can patch the
desk, and program shows using the DORTRON’s Visualiser, then save
the show to disk and load it into the real console. The simulator
operates almost exactly like the real DLC-C003.

1.4 What you’ll need for the tutorial

The rest of the first part of this manual is a hands-on tutorial. If you
have never used an DORTRON’s console before, by working through the
rest of the tutorial section you should be able to get the DLC-C003 up
and running, and be well on the way to programming and running a
show with it.

The tutorial is organised in the order you’ll need to do things to get the
console set up and working, so try to work through it in sequence. To
make the most of it, you will need a few lights set up t o play with; a
couple of moving lights and a few dimmers would be best. If you can’t
lay your hands on any real lights, you can use DORTRON’s Visualiser to
simulate some lights.

When you are preparing to start programming a new show, it’s handy
to have the following things.

• A lighting plan of your rig which you can scribble on

• Some blank floppy disks to save your work

• Some white or clear tape and a fine black marker pen to mark up

the console so you know what’s where

• Paper & pen to make notes (or a laptop, depending on how

technological you are)

• Manuals or DMX tables for the fixtures you’re using

• A supply of beverages of your choice

If you are new to intelligent lighting, or even new to lighting altogether,
read chapter

12, “Introduction to intelligent lighting”. This explains the
concepts behind digital control of lighting and will h elp you to
understand what we are going on about in the rest of the manual.
There is also a Glossary at the end of the Reference Manual which
explains some of the obscure lighting words we have used in the
manual.

If you are used to older DLC-C003 software, read chapter

14, “Changes

in the latest DLC-C003 s

oftware”, which gives you a quick rundown on

the differences between the two consoles.

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CHAPTER TWO

2. Patching

In this chapter: how to set up the DLC-C003 to control dimmers and fixtures.
patching dimmers
patching moving light fixtures
setting addresses on the fixtures
So, you have your fixtures and dimmers all connected up
with DMX cables and the DLC-C003 connected to the end
of it. (If you have a big rig, you might find it easier to
learn the basics using a few dimmers and a few moving
lights, and leave the rest of it till you’re an expert).

First you need to allocate each fixture or dimmer to a
preset fader on the DLC-C003, so that you can tell it
which of the fixtures or dimmers you want to control at
any time.

The bottom fader and the buttons below it (the picture
shows some) are called the handle for the dimmer or
fixture, because you use it to take control of the fixture.
The fader will control the intensity of t he dimmer or
fixture, the “Swop” button is used when programming to
select the dimmer or fixture. In Run mode the Flash and
Swop buttons function as flash buttons.

You also need to tell the DLC-C003 what type of fixture is allocated to each
handle. When you have entered this information, the DLC-C003 can tell you what
DMX addresses to set on your fixtures and dimmers to match the settings it is
using. If you prefer, you can set your fixtures and dimmers beforehand and tell
the DLC-C003 what DMX addresses it should be using.

This setup process is called Patching.
You can patch up to 240 fixtures and dimmer channels on

the DLC-C003. There are 4 “pages” of 60 handles, selected
using the “Pages of Fixtures” buttons below the numeric
keypad.

The DLC-C003 controls dimmers and fixtures slightly
differently, so we will look at each in turn.

PageFixtures button

2.1 Clearing the DLC-C003 – Wipeall s

It’s always a good idea to clear the DLC-C003’s memory before you
start a new setup. This ensures that you won’t get confused by any
peculiar settings left by the previous user.

Clearing the DLC-C003

Î Turn the mode keyswitch to “System”
Î Select softkey A [Service]
Î Select softkey F [Wipe].
Î Press F [“Wipeall], to confirm. The memory will be wiped.

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Î Turn the key to “Program” to prepare for programming.

The DLC-C003 is now pristine and new, with all options set to default,
and all memories empty, ready for you to start your show.

2.2 Patching dimmers

Each dimmer channel you want to use has to be allocated to one of the
handles. Then, when you want to control the dimmer channel, you just
fade up the slider.

Patching dimmer channels

Î Make sure the key is set to “Program”
Î Press Patch (one of the blue “command” buttons).
Î Press A [Dimmer]
Î The DLC-C003 will start at DMX address 001 (shown on

the top line of the display). If your dimmer rack is at a
different address, you can change this by typing in the
new address on the numeric keypad.

Î Press the blue preset “Swop” button below preset fader

number 1. The fader and flash/swop buttons will become
the “handle” used to control that dimmer channel.

Î The DLC-C003 will update the DMX address to the next

free channel, so you can just press another button to
patch the next dimmer.

Î Press Exit when you have finished patching.

You can now control the dimmer channel on handle 1 using the fader
(the buttons do not operate as flash buttons in Program mode, only in
Run mode).

If you have lots of dimmers to patch, there are some quicker ways. If
you just want to patch 10 dimmers in sequence on to handles 21-30,
you can do it this way:

Patching a range of dimmers to buttons

Î Enter Dimmer Patch mode
Î Enter the DMX channel you want the range to start at, if it’s

different to the one the DLC-C003 is displaying

Î Hold down the Swop button of the first handle to be patched

(handle 21)

Î Press the last Swop button (handle 30)
Î Release the first Swop button, then the last Swop button
Î Each handle will be patched in order to a dimmer channel.
Î Press Exit when you have finished patching.

You can also patch more than one dimmer channel on the same handle.
This can be useful when you have several lights on different dimmer
channels, but you always want to control them together. For example,
if you have lit an area with several spots and you just want them all to
come up on one fader, this is a good way to do that. Multiple patches

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like this are displayed at the bottom of the VDU screen.

Patching several dimmers to the same button

Î Enter Dimmer Patch mode
Î Using the numeric keypad, enter the DMX address of the first

dimmer channel to be patched

Î Press the Swop button for the handle you want to use (this patches

the first dimmer)

Î Using the numeric keypad, enter the DMX address of the next

dimmer channel to be patched (the DLC-C003 will have
automatically increased the address by 1)

Î Press the Swop button again
Î Press Exit when you have finished patching 7

You can repeat this procedure to patch as many dimmers as you like on
to one handle.

So far, you’ve patched onto the bottom bank of faders. You can also
patch onto the top bank of faders. If you have 30 or less fixtures, it’s
easiest to patch fixtures to the bottom faders, and your dimmers to the
top faders, then you can have them all accessible without having to
change the fixture page.

Patching to the top fader bank

Î Patch the dimmer as normal, but hold down the YPL (shift) button

while pressing the blue Swop button. The YPL button is next to the
numeric keypad

Î The dimmer channel will be patched to the top fader
Î Press YPL with another Swop button to patch to another top fader

You can patch multiple dimmer channels to the top faders by holding
down the YPL button, then holding the first swop button, then pressing
the last button of the range to be patched. You might need to grow a
third hand, or borrow someone else’s, to accomplish this.

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While you are in Patch mode, the VDU screen shows a DMX channel
grid to tell you which channels you have patched so far and which are
free. Dimmers and fixtures are identified by different letters, dimmers
are always “a”.

You can also display the patch on the LCD screen by pressing View (on
the numeric keypad) then C [DMX patch] (shows which handle each
DMX channel is allocated to) or D [Fixture patch], which shows a list in
handle order.

2.3 Patching moving light fixtures

Moving light fixtures are controlled slightly different ly to dimmers; a
dimmer only has one controllable attribute, intensit y. But a moving
light fixture can have many attributes, such as pan, tilt, colour, gobo
etc. When you patch a fixture, you will see on the VDU screen that it
occupies a block of DMX channels rather than just one. However, the
principle is still the same.

The DLC-C003 has personality files for most lighting fixtures in the
known universe, and these are stored internally in the console. If you
want to use a personality not available in the console, you can load it
from a personality disk, a wide range of which can be downloaded from
the DORTRON’s website. See section 12 in the reference manual for
details of how to download personalities.

Note: To use the internal personality files, make sure there is no disk

in the disk drive.

Patching a fixture

Î Make sure there is no disk in the disk drive
Î Press Patch
Î Press B [Choose a fixture]
Î The display will show “Please select an instrument” on the top line.
Î A list of known fixtures will appear next to the softkeys after a

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pause.

Î Use Softkeys F and G to go up and down the list and find the

correct fixture, then press the Softkey next to the fixture to select
it.

Î The DLC-C003 will load the fixture information (this may take a few

seconds). The display shows information about the fixture.

Î The DLC-C003 will ask “Use preset palettes?”.
Î Press A [Yes]. (This is explained later)
Î The DLC-C003 will offer you the first free DMX address (on the top

line of the display). You can change this using the numeric keypad
if you want the fixture at a different address.

Î Press the Swop button on handle 11 to patch the fixture you have

selected to handle 11.

Î The display will show the block of channels occupied by the fixture.
Î Patch more fixtures, or press Exit when you have finished.

You can continue to patch this type of fixture at the next free DMX
address by pressing the next Swop button you want to use. You can
also patch a range of fixtures by holding down the first button in the
range and pressing the last button, as with dimmers.

You can patch fixtures to the top faders by holding down the YPL button,
but if you do this you will need to hold down the YPL button to select
them when programming as well, so it’s easiest to only patch dimmers
to the top faders as you can control dimmers just with the fader.

If you want to patch a different type of fixture, you can change the type
of fixture to be patched very easily.

To change the fixture type

Î Press A [Select another fixture]
Î Choose the fixture type from the list on the softkeys
Î Patch as before

Note: The “preset palettes” contain 9 position, 10 colour and 10 gobo

settings. You can call back these settings instantly from the
palette buttons when you are programming. This allows you to
select, for example, “Yellow” or “Blue” instead of setting up the
value using the wheels. You can only load the preset palettes
during patching.

The DLC-C003 has four physical DMX output lines, identified as A, B, C,
D. You can patch onto any of the four lines using E [Select a DMX line].
However, to keep it simple, stick to line A while you are learning.

2.4 Labelling the console

It’s a good idea to stick a strip of tape above the handle Swop buttons,
and write on it what is patched on each handle, such as “Mac SL”, “Mac
Centre” etc. This will help you greatly when programming as you t r y
and remember where you patched everything.

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2.5 Addressing lights to match the DLC-C003

When you are patching, it’s easiest to let the DLC-C003 allocate all the
DMX addresses, then go round to the actual dimmers and fixtures and
set the addresses to match the DLC-C003’s settings. This makes sure
that there are no overlaps or gaps in the DMX addresses.

You can also work out the DMX map yourself and tell the DLC-C003
what DMX channels to use while you’re patching, but then you need to
make sure yourself that nothing overlaps.

The DLC-C003 can tell you the DMX address it is using for each fixture,
and in some cases can show you how to set the dip switches on the
fixture. Write down the addresses for all the fixtures, then go and set
them.

Displaying the DMX address for fixtures

Î Press the View button (next to the

numeric keys)

Î Press D [Fixture Patch]
Î The display will show a list of the handles

to which you have patched fixtures or
dimmers, with the DMX line and address
(e.g. A24 is address 24 on DMX line A).

Î One handle on the list has an arrow next

to it. In the lower part of the screen,
more information is shown for this fixture.

Î Use the Arrow keys to move the arrow

up and down the list, and show
information for the other fixtures in the
list.

Î You can also press View then C [DMX

Patch] to display a list of DMX channels
and which fixture is patched at that
address.

2.6 Changing what you have done

If you need to change the patching you have done, it’s possible to re­patch a fixture to a different DMX address using the Repatch Fixtures
softkey. You can also move a fixture onto a different handle, and delete
a fixture from a handle, but this loses any programming for the fixture.
How to change the patching is described in detail in section 2 of the
reference manual on page

68.

2.7 Patch Utilities

You can invert the operation of channels and set various other fixture­specific options using the Patch Utilities softkey. Inverting pan and tilt
channels can be useful to mirror fixtures on opposite sides of the stage,
or to correct for hanging a fixture the wrong way round. Section 2 of
the reference manual on page

69 describes how to set these options.

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2.8 Completing the patch

When you have patched all your dimmers and fixtures, press the Exit
button on the numeric keypad to go back to normal mode. You have
now completed the setting up of the lighting system, and it’s time to
get to work on programming a show. But there’s one important thing to
do first…

2.9 Saving the contents of the DLC-C003 to disk

The DLC-C003 has a built in floppy disk drive which allows you to save
everything you have done. You should get into the habit of saving your
show regularly to guard against that unexpected moment when the
worst happens.

The disk drive is in the front left hand corner of the
console, beneath the master faders. If you’re using
the console in its flightcase, you might need t o lift it
slightly to access the disk drive.

It only takes a minute or so to save the contents of
the DLC-C003 to disk. You can then reload it if you
mess up the show by accidentally changing
something, or if some helpful person steals the DLC­C003 you can load your programming into a
replacement console and the show can go on.
Diskbutton

Backing up the DLC-C003 to disk

Î Press the Disk button in the bottom right hand corner of the DLC-

C003

Î Insert a blank formatted 1.44MB disk into the disk drive (anything

on the disk will be wiped).

Î Select B [Save show to disk].
Î The DLC-C003 will ask for a filename for the show. Type this on the

QWERTY keyboard then press Enter. If you don’t have a keyboard
connected you can just accept the default showname by pressing
Enter.

Î The DLC-C003 will ask if you want to make the show compatible

with Sep 2048 software. Press B [No].

Î The DLC-C003 will save your current show onto the disk. The

display will tell you when the DLC-C003 has finished.

Î The DLC-C003 will not respond to any buttons or sliders while

saving or loading a show. The DMX output will be frozen in its last
state.

Î If you need to reload the show, press Disk then A [Load show from

disk].

2.10 Examples

How do I patch a 6 channel DMX dimmer pack to faders 31-36?

Press Patch, then A [Dimmer]. Note the DMX address where the DLC­C003 is going to patch (on the top line of the display). Hold down the

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YPL button. Press the blue Swop buttons for channels 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and

6. Let go of the YPL button. Because you were holding down YPL, the
dimmers are patched to the top set of faders, 31-36. Press Exit twice to
leave Patch mode. Finally set your dimmer pack’s DMX address to
match the DLC-C003 (if you are not sure of the address, press View
then D [Fixture patch], then use the Down Arrow button to scroll to
show Handle 31; the display shows the DMX address where the handle
is patched).

How do I patch a Mac600 to handle 10?

Press Patch, then B [Choose a fixture]. (Ensure there is no disk in the
disk drive). Press F [More] until one of the softkey options is
MMac600m4. Press the softkey for that option. Wait for the DLC-C003
to load the personality. When the DLC-C003 asks “Use preset palettes?”
press A [Yes]. Note the DMX address where the DLC-C003 is going to
patch (on the top line of the display). Press Swop button 10 to patch
the fixture. Press Exit twice to leave Patch mode. Finally set the Mac
600’s DMX address to match the DLC-C003 (we have used the Mode 4
personality so it will also need to be in Mode 4).

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CHAPTER THREE

3. Controlling dimmers and fixtures

In this chapter: how to control dimmers and fixtures manually.

• controlling fixtures and dimmers

• changing attributes

• using and creating groups

• align and fan functions

• viewing the console output

Having patched all the dimmers and fixtures you want to use, you are
ready to start operating them. This chapter explains how you do this.

To manually control fixtures and dimmers, you need to be in Program
mode, so ensure the key is set to Program. There’s also a special Run
mode which lets you “take over” fixtures during a show, which is
described later.

3.1 Controlling dimmer channels

Controlling dimmer channels is simple – you just push up the fader of
the handle where the dimmer is patched. Dimmers work just like a
normal “preset” lighting desk on the DLC-C003. If you want to turn on
lots of dimmer channels at the same time, you can also “select” the
dimmers and use the Dimmer attribute button and control wheels as
described below.

3.2 Controlling fixtures

Controlling fixtures is nearly as simple, except there are a few more
functions to control than just intensity.

The first thing you have to do is to “select” the fixtures that you want
to control. The DLC-C003 then knows that any changes you make are
only to be sent to these fixtures. You can select fixtures individually, or
several at once.

Selecting fixtures or dimmers

Î Press the Swop buttons for the fixtures you want to control. (For

dimmers and fixtures on the top bank of faders, hold down the YPL
button and press the Swop buttons below the faders you want)

Î The Swop button LEDs will light for the fixtures which are selected.

They are shown in dark blue on the VDU screen.

Î If you select a fixture you don't want, press its Swop button again

to deselect it.

Î You can select a range of fixtures by holding down the Swop button

for the first fixture in the range, then pressing the Swop button for
the last fixture.

Î Press the ML Menu button then A [Locate Fixture] to position the

selected fixtures at a central position with the light on, so you can
see where they are. Dimmer channels are set to 100%.

You can change the fixture page, if you need to, by pressing one of the
other Fixture Page buttons.

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You can select dimmers or fixtures patched to the top faders by holding
down the YPL button and pressing the Swop button for the fader below.

3.3 Changing attributes of fixtures

Having selected the fixtures you want to control, you then need
to select the attributes (pan, tilt, colour etc.) of that fixture that
you want to change.

The attributes are selected using the buttons on the lower right
corner of the DLC-C003 and controlled using the wheels. The
attributes you can control will vary depending on the type of
fixture you are using. For dimmer channels, you can only change
the “Dimmer” attribute (intensity). For scans, you can control
the pan, tilt, colour, gobo and other functions.

Controlling pan and tilt of a fixture

Î Select some fixtures using the Swop buttons
Î Use the Locate Fixture function (press ML Menu then Softkey

A) to position the fixtures at a central position with the lamp
on (you don’t have to do this, but it helps you see what’s
happening)

Î Press the Pan/Tilt attribute button
Î Control the tilt using the left hand wheel and the pan using the

right hand wheel. You should see the selected fixtures move.

Î The display area just above the wheels shows you

which attribute is being controlled by each wheel.

Any other attribute of the fixtures you selected can be
controlled by pressing the appropriate button and turning
the wheels. The display will show which funct ion s the left
and right wheels are going to control. Very few fixture types have the
full range of attributes; if the display doesn’t show a function when you
select an attribute button, that function is not available on the fixtures
you selected.

You can view the attribute settings on the LCD screen by pressing the
View button then B [Fixture Attributes]. You can change which attribute
you are viewing by pressing a different Attribute button.

If the fixture personality supports range tables and Intelligent Attribute
Display is turned on (Hold YPL and press 1) then for some attributes,
rather than showing a percentage value above the wheels, the current
colour or gobo name will be displayed. This only happens on some
fixtures.

You can use the Dimmer attribute to control the intensity channel of the
fixture, or you can use the fader of the handle. The effect is the same.

Note: Once you have changed any attributes, all th e fixtures will be

automatically deselected the next time you press a fixture
select button.

3.4 Using groups

If you’ve got several units of one fixture type, you often want to select
them all at the same time. To yplid lots of swop-button-pressing, the
DLC-C003 allows you to put fixtures or dimmer channels into groups,
which you can then use to select all the fixtures just by typing the

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group number. If you are using the graphics tablet you just press one
button on the tablet and all the fixtures in the group are magically
selected.

Making a group

Î Select the fixtures or dimmer channels you want to put into the

group

Î Press the ML Menu button, then E [Record Group].
Î Type the group number 1-200 on the numeric keypad and press

Enter.

Once you have created a group, you can then quickly select all the
fixtures in the group:

Selecting a group of fixtures

Î Type the group number on the keypad
Î Press A [Recall Group].
Î The fixtures in the group are selected, all other fixtures are

deselected.

If you are using the graphics tablet, you can save and recall groups
with one touch of the pen. This is described in more detail in the
Graphics Tablet chapter.

3.5 Copying settings from other fixtures – Align

If you’ve set a nice colour on one of your fixtures, and you want to
copy it to all the other fixtures of the same type, the DLC-C003’s Align
function can do that. You can also use it to make all pan and tilt
positions the same for a range of units or to make dimmer levels the
same.

Copying settings from other fixtures

Î Press an attribute button to select the attribute you want to copy
Î Select the fixture or dimmer channel you want to copy from
Î Select the fixtures or dimmer channels you want to copy to
Î Press the ML Menu button, then D [Align <attribute name>]”.
Î Or you can press C [Align Fixtures], to align all attributes.

3.6 Fan mode

Fan mode automatically spreads out a selected range of fixtures to
produce a fan of light beams, like rays of sunlight. The f irst and last
fixtures of the range are affected most, and the central fixtures are
affected least. The amount of fan can be set using the wheels.

Note: The order in which you select the fixtures sets how the fan effect

works. The fixtures you select first and last will be the ones
which change most.

The fan effect, while normally used on pan or tilt attributes, can be
applied to any attribute.

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Fanning out a range of fixtures

Î Select the range of fixtures you want to fan
Î Select the attribute to fan (pan, tilt, colour etc)
Î Press the Fan button (one of the blue command buttons)
Î Set the amount of fan using the wheels
Î The display shows which attribute is being controlled by each wheel
Î Press the Fan button again to exit Fan mode when you’ve finished

You will be able to see the effect of fan mode best if you hav e a row of
at least 4 fixtures. If you have an odd number of fixtures, the central
fixture will not move in fan mode.

Remember to turn off Fan mode when you have finished (by pressing
the Fan button again), or you will get confused when the controls don’t
do what you expect.

3.7 Examples

How do I fade up the dimmer on handles 31-36?

Just push up the faders 31-36 (make sure the Grand Master and A/B
Master faders are up)

How do I make the mac 600 on handle 10 go blue and point at
the cyclorama?

Select the fixture by pressing Swop button 10. Press ML Menu then A
[Locate fixture] to turn on the mac600 and centre it. Press the
“Cyan/Magenta” attribute button. Turn the A wheel anticlockwise to
make the amount of Cyan change (you can turn B wheel anticlockwise
to make the Magenta change which will give a darker blue). Press the
“Tilt-Pan” attribute button. Turn the A and B wheels (the mac600
should move) until it points in the direction you want.

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CHAPTER FOUR

4. Palettes

In this chapter: how to use palettes to set colours, gobos and positions.

• Using palettes to set values

• Creating your own palettes

• Setting which attributes are recorded in a palette

• Shared and individual palettes

When you are controlling your lighting, it would be nice to instantly call
back a position such as centre stage, or a particular colour like red,
blue etc, rather than having to set the value on the wheels every time.

The DLC-C003 has pages of preset values, called “palettes”, which
allow you to do this. The DLC-C003 loads 10 colours, 10 gobos and 10
pre-programmed positions when you patch a fixture (unless you tell it
not to when it asks “Use preset palettes?”). You can use these palettes
as they are, modify them to your own settings, or save new settings.

Palettes have another big advantage. If for example you program a
“centre stage spot” position as a palette, when you use this position in
memories the DLC-C003 remembers the palette you used, rather than
the actual value. This means that if you move to another venue, you
can just reprogram the “centre stage spot” palette entry and every
memory using that position will automatically be updated. If you’d
programmed all your memories directly using the wheels, you would
need to go through and reposition every memory.

Palettes are also useful when you are programming using Visualiser and
you don’t know exactly where the lights will point ; you can program
your memories using palette positions, then you just update a few
palettes when you get the real lights in the real venue and the show
programming is done.

4.1 Using palettes to set values

The easiest way to use a palette value is by the
menu on the LCD screen. We’ll use the preset
palettes which the DLC-C003 loaded when you
patched the fixtures to set some fixtures to Red.

Using palettes

Î Select the fixtures you want to control by

pressing their Swop buttons

Î Press the Focus button above the numeric

keypad

Î Select the page of palettes you want to use

by pressing one of the A-F softkeys (such as
[Colour])

Î Press one of the A-E softkeys to use one of

the palette values (such as [Red]). The
value will be set to all the fixtures which are
selected. The lights should turn red.

Î To go back to the list of palette pages, press

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G [Pages].

Î Press Exit when you have finished with palettes, as other functions

don’t work while in Palette Select mode

You can also apply palettes 1-30 by pressing the grey Palette/Flash
buttons below the preset faders. While you hold the button, the top line
of the display shows the legend for the attribute (White, Green etc).
When you release the button, the palette is applied. If you decide you
don’t want to apply the palette, press the Focus button before you
release the grey Flash button.

4.2 Creating your own palettes

You can easily save your own palettes, or modify existing ones. We’ll
create a position palette.

Storing your own palette

Î Press Clear (next to the numeric keys) to clear all the changes you

have made so far

Î Select a couple of fixtures and press ML menu then A [Locate

fixture]

Î Press the “Tilt-Pan” attribute button.
Î Position the fixtures using the wheels.
Î Press the Store Palette button (one of the blue Command buttons)
Î Type “21” (the palette number to be stored) on the keypad and

press Enter. The position of the fixtures is stored as a palette

You can also store a palette by pressing one of the grey Palette/Flash
buttons below the presets. If you had pressed the grey button for
preset 21, that would have been the same as what we did above.

4.3 What’s stored in a palette

Although you can store all attributes of a fixture in a single palette, it’s
easiest to store some palettes which only affect colour, others which
only affect position, and so on. This means when you recall a palette
entry, you know which attributes of the fixture are going to change.

You do this using the Attribute buttons when saving the palette. In the
example above, we had the “Tilt-Pan” attribute selected when storing
the palette, so only the Tilt & Pan values were recorded.

Setting which attributes will be recorded in the palette

Î Press Clear to clear all the changes you have made so far
Î Select a couple of fixtures and press ML menu then A [Locate

fixture]

Î Set a colour using the “colour” attribute button and wheels.
Î Position the fixtures using the “tilt-pan” attribute button and

wheels.

Î Press the Store Palette button
Î Press the Colour attribute button. The Colour button & the

Yellow/Cyan/Magenta buttons will light, showing that these

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attributes will be recorded.

Î Type “101” on the keypad and press Enter to store the colour.
Î Press Store Palette again.
Î Press the Tilt-Pan attribute button.
Î Type “22” on the keypad and press Enter to store the position.

If you press the “Dimmer” attribute button before storing, this will store
in the palette all the attributes which you hav e ch anged. The lights on
the attribute buttons come on to show you what will be stored.

There are ways of extracting only, say, colour information from palettes
which have other attributes as well, which are described in the
reference manual.

4.4 Shared and individual palettes

For some attributes, such as colour, you want to set the same control
values to all the fixtures of the same type. So if you pick Red, you want
the control value for “Red” to go to all fixtures.

For other attributes, like position, each fixture needs a different setting
to get the light beams to point where you want.

If you only select one fixture when creating a palette, that palette is
known as a “shared” palette, and the value will be available to all
fixtures of that type. So to create a shared palette, you press Clear
then select and modify only one fixture.

If you change more than one fixture, the DLC-C003 creates an
“individual” palette which stores a different value for each fixture. This
is normally used for positioning palettes, and sometimes for image
focusing. You can add positions for more fixtures to an individual
palette just by saving the palette again with the new fixtures set.

Note: The DLC-C003 may sometimes call palettes “focuses” or “preset

focuses”. This is the term previously used for a palette on
DORTRON’s consoles. The meaning is the same.

4.5 Examples

How do I make the Mac600 on handle 10 go Red using a palette?

Press the handle 10 Swop button to select the fixture. Press ML Menu
then A [Locate Fixture] to turn it on so you can see what’s happening.
Press Focus then A [Color] (If softkey G option is [Pages] then press
that to show the list of palette pages). Press B [Red]. The fixture should
change to Red. Press Exit once you’ve finished applying palettes.

How do I store a palette which makes my Mac 600’s point at the
cyclorama?

Press Clear to clear any changes. Press the swop buttons for the Mac
fixtures. Press ML menu then A [Locate fixture] to turn them on. Press
the Tilt/Pan attribute button. Press the “Æ” button. The first fixture will
be selected. Use the wheels to point the fixture where you want. Press
the “Æ” button again and point the next fixture. When all fixtures are
positioned, press Store Palette and type 21 on the keypad, then press

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Enter. The position only (because the Tilt/Pan button was selected) will
be stored in palette 21.

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CHAPTER FIVE

5. Shapes

In this chapter: how to use the shape generator

• selecting a shape

• positioning

• setting size and speed

• coarse and fine spread

The DLC-C003, in common with other DORTRON’s consoles, has a
shape generator (sometimes known as an Effects Generator on other
consoles). This allows you to quickly create exciting light shows using
lots of movement and changes, with the minimum of programming.

There are a large number of pre-programmed shapes available, which
can be used on the fixture’s position, colour, gobo, dimmer, iris, focus
and more. You can control the size, speed and positioning of the shape,
and how the shape is allocated across a range of fixtures.

To understand how shapes work and how they can be spread across
multiple fixtures, it’s best to set up at least four fixtures next to each
other. Once you have mastered the basics, you can try some more
interesting arrangements.

5.1 How shapes work

A shape is a pre-programmed movement sequence which usually
repeats over and over again. Typical shapes are circles, spirals, squares,
etc. There are also random shapes, which do not repeat. A circle shape,
for example, would cause the beam of the fixture to move in a circular
path on the stage.

When you apply a shape, it works on the current settings of the fixture.
So if you apply a circle to the pan and tilt attributes of a fixture, the
centre of the circle will be at the current pan and tilt position. You can
change the size of the circle, and the speed of the circle. By moving the
pan and tilt position of the fixture, you can move the whole shape
around the stage.

Shapes can be applied to other attributes of a fixture, not just pan and
tilt. You can use them to create colour changes, gobo changes, iris
changes and a variety of other attributes. Each shape is designed to
modify one particular attribute.

5.2 Selecting a shape

Selecting a shape is very similar to selecting a value from a palette.
When you choose a shape, it will be applied to all selected fixtures.

Selecting a shape

Î Select the fixtures you want to apply the shape to by pressing the

Swop buttons (you’ll need at least 4 fixtures to see the effects
properly)

Î Use Locate Fixtures (Press ML Menu then Softkey A) to turn on the

fixtures and move them to a central position

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Î Enter the Shape Generator menu by pressing Softkey G (from the

main menu).

Î Press A [Playback a shape]
Î Press A [Circle 1] to select a circle shape
Î The shape will be applied to all selected

fixtures.

There are a wide range of different shapes
available in the list, use Softkeys F and G to look
through the different pages. “Rainbow” shapes
only work on fixtures capable of colour mixing, and
there are other shapes such as Iris and Focus
which will only work if your fixtu r es have those
functions.

The best way to find out what all the shapes are
like is to try them out. Sometimes it’s hard to
describe the effect in the few letters which fit on
the display.

5.3 Changing the size and speed of a shape

It is easy to change the size and speed of a shape after it has first been
selected.

Changing the size and speed of a shape

Î If you aren’t already in it, enter the Shape Generator menu by

pressing G [Shape Generator].

Î Press D [Set wheels A=Size B=Speed]
Î Control the size of the shape using the left hand wheel
Î Control the speed of the shape using the right hand wheel
Î The size and speed is shown above the wheels on the display.

The minimum size is zero. Obviously, you won’t see the shape, and the
fixture will resume its previous settings. The minimum speed is Stop.
Again, you will not see the shape moving, though it will offset the
positioning of the fixture.

5.4 Changing the positioning of a shape

Pan/tilt shapes are based on the current settings of the fixture. This
means that the movements will be centred around the current posit ion
of the fixture.

Changing the positioning of a shape

Î Select the fixtures you want to change
Î Set the wheels to Size/Speed and reduce the shape size to 0 (it’s

difficult to see the position when everything is moving)

Î Press the Pan/Tilt attribute button
Î Set the position using the wheels.
Î Set the wheels back to Size/Speed and change the size of the

shape back to where you want it.

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Shapes on other attributes such as colour, gobo, focus, dimmer and iris
are absolute and are not affected by the current attribute setting,
unless the shape description includes “User” or “Usr”. User shapes are
relative and are centred around the fixture’s current settings.

5.5 How a shape works across multiple fixtures

Shapes get more interesting (and look more impressive) when you
apply them to multiple fixtures. The DLC-C003 lets you set how a shape
is spread across several fixtures.

In the case of a circle, this can vary from all fixtures moving identically
(a spread of None), fixtures working in pairs (a spread of 1) through to
all fixtures being distributed evenly through the shape, so the first
fixture is just starting the shape as the last one finishes (an Even
spread). This is the same as the number of fixtures, so if you have 4
fixtures doing the shape, a spread of 4 would be the same as an Even
spread.

You can also set the Fine Spread value, which introduces a slight offset
into the timing of the shape across each fixture.

Changing the spread of a shape

Î In the Shape Generator menu, press C [Set wheels to Spread]
Î Set the coarse spread using the right hand wheel. The minimum is

Even (the shape spread evenly across the fixtures), then Zero (all
the same), then 1, 2, etc.

Î Set the fine spread using the left hand wheel.

To start with, keep the Fine Spread set to zero, and work with the
Coarse Spread setting, or everything will get confusing.

Note: The order in which you select the fixtures determines how the

shapes are applied; the “first” fixture is the one you select first
and the “last” fixture is the one you select last.

5.6 Examples

How do I make my Mac600’s wave around in a trendy manner?

Select the Mac600’s by pressing the swop buttons. Press ML menu then
A [Locate Fixture] to light them up. Press G [Shape Generator]. Press A
[Playback a shape]. Press A again [Circle 1]. The fixtures will move.
Press D [Set wheels A=Size B=Speed] and use the wheels to set the
speed of movement and the size of the movement.

How do I make my Mac600’s change colour in a rainbow?

Select the Mac600’s by pressing the swop buttons. Press ML menu then
A [Locate Fixture] to light them up. Press G [Shape Generator]. Press A
[Playback a shape]. Press D [Rainbow Spread]. The fixtures will change
in rainbow colours. Press Softkey D and use the wheels to set the speed
of changes and the number of colours used (the size of the shape).
Note: Rainbow shapes only work with fixtures capable of RGB colour
mixing.

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CHAPTER SIX

6. Memories

In this chapter: how to record memories into the playback faders

• explanation of HTP and LTP channels

• how the DLC-C003 works when programming

• recording and playing back memories

• playback pages

• flash button modes

• naming memories

• setting fade times for memories

• copying and clearing memories

• the include function

• editing memories

• record by fixture or by channel

So, you now know how to control your dimmers and fixtures, and how
to use the shape generator. This chapter tells you
how to record the wonderful effects you have
created so that you can recall them at the touch of
a button or fader. The DLC-C003 has 15 playback
faders across the bottom of the desk, into which
you can record your effects. You select a different
page of playback faders by rolling the roller above
the faders. There are 30 pages, allowing you to
save 450 playbacks in all.

Before we get onto the details of recording
memories, there are a couple of general things about how the DLC­C003 works. The first thing to understand is what happens when you
play back more than one memory at a time, and the operation of HTP
and LTP channels. It’s important to understand this before going on, or
nothing else will make sense.

6.1 What are HTP and LTP channels?

If two or more memories are turned on together, or if you fade out a
memory, the DLC-C003 needs to know how to output the levels from
the memories. To make this work, the DLC-C003 treats channels which
control intensity differently from other moving light control channels.

Dimmer or intensity channels work on the principle of “highest takes
precedence” (HTP). This means that if the same HTP channel is turned
on at different levels in several memories, the highest level will be
output. When you fade a memory, the HTP channels fade out.

Moving light channels work on the principle of “latest takes precedence”
(LTP). This means that the latest change takes over from any other
values, so the most recent memory to be turned on is the one which is
output. When you fade in a memory, LTP channels do not fade, but
come on at their full values, and stay there until an other value is set.
This is important, because when you fade in a memory you n ormally
just want the fixtures to fade up in their proper position, colour and
gobo, you don’t want the fixtures moving and changing colour (though
you can do this if you need to).

The fixture personality file tells the DLC-C003 which channels of a
fixture are HTP and which are LTP. Normally, only dimmer at tributes

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are HTP, and everything else is LTP.

6.2 How the DLC-C003 works when programming

When you start setting dimmers and moving fixtures, the DLC-C003
remembers what you have changed. Fixtures and dimmers you have
changed are stored in “the programmer” which is a special area of
memory. When you record a memory, only the settings in the
programmer (i.e. the things you have changed) are stored in the
memory.

When you press Clear (by the numeric keypad), all fixtures are cleared
from the programmer. You should get into the habit of pressing Clear
before you start to program a memory, or you can end up recording
fixtures you don’t want. You also need to press Clear when you finish
programming, because any functions in the programmer will override
playbacks.

Channels in the programmer are shown by an
“m” (modified by Preset), “w” (modified by
Wheel) or “P” (modified by Palette) on the
console Channel Output display, and are
shown in light blue on the VDU screen.

Note: Turning on a memory does not place

the values from the memory in the
programmer (the Include function lets
you do this, see page 30). The Locate
Fixture function does not place any
values in the programmer either.

In the screen shown here, the Locate Fixture
function has been used on fixtures 1 to 8, then
the pan value has been changed on fixtures 3
to 6. Only the changed pan value is in the programmer.

6.3 Recording a memory

So now that is all out in the open, let’s record a memory. The DLC­C003 has 30 pages of 15 memories, which are controlled using the 15
faders across the bottom of the console. The page is selected using the
Roller.

Recording a memory

Î Press Clear to clear the programmer. This ensures that

you are starting with a clean slate.

Î Set up a nice effect using the fixtures and dimmers. You

can include shapes in a memory if you want. Remember!
Only the fixtures/dimmers you have changed will be
recorded in the memory.

Memorybutton

Î Press Memory.
Î Roll the Roller to the segment you want to use. The active segment

is the one nearest the playback faders. “A” is a good one to start
on.

Î Empty playbacks flash.
Î Press the Swop button of an empty playback fader you want to use.
Î The Swop button above the fader will light up to show that you

have saved a memory there.

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Î You can write a description of the memory onto the roller surface

using marker pen on a strip of tape to help you remember what’s
in it.

Î Press Clear to clear the programmer.

6.4 Playing back a memory

Playing back a memory is very simple. Just raise the fader. (Make sure
there are no values in the programmer by pressing the Clear button,
because anything in the programmer will override the playback).

Playing back a memory

Î Raise the playback fader.
Î To stop the memory, lower the fader.

All the HTP (intensity) channels in the memory will fade up with the
fader. The LTP (movement) channels will be set as soon as the f ader
leaves the zero position.

When you’re running your show with the key set to “Run”, you can
preload the LTP channels (pre-position the fixtures) by pressing the
playback Flash button with the Master Add/Flash slider at zero. This can
be useful if you want to position the fixtures in blackout and have them
ready to turn on, rather than seeing them snap into position if you put
the fader up quickly.

6.5 Changing playback pages

You can change pages to select another 15 memories simply by rolling
the roller to a new segment.

If any playbacks are turned on when you change page, they remain
turned on. The Swop button above the playback flashes.

If you want to use the same playback fader on a new page, you need to
lower it to zero to turn off the first playback, then raise it again to turn
on the new playback on the new page.

The roller has 10 segments. There are 3 buttons next to the roller
allowing 3 pages of roller.

6.6 Labelling the roller & naming memories

The idea of the roller is that it gives you a handy location f or writing the
name of each memory you’ve saved. Stick a strip of tape across the
roller and every time you save a memory, write a brief description of it
on the roller segment above. You will then have a handy quick
reference to what is in each memory.

In addition to the simple but effective technique of writing the memory
name on the roller, if you’re using a VDU screen the DLC-C003 allows
you to enter a legend for each memory and also for each page.

The legend for each memory is shown at the bottom of the VDU screen,
so you can see at a glance what is stored in each fader.

Labelling a memory

Î Hold down the YPL button and press G [Set Legend].
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to label.
Î Enter the label using the external QWERTY keyboard. The VDU

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screen shows you what you are typing.

Î Press Enter to save the label.
Î You can label another memory by pressing another Swop button,

or finish by pressing Exit.

You can also label the playback pages, palette pages and palette entries
using the other softkeys.

Note: If you don’t have a QWERTY keyboard connected, you can enter

letters using the Swop and Flash buttons on Preset Faders 1-26.
The Swop buttons enter capitals and the Flash buttons enter
lower case letters.

If you don’t have a VDU screen, there is no point entering

memory legends as you need the VDU screen to see them. You
can, however, make use of Palette names on the LCD display.

6.7 Copying a memory

Copying a memory is very fast and simple.

Copying a memory

Î Hold down the Flash button of the memory you want to copy.
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to store it in
Î You can change the Roller page while you are holding down the

Flash button, if you want to copy a memory to a different page.

The new memory will be a linked copy of the old one. If you change a
memory which is linked, all the other memories linked to it will change
too.

You can create a completely separate copy of the memory using the
“Photocopy” function. Just press the Photocopy button (one of the blue
command buttons) before you start the copy. If you have named the
memory, the name will not be copied, indicating that it is a “new”
memory.

6.8 Deleting a memory

If you want to clear a memory so you can store something else in it:

Deleting a memory

Î Press Delete (one of the blue command buttons)
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to delete
Î Press the Swop button again to confirm the delete.

If the memory is linked to other memories, the others will not be
affected.

6.9 Editing memories

You can edit any part of a memory you have already saved simply by
making the changes and saving the new information on top of the
memory.

Editing a memory

Î Press Clear to empty the programmer.

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Î Turn on the memory you want to edit, so you can see what you are

doing.

Î Select the fixtures you want to change, and make the changes.
Î Press Memory.
Î Press the playback swop button for the memory you are editing to

save the changes.

Î The DLC-C003 will warn you “A memory already exists on

playback!”

Î Press A [Merge memory].

The changes you have made are saved into the memory. None of the
other information in the memory is affected.

If you want to replace the memory with a new memory, you can use B
[Replace memory].

If you need to remove fixtures or individual attributes of fixtures from
the memory, you can use the “Off” function to do this. The “Off”
function is described in the reference manual.

6.10 The Include function

Sometimes it’s useful to be able to re-use some aspects of a memory
you have already created in another memory. If you’ve created a really
nice pattern of criss-crossing light beams, for example, you might want
to use it again in another memory with different gobos and colours.

Normally when you play back a memory, the information is not loaded
into the programmer, so you can’t simply turn on a memory, modify it
and save it to a new memory. The Include function lets you reload a
memory back into the programmer. You can then use it in a new
memory.

The Include function loads selected attributes of selected fixtures into
the programmer. So, for example, if you have a memory which
contains position, colour and gobo information for 8 fixtures, you can
use the Include function to load only the colour information for 4 of the
fixtures into the programmer. You could then “include” position
information from another memory into the programmer, and build up a
new memory using information from several existing memories.

Using Include

Î Press the Include button.
Î Select the fixtures from which you want to take

settings. If you don’t select any fixtures, all fixtures
will be used.

Î Select the Attributes you want to include. The

Dimmer attribute will include all other attributes (the
lights on the buttons show which attributes will be
loaded).

Î Press the Swop button for the memory you want to

include.

Î The selected attributes of the selected fixtures will be loaded into

the programmer.

Include button

You can Include an entire memory by ensuring no fixtures are selected
and selecting the Dimmer attribute.

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If the memory you are including contains shapes, the shapes and all
the fixtures they are applied to will be loaded, whether they are
selected or not.

Include is also useful when you are programming chases, which is
described in the next section.

6.11 Setting fade times for a memory

You can set a fade in and fade out time independently for every
memory. The fades only affect HTP (intensity) channels, and are set
using softkey C for fade in and D for fade out. There is also a separate
LTP timer which allows you to set movement times for fancy sweeps or
colour fades, set using softkey E.

Setting fade times for a memory

Î Press C [Edit Time].
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to set times for
Î The display shows you the times you can set.
Î Press C to set Fade In time, or D to set Fade Out time.
Î Use the numeric keypad to enter the new time. Press Enter to save

it.

Î Press Enter when you have finished. If you press Exit, the changes

you have made will not be stored.

There are some other timing functions available as well, which are
described in the reference manual.

6.12 Record by fixture, record by channel modes

Normally, if you change one attribute of a fixture, the DLC-C003
records all the other attributes of that fixture even if you haven’t
changed those attributes. So if you change the pan position, the DLC­C003 will also record the tilt, colour, gobo, iris, and so on. However, the
DLC-C003 also has a more selective mode of operation where it only
records the changed attributes. You can choose the mode by holding
down the Ypl button and pressing Softkey C. The display shows the
current setting of the option.

• Record by fixture: This is the normal mode of the DLC-C003. It
means that when you record a memory, all attributes of every
fixture that you have changed are recorded in the memory. So if
you change only the position of a fixture, the colour, gobo,
intensity and all other attributes of that fixture are recorded as
well. This is useful because you know that when you recall the
memory, it will look exactly as it did when you saved it. However,
it can be slightly inflexible if you want to combine memories.

• Record by channel: This means that only attributes you have
changed are recorded in the memory. So if you change the
position of a fixture, only the position is recorded. When you recall
the memory, the colour, gobo etc will remain as they were last set.
This means you can use a memory to change the position of some
fixtures while leaving the colour set from a previous memory,
allowing more variety when you are running a show. It is a
powerful feature but you can easily get yourself into trouble with it,
so you need to be sure which attributes you need to record and
which you want to “show through”. When you’re learning, it’s best

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to have some memories “recorded by fixture” which turn on the
fixtures in a known state, then have some colour memories to
modify just the colour, or some gobo memories to set the gobo, or
other attributes.

6.13 Using shapes in memories

As you would expect, any shapes you have set up will be saved as part
of the memory. If you are using Record by Channel mode, there are
some interesting possibilities.

If you have changed the position of the fixture, then the new position
will be stored in the programmer. When you recall the memory, the
fixture will start the shape at the position you set in the memory.

If you have not changed the position of a fixture, when you recall the
memory the shape will run at whatever the current position of t he
fixture is. This allows you to make a “shape only ” memory which
overlays shapes on the current positioning of the fixtures.

6.14 Examples

How do I save my dimmer settings as a scene?

Press Clear to remove any changes you’ve made so far. Set the
dimmers as you want them using the faders. Press Memory. The free
playbacks will flash. Press one of the flashing Swop buttons to save the
scene in the playback.

Why don’t my Mac 600’s move to the position I’ve programmed
when I turn on a memory?

You have not pressed clear, and the Mac600’s are already positioned in
the programmer. The programmer overrides memories. If you press
Clear your memories should work.

How do I save a memory using the positions from another
memory?

Select the fixtures you want to use with the Swop buttons. Press ML
Menu then Softkey A to turn on the fixtures. Press Include, then the
Tilt/Pan attribute button. Press the Swop button of the memory whose
positions you want to use. The position information for the selected
fixtures will be recalled from the memory. Then save the memory by
pressing Memory and an empty (flashing) Swop button.

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CHAPTER SEVEN

7. Chases

In this chapter: how to record chases

• explanation of chases

• programming a chase

• running a chase

• setting speed and crossfade

• stacks and sequence control

• editing a chase

• sound activation of chases

As well as being used for recalling static memories, the playback faders
on the DLC-C003 can also be used for recalling chases. All the same
page select, copy and delete functions are available.

7.1 What is a chase?

A chase is simply a memory with a sequence of static positions. Each
position is known as a “step”. It is normally used to flash lights in a
sequence without you having to keep pressing buttons, or to move
fixtures around. Chases can run automatically, or by pressing a “Go”
button. If you are using the DLC-C003 for theatrical lighting, you can
use a chase to store cues for a show. The DLC-C003 also has a
dedicated theatrical lighting mode which has a section of its own.

Don’t get shapes confused with chases. A shape simply moves one
attribute of the fixture around in a pattern. A chase allows you to define
each attribute of the fixture in a step-by-step controlled manner.

However, you will find that using shapes saves you a lot of work, and
you won’t have to program as many chases as you would on a
conventional lighting desk.

7.2 Recording a chase

To program a chase, you have to set up the lighting state for each step
of the chase. You can either set all the fixtures and dimmers manually
for each step, or you can use Include to load in the information from
memories you have already recorded. Remember, if you just turn on a
memory, it does not go into the programmer and won’t get saved as
part of a chase step.

Note: From the July 2048 version of DLC-C003 software,

you can now use shapes in a chase.

Programming a chase

Î Press the Chase button.
Î Press the Swop button of the playback where you

want to store the chase.

Chase button

Î Press Clear, then set up the lighting for the first step, either

manually or by using “Include” on existing memories (see page

30).

You can save Shapes in chase steps.

Î The display shows the step number
Î Press the playback Swop button to record the step. The

information from the programmer is stored as Step 1 of the chase.

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Î Press Clear, set up the lighting for the second step, then press

Swop again to save step 2.

Î When you have saved as many steps as you want, press Clear,

then press Exit or Softkey F to finish.

If you don’t press Clear at the end of programming, the settings for the
last step will remain in the programmer and will override the chase
when you turn it on, so you won’t see the chase properly.

7.3 Running a chase

Running a chase is just like turning on a memory. Just raise the fader
and the chase will start to run.

The HTP (intensity) channels in the chase will be con trolled by the
position of the fader. The other channels (LTP) will be set as soon as
the fader moves above zero. When in Run mode you can pre-position
the LTP channels to the first step by lowering the Add/Flash Master
fader to zero and pressing the Flash button of the playback.

The chase normally starts at step 1, and runs
forward. You can pause the chase and change the
direction of the chase using the Sequence control
buttons to the right of the wheels.

There are lots of options you can set which let you
do fancy things with chases, such as Random,
One-shot, special timing, and manual step mode.
The details are in the reference manual.

Sequence button

7.4 Setting speed and crossfade

When you run a chase, the wheels are assigned to control the Speed
and Crossfade of the chase (crossfade is the “slope” between steps,
from instant switching to continuous fading). The display above the
wheels shows the step time and the crossfade setting.

You can save a speed with the chase, so that every time you play it
back, it runs at the same speed.

Saving chase speed

Î Turn on the chase you want, and set the speed to the setting you

want.

Î Press A [Chase Parameters].
Î Again press A [Save Speed]
Î The display will show “Saved”.

You can also save the current direction of the chase by pressing softkey
B.

If you are running several chases, the wheels are assigned to the most
recently selected chase. You can “connect” the wheels to one of the
other chases by pressing the Connect button to the right of the wheels,
then the playback Swop button for the chase you want to connect to.

If you’ve changed the speed using the wheels and you want to go back
to the saved speed, press Connect then A [Clear temporary speed].

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7.5 Naming chases

You can set a legend for chases in exactly the same way as you did for
a memory. In addition, you can label individual steps of a chase if you
are using the steps as cues. The reference manual tells you how to do
this.

Labelling a chase

Î Hold down the YPL button and press G [Set Legend].
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to label.
Î Enter the label using the external QWERTY keyboard (the VDU

screen shows you what you are typing) and press Enter.

Î You can label another memory by pressing another Swop button,

or finish by pressing Exit.

7.6 Editing a chase using Unfold

The DLC-C003 has a powerful chase editing system. The Unfold button
places each step of a chase on one of the playback faders, allowing you
to examine and edit each step individually as if it was a normal memory.

If your chase has more than 15 steps, you can swap to the next 15
steps using softkey F, or the previous 15 steps using softkey E.

Editing a chase using Unfold

Î Press the Unfold button (one of the blue command buttons)
Î Press the playback Swop button of the chase to be edited
Î The first 15 steps of the chase are loaded into playback faders 1-15
Î Raise a playback fader to view the contents of the step
Î The softkeys show a list of options which can be used for the step
Î To edit the contents of the step, make the changes then use

softkey A

Î To change the times of the step, use softkey B.
Î Press the Unfold button again to finish.

You can also edit chase steps while you are running the chase, without
using unfold. The “Rec Step” button allows you to record the current
programmer settings directly into the current step of the chase. This is
described in more detail in the reference manual.

7.7 Copying a chase

Chases can be copied in exactly the same way as memories.

Copying a chase

Î Hold down the Flash button of the chase you want to copy.
Î Press the Swop button of the playback you want to store it in
Î You can change the Roller page while you are holding down the

Flash button, if you want to copy a chase to a different page.

The new chase will be a linked copy of the old one. If you want to
create a completely separate copy of the memory, press the Photocopy

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button before you start the copy.

7.8 Deleting a chase

If you want to clear a chase so:

Deleting a chase

Î Press Delete
Î Press the Swop button of the chase you want to delete
Î Press the Swop button again to confirm the delete.

7.9 Timing, Stacks and sequence control

The most common use of a chase is as an automatic continuous
sequence. However, the DLC-C003 lets you step chases manually using
the Go button, which allows you to use them for theatrical lighting cues
or “One shot” chases. When you use a chase like this, it is sometimes
known as a “Stack”.

The DLC-C003 has a dedicated theatrical lighting mode which is
described in detail in the next chapter.

Creating a stack

Î Save each cue state as a step in a chase.
Î Press C [Edit Times]
Î Press the playback Swop button for the chase
Î Press G [Links] to set LINK = OFF for the whole chase
Î Press Enter to save the setting.
Î Raise the playback fader to activate the chase.
Î Press the Go button to run each cue.

You can set the fade in and fade out times independently for each cue
using the Live Time button.

Setting cue times on a stack

Î Start the chase by raising the fader.
Î Press the Live Time button to set the times for the current cue.
Î Use softkeys A-G to set the times you want
Î Press Enter to save the settings or Exit to abandon them.
Î Press the Go button to go on to the next cue.

You can also set a text label for each cue. The DLC-C003 will show you
the label for the current cue and the next one coming up. The reference
manual tells you more details about this.

7.10 Sound activation of chases

The DLC-C003 can use bass, mid or treble (low, medium or high)
frequencies from its audio input to trigger chases. Any chase can be
programmed to respond to Bass, Mid or Treble frequency triggers.
There is also a master “Sound to light enable” option.

Sound mode only works with the key turned to Run, but you need to be

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in Program mode to set up the chase for sound activation.

Sound activating chases

Î In Program mode, turn on the chase to “connect” it.
Î Press A [Chase Parameters]
Î Press E [Sound to light] to select Sound to Light Low, Medium or

High

Î Turn the key to Run mode.
Î Press E [Sound to light]. (This is the master sound to light enable

control) The option will highlight.

Î All chases with sound enabled will step in time to the sound signal
Î The Speed wheel controls the maximum speed of the chase
Î Press E, again, to turn off sound activation.

Also while in Run mode you can set the speed of the connected chase
manually by tapping Softkey G [Tap twice to set tempo] in time with
the music.

7.11 Examples

How do I program a dimmer chase?

Create the chase by pressing Chase then one of the flashing (empty)
playback swop buttons. Press Clear, and turn on the dimmers for step 1.
Press the Swop button for the chase to save the step. Press clear, then
turn on the dimmers for step 2, and press the Swop button to save.
When you have saved all the steps, press Chase to end.

I’ve programmed a chase using memories but when I turn it on,
nothing happens

To use existing memories in a chase, you must use the Include function
to load the memory into the programmer. If you just turn on a memory
and then try and save that as a chase step, nothing will be saved
because the memory will not be in the programmer.

The last step of my chase doesn’t play back

You need to press Clear to clear the programmer (which overrides the
chase output).

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CHAPTER EIGHT

8. Theatre stack

In this chapter: the DLC-C003’s theatre mode

• Setting theatre mode

• Theatre controls

• Plotting a cue

• Naming a cue

• Setting fade times for a cue

• Jumping to a cue

• Running the show

Theatre mode makes the DLC-C003 behave like a standard theatrical
console, allowing you to program your whole show as a sequence of
cues, and play it back just by pressing the Go button. Playback faders
12-15 become dedicated cue masters. The rest of the console continues
to operate as normal, so you can run the main cues from the theatre
mode, and spot effects from the other playback faders.

8.1 Setting theatre stack mode

In program mode, select Softkey B [Theatre stack programming], then
press Enter.

Note: When theatre mode is enabled, you can’t access playbacks 12-

15 on any page; if you intend to use Theatre mode it is
advisable not to program these playbacks. Any programs are
kept and when you turn off Theatre mode you will be able t o
access them again.

You can get out of the Theatre menu by pressing G [Quit]. The Exit
button does not operate in this mode.

To turn off theatre mode completely, press softkey B from the main
menu then press D [Exit theatre programming] When Theatre mode is
enabled, the swop button of Playback 12 flashes when the playback is
turned off.

Theatre mode programming is not deleted when theatre mode is turned
off.

8.2 Theatre controls

Fader 12 is the Master fader, controlling the overall intensity of all lights.
The Go button next to the wheels makes a cue start.
If you stop a fade part-way by pressing the Stop button, or one of the

stop buttons above the faders, then Fader 13 controls the Fade In of
the next step, fader 14 controls the Fade Out of the previous step, and
fader 15 controls the LTP (movement) fade timer.

The buttons above 13, 14 and 15 are Stop (blue) and Go (grey) buttons
for each of these functions.

8.3 Plotting a cue

You can set up the levels for a cue either by using the preset faders and
control wheels to set the levels you want, or by typing in the channel
number and the level. You can store moving light positions in theatre
cues as well as dimmers.

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Entering dimmer levels

Î Press Channel (at the top of the numeric keys)
Î On the numeric keypad, enter the fader/handle number of the

dimmer (not the DMX address of the channel)

Î Press G [At %]
Î Enter the value to be set as 0 – 9, or Softkey G for Full. You can

enter a decimal point and another number if you want more
accurate level control.

Î The channel you entered will be set to the level you entered.
Î Press the Channel button to go back to the normal menu

The softkeys offer you a few more options such as up by 5%, down by
5%, blackout.

Pressing Clear will take all channels you’ve set using the keypad to
blackout. Any channels turned on using the faders w ill stay on, but will
be removed from the programmer.

You can also set multiple channels to the same level using F [th r ough].
Enter first channel, “through”, last channel, “at %”, level.

Entering multiple dimmer levels

Î Press Channel
Î On the numeric keypad, enter the first dimmer handle number of

the range

Î Press F [Through]
Î Enter the last dimmer handle number of the range
Î Press G [At %]
Î Enter the value to be set as 0 – 9, or.Softkey G for Full.
Î The channels you entered will all be set to the level you entered.

When you have set all the levels as you want them, type the cue
number, then press D [Record Menu]. You then need to press B
[Record Stage] to record all the intensity channels that are current ly
turned on, plus anything in the programmer, or D [Record Programmer]
to record just the contents of the programmer (i.e. what you have
manually changed). The cue will be saved.

It’s best to use whole numbers for cues. Then if you need to insert a
cue between two existing cues, you can use a fractional number in
between. The DLC-C003 will automatically increase the cue number by
1 every time you record a cue.

8.4 Naming a cue

Type the step number to be named, then press E [Set Legend]. Enter
the legend on the QWERTY keyboard. While you are typing, the input is
shown on the VDU screen.

The name of the live cue and the next cue is displayed in the cue list on
the VDU screen.

8.5 Setting fade times for a cue

You can set fade in, fade out and “wait” times for each cue. Press C

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[Set Times] to show the options. This will set the times for the cu rrent
cue. You can also use the “Live Time” and “Next Time” buttons (to the
right of the wheels) to set the times for the current and next cues. See
page

107 for details of times.

8.6 Jumping to a cue

You can change the cue being edited by typing the cue number then
pressing Enter. If you want to output this cue, press F [Cut to Live]
(fade times are ignored).

8.7 Running the show

If you have just been editing, you may need to type 1 then Softkey F to
set the console to cue 1.

The display above the control wheels shows the current cue number,
the next cue number, and the progress of the wait and fade times for
fade in, fade out and LTP.

For automatic cues, you can simply press
the Go button next to the wheels. The
console will carry out the fade with the
times you programmed.

If you want to manually control a fade, you
can use the in, out and LTP faders or
Go/Stop buttons to operate the cue. The
display just above wheel A shows the
percentage of fade (9 - 0) left to go (shown
as “5” in the picture). When Fade In, Fade
Out and LTP all show “0”, the console
moves on to the next cue.

LTP fade cue numbers

Out HTP fade

In HTP fade

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CHAPTER NINE

9. The graphics tablet

In this chapter: using the graphics tablet with the DLC-C003

• Using the tablet

• Functions available on the tablet

The graphics tablet is an accessory to the DLC-C003. On “Touring”
versions of the DLC-C003 it is fitted to the right of the console in the
flight case. It allows you to use a pen to select fixtures, groups, colours,
and position the fixtures by simply drawing with the pen. You will be
amazed how much easier your programming and show operating
becomes when you use the graphics tablet.

The graphics tablet needs to be plugged into the serial port of the unit,
and User Setting 7 (press YPL and Softkey C) needs to be set to “G
Tablet.

9.1 Using the tablet

To use the tablet, you simply press the pen onto it. The button on the
side of the pen doesn’t do anything. A quick press is like pushing a
button on the DLC-C003. You can also draw on the tablet by keeping
the pen pressed down while moving it. This is used to move fixtures or
change attributes.

The tablet has a paper overlay on it with pads which simulate various
buttons on the DLC-C003. You can write your fixture names, group
names, attributes, palette entries and even draw your stage layout on
the overlay so that you know what’s what. Spare overlays are available
from DORTRON’s.

The DLC-C003 will behave as if you are pressing buttons on it in the
normal way, so the LEDs and the displays will change as you use the
tablet. Many of the functions of the DLC-C003 are quicker and easier
using the tablet. Sometimes you might find it easier to do part of the
function on the tablet and part on the console. The end result is the

same.

Colour control Position control

Attributes

Groups

Palettes

Fixtures

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9.2 Functions available on the tablet

To select a fixture or a group, just press the pen onto one of the fixture
pads or group pads. The first 60 fixtures are available on the tablet.
Only the first 30 groups are available on the tablet. The Swop button
LEDs on the handles will light up to show you which fixtures are
selected, as if you had pressed the actual console buttons.

You can control the position of the fixture by drawing on the Stage area
of the tablet.

You can “train” the DLC-C003 so that it knows how all the lights are set
up. Then when you point at the stage area of the tablet, all the lights
will point at the same place on the stage. This is called “Tracking mode”.
The Reference manual tells you how to do this and how to use tracking
mode.

If you press the pen on the Nudge pad, when you draw on the tablet
the fixture will move relative to its current position. T his can be useful if
you want to slightly reposition a fixture. Press on the Absolute pad to
turn off this mode.

You can control the intensity of the selected fixtures by drawing on the
Dimmer area.

If the fixture can do CMY colour mixing, you can set the colour by
drawing in the colour mix area of the tablet (you will need to set the
Luminosity on the luminosity slider to maximum).

You can recall the first 60 palette entries by pressing the pen on the
Focuses pads.

You can change individual attributes of selected fixtures by pressing the
pen on to one of the attribute pads, then (without lifting the pen)
drawing up and down on the tablet. The attribute lights on the console
will come on to show you which attribute is selected.

On the right hand side of the tablet, a range of pads make some of the
programmer functions are available, such as Clear and Locate Fixtures.
You can also record groups and memories using the tablet exactly as if
you were pressing buttons on the console. The details are in the
reference manual.

The “Fixtures or Mimics” pad allows you to set whether the LEDs in the
Swop buttons show you which fixtures are selected, or the intensity of
the channel.

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CHAPTER TEN

10. Running your show

In this chapter: running your show with the DLC-C003 2048

• Showtime

• Run modes

• Master faders

• Channel mimics

• Manual control during a show

10.1 It’s showtime…

When you have finished programming (or you’ve run out of time) and
it’s showtime, the most important thing is to back up the show to disk
(see end of section 2 on page

13 for instructions). Having done that,
turn the key to Run. This means you can’t accidentally change your
programming when you get into a button-pressing frenzy.

10.2 Temporarily locking the console

In Run mode you can temporarily lock the console (to stop the sound
guys playing with it while you nip to the loo). Type in a 4 digit number
then press C [Lock Desk] then Enter. The display will show the code.
Press Enter to lock it. All buttons and faders are now ignored. Re-en t er
the code to unlock the console.

If you repower or reset the DLC-C003, the lock is cancelled. It’s just to
discourage tampering.

10.3 Run modes

When you are running a show, there are two modes available to you,
normal Run mode, which just allows you to play back memories, and
Takeover run mode, which allows you to play back memories and also
take manual control of fixtures. The mode also affects how the Swop
and Flash buttons on the console operate.

You can select the mode by pressing A [Toggle mode]. The mode is
shown on the top line of the display.

• What’s not affected: The playback faders work the same in either
mode. The Preset Faders work as handles to control the intensity of
the device they are patched to.

• Normal Run mode: the Flash and Swop buttons on the handles and
playbacks work as flash buttons. The “Flash” button adds the function
into anything else which is on. The “Swop” button turns on the
function, but turns off everything else while the button is held down.
The programmer is cleared and you can’t manually control any LTP
channels.

• Takeover run mode: the Swop buttons on the handles allow you to
select dimmers or fixtures for manual control. This lets you add to or
change your programming in real time during the show. The faders still
control the intensity of the dimmers and fixtures. The Flash and Swop
buttons on the playbacks are disabled.

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10.4 Manual control during a show (“busking”)

If you have not had as much programming time as you would have
liked, you might need to make up some additional effects during the
show. This is sometimes called “busking”.

You can create instant variations by recalling palette values t o modify
your existing programs. The DLC-C003 can fade to the palette values
for added effect.

You need to be in Takeover Run mode to do any of this .

Fading palettes over time in Run mode

Î Select some fixtures which are already in use on stage
Î Press “2” (or any time, in seconds) on the numeric keypad
Î Press the Focus button
Î Select the Colour palette page
Î Press a softkey to recall a different colour from the Colour palette
Î The selected fixtures will change to the new colour over a time of 2

seconds.

If you don’t select any fixtures in the first step, the palette value will be
applied to all fixtures (if this is enabled in User Setting 6, see page

132).

To save having to select fixtures, you can apply the palette to all
fixtures in a memory.

Setting a palette value to fixtures in a memory

Î Press the Focus button
Î Select the Colour palette page
Î Hold down a softkey for a different colour from the Colour palette
Î Press the Swop button of the memory you want to use
Î Release the softkey
Î The palette value will be set to all the fixtures in the memory.

You can apply this palette to fade over a time by pressing a number
before you press the Focus button.

If you apply palettes over a time, they do not get put in the
programmer. This means that the next time you turn on a playback,
the new playback settings will override the old palette.

If you apply palettes with time=0, then they do go into the
programmer, and the palette value will override any new playbacks
until you press Clear. If you want to apply the palette instantly, but
don’t want it in the programmer (so that turning on a new playback will
override the palette), enter a time of 0.1.

You can also change the position of fixtures; the easiest way to do this
is to use “Nudge” on the graphics tablet. This allows you to sweep
selected fixtures around their programmed position by drawing with the
pen, so you can alter the height of a chase or shape in real time.

You can use “Record by channel” mode when programming to set some
memories to only affect position, and other memories to set colours,
gobos, add shapes, and so on. By combining two or more memories

Page 45 of 163

you can produce a much wider range of effects than if all your
memories set all the attributes. However, for this to work well you need
to make sure you know what attribute is going to be affected by each
memory, as if you turn on two “colour only” memories then nothing is
going to light up.

10.5 Master faders

In the bottom left hand corner of the console are the Master Faders.
These allow overall intensity control of the w hole console.

• The Add/Flash and Swop masters control the intensity of the Flash
and Swop buttons on the playbacks.

• The Preset Master controls the overall intensity of any channels
turned on in the Preset faders.

• The Grand Master controls the intensity of all output from the
console.

10.6 Channel mimics

If you are in normal Run mode, the LEDs on each handle mimic the
intensity of the fixture or dimmer controlled by that handle (i.e. they
are lit if it is turned on).

If you are in Takeover Run mode (or Program mode), you can choose
between “Mimic” mode or “Fixture” mode, where the LEDs show you
which fixtures are selected for manual control.

You select the mode by holding down the Ypl button and pressing
Softkey A. The button shows “Preset LEDs = Fixtures” (or mimics)
depending on the mode. You can also change this mode using the
Graphics Tablet.

Page 46 of 163

CHAPTER ELEVEN

11. Advanced features

Hopefully, by working through this tutorial manual, you now know how
to set up the DLC-C003, control fixtures with it, save memories and
chases and use them in a show.

We have tried to stick to the basics, but the DLC-C003 can do many
more things than we have told you so far. The reference manual
expands on all the information in the previous chapters. There’s also
some subjects we have not touched on yet, and these are described in
the reference manual. Just so you know, they are:

• User Settings - Some console options you can change

• Setting the real time clock

• Disk functions

• Tracking - You can train the DLC-C003 so it knows how the fixtures

are positioned relative to the stage. You can then point all the
fixtures at one part of the stage by clicking on the graphics tablet.
Training is described in Chapter

3.2 of the reference manual and

use of the graphics tablet in tracking mode is described in Chapter

9.

• MIDI - The DLC-C003 has a very comprehensive MIDI control
system

• Script files - You can tell the DLC-C003 how to run a show from a
list of instructions which you can enter or record in real time. Th is
is described in chapter

10 of the reference manual.

• Changing the operating system - From time to time DORTRON’s
release a new version of operating software, which you can load
into the DLC-C003

• Personality files - if the DLC-C003 doesn’t have a personality file for
your fixture you can write your own. These are described in chapter
11 of the reference manual.

• Devious hardware tricks for wiping the console

Page 47 of 163

CHAPTER TWELVE

12. Introduction to intelligent lighting

This section is for those who have not used intelligent lighting much
before, who are put off by dip switches, lights that move unexpectedly
and strange digital control systems that fly down microphone cables.

12.1 Ordinary lighting

Standard lighting consists of a variety of light bulbs connected to
dimmers. The lights may be anything from par cans to theatrical
lanterns, and the dimmer controls the intensity of the light. A typical
controller for standard lighting has a set of sliders, and each slider
controls the intensity of one dimmer using a low-v oltage control signal
of 0 to 10 volts. The standard way to link the sliders to the dimmers is
by using a multicore cable with one core for each dimmer channel.

12.2 So what is intelligent lighting?

Intelligent lighting usually contains more f unctions than just intensity; a
typical intelligent light, often called a “fixture”, can also change colour,
project different patterns (called “gobos”) and direct the light beam in
any direction using a movable mirror or by motorised control of the
light unit itself. The fixtures are called “intelligent” because they contain
a small computer which controls the movement of the internal motors
in response to the control signals. Some fixtures can also listen to
music and produce their own light show, sometimes synchronising
themselves with other intelligent fixtures. However they are actually
not all that intelligent and usually need a user to make them do
something interesting.

12.3 How do you control it?

Each function of an intelligent fixture requires its ow n control signal, so
the user can select the colour, position, gobo etc. You can use 0 to 10
volt control signals on some fixtures, but the cable carrying the control
signals again has to be a multicore with one core for each function, so
each fixture might need 8 or more cores in the control cable. Some of
the more complicated fixtures use 20 channels.

When several fixtures are used, the number of cores needed in the
control cable soon becomes large. The cable also has to split at each
fixture. It all gets a bit complicated.

12.4 The DMX control system

Fortunately, there is an easy to use system for cont rolling intelligent
lighting and dimmers. It is called DMX-512, which stands for Digital
MultipleX, and it sends up to 512 control signals down a twisted pair
screened cable. The cable can be simply daisy-chained from each
fixture to the next. Microphone-style XLR connectors are usually used,
sometimes 3-pin and sometimes 5-pin. More recently RJ45 computer
network type connectors are being used.

The DMX system sends out the level for channel 1, followed by the level
for channel 2, then 3, then 4 and so on, all the way up to a maximum
of 512 (though not all DMX systems send out all the channels). It then
goes back to channel 1 again. All the units connected to the DMX
receive all the channels, and you tell them which channels t o respond

Page 48 of 163

to by setting the “base channel” or “DMX address” on each unit. The
computer inside the fixture waits for the correct channels to come up,
then reads in the levels for those channels.

Dimmers can also understand DMX; some dimmers can read it directly,
others use a demultiplexer or “demux” to convert the DMX into the
normal 0 to 10 volt analogue signals they are used to.

12.5 Moving light control desks

Sliders are ideal for controlling dimmers. More complicated dimmer
control desks have memories to record the level of all the dimmers, so
you can recall a setting without having to set all the sliders again during
a show.

However, once you start controlling lights that move and change colou r,
sliders become less ideal, because it is the movement rather than the
end level which is important. Dedicated moving light desks such as the
DLC-C003 include many helpful functions which makes the
programming of intelligent lighting much easier, such as palettes of
pre-programmed colours and positions, and a shape generator to create
movements.

12.6 A few cautions about using DMX

DMX is a robust system which normally works very well, but sometimes
it can be problematic. Here are a few tips for making DMX work well.

• DMX cabling should be twisted-pair data cable. Microphone cable is
not recommended because it doesn’t transmit the signal as well.
You will probably get away with it, but equally you might have
problems.

• Always ensure the last fixture in the DMX line is terminated. On
some fixtures this can be done by flipping a switch, others are self­terminating, but often you will have to fit a terminating plug into
the vacant socket on the last unit. This has a 120 ohm resistor
across the DMX line and prevents data interference on the line. It
might work without but…

• Don’t split the DMX cable. Loop it from one unit to the next. If you
have to split it, use a proper active splitter unit.

• The DMX specification says that you should not run more than 32
fixtures from one DMX line unless the fixtures are buffered or
optically isolated. Either use several DMX lines (the DLC-C003 has
four) or use a DMX repeater unit. In practice, most fixtures do not
put maximum loading on the DMX line and you will probably get
away with using more if you have to, but the DMX signal may be
weaker than it should be.

• Don’t run your DMX lines near high voltage cables or neon. They
may pick up interference which will stop the system working, or
worse, blow up the receiver electronics in the fixtures (this really
does happen, and usually at the most inconvenient moment).

Page 49 of 163

13. Introduction to DORTRON’s consoles

If you have used intelligent lighting before, this section explains the
thinking behind how DORTRON’s consoles work and tells you what
everything is called.

13.1 Operating the console

The console has three main modes, set using the keyswitch; these are
Program (used for programming a show, allows everything to be
changed), Run (used when running a show, allows limited user
override but no changes to programming) and System (used for
configuring the console).

The operation of the console is based around the LCD screen. Seven
Softkeys allow you to select the options down the right hand side of
the screen. These options change depending on what the console is
doing. In addition there are the blue Command Buttons which give one­button access to some functions.

13.2 Controlling lights

To an DORTRON’s console, a light is either a Dimmer (single intensity
control channel) or a Fixture (Multiple control channels)

All Fixtures have a Personality File which tells the console how to
control the fixture. You don’t need to know how the fixture works, you
just tell the console what you want to do with the fixture (such as
change colour) and it knows which controls to change to get the effect.

You tell the console what fixtures/dimmers you have and their DMX
addresses by Patching them. When you patch, you allocate a Handle
to the device. The handle is one of the Faders and Select buttons across
the top of the console. You can allocate several dimmers to one handle
if you want to group them, but only one fixture can be allocated to any
one handle.

To control a fixture, you need to select the fixture you want to control
by pressing the Select button of the handle. The button lights up to tell
you that the fixture/dimmer is selected.

Additionally you can control a dimmer, or the intensity of a fixture,
using the Fader of the handle. If you change pages so that the fader
has been controlling something else, you will need to Match the fader
to the current dimmer level before it operates the dimmer (normally by
lowering the fader to zero then fading it up until you gain control of the
dimmer).

All control of fixtures uses the two Wheels. To change the fixture(s)
you’ve selected, you select the Attribute (colour, pan, gobo etc) you
want to control using the buttons on the right hand side of the console.
Then turn the wheels to change the attribute.

13.3 Programming the console

To store the settings of fixtures and dimmers, the console provides

Memories and Chases (sequences). These are stored in the 15
Playback Faders across the near edge of the console. Up to 30

different Pages of playbacks are available using the Roller and Roller
Page buttons. The roller provides a handy surface for writing a note of
what is stored in each playback.

Page 50 of 163

When you save a memory or chase, the console only saves settings you
have changed using the wheels (it does not save the current output
state). Whenever you change a fixture using the wheels and attribute
buttons, your changes are stored in a special memory called the
Programmer. The console allows you to save just the changed
attributes (Record by Channel), or if you change one attribute of a
fixture it can save all other attributes of that fixture as well (Record by
Fixture). Record by Channel mode is often called “Tracking” on oth er
consoles; in this mode, fixture attributes remain in th eir last state
unless you specifically change them.

The programmer records all changes in the console until you press the
Clear button. You should press the Clear button before setting up the
lighting for a memory, otherwise there may be all sorts of changes you
don’t want in the programmer, which would end up in your memory.

You can reload information from memories and chases into the
programmer, if you want to save them in another memory, using the
Include function. This function allows you to reload the whole memory,
or only certain fixtures from the memory, or only certain attributes of
certain fixtures.

When you play back a memory or chase, the console sets the fixtures
to their programmed positions as soon as the fader rises above zero.
The intensity of the fixtures, and any dimmers, rises with the fader. The
intensity channels are called HTP (highest takes precedence) channels,
because if the channel is turned on in more than one memory, the
highest level will be output. The movement channels are called LTP
(latest takes precedence) channels, because if the channel is turned on
in more than one memory, the most recent change will be output .

You can program the LTP/movement channels to fade with the fader if
you want to.

DORTRON’s consoles have a Shape Generator (sometimes called an
effects generator on other consoles). This automatically changes
attributes in a preprogrammed pattern. Fixtures can be made to move
their light beams around in a circle, or to fade colours, or move in and
out of focus. When a shape is applied to more than one fixture, the
shape can be Spread so that the fixtures run through in a sequence
giving wave-type effects.

Shapes you apply go into the programmer and are saved if you save a
memory or a chase.

DORTRON’s consoles allow you to save frequently-used positions,
colours etc. into a Palette (sometimes called a Focus or Preset Focus
on other consoles). When you want that setting, you simply recall the
palette. If you use palettes when programming memories, the console
remembers the palette number rather than the actual fixture settings.
This means that if you change venues, or fixtures are moved, you can
quickly reprogram your position palettes and all memories using those
palettes will be updated. This can save you having to reprogram many
memories.

Palettes can be recalled from a menu on the console display so you can
see what colour, position etc. you are going to get. This is useful when
“busking” the lighting (modifying your programming) during a show.
The console allows you to fade between palettes (Timed Palettes) to
give smooth live changes.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

14. Changes in the latest DLC-C003 software

If you are used to using the DORTRON’s DLC-C003 console, this section
gives you a quick rundown of the differences between the DLC-C003
you know and love and the new version of software. There are some
exciting new features.

14.1 Wheel acceleration

16 bit attributes now always work in 16 bit mode. If you spin the
wheels faster, the DLC-C003 will skip values to change the attribute
faster. If you spin the wheels slowly the attribu te will change with
maximum resolution. You can change the acceleration factor on the
wheels, see page

133.

14.2 Preset Focuses are now Palettes

Preset Focuses are now called Palettes, in line with other DORTRON’s
consoles (except for the “Focus” button, which remains stubbornly
engraved).

You can now recall Palettes from the softkeys by pressing the Focus
button and the display shows you what the palette contains. This is
similar to the Palette displays on the Sapphire, if you’re used to that
console.

You can apply a palette to all fixtures, without having to select them. If
you recall a palette with no fixtures selected it will be applied to all
fixtures (but the palette is not entered into the programmer).

You can apply a palette to all fixtures in a memory, by holding down
the button for the palette and then pressing the memory’s Swop button.
Again the palette is not entered into the programmer.

Each page of fixtures now has a separate page of palettes accessible
from the handle “Flash” buttons. (previously the same 30
palettes/focuses appeared on all fixture pages). This option needs to be
enabled in the user settings, see page

136.

14.3 Chases can include shapes

You can now include shapes in a chase and in cues of the Theatre Stack.
Each step can include different shape settings. If the shape is also
present with unchanged parameters in the next step, it will continue,
otherwise it will stop at the end of the step time.

14.4 Intelligent Attribute display

The display above the wheels can now show the attribute value name;
for example, on a colour wheel you may see “Open”, “Red” etc
displayed as you turn the wheel.

This function requires Range information to be supported by the
personality file for the fixture. If an updated personalit y file including
the Range information becomes available, there is a function to update
the Range table for the patched personalities in the console, so you
don’t have to repatch. This is in the Utilities section of the System
menu.

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14.5 Legends

You can enter legends for memories, chases, groups, roller pages,
palette pages and palette entries. Memory and chase legends are
shown on the VDU screen, the other legends are used on both the VDU
screen and the on-board LCD display.

14.6 Sound to light

Any chase can be triggered by low, mid or high frequency sound from
the audio input (previously this was fixed to chases 1 2 and 3). Chases
can be set to trigger on a given beat out of a number of beats, e.g. on
the 2

nd

beat of every 4 beats.

14.7 Other features

You can temporarily lock out the controls the desk in Run mode by
typing a 4 digit code and pressing Softkey C.

The Include function has been improved to allow you to include a chase
step, a cue from the theatre stack, and incoming DMX from the DMX In
socket.

A “locate no pan and tilt” option has been added to allow you to locate
a fixture without changing its position.

Many options are now quickly accessible by holding down the YPL
button.

You can selectively Wipe parts of the console; just the programming,
just the palettes, the patch and the programming, or the original
Wipeall option.

Page 53 of 163

REFERENCE MANUAL CONTENTS

1. SETTING UP THE CONSOLE 58

1.1 Connecting up

1.1.1 Connecting mains power

1.1.2 Connecting DMX lines

1.1.3 Connecting MIDI devices

1.1.4 Connecting audio

1.1.5 Other back panel connections and controls

1.1.6 The desk lamp

1.2 Operating

1.2.1 Operating modes

1.2.2 The disk drive

1.2.3 The front panel controls

1.2.4 View screens

2. PATCHING 64

2.1 Create

2.1.1 Fixture handles

2.1.2 Patching dimmers

2.1.3 Patching moving light fixtures

2.1.4 Checking the patching

2.2 Edit 68

2.2.1 Changing the DMX address of a fixture

2.2.2 Moving a fixture to a different handle

2.3 Delete

2.3.1 Deleting a patched fixture

2.4 Advanced options

2.4.1 Patch Utilities

3. CONTROLLING DIMMERS AND FIXTURES 70

3.1 Create

3.1.1 Selecting fixtures and dimmers for control

3.1.2 Changing attributes of the selected fixtures

3.1.3 Selecting attributes from the softkeys

3.1.4 Using groups

3.1.5 Stepping through selected fixtures one at a time

3.1.6 The Align and Flip functions

3.1.7 “Killing off” a fixture or dimmer

3.1.8 Entering intensity levels as numbers

3.1.9 Controlling fixtures by entering values

3.1.10 Fan mode

3.2 Advanced options

3.2.1 The ML menu and Tracking

3.2.2 Training the console for Tracking mode

4. PALETTES 79

4.1 Create

4.1.1 Palette values stored as a reference

4.1.2 Shared and individual palettes

4.1.3 Which attributes are stored in palettes

4.1.4 Storing a palette

4.2 Playback

4.2.1 Recalling a palette value

Page 54 of 163

4.2.2

Palette pages

4.2.3 Setting a palette to all fixtures (Quick palette)

4.2.4 Recalling only some attributes from a palette

4.2.5 Setting a palette to fixtures in a memory (Filtered palette)

4.3 Edit 82

4.3.1 Editing and deleting palettes

4.3.2 Naming a palette value or page

4.3.3 Viewing the contents of a palette

4.4 Timing

4.4.1 Recalling a palette with a fade time

4.4.2 Master fade time

4.5 Advanced options

4.5.1 Palette options

5. SHAPES 85

5.1 Playback

5.1.1 Selecting a shape

5.1.2 Changing the size and speed of a shape

5.1.3 Spreading a shape across multiple fixtures

5.1.4 Relative and Absolute shapes

5.2 Edit 87

5.2.1 Editing shapes which are running

5.3 Advanced options

5.3.1 Shape options

5.3.2 Updating the shape file

6. MEMORIES 90

6.1 Create

6.1.1 How the DLC-C003 works when programming

6.1.2 Creating a memory

6.1.3 Recording the stage using Snapshots

6.1.4 Using shapes in memories

6.1.5 Viewing the programmer contents

6.2 Playback

6.2.1 HTP and LTP channels

6.2.2 Playing back a memory

6.2.3 Changing playback pages

6.3 Edit 95

6.3.1 Editing a memory

6.3.2 The Include function

6.3.3 The “Off” button

6.3.4 Viewing a memory

6.4 Copy

6.4.1 Copying a memory

6.5 Delete

6.5.1 Deleting a memory

6.6 Timing

6.6.1 Setting fade times for a memory

6.7 Advanced options

6.7.1 Recording in Blind mode

7. CHASES 100

7.1 Create

7.1.1 Programming a chase

Page 55 of 163

7.2

Playback

7.2.1 Running a chase

7.2.2 Connecting a chase to the controls

7.2.3 Setting speed, crossfade and direction

7.2.4 Manually controlling the chase steps

7.2.5 Viewing chase steps

7.3 Edit 103

7.3.1 Adding more steps to the end of a chase

7.3.2 Editing a chase using Unfold

7.3.3 Editing a chase which is running

7.4 Copy

7.4.1 Copying chases

7.5 Delete

7.5.1 Deleting chases

7.5.2 Deleting a step from a chase

7.6 Timing

7.6.1 Speed and crossfade controlled by wheels

7.6.2 Setting global step or fade times and unlinking

7.6.3 Setting times and links for individual steps

7.6.4 Viewing timing information

7.6.5 Sound activation of chases

7.7 Advanced options

7.7.1 Chase options

8. THEATRE STACK 110

8.1 Create

8.1.1 Setting theatre stack mode

8.1.2 Theatre controls

8.1.3 Plotting a cue

8.1.4 Running a chase or memory with a cue (Autoload)

8.1.5 Naming a cue

8.2 Timing

8.2.1 Setting fade times for a cue

8.2.2 Displaying the cue timings

8.3 Playback

8.3.1 Running a theatrical show

8.4 Edit 115

8.4.1 Editing a cue

8.4.2 Jumping to a cue

8.4.3 Inserting a cue

8.4.4 Renumbering cues

8.4.5 Copying a cue

8.5 Delete

8.5.1 Deleting a cue

8.6 Advanced options

8.6.1 Advanced theatre options

9. THE GRAPHICS TABLET 117

9.1 Create

9.1.1 Connecting the tablet

9.1.2 Using the tablet

9.1.3 Selecting fixtures on the tablet

9.1.4 Changing the position of the fixtures

9.1.5 Changing colours and other attributes

Page 56 of 163

9.1.6

Recalling palette entries (focuses)

9.1.7 Storing palette entries (focuses)

9.1.8 Programming functions on the tablet

9.1.9 Tablet status on the VDU monitor

9.2 Advanced options

9.2.1 Extending the tablet cable

10. RUNNING THE SHOW 121

10.1 Playback

10.1.1 Run modes

10.1.2 Master faders

10.1.3 Manual control during a show (“Busking”)

10.2 Options

10.2.1 Two-preset mode

10.2.2 Temporarily locking the console

10.2.3 Channel mimics

11. AUTOMATED PLAYBACK (SCRIPT FILES) 124

11.1 Create

11.1.1 Recording Script files

11.1.2 What is recorded in the script file

11.2 Playback

11.2.1 Selecting a script file for testing

11.2.2 Testing the script file

11.2.3 Using Script files in Run mode

11.2.4 Looping and running script files on power up

11.3 Edit

11.3.1 The script file edit display

11.3.2 Editing an action

11.3.3 Inserting a step into the script file

11.3.4 “On-the-fly” editing

11.4 Timing

11.4.1 Editing a timecode

11.4.2 Changing timecode for a group of steps

11.4.3 Changing the start timecode for the whole script file

11.4.4 Sorting the steps into time order

11.5 Copy

11.5.1 Copying a script file

11.6 Delete

11.6.1 Deleting a step

11.6.2 Deleting a script file

11.7 Options

12. SETUP 132

12.1 User Settings

12.1.1 The User Settings menu

12.1.2 Setting the Wheel acceleration

12.2 User functions

12.2.1 The Wipe menu

12.2.2 Disk functions

13. OTHER FEATURES 135

13.1 System Configuration

13.1.1 Utility menu

13.1.2 Service mode

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13.1.3

YPLS2 functions

13.1.4 Upgrading the DLC-C003’s internal software

13.1.5 Hardware WIPEALL mode

13.1.6 Audio gain links

13.2 MIDI functions

13.2.1 What a MIDI command looks like

13.2.2 MIDI commands used by the DLC-C003

13.2.3 MIDI Time Code

13.2.4 MIDI Problems

13.3 The stage remote (riggers remote)

14. THE PERSONALITY FILE SYSTEM 142

14.1 Help, I can’t find a personality for my fixture

14.2 Create

14.2.1 What is and how do I write or change a Personality file?

14.2.2 Personality file naming conventions

14.2.3 Personality File Keyword Order

14.2.4 The Instrument Name

14.2.5 The Device Type

14.2.6 Fixture switch settings

14.2.7 Mirror

14.2.8 The DMX/Preset Layout

14.2.9 Text Field

14.2.10 The Preset Focus (Palette) table

14.2.11 Macros

14.2.12 Range tables

14.2.13 Example Personality File for the High End Cyberlight

15. GLOSSARY OF TERMS 153

16. INDEX 158

Page 58 of 163

1. Setting up the console

This chapter contains: Connecting mains power; connecting DMX lines;
connecting MIDI devices; connecting audio; the disk drive; other back
panel connections and controls; desk modes.

1.1 Connecting up

1.1.1 Connecting mains power

Important! Before connecting the mains power to the DLC-C003 you

must check if the DLC-C003 has a voltage selector switch next to the
mains socket; if it does, make sure it is set to match your mains supply.
It can be set to 120V or 220V.

If the DLC-C003 does not have a voltage selector switch you can safely
connect it to any voltage from 80 to 260V.

If you connect mains power with the switch set incorrectly, y ou will
probably blow up the power supply unit. If this happens you will need
to shamefacedly return the console to DORTRON’s for repair.

1.1.2 Connecting DMX lines

The DLC-C003 can output DMX down 4 separate lines. When you patch
a dimmer or fixture you can tell the DLC-C003 which DMX line it is on.
The lines are identified by the letters A,B,C,D. Normally A comes out of
output 1, B comes from 2, C from 3, and D from 4, but just to add to
the fun you can swap this round if you want (see Patching, section 2).

The 4 DMX outputs come out of the 5 pin XLR sockets on the back of
the console. The DLC-C003 2048 has four separate sockets. The DLC­C003 2048 has only two sockets with two DMX lines on each, so you
will need splitter cables to access all four lines on the DLC-C003 2048.
They are wired like this:

DLC-C003 2048 DLC-C003 2048

DMX line

Socket Pin numbers Socket Pin numbers

1 (normally A) 1 & 3 2=Data -

3=Data +

1 & 3 2=Data -

3=Data +

2 (normally B) 2 & 4 2=Data -

3=Data +

2 & 4 2=Data -

3=Data +

3 (normally C) 3 2=Data -

3=Data +

1 & 3 4=Data -

5=Data +

4 (normally D) 4 2=Data -

3=Data +

2 & 4 4=Data -

5=Data +

The sockets marked “1 & 3” and “2 & 4” on the DLC-C003 2048 have
pins 4 and 5 connected to the other DMX lines as with the DLC-C003
2048, making the DLC-C003 2048 outputs pin-compatible with the
DLC-C003 2048 if replacing one console with the other.

1.1.3 Connecting MIDI devices

The DLC-C003 has the usual MIDI IN and OUT connections. It can read
MIDI information and use it to trigger a show, and it can output MIDI
information in response to user actions on the controls. This means y ou
can record a show straight into a MIDI sequencer by operating the

Page 59 of 163

show yourself using the buttons and sliders. The MIDI operation of the
console is described in section

13 on page 140.

1.1.4 Connecting audio

The DLC-C003 provides a stereo audio input for sound to light functions.
The stereo channels are combined internally to give a mono signal.

The DLC-C003 2048 has a stereo audio input socket with a gain control
next to it.

The DLC-C003 2048 has two mono jacks and the gain control is on the
front panel with the LCD contrast/brightness controls.

There is an internal link on the PCB to set the overall sensitivity of the
audio inputs to mic or line level. By default the audio input is set to
maximum sensitivity. See page

140 for details.

1.1.5 Other back panel connections and controls

Qwerty: for connecting a standard PC keyboard. This is used for

entering legends to name memories, chases and palettes. If using a
keyboard you should connect it before you turn the power on.

VDU: for connecting a VGA display. Any standard VGA display will be
OK, the console uses a 640x480 text mode. You do not have to connect
the VDU screen as most information is shown on the console’s on-board
display, but some extra displays are available on the VDU screen which
are useful when programming or operating a complex show.

Serial: is for the Stage Remote or the graphics tablet.
DMX In: allows you to capture DMX from an external system into

memories on the DLC-C003 using the Include function.

USB: for future use in the software.
Visualiser: (if fitted) allows direct connection to a PC running

Visualiser; alternatively a MIDI adaptor cable can be used to connect
Visualiser to the MIDI ports.

Reset button: allows you to restart the DLC-C003 if something funny
happens to it. The DLC-C003 will come back to the same place it was in
when you pressed Reset, but all playbacks will be turned off. Th e
memory is not affected.

LCD contrast and brightness controls are on the front of the console
next to the key switch. If you can’t see anything on the display, first set
the contrast control to a central position, then adjust it for best display.
The brightness control sets the intensity of the display’s backlight.

1.1.6 The desk lamp

The desk lamp plugs into the socket in the top left hand corner of the
DLC-C003 and can be switched to Off, Dim or Full using the switch next
to it.

Page 60 of 163

The desk lamp uses a 12V, 5W halogen lamp.

1.2 Operating

1.2.1 Operating modes

The DLC-C003 has a key-operated switch on the right hand side of the
panel which allows you to select the operating mode of the console.

When running a show, you normally select Run mode. You can run
playbacks and (in Takeover run mode) manually control fixtures (see
page

121). You cannot change any programming. This is the best mode
if others are operating the console and you want to make sure they
can’t mess up your programming. Just take the key with you!!

When programming, you need to be in Program mode, which you
access by turning the key to Program. This manual assumes you are in
program mode.

System mode allows you to clear parts or all of the console using
softkey F [Wipe], to access YPL mode, various diagnostics and to load a
new operating system. There are more details about YPL mode in
Section

13 on page .

1.2.2 The disk drive

The DLC-C003 has a 1.44MB floppy disk drive which is used to load and
save shows, personality files and system software. The standard PC
disk format is used, so you can transfer data to and from your PC. You
can use the smaller 720KB disks, but large shows may not fit!

You should get into the habit of backing up your show to disk regularly
to guard against that moment when something goes wrong. It doesn’t
take long.

1> Press the Disk button in the bottom right hand corner of the DLC-

C003
2> Insert a blank formatted 1.44M disk into the disk drive.
3> Press B [Save show to disk]. Enter a name on the QWERTY

keyboard (or press Enter on the console to use the default name).

The DLC-C003 will save the show.
4> To reload the show, use softkey A [Load show from disk].

Other disk drive functions are available when you have pressed the
Disk button. The disk drive functions are described in section

13 on

page

134.

1.2.3 The front panel controls

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• The Preset Faders control individual dimmer channels and fixture

intensities. The 2 buttons below the faders select and flash
fixtures. Each fader and buttons is called a “Handle”.

• The Mode select keyswitch sets the operating mode of the

console; Program for programming a show, Run for running the
show and System for configuring the console.

• The Page select roller lets you select different pages of

playbacks, and you can write the playback names on the roller so
you know what’s in them.

• The Master faders control the overall output of the various parts

of the console. You will normally have th ese set at Full.

• The Playback faders and flash buttons are used to play back

memories you have programmed, when you are running a show.

• The Main display is the nerve centre of the console and shows

you what is going on. The display can show various screens of
information.

• The Control wheels are used to set control values on the fixtures,

and to set chase speeds and fades.

• The Menu softkeys (labelled A – G) are used to select control

options. The display next to the buttons shows what each one will
do. The options for each key change depending on what the
console is doing. Softkey commands are shown in the manual with
square brackets like this: A [Chase Parameters]

• The Numeric keypad and other control buttons are used to enter

values and change controls on the console.

• The Fixture Page buttons are below the keypad, which select 4

pages for the Preset Faders.

• The blue Command buttons are used to carry out functions such

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as storing memories, copying, saving to disk, etc. These buttons
have lights on to indicate when they are active.

• The Attribute select buttons are used to select which attributes

of a fixture (e.g. colour, gobo, pan, focus) are going to be
controlled using the Control wheels. The buttons have lights on to
show you which attributes are active. The bottom (red) button
allows you to reduce the intensity of a fix ture if it loses position
during a show.

1.2.3 View screens

The DLC-C003 can display a wide range of different information screens
on its inbuilt LCD and on the external VDU screen.

LCD views

• Channel Output: Press View

then Softkey A. Shows the
output of the selected
attribute for each handle.
You can change the attribute
by pressing a different
attribute button (Dimmer,
tilt/pan etc). The display
only shows the first 30
handles, press the current
Pages Of Fixtures button to
show 31-60.

• Fixture attributes: Press

View then Softkey B. Shows
which attributes of the
currently selected fixture are
allocated to wheel A and
wheel B. The view will be
blank if no fixtures are
selected.

• DMX Patch: Press View then

Softkey C. Shows which fixture each DMX output channel is
patched to, the attribute of that fixture, and the actual DMX value
being output on that channel. Use the arrow keys to show different
pages of the patch.

Softkey functions

Message area

Wheel functions
and values

free memory

View
screen
number

Main
display
area

Chase
info

• Fixture Patch: Press View then Softkey D. The top part of the

display shows a list of handles with the fixtures patched to them.
An arrow shows the active fixture; some fixture types will display
further information (such as how to set the fixture’s dip switches)
in the bottom part of the display.

• Chase times: Press View then Connect. If a chase is running the

display will show information about the steps in the current chase.
If no chase is running the display will show “No chase”.

• Playback status: Press View then 7 then Enter. The display shows

which playbacks are programmed (with a star), which are active
and whether they are running a memory or a chase.

VDU screen views

Press Softkey G to switch the menu to the VDU view menu. Press
Softkey G again to switch back to the LCD view menu.

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Roller page and
segment

Graphics tablet
status

Main display area

Playback legends

Chase number and
step numbers

Chase progress
bargraph

Wheel functions and
values

• Stage Intensities: Press View then Softkey A. Shows the intensity

of each handle/fader (the numbers shown are handle numbers not
DMX channel numbers)

• Stage fixtures: Press View then softkey B. Shows the output of

each attribute for the different fixture types patched. Use the arrow
keys to select which fixture type you are looking at (deselect all
fixtures or the arrow keys will just change the fixture select ion). At
the bottom of the main display window, the display shows which
fixture type is selected (in blue).

• Fixtures and attributes: Press View then softkey C. Displays the

selected attribute for each fixture. Press a different Attribute button
to show other attributes.

• View programmer: Press View then softkey D. The display shows

fixtures which are in the programmer (on the left) and the
attributes which are in the programmer (on the right). The desk
controls do not operate while you are viewing the programmer, you
need to press Exit to return to normal.

• View Shapes: Press View then softkey E. The display shows

information about active shapes.

• View Fixture Notes: Press View then softkey F, then select a

patched fixture type from one of the softkeys. Fixture notes from
the personality file (if it contains any) will be displayed on the VDU.
Press Exit to get back to normal.

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CHAPTER TWO

2. Patching

This chapter contains: Fixture handles; patching dimmers; patching
moving light fixtures; checking the patching; changing the DMX
address; moving a fixture to a different handle; deleting a patched
fixture; patching options.

Patching is the process where you tell the DLC-C003

• What type of lighting units you have connected to it

• What DMX addresses they are operating at

• Which DMX output line each unit is connected to (there are 4)

• Which “handles” (control sliders) you want to use to access them

You can either patch the DMX channels on your console to match your
lighting rig, or set up the console first and then set the lighting rig to
match.

The DLC-C003 must be in Program mode before you can patch.

2.1 Create

2.1.1 Fixture handles

Î

The DLC-C003 can control up to 240 intelligent fixtures or dimmer
channels. To do this it has 4 pages of 60 control “handles”. The handles
are located in 2 rows of 30 along the top of the console. Each handle
consists of:

• a slider, used to set the intensity of the fixture or dimmer

patchedto the handle,

• a “Swop” button which is used in

program mode to select the fixture

• a “flash” button which is used to

select Palettes and to flash the
channel in Run mode.

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The top bank of 30 sliders does not have buttons and is accessed using
the Swop button of the slider below while the YPL button is held down
acting as a “shift” key.

The fixture page buttons are located just to the right of the wheels.
Fixtures 1-30 are on page 0--, Fixtures 101-130 on page 1--, 201-230
on page 2—and 301-330 on page 3--. You can change the fixture page
at any time.

The DLC-C003 also allows you to allocate fixtures and dimmers to
Groups, which can be useful if you usually select the same set of
fixtures together. Groups are described in the next chapter.

2.1.2 Patching dimmers

Each dimmer channel is allocated to one handle. If you want to link
dimmers together, you can allocate several to the same handle.

1> Press Patch, then A [Dimmer]
2> On the top line of the display, the DLC-C003 shows the DMX

address it is going to patch at. You can change this by typing a

new address on the numeric keypad. You can also use softkey E

[Select a DMX line] to patch onto one of the other 3 DMX output

lines.
3> To patch a single dimmer, press a handle Swop button. To patch a

range of dimmers, hold down the Swop button for the first

dimmer in the range, then press the last Swop button in the range.

The range of dimmers will be patched to sequential DMX

addresses.
4> To patch another dimmer to the same handle, enter the new DMX

channel and press the Swop button again
5> Repeat from step 2 for other dimmers.

• The VDU screen will

show the channels
which have been
patched.

Devices patched

Grid showing usage
of DMX channels

• You can patch

multiple dimmers
onto the same
handle by typing
the DMX address of
the next dimmer to
be patched and
pressing the Swop
button again.

• You can patch

dimmers to the top
faders (31-60) by

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holding down the YPL button before pressing the Swop button. This
allows you to patch up to 60 dimmers or fixtures on one page. It is
often convenient to use the top faders for dimmers and the bottom
faders for fixtures allowing you to keep all your fixtures and
dimmers on one fixture page.

• When in Dimmer Patch mode you can set options for dimmer

channels which you are going to patch. You can set the “Full on”
level to less than 100% using option A, and select a different
dimmer response curve using option B. To use the “User curve”
setting you need to load in a user curve, see page

134. These
settings affect all dimmer channels you patch afterwards, until you
change the settings again. Channels you have already patched are
not affected.

2.1.3 Patching moving light fixtures

Moving light fixtures are more complicated to patch than dimmers
because they have more attributes to control, such as pan, tilt, colour
etc., where a dimmer channel just has intensity. When you patch a
fixture, you will see on the display that it occupies a block of DMX
channels rather than just one.

The DLC-C003 uses a “personality” system to control fixtures. There is
a personality file in the DLC-C003 for most types of fixture, which tells
it what attributes are available and how to control them. If the DLC­C003 does not have the personality for your fixture, you can download
a wide range of personalities from the DORTRON’s website onto floppy
disk and load them that way. If you use fixtures often you can add
them to the internal store. In the unlikely event that no personality
exists for the fixture you are using, DORTRON’s w ill create one for you.
You can also create the file yourself if you have some programming
abilities. See chapter 12 on page

143 for details of how to find

personalities.

Note: The DLC-C003 holds all the personalities in an internal “cache”

file. If the console memory gets totally wiped you might need to
reload the file, how to do it is described on page 136. You can
also use a Personality Disk in the disk drive.

If you are using the internal personality cache, ensure there is no disk
in the disk drive.

1> Press Patch, then B [Choose a Fixture].
2> The DLC-C003 will read the personality files, then display “Please

select an instrument”. A list of known fixtures will appear next to
the softkeys after a pause.

3> Use F [More] and G [Back] to go up and down the list and find the

correct fixture, then press the softkey next to the fixture to select
it.

4> The DLC-C003 loads the fixture information. The display shows

details of the fixture.

5> The DLC-C003 will ask “Use preset palettes?”. Press A [Yes]. This

loads a standard set of positions, colours and gobos into the
Palette pages which can be useful when programming. If you say
No now, you can’t load them later.

6> On the display, the DLC-C003 shows the DMX address it is going

to patch at. You can change this using the numeric keypad. You
can also press E [Select a DMX line] to patch onto one of the
other 3 DMX output lines.

7> Press an unused handle Swop button to patch the fixture. The

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VDU screen will show the block of channels occupied by the
fixture. If you want to use a different fixture page, select the new

page first.
8> Repeat from Step 7 to patch more of this type of fixture.
9> Press A [Select another fixture] and repeat from Step 3 to patch a

different type of fixture.

• You can patch a range of fixtures by holding

down the first and last Swop buttons of the
range, the same as for dimmers.

• Unlike dimmers, you cannot patch more than

one fixture onto a handle. If the handle is
already used, the patch will fail. Use a different
handle or delete the fixture already on the
handle if you don’t want it any more.

• Some fixtures can only be patched at certain

DMX addresses. This is usually described in the
fixture instruction manual. If this informat ion is
included in the fixture personality, the DLC­C003 will not allow you to patch the fixture at
an illegal address, and will offer the next valid
address instead.

• If you are patching a fixture which uses a

separate dimmer channel such as a VL5™, you can patch the
dimmer channel onto the same handle as the moving light part of
the fixture, so you can control it all together. This is called a
Pending dimmer.

2.1.4 Checking the patching

Having set the DLC-C003, you need to ensure that your lighting rig is
set up to match the DLC-C003 by going round your rig to set the DMX
addresses.

You can display the DMX settings on the DLC-C003 like this.

1> Press the View button next to the numeric keys
2> Press D [Fixture Patch]
3> The display shows a list of the handles to which you have patched

fixtures or dimmers, with the DMX line and address (e.g. A24 is

address 24 on DMX line A).
4> The top handle on the list has an arrow next to it. The lower part

of the display shows more information for this handle, including

dip switch settings if the fixture personality includes this

information.
5> Use the up-down cursor arrows to change the selected fixture.

The left-right cursor arrows will show you another page of handles.
6> Repeat from Step 4 to view other fixtures.

• Press View, then C [DMX patch] to display a list of all DMX

channels, what they are allocated to and the current output. The
cursor arrows scroll through the list.

• Press View then a handle Swop button to display the settings for

the fixture patched to that handle.

• You do not need to be in patch mode to view this information, you

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can do it at any time.

2.2 Edit

2.2.1 Changing the DMX address of a fixture

You can re-patch a fixture to a different DMX address or a different
DMX output line. All programming is kept.

1> Press Patch (if you’re not already in Patch mode).
2> Press E [Repatch Fixtures].
3> Use the numeric keypad to enter the new DMX address of the

fixture. If you want to change the DMX output line, press E

[Select a DMX line] and choose a new output line by pressing A B

C or D.
4> Press the handle swop button for the fixture to patch that fixture

at the new address.
5> Press Enter to confirm the change.
6> Repeat from step 3 if you want to change other fixtures.

• If the new DMX address was already used by another handle, the

fixture or dimmer on that handle will be “parked”. All
programming for the handle is preserved, but you need to patch it
to a new DMX address using the above procedure before you can
use it again. If you view the fixture patch as described above, the
display will show “park”.

2.2.2 Moving a fixture to a different handle

You can move a dimmer or fixture from one handle to another simply
by entering the DMX channel to match the address of the fixture, then
patching it again onto another handle. However, all programming is lost
for that dimmer channel or fixture.

2.3 Delete

2.3.1 Deleting a patched fixture

You can delete a fixture or dimmer from a handle if you patched it
accidentally or if you change your rig and want to use the handle for
something else.

1> Press Patch (if you’re not already in Patch mode).
2> Press the blue Delete button (the light will flash).
3> Press the Swop button of the handle you want to delete.
4> Press Enter to confirm.

• You can delete individual DMX channels from a handle by typing

the channel number instead of pressing a Swop button. This is
useful for deleting dimmer channels from handles which have
multiple channels patched to them. Be careful not to delete
individual channels out of fixtures using this function.

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2.4 Advanced options

2.4.1 Patch Utilities

The DLC-C003 allows several options to be set for each fixture or
dimmer when it is being patched. The Patch Options menu is accessed
by pressing F [Patch Utilities] while you are in patch mode. Set the
options before you start programming, because memories will play back
differently when the options are on.

The options are:
A: Invert - Allows you to invert an attribute of a fixture, so when you

set zero the output will be full. You cannot invert some attributes.

1> Select the fixtures you want to invert and turn them on so you

can see their output state
2> Select the attribute you want to invert by pressing the Attribute

Select button (some can’t be changed)
3> Press Softkey E or F to invert the attributes shown (the VDU

screen shows the inversion settings)
4> Repeat from 2 if

you want to

invert more

attributes, or 1 if

you want to

change other

fixtures.
5> Press Exit to

leave Invert

mode as soon as

you’ve finished,

it is easy to

accidentally

invert fixtures if you leave this mode active

B: Set/Reset Instant mode - When the DLC-C003 fades LTP
(movement) channels between two memories, the LTP values normally
change smoothly. You can set Instant mode to make the channel snap
instantly to the new value.

1> Select the fixtures you want to change
2> Select the attribute you want to change (some can’t be changed)
3> Press Softkey E or F once to change the attributes shown (the

VDU screen shows the settings)
4> Repeat from 2 if you want to change more attributes, or 1 if you

want to change other fixtures.
5> Press Exit to leave Instant mode as soon as you’ve finished, it is

easy to accidentally change fixtures if you leave this mode active

C: Swap pan and tilt - If you have some fixtures mounted sideways,
it can be useful to swap the pan and tilt channels over.

1> Press softkey C
2> Press the Swop buttons of the fixtures you want to change
3> Repeat from 2 to change other fixtures.

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D: Set DMX lines - The DLC-C003 has 4 DMX output lines, this option

lets you set which connectors they come out of. You can output the
same DMX line from more than one connector if you want to.

The console shows the current settings of the DMX outputs on the VDU
screen. You need the VDU screen connected to set this option, as the
settings are not shown on the on-board display. Use the cursor arrows
to select the output you want to change. Press Softkeys A-D to select
the DMX line you want to come out of this output.

You can also use this option to set the highest DMX channel to transmit.
This will speed up the DMX refresh rate if you are not using all 512
channels. (This option can also be set from the User settings menu).

E: Find fixture - This option lets you find “lost” fixtures (if you have
set the DMX address and forgotten what it was, or a fixture has
changed its address on its own). You need the VDU screen connected to
use this option as the settings are not shown on the on-board display.

1> Using the cursor arrows, select the type of fixture & press enter
2> Spin wheel A until the fixture responds with its “Locate Fixture”

state (open white beam, central position). Use the cursor up and

down arrows to change one channel at a time.
3> You can change the DMX output line using the A B C D softkeys or

directly enter a channel by pressing softkey G
4> Read the DMX address from the VDU screen.
5> Press Exit when you have finished.

F: Set Default DMX lines - This option sets the DMX line mappings
back to the factory defaults, as shown in Chapter 1. The LCD display
also shows how the DMX lines will be set. Press Softkey A to confirm
the setting.

CHAPTER THREE

3. Controlling dimmers and fixtures

This chapter contains: Selecting fixtures and dimmers for control;
changing attributes of the selected fixtures; using groups; selecting
fixtures one at a time; the align and flip buttons; killing off a fixture;
entering levels as numbers; the ML menu and tracking; viewing the
output.

When you are programming a show, and sometimes when you are
running a show, you need to manually control the fixtures and dimmers
to set the intensity, position, colour, etc. To do this you first select the
fixtures you want to change using the Swop buttons, then you set the
attributes of those fixtures using the Wheels and Attribute buttons.

3.1 Create

3.1.1 Selecting fixtures and dimmers for control

To select the fixtures or dimmer channels that you want to control, you
use the handle Swop buttons. You can select fixtures or dimmers
individually, or several at once.

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You can control dimmer channels and fixture intensity directly from the
fader control of the handle, or select the channels as described below
and use the Dimmer attribute.

1> Press the handle Swop buttons for the fixtures you want. The LED

in the Swop button comes on for selected fixtures (they are also

shown in dark blue on the VDU screen)
2> To select a range of fixtures, hold down the Swop button for the

first fixture then press the Swop button for the last fixture.

Here are some other things to know:

• Press ML Menu then A [Locate Fixture] to position the selected

fixtures in open white at a central position (dimmer channels go to
50%). These values are not loaded into the programmer - they
won’t be saved in a memory unless you modify the fixture.

• If you want to light up a fixture without moving its position, use B

[Locate Fixture no Pan & Tilt]”.

• You can deselect a fixture by pressing the fixture select button

again.

• Once you have changed any attribute, pressing a handle Swop

button will deselect all fixtures and start the selection process
again.

• You can select fixtures on another page by pressing one of the

“Pages of Fixtures” buttons.

• If you have fixtures patched to the top faders you can select them

by holding down the YPL button and pressing the Swop button of
the fader below.

3.1.2 Changing attributes of the selected fixtures

“Attributes” are the functions of the
fixture, like pan, tilt, colour, dimmer,
etc. You select which attributes you
want to modify using the buttons on
the right edge of the console and set
values using the wheels at the bottom
of the DLC-C003. The attributes
available depend on the fixture type.
Dimmer channels only have a dimmer
attribute. The DLC-C003 can control up
to 40 attributes per fixture.

Each attribute button controls two
attributes, one on the left wheel and one on the right wheel.

1> Press the button for the attribute to be changed
2> Turn the wheels to set the attribute. The display above the wheels

shows which attributes are being controlled.
3> Repeat from 1 to change other attributes of the selected fixtures.

Some other things to know about attributes:

• The Attribute buttons let you select the first 20 attributes. Another

20 attributes are available by pressing the “Attribute Banks 11-20”
button, to cater for the weird and wonderful DMX fixtures of the
future. The light on the button stays on when you are using the
top 20 attributes.

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• If the display above the wheels does not show the attribute when

you press the button, that attribute is not available on the
selected fixtures.

• You can directly control the intensity of the fixture/dimmer using

the fader of the handle.

• You can view the available attributes by pressing the View button

then B [Fixture Attributes]. The display shows a list of available
attributes for the fixture you’ve selected.

• The wheels operate in an “acceleration” mode. If you spin the

wheel fast, the fixture changes in larger steps. If you move the
wheel slowly, the fixture moves in its smallest increment. (This
replaces the 16-bit mode found on older DLC-C003 software). You
can change the acceleration response of the wheels by holding
down YPL and pressing 2 (see page

133 for details). You may
want a different response for very fine adjustments, or to suit your
wheel spinning style.

• Holding down YPL while turning a wheel pu ts the wheel into
“hyper-drive” mode where one complete revolution takes the
attribute from 0 to 100%.

• The display above the wheels either shows the output value
(percentage and raw DMX value), or it can show Intelligent
Attribute Display (for a colour wheel, the display would show
“Open”, “Red”, “Orange” and so on as you turn the wheel). Hold
down YPL and press 1 to enable or disable Intelligent Attribute
display. The personality fixture must have Range Tables for this to
work.

3.1.3 Selecting attributes from the softkeys

You can directly set attributes from the softkeys.

1> Press E [Select an attribute or table] from the main menu
2> Select an attribute type to set. If the attribute is highlighted, a list

of possible settings will appear when you press it (for example, a
list of possible colours)

3> Select the value you want by pressing a

softkey.

4> Repeat from 1 to change other attributes

of the selected fixtures.

• The Wheel A and B windows display the
table of available values. You can also use
the wheels to scroll through the settings.

• If the attribute type is not highlighted,
there are no settings available. Pressing
the softkey for that attribute will change
the selected attribute button but not do
anything else.

• Selecting a value from a list will select
attribute banks 11-20. You’ll need to press
the Attribute Banks 11-20 button to get back to the normal
attributes.

3.1.4 Using groups

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You can create groups of fixtures or dimmer channels, to make
selecting them faster. You can, for example, make a group for each
type of fixture, or group by left / right stage, etc.

1> Select the fixtures/dimmers you want in the group (the order in

which you select them will also be stored in the group)
2> Press ML Menu, then E [Record Group]
3> Type the group number you want to store it as, and press Enter
4> Repeat from 1 to store other groups

Other useful things to know about groups:

• To select all the fixtures/dimmers in a group, type the group

number on the numeric keypad, then press A [Recall Group]. All
other fixtures and dimmers are deselected.

• The order in which you select the fixtures takes effect when you

use the last fixture – next fixture functions described in the next
section, and when you use Shapes and Fan mode.

3.1.5 Stepping through selected fixtures one at a time

If you have selected a range of fixtures, or a group, the DLC-C003 has
functions to step through the selected fixtures one at a time. This can
make it easier to program a range of fixtures because you don’t have to
select each one manually.

This mode uses the “Sequence Control” buttons which are normally
used for controlling chases.

1> Put the DLC-C003 into Fixture Select mode by holding down
the YPL button and pressing Softkey B until the option shows
[Fixture Control Enabled]

2> Select a range of fixtures or a group
3> The Å (Reverse) and Æ (Forward) buttons will select the fixtures

in the range one at a time

4> The

ÅÆ

(Bounce) button will highlight the output of the selected
fixture so you can see it on stage (the button LED is lit when in
Highlight mode)

5> The Review button reselects the whole range of fixtures.

• The Sequence Control buttons stay in this mode unt il y ou change
them back by holding YPL and pressing Softkey B again. This
means you cannot use them for controlling chase direction.

• You can also use the left and right arrow keys to step through
selected fixtures.

• The selected fixture from the range will light up, and the other
fixtures will go out (if the “Highlight Enabled” option in the ML
menu is turned on).

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3.1.6 The Align and Flip functions

The Align function allows you to copy an attribute from one fixture to
others. This can be useful if you want to set a row of scans to have the
same tilt position, or if you want to copy a colour from one fixture onto
other fixtures.

1> Press an attribute button to select the attribute you want to align.
2> Select the fixture to use as the reference
3> Select the other fixtures you want to align to the first one
4> Press ML Menu, then D [Align <attribute name>].
5> The attributes will be copied to all the selected fixtures.

• You can align all attributes of the fixtures using Softkey C [Align
Fixtures] (it doesn’t matter which attribute is selected).

• If you use a group to select the fixtures, the one you selected first
when you recorded the group will be the reference fixture.

• If Tracking mode is on (see page

77), aligning the Pan/Tilt
attribute will cause all the fixtures to point at the same place on
the stage rather than copying the actual Pan/Tilt values.

The Flip function is used with moving head fixtures. This type of fixture
has two possible pan and tilt positions for each point on stage, and the
Flip button alternates between them. This allows you more freedom to
make movements without hitting the pan stop.

1> Select the fixtures to flip.
2> Press ML Menu twice (option A should be Flip)
3> Press A [Flip].

• The other functions on the ML menu are described at the end of
the chapter.

3.1.7 “Killing off” a fixture or dimmer

Sometimes during a show you might want to “kill” a fixture or dimmer
from the stage output. This may happen if a camera is having problems
with a light shining straight into it, if a lamp blows and y ou want to
keep the rig symmetrical or if a fixture loses position.

The “Reduce fixture intensity” button allows you to temporarily dim or
turn off any fixture or dimmer. Programming is not affected and you
can later restore it to normal operation. You can do this in program
mode or run mode. You have to hold down the YPL button to access the
function to stop it being accidentally pressed.

1> Hold down the YPL button and press “Reduce Fixture Intensity” (in

the lower right corner).

2> Put the fader for the fixture/dimmer channel to be reduced up to

full (if it was already full, take it to zero then up to full).
3> Reduce the fader to the intensity level you want.
4> Repeat from 2 to reduce other fixtures.
5> Press Reduce Fixture Intensity to finish.

• To restore the fixture, do the above but leave the fader at full. The

fixture will stay “reduced” until you restore it.

• Make sure you turn off Reduce Fixture Intensity when you have

finished, otherwise you will end up reducing intensit ies when you

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don’t want to, and wondering why none of your fixtures are
coming on.

• To cancel all reductions, put all faders to zero, then press the

Reduce Fixture Intensity button and put all faders to full, then
press the button again to end.

• If the Swop buttons are in “mimic” mode (see page

123), they will
show the programmed output of the channel, not the reduced
output.

3.1.8 Entering intensity levels as numbers

You can set levels using the numeric keypad as you would on a
theatrical lighting desk. If you are used to doing this, it can be faster
when plotting dimmer levels for a scene than using the select buttons
and the wheels.

1> Press the Channel button
2> Type the dimmer or fixture handle number (not the DMX channel)

on the keypad.
3> Press G [At %].
4> Press 0 - 9 for the intensity (0=0%, 1=10%, 2=20%, 3.5=35%),

or Softkey G again for 100%
5> Press the decimal point key and another digit for more accurate

control
6> Press Channel again to get back to normal (the Exit button does

not operate in this mode)

Other things you can do by numeric entry:

• The softkey options are B: Blackout, D or G: set to 100%, E:up by

5%, F:down by 5%.

• You can select multiple dimmer handles (which you can then

control using the wheels) using softkey F [Through]. Enter the first
dimmer number, press [Through], then the last dimmer. For
example 1 Through 10 would select dimmers 1 to 10.

• You can also set multiple dimmers to the same level using softkey

F [Through]. Enter first dimmer number, [through], last dimmer,
[At %], level. For example, 1 [Through] 1 0 [At%] 5 would set
dimmers 1 to 10 to 50%.

• Softkey B [Select new fixture type] lets you tell the desk the type

of fixture you are working with. It uses this when you select
fixtures. Normally it is set to “desk channel” and will select fixtures
starting from handle 1. If you set it to dimmer, it will only select
dimmers, starting at the first dimmer patched, so selecting 1
“through” 10 would select the first 10 dimmers, wherever they are
patched. You can set the option to any fixture type you have
patched on the console.

• If you have more than one dimmer/fixture selected, Softkey C

[Odd or Even], allows you to select the odd and even numbered
channels. Softkey B selects Even channels and C selects Odd
channels. Softkey A selects all channels again after you have used
this option.

• Softkey E [Select Group] allows you to recall a group by entering

the group number.

3.1.9 Controlling fixtures by entering values

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You can also directly enter values for fixture attributes. This can be
useful for programming palette values from a fixture data sheet.

1> Select the fixtures to be set by pressing the Swop buttons
2> Select the attribute to be set using the Attribute buttons
3> Type the value to set.
4> Press Softkey E or F to set the A/B wheel attribute (displayed next

to the softkey).
5> Press G [Set input to 0-255 / %] to change the entry mode

between 0-100 and 0-255.

• You can change the attributes to be set by pressing another

Attribute button, but then you will need to enter the value again.

• You can also recall groups of fixtures or dimmers (type group

number, then press A [Recall Group]).

• You can recall palette entries (type palette entry number, then

press B [Recall Focus])

3.1.10 Fan mode

Fan mode automatically spreads out the values on a selected range of
fixtures. If used on pan and tilt, the result is spreading out “rays” of
light beams. The first and last fixtures of the range are affected most,
and the central fixtures are affected least. The amount of fan can be set
using the wheels.

As with shapes, the order in which you select the fixtures sets how the
fan effect works. The fixtures you select first and last will be the ones
which change most. If you use a group to select the fixtures, the order
is that in which the fixtures in the group were selected when it was
created.

The fan effect, while normally used on pan or tilt attributes, can be
applied to any attribute.

1> Select the fixtures you want to fan
2> Select the attribute to fan (pan/tilt, colour etc)
3> Press Fan
4> Set the amount of fan using the wheels
5> The display shows which attribute is being controlled by each

wheel
6> Turn off Fan by pressing the Fan button again when you have

finished

Fan mode needs to be used on at least 4 fixtures to give good effects.
If you have an odd number of fixtures, the central f ixture will not move
in fan mode.

Press the Fan button again to leave Fan mode. Any effects you have set
will remain in the programmer.

• It’s fairly easy to accidentally leave Fan mode turned on and be

very confused about why the wheels aren’t working properly, so
turn it off as soon as you have completed the effect.

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3.2 Advanced options

3.2.1 The ML menu and Tracking

The “ML menu” (Moving Light menu) button allows access to some
handy features for moving lights.

If you press the ML Menu button again you will get a second set of
options

Option A “Locate Fixture” positions selected fixtures at central position,
with light coming out of them. The settings are not placed in the
programmer, so you need to change the values if you want to save
them. The “locate fixture” settings for each type of fixture are defined
in the personality file.

Option B “Locate Fixture no pan/tilt” turns on the selected fixtures but
does not move them to a central position. This is useful if you don’t
want to disturb the positioning of fixtures but need to light them up.

Option C and D “Align Fixtures” and “Align <attributes>” are
described in section

3.1.6 on page 74.

Option E “Record group” is used to group fixtures for easy selection as
described in section

3.1.4 on page 72.

Option F allows you to turn the DLC-C003’s 3D stage tracking mode
off or on. You can also do this from the graphics tablet (see page

118).
When tracking mode is on, the pan and tilt controls set the position on
the stage rather than absolute DMX values. You need to Define the
Stage (see next page) before you can use Tracking.

Option G is used to run “macros” which are used to strike lamps or
reset fixtures, etc. These features often require a sequence of levels to
be sent on different control channels, which the DLC-C003 can do
automatically if the macro is defined in the personality file f or the
fixture.

The display will show a list of available macros for the fixtures which
are currently selected. If no macros are available for those fixtures, the
option will not do anything. The Personality File section on page

143

contains details.

On the second page of the ML menu… (press ML Menu again)
Option A “Flip” is described in section

3.1.6 on page 74.

Option B “Calculator” displays a screen on the VDU screen allowing
you to convert numbers from decimal to hex or to binary. This is useful
for working out dip switch settings. You need the VDU connected to use
this function.

Option C “Remove selected fix. from programmer” allows you to
remove from the programmer fixtures which are selected. This can be
useful if you have changed a fixture you didn’t want to include in a
memory – just select the fixture, then use this option.

Option D “De-Select fixtures” deselects all fixtures but does not clear
the programmer.

Option E “Highlight enabled” causes the selected fixture to light up
when stepping through selected fixtures using the sequence buttons or
arrow buttons; other fixtures in the selection go off. If this option is
disabled, the fixtures do not change when they are selected or
deselected.

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Option G “Define the stage” lets you teach the DLC-C003 how your

lights are set up so that you can use its 3D tracking mode. This is
described in the next section.

3.2.2 Training the console for Tracking mode

The DLC-C003 can learn the layout of the stage and lights rig you are
using. This enables it to calculate where it needs to point each light so
that they all hit the same place on the stage. This is called Tracking
mode and it is a very powerful feature of the DLC-C003.

You need to mark a square on the stage, ideally the sides of the square
need to be half the depth of the stage but as long as it’s square and
you can point all the fixtures at the corners, the size is not that
important.

1> Select all the fixtures you want to use for Tracking.
2> Point all the fixtures so they light someone standing at the back

left hand corner of the square (don’t light a circle on the floor, or

your lights will be pointing at peoples’ feet all the time).
3> Select option A “Top left”. This stores the positions.
4> Point them all so they light someone standing at the back right

hand corner, then select option B “Top right”.
5> Repeat for the front corners of the stage using options C and D to

store the positions.
6> Press Enter to complete the process.
7> The DLC-C003 will go away and do lots of calculations. The top

line of the LCD shows the progress. This can take several minutes.
8> Press ML menu then Softkey F to enable Tracking mode (option

shows [Tracking On (Off)] when tracking is enabled)

• You can recall a position you have already set, if you want to edit

it, using F [Recall] then A B C or D to recall one of the positions.

• You need to make sure you are lighting a person rather than

making a spot on the stage, because otherwise the beams will
cross over at the wrong place. If you can’t find a handy spare
person, use a plastic cup or a light coloured item of clothing over
the end of a mic stand at head height.

• If you are using moving head fixtures, you need to ensure when

hanging them that the pan stop is on the side away from the stage,
or the fixtures will not be able to track over the whole stage area.
You also need to keep the Tilt value less than 50%, or the heads
may “flip” when you track into some areas.

• Fixtures which have not been trained for Tracking will operate as

normal when tracking mode is enabled.

• When Tracking mode is turned on, the VDU screen shows “T” in

the top right hand corner.

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CHAPTER FOUR

4. Palettes

This chapter contains: About palettes; shared and individual palettes;
recalling a palette; storing a palette; palette masks.

When programming a show you will find that you frequen tly use certain
positions, colours, etc. Like an artist’s palette, the DLC-C003 lets you
store these settings so you can recall them at the touch of a button
rather than having to find them on the wheels every time. There are 10
pages of 20 palette entries. You can name the palette values so that
you know what you’re getting, and select them using the LCD display
softkeys.

Also, when you patch a fixture, the DLC-C003 loads 10 preset positions,
10 colours and 10 gobos into the palette for that fixture. This allows
you to recall specific colours and gobos without having to find them
using the wheels. The positions normally need to be edited before you
can use them.

4.1 Create

4.1.1 Palette values stored as a reference

The most important thing about palettes is that when you use a palette
value in a memory, the DLC-C003 stores a reference to the palette,
rather than the actual value. This means that if you program your
memories using palettes, you can easily change all the positions just by
reprogramming a few palette entries rather than having to reprogram
all the memories. This is handy if you are touring a show and have to
cope with different stages or truss heights every show.

4.1.2 Shared and individual palettes

Palette entries can be shared or individual.

• Shared: If there is only one fixture in the programmer (you have

only changed one fixture) when recording the palette entry, then
you can use that palette entry for all fixtures of the same type. So
you could save a value for “Red” on the first of your Wackylites™,
and then use that value for any of your other Wackylites. This is a
shared palette, useful for values which are the same for all the
fixtures of one type, such as colour, gobo, prism etc. The pre­programmed palettes are all shared.

• Individual: If there is more than one fixture in the programmer

when recording the palette entry, then the entry is unique for each
fixture. So when you save an entry with pan/tilt positions for your
4 central Wackylites, those positions will only ever apply to those
fixtures. You can later add values for other fixtures; fixtures which
have no values saved will not change when the palette is recalled.
This is an individual palette, useful for values which vary f or each
fixture, like pan, tilt and image focus.

4.1.3 Which attributes are stored in palettes

A palette entry can store any or all attributes of a fixture, so you could
store position, colour and gobo in the same palette entry. However, it’s
easier to operate the DLC-C003 if you have some palettes for position,
some for colour, some for gobo and so on. There are 200 palettes

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available so you don’t need to mix them up.

4.1.4 Storing a palette

This is how you save a palette value:

1> Press Clear to clear the programmer.
2> Select the fixtures for which you want to store palette values.

Select one fixture only to record a shared palette entry.
3> Using the attribute buttons and wheels, set the attributes you

want in the palette entry. You can store any or all attributes of a

fixture in each palette entry. Only attributes you have changed

will be recorded.
4> Press the attribute button for the attributes you want to store (the

dimmer button will store all attributes). The buttons light up to

show you which attributes are going to be recorded. It’s best to

save only one type of attribute (e.g. Tilt/Pan)
5> Press Store Palette, then type the palette number to be saved and

press Enter. You can also press one of the Flash buttons under the

1-30 preset faders to store the palette entry under that button

• It’s easiest to recall palettes from the LCD menu. If you are saving

palettes to be recalled from the menu system, the palette
numbering is as follows:

Page
name

1

st

Screen 2nd screen 3rd screen 4th Screen

Colour 1-5 6-10 101-105 106-110
Gobos 11-15 16-20 111-115 116-120
Positions 21-25 26-30 121-125 126-130
Page 4 31-35 36-40 131-135 136-140
Page 5 41-45 46-50 141-145 146-150
Page 6 51-55 56-60 151-155 156-160
Page 7 61-65 66-70 161-165 166-170
Page 8 71-75 76-80 171-175 176-180
Page 9 81-85 86-90 181-185 186-190
Page 10 91-95 96-100 191-195 196-200

• If you normally use the grey Flash buttons to recall palettes, then

you would use numbers 1-30. You can also change the fixture
page to access Palettes 31-60 (on page 1--), 61-90 (on page 2--)
and 91-120 (on page 3--). You need to enable User settings 5
(Palette Pages) to make the extra pages work, otherwise Palettes
1-30 are used on all four fixture pages.

4.2 Playback

4.2.1 Recalling a palette value

To recall a palette value, this is what you do:

1> Select the fixtures to be changed. Shared palettes can be set to

any fixture of the same type. Individual palettes will set individual

values to each fixture.
2> Select the attributes you want to recall from the palette. The

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Dimmer attribute button will recall everything stored in the palette

(the LEDs on the buttons show you which attributes are active)
3> Press the Focus button, then the palette

page you want if the pages are displayed,

then press the softkey for the palette

entry you want (or Softkeys F and G go

up and down the list). The selected

attributes of the fixtures will be set to

the palette values. The console will stay

in “Apply palette” mode until you press

Exit.

• It’s easiest if you only save one type of

attribute (such as pan/tilt) into each
palette, then you can just leave the
Dimmer attribute button selected when
recalling the palette. If you store a
mixture of attributes, you always have to
make sure that the correct attributes are
selected when recalling a palette, and this is an extra step which
you could do without.

• You can also use the grey Palette/Flash buttons below the preset

faders to apply palettes 1-30. While you hold the button, the top
line of the display shows the legend for the attribute (White,
Green etc). When you release the button, the palette is applied. If
you decide you don’t want to apply the palette, press the Focus
button before you release the grey Flash button.

• You can recall a palette by number, type the palette number on

the keypad and press B [Recall palette].

4.2.2 Palette pages

If Palette Pages are turned Off (User Settings 5), palettes 1-30 are
available from the Palette/Flash buttons on every Fixture page. If the
option is On, then Fixture Page 0-- has palettes 1-30, Page 1-- has 31­60, Page 2-- has 61-90 and Page 3-- has 91-120.

4.2.3 Setting a palette to all fixtures (Quick palette)

You can apply a palette to all patched fixtures. Ensure no fixtures are
selected, press Focus, then the palette page you want. Press the
softkey for the palette you want to apply. Th e palette will be applied to
all fixtures.

Alternatively, hold down one of the grey Palette/Flash buttons. The
palette legend will be displayed in the top line of the screen. When you
release the button, the palette will be applied to all fixtures. If you
decide you don’t want to apply the palette, press Focus before you
release the palette button.

User Setting 6 (Hold YPL and press softkey C) must be enabled for
Quick Palettes to work.

4.2.4 Recalling only some attributes from a palette

You can recall only selected attributes out of a palette entry using the
Focus button. Press Focus, then select the attributes you want to recall
on the Attribute buttons, then enter the palette number.

You can change the way the attributes are grouped when saving or
recalling palette entries by selecting the attribute button to chan ge,
then holding YPL and pressing softkey C to enter the User Settings

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mode, then pressing C [Specify Attributes for Bank]. T he buttons will
light to show which attributes are saved when that bu t ton is selected.
You can press the buttons to include or exclude attributes. Press Exit
twice to finish. If you do change these settings for any reason you
should change them back when you have finished to yplid confusion.

4.2.5 Setting a palette to fixtures in a memory (Filtered palette)

You can apply a palette to all fixtures in a memory, without having to
select the fixtures. Press Focus, then the palette page you want; then
hold down the softkey for the palette you want to apply, and press the
Swop button for the memory. When you release the palette key, the
palette will be applied to all fixtures in the memory.

4.3 Edit

4.3.1 Editing and deleting palettes

• You can edit a palette entry by recalling it, making the changes

you want, then saving the new information back on top of the
existing palette entry. Anything you haven’t changed will not be
affected, values you have changed or added will be amended. You
can also use the Edit Palette button, which automatically selects
the fixtures used in the palette and performs a “Locate fixture” on
them.

• You can remove attributes from palettes using the Off function,

see page

96.

• You can delete a palette entry by pressing Delete, then Focus,

then type the palette number to be deleted and press Enter. (You
can also press Delete then the grey flash button for the palette
entry to be removed)

4.3.2 Naming a palette value or page

You can enter a legend for each palette value and for each palette page.
If you’re recalling the palettes using the LCD menu this is useful so you
know what you’re getting.

Palette legends can be different for each fixture type; the DLC-C003 will
change the fixture type as you select different fixtures so that the
legends will match the fixture.

Alternatively, if you are happy for palette legends to be the same for all
fixtures, you can set the fixture type to “All”. The DLC-C003 will then
leave the type set to “All” no matter what fixtures you select. Legends
saved with the fixture type set to “All” will be shown whenever the “All”
fixture type is selected.

You change the fixture type for which you are setting the legends using
softkey G [Set fixture type].

1> Hold down the YPL button and press G [Set Legend].
2> Check the Fixture Type is correct (shown on the top line of the

display). Press G [Set Fixture Type] and select a fixture type to

set legends for a different fixture.
3> Press B [Palette Page] to set a legend for a palette page, or C

[Palette] to set a legend for a palette entry.

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4> Find the entry you want to name using F [More] and G [Back] to

move through the pages
5> Press the softkey for the entry you want to change.
6> Type the legend using the external Qwerty keyboard and press

Enter to save.

You would typically use “All” if your palette legends are the same for all
fixtures and you don’t want to type individual palette legends in for all
your fixtures; this allows you to set the legen d only once.

4.3.3 Viewing the contents of a palette

Press View, then Focus, then enter a Palette number. (Or press View
then a grey Palette/Flash button).

The palette
contents will be
displayed on the
VDU screen. You
can change the
attributes
displayed by
pressing the
Attribute buttons.

For an Individual
palette (a
position palette is
shown in the
picture) there will
be a value for
each fixture. For
a Shared palette there will be one value for each type of fixture.

4.4 Timing

4.4.1 Recalling a palette with a fade time

You can recall a palette with a fade time by typing a time (in seconds)
after you press Focus, before you recall the palette.

Recalling Palettes with a fade time is very effective when you are
running a show. However, if you use a fade time the palette does not
get put in the programmer, so you should not use fades when you are
programming.

A maximum of five timed palettes can be fading at any one time.

4.4.2 Master fade time

You can set a master fade time so that all palettes will fade over that
time.

1> Press Focus.
2> Press G [Options]. (If G shows [Pages] then press it to return to

the main Palette menu, then G will show [Options]).
3> Press A [Set Master Time]
4> Type the time in seconds and press Enter to save.

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If you set a master fade time, no palettes will get put in the
programmer. If you are using palettes in your programming, ensure the
master fade time is set to zero.

If you have a master fade time set, and you also enter a fade time
manually, the manual time will override the master time.

If you don’t want palettes to get put in the programmer, which can be
useful when you are running a show, you can set this time to 0.1
seconds which will still apply the palette instant ly but will then allow it
to be overridden by new memories being turned on.

4.5 Advanced options

4.5.1 Palette options

Press Focus then Softkey G [Options] to show the options menu. If a
palette page is displayed rather than the main palette menu and
softkey G is [Pages], press softkey G to get to the main palette menu.

A: Master time - Lets you set the time over which all palettes w ill be
faded, so you don’t have to keep entering a time. See page

83.

B: Fixture Type - Sets the fixture type for which the palette legends
are displayed (as the palette entries may be different for different
fixture types).

Normally the DLC-C003 will change this automatically to match the
fixtures you have selected, so you won’t need to change it. If you select
fixture type “All”, then generic palette legends will be shown (legends
saved for the “All” fixture type), and the DLC-C003 will not change the
fixture type.

To return the fixture type selection to automatic, select a fixture type
other than “All”.

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CHAPTER FIVE

5. Shapes

This chapter contains: Selecting a shape; changing the size and speed
of a shape; spreading a shape across multiple fixtures; editing shapes
which are running.

The DLC-C003, in common with other DORTRON’s consoles, has a
shape generator. This allows you to quickly create exciting light shows
using lots of movement and changes, with the minimum of
programming.

A shape is simply a sequence of values which can be applied to any
attribute of a fixture. A “circle” shape, for example, applied to the pan
and tilt attributes, would cause the fixture to move its beam around in
a circular pattern. You can set the centre point of the circle, the size of
the circle and the speed of the circle movement.

In addition to beam position shapes, there are a large number of other
shapes available in the DLC-C003. The shapes are defined for a
particular attribute such as colour, dimmer, focus and so on. Some
shapes will not work with some fixtures; focus shapes, for example, can
produce nice “focus pull” effects on fixtures which have DMX focusing,
but will do nothing on fixtures which don’t hav e f ocusing.

When you use a shape with more than one fixture, you can choose to
either apply the shape identically to all the fixtures, or offset them so
that the shape runs along the fixtures creating “wave” or “ballyhoo”
type effects. This is called the spread of the shape.

5.1 Playback

5.1.1 Selecting a shape

Selecting a shape is very similar to selecting a
value from a palette. When you choose a shape,
it will be applied to all selected fixtures.

1> Select the fixtures the shape is to be applied

to.
2> Press G [Shape Generator].
3> Press A [Playback a shape].
4> Press one of the A-E softkeys to apply a

shape to the fixtures (or the F and G

softkeys go up and down the list). The

screen describes the shape for each button.

• Most shapes are based on the current

settings of the fixture, so a circle would
move around the current pan-tilt position of the fixture.

• If the shape description says “Even” or “Parallel”, this describes

the Spread of the shape. You can always change this later.

• You can change the base value of a shape (e.g. the centre of a

circle) by changing the attributes using the wheels in the usual
way. You can reduce the Size to zero (see next section) to help
you see what the base value actually is.

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• You can run more than one shape at a time by repeating the

above procedure. You can run several shapes on one fixture.

• Press G [Shape Generator], then B [Edit a shape] to show what

shapes are running.

• If you apply the same shape to two different groups of fixtures,

the shape will appear twice on the shape list. You can edit th e two
shapes separately to give different directions, speeds etc (see
later)

• You can remove shapes from fixtures which are selected by

pressing G [Shape Generator], then E [Remove shapes from
selected fixtures].

• Each shape is designed to work on a particular attribute; the list

on the palette display shows you which attribute. Obviously if the
fixtures don’t have the attribute, you can’t use that shape on
those fixtures.

5.1.2 Changing the size and speed of a shape

It is easy to change the size and speed of a shape after it has first been
selected.

1> Press G [Shape Generator] (if you are not already in the shape

generator menu).
2> Press D [Set wheels to Size/Speed]
3> The left hand wheel controls the Size. The right hand wheel

controls the Speed. The display shows the values.

Other things to know about size and speed of shapes:

• If you have more than one shape running, the controls operate on

the most recent one. You can edit the parameters of any shape
that’s running using the Edit Shape function, see later in the
chapter.

• The minimum size is zero. This will “hide” the shape, an d the

fixture will resume its previous settings. The shape is, however,
still active.

• The minimum speed is Stop. This will freeze the shape and will

offset the positioning of the fixture.

5.1.3 Spreading a shape across multiple fixtures

To get the maximum impact from a shape, apply it to several fixtures.
The DLC-C003 has some powerful “Spread” functions which determine
how the shape is spread out across the fixtures.

This can vary from all fixtures moving identically (Coarse spread =
NONE), fixtures working in pairs (Coarse spread = 1) through to all
fixtures being distributed evenly through the shape, so the first fixture
is just starting the shape as the last one finishes (Coarse spread =
Even).

The “Fine” spread value introduces a smaller offset into the timing of
the shape across each fixture.

1> In Shape Generator menu, press C [Set wheels to Spread].
2> The left hand wheel controls the Fine Spread. The right hand

wheel controls the Coarse spread.
3> Keep the Fine Spread at zero while you adjust the Coarse spread

to the desired value, or the output can get confusing.

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• The order in which you selected the fixtures before assigning the

shape determines how the shapes are applied; the “first” fixture is
the one you select first and the “last” fixture is the one you select
last.

• If you select the fixtures using a group, the order in which you

selected the fixtures when recording the group is used.

5.1.4 Relative and Absolute shapes

Some shapes will operate on the current settings of the fixture; a C ircle
shape, for example, will be centred around the current pan and tilt
positions of the fixture. This is called a relative shape. If you change
the pan and tilt of the fixture, the whole shape will be moved.

• All Position (pan/tilt) shapes, and other shapes with “User” or

“Usr” in the name, are Relative shapes.

Other shapes always operate about a fixed value; a Rainbow shape, for
example, is centred at the midpoint of the colour mix attributes so that
a full range of colours is obtained. This is called an absolute shape.
The current settings of the fixture are overridden by the shape.

• Non-position shapes (colour, gobo, focus, dimmer, iris) are usually

Absolute shapes, unless they have “User” or “Usr” in the name.
For example, “Magenta Even” is an absolute shape centred on
50% magenta, but “Magenta Even Usr” is a relative shape which
will change around the current Magenta value of t he fixture.

If you run a memory containing a shape, when you turn the memory off
the shape will stop. The final state of the shape will be left as an offset
to the fixture settings. Option E of the Playback Parameters (see next
page) allows you to remove this offset when the shape stops and return
the fixture to its programmed settings.

5.2 Edit

5.2.1 Editing shapes which are running

The Shape Generator menu allows you to edit shapes which are running
using option B [Edit a shape]. This option lets you select which shape is
the “Active shape” (the one you can control the speed, size and spread
of with the wheels). You can’t edit shapes which are being played back
from a memory using this option, only shapes in the programmer.

1> If you are not in the Shape Generator menu press Softkey G from

the main menu
2> Press B [Edit a shape]
3> Next to the softkeys is a list of shapes you can edit.
4> Press a softkey to make the shape active. Active shapes are

highlighted. You can make more than one shape active.
5> Press Enter when you have finished
6> The speed, size and spread controls will now affect all the shapes

you have set to be active.

Any changes you make to a shape will affect all fixtures which are
running that shape. If you applied the same shape several times to
different fixtures, you can change each copy of the shape independently.

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5.3 Advanced options

5.3.1 Shape options

The softkey options are:

A [Playback a shape]- Selects shapes, as previously described
B [Edit a shape] - Allows you to change speed, size and spread of

running shapes as described above
C [Set wheels to spread] - Sets the wheels to change the Spread of

the shape
D [Set wheels to size/speed] - Sets the wheels to change the size

and speed of the shape.
E [Remove shapes for selected fixtures] - This option is the only

way to turn off shapes for an individual fixture. Select the fixtures you
want to remove shapes from, then select this option. All shapes will be
removed from the selected fixtures.

F [Change direction] - The direction of the Active shape(s) will be
reversed.

G [Playback parameters] - This option lets you set parameters for a
shape stored in a playback / memory. When a memory fades in, you
can determine whether the shape should start at full size and speed
instantly, (Static) or whether the shape speed and/or size should fade
in as well (Timed). If the memory mode is set to 0, the size and speed
settings are ignored.

1> Press the swop button of the

playback you want to set the

parameters for
2> The DLC-C003 displays the current

settings in the main LCD window.
3> A [Toggle Size] sets the Size to

Static or Timed
4> B [Toggle Speed] sets the Speed to

Static or Timed
5> C [Toggle Merge] sets the Shape

Merge option on or off (if you run

two playbacks applying shapes to

the same fixtures, this option

allows you to merge the shapes or

override previous shapes with the

latest one)
6> D [Set memory to mode x] sets the current memory mode of the

playback. To activate options A & B, the memory mode needs to

be Mode 1 or 2. This is described in the next chapter.
7> E [Toggle shape offset] allows you to remove the offset caused by

a shape when it is stopped. When you turn off a memory with a

shape, the fixtures will be offset by the last state of the shape.

Setting this option to “Removed” causes the fixture to return to its

programmed settings. Setting this option to “Remains” leaves the

shape offset in place.

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The following table explains how the Size/Speed Static and Timed
options work, and how the memory mode affects these options.

Memory mode Size option (softkey A) Speed option (softkey B)
0 Static: Shape starts at

recorded size when fader
goes above trigger point

Timed: as static

Static: Shape starts at

recorded speed when
fader goes above trigger
point
Timed: as static

1 Static: As mode 0

Timed: Shape size grows
from zero to recorded
size as LTP channels fade
in (set by LTP fade time)

Static: As mode 0
Timed: Shape speed

rises from zero to
recorded speed as LTP
channels fade in (set by
LTP fade time)

2 Static: As mode 0

Timed: Shape size grows
from zero to recorded
size as fader position
moves from 0 to 100%

Static: As mode 0
Timed: Shape speed

rises from zero to
recorded speed as fader
position moves from 0 to
100%

5.3.2 Updating the shape file

If DORTRON’s release an updated shape file, you will need to load it
into the DLC-C003. The shape file SG.DAT can be found on any
personality disk, which you can download from the DORTRON’s website
(see page

143). Insert the floppy disk into the drive, turn the key to

System, press G [Utilities] then E [Load shape file].

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CHAPTER SIX

6. Memories

This chapter contains: HTP and LTP channels; how the DLC-C003 works
when programming; recording a memory; playing back a memory;
changing playback pages; setting fade times for a memory; copying
and deleting memories; the include function; editing memories; the
“off” button; blind mode; recording the stage using snapshots; using
shapes in memories.

The DLC-C003 has many functions for producing a complex light show,
and the most fundamental part is a Memory, in which you can store a
“look” you have created using your lights.

The DLC-C003 has 450 playbacks, in 30 pages of 15, which can be
used to store memories or chases (sequences of “looks”). Chases are
covered in the next chapter. The playbacks are controlled using the
sliders and flash buttons across the near edge of the console. The roller
is used to select the page of memories or chases.

The memory functions on the DLC-C003 are very powerful; the first
part of this section explains the basics of how the DLC-C003 uses
memories.

6.1 Create

6.1.1 How the DLC-C003 works when programming

The DLC-C003 has a special internal memory called the “Programmer”.
Whenever you change an attribute of a fixture, the changes are stored
in the Programmer. When you record a memory, the contents of the
programmer are stored in the memory. Nothing else from the console
output is stored.

The DLC-C003 has two programming modes, “Record by Fixture” (the
normal mode) and “Record by Channel”. The mode can be changed
using Softkey B when saving a memory, or from User Setting 1 (hold
the YPL button and press C [User Settings]). The differences are:

• Record by Fixture - When you change any attribute of a fixture,

all the other attributes are placed in the Programmer as well. You

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will get exactly the result you expected when you recall the
memory, but you can’t combine memories containing the same
fixtures, because the new memory will just override the old one.

• Record by Channel - Only the attribute you change is placed in

the programmer. This means you can save memories which only
contain position information, then recall them with other memories
to set colours, gobos etc. This is much more flexible but requires
more programming initially, because you need several memories
to get a result. It also lays you open to problems if you don’t keep
tabs on what you are doing. (This is known as Tracking mode on
other consoles).

When you press Clear, all fixtures are cleared from the programmer.
You should get into the habit of pressing Clear before you start to
program a memory, or you can end up recording fixtures you don’t
want. You also need to press Clear when you finish programming,
because any functions in the programmer will
override playbacks.

Attributes which are in the programmer are shown
with a “m” (modified by Preset), “w” (modified by
Wheel) or “P” (modified by Palette) on the on-board
output display. On the VDU screen, attributes in the
programmer are displayed with a light blue (cyan)
background.

Turning on a memory does not place the values from
the memory in the programmer (but the Include
function lets you do this, see page

95). The Locate
Fixture function does not place any values in the
programmer either.

6.1.2 Creating a memory

The DLC-C003 has 30 pages of 15 memories. The roller allows you to
select 10 pages, and the buttons to the left of the roller allow 3
different rollers.

1> Press Clear to clear the programmer. This ensures that you are

starting with a clean slate.

2> Set up the stage effect using the fixtures. You can include shapes

in a memory. Remember that only the fixtures you have changed

will be included in the memory.
3> Press Memory.
4> Empty memories will flash.
5> Press the Swop button of a flashing playback to record it. (Select

a new page first if you want to use a different page).
6> Press Clear to clear the programmer. Repeat from 2 to program

more memories

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Other useful things to know about recording memories:

• You can record the whole output of the console (not just what’s in

the programmer) by pressing A [Record Stage]. The option will
highlight when Record stage mode is active.

• The roller has a segment above each playback fader to allow you

to write on the name of the memory using the low-tech but
reliable method of marker pen (use a strip of tape on the roller
surface). You can then see at a glance what’s in each memory.

• You can also type in a legend for the memory, which is shown on

the VDU screen. Hold YPL and press G [Set Legend], then the
playback Swop button, then enter a name using an external
Qwerty keyboard. The text is shown on the VDU screen. Press
Enter to store it, then Exit to finish.

• You can also label the current playback page this way, by pressing

A [Current Page] instead of the playback Swop.

• If you forgot to bring your Qwerty keyboard, you can use the

Swop buttons of Presets 1-26 for capital A-Z, and the Flash
buttons for lower case a-z (these keys are shown on the VDU
screen).

• If you aren’t using a VDU screen, there is no point entering

memory legends as you can’t see them on the on-board display
(You can however see Page legends and Palette legends). If you
accidentally enter Set Legend mode you need to press Exit twice
to get the console back to normal mode.

6.1.3 Recording the stage using Snapshots

The Snapshot function allows you to instantly record the current output
of the console for later use. This can be useful if you suddenly create an
amazing effect on stage, but it’s a mixture of things you have changed
and things left over from the last memory.

When you take a Snapshot, any fixture which is lit up (has its dimmer
channel on), and any active dimmer channels are stored. You can later
retrieve the snapshots and copy them into memories.

The DLC-C003 can store up to 50 snapshots. They are listed by time
and date, so if you write down the time when you st ore one, you will be
able to identify them later.

1> Hold down the YPL button and press D [Snapshot Menu]. The VDU

screen shows “(x/50)” to tell you how many of the 50 snapshots

are used.
2> Press C [Take a snapshot of the stage] to record the output to a

snapshot.
3> Press A [Load a snapshot] to load a previous snapshot into the

programmer. The VDU screen shows a list of stored snapshots.

Use the cursor keys or type the number of the one you want on

the numeric keypad, then press Enter. You can then save the

snapshot to a memory as usual.
4> Press B [Delete a snapshot] to delete a snapshot from the list.

The VDU screen shows a list of snapshots, select the one you

want as for the Load option above.

• You need to ensure that the DLC-C003’s internal clock is set

correctly if you are using Snapshots, or you will not be able to
identify the snapshots afterwards. See page

136 for how to set the

clock.

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6.1.4 Using shapes in memories

As you would expect, any shapes you have set up will be saved as part
of the memory.

If the base value of the shape is not in the programmer (e.g. the
central pan/tilt position, for a circle), and the shape is a “User” type,
then the memory will contain a “relative” shape. When you recall the
memory, the shape will start based on the current position of the
fixture. This allows you to create lots of different effects by layering a
few different memories - one for the shape, one for the base position.
You can either use “Record by channel” mode, and not set the position,
or use the “Off” function to achieve this effect.

6.1.5 Viewing the programmer contents

You can view the contents of the programmer on the VDU screen by
pressing View then G [VDU Views] (unless already in the VDU views
screen) then D [Programmer].

Down the left hand side of the window, a list of fixtures in the
programmer are displayed. Select the fixture you want to view using
the up and down arrow buttons.

In the right hand window, the attributes in the programmer for the
selected fixture are shown. A “P” indicates that a palette is in the
programmer rather than a DMX value set from the wheels.

6.2 Playback

6.2.1 HTP and LTP channels

The DLC-C003 can treat control channels in two ways:

• Dimmer or intensity channels work on the principle of “high est

takes precedence” (HTP). If an HTP channel is turned on at
different levels in several memories, the highest level will be
output. When you fade a memory, the HTP channels fade out with
it.

• Moving light channels work on the principle of “latest takes

precedence” (LTP). The latest change takes over from any other

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values, so the most recent memory to be turned on is the one
which is output. When you fade a memory, LTP channels do not
normally fade (though you can make them if you want, except for
channels set to Instant). They set their full values when the
memory starts to fade in, and stay there until another valu e is set .
(You can set the value this happens at using the User settings
menu).

The fixture personality file tells the DLC-C003 which channels of a
fixture are HTP and which are LTP. Normally, only dimmer at tributes
are HTP, and everything else is LTP. If a fixture does not have an
intensity control channel, the Gobo channel is defined as HTP to make
sure the fixture blacks out when a memory is turned off.

6.2.2 Playing back a memory

To play back a memory, raise the fader. (Make sure there are no values
in the programmer by pressing the Clear button, because anything in
the programmer will override the playback).

• You can turn on more than one memory at once.

• All the HTP (intensity) channels in the memory will fade up with

the fader. The LTP (movement) channels will be set as soon as t he
fader leaves the zero position. You can set the point at which this
occurs on the User settings menu. (If you have changed the
memory to be Mode 1 or 2, the LTP channels fade as well, except
for channels set to be Instant).

• You can Flash the memory by pressing the grey flash button. You

can Swop (solo) the memory by pressing the blue Swop button
(all other active memories will turn off while the button is pressed).
The Flash and Swop buttons only operate in Normal Run mode.

• In Run mode you can pre-position the LTP channels before raising

the fader by pressing the Flash button with the Add/Flash Master
at zero. This is useful if you want to yplid the fixture “swinging”
into position when you turn the playback on.

6.2.3 Changing playback pages

You can change pages to select another 15 memories simply by rolling
the Roller to a new segment. You can select 3 different pages of roller
using the Roller Page buttons giving 30 possible pages in all.

• Playbacks which are turned on when you change page remain

active. The VDU screen shows the name of the active memory in
the bottom row, and the name of the memories from the new
page in the top row.

• If you want to turn on a playback which is already on from a

previous page, lower the fader to zero then raise it again. The
memory from the previous page will turn off and the memory from
the new page will turn on.

• You can label the current playback page by holding YPL and

pressing G [Set Legend], then A [Current page], then entering a
label using the Qwerty keyboard.

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6.3 Edit

6.3.1 Editing a memory

You can edit any part of a memory you have already saved simply by
making the changes and saving the new information on top of the
memory.

1> Press Clear to empty the programmer.
2> Turn on the memory you want to edit, so you can see what you

are doing. Turn off all other memories to yplid confusion.
3> Select the fixtures you want to change, and make the changes.
4> Press Memory.
5> Press the Swop button for the memory you are editing.
6> The DLC-C003 will display “A memory already exists on

playback!”
7> Press A [Merge memory] to amend the existing memory.

Unchanged information is not affected.

• If you are in “Record by fixture” mode, all attributes of any fixture

you’ve changed will be saved in the memory with their current
settings. If you only want to save certain attributes of a fixture,
you need to use “Record by channel” mode (press softkey B after
pressing Memory).

• You can overwrite the existing memory entirely using B [Replace

memory]. This wipes the playback and saves the current
programmer as a new memory.

• If the memory contains shapes, and you have selected some new

shapes, the original shapes in the memory will be deleted (after a
warning). To get round this you need to use Include on the
original memory (see next section) to load the shapes into the
programmer. Ensure that the playback fader for the memory is at
zero (i.e. the shape is not active) when Including the memory.

6.3.2 The Include function

The Include function lets you load selected parts of a memory back into
the programmer. (Normally, only manual changes to fixtures are put in
the programmer). You can then use this to make a new memory. This
is useful if you want to make a memory which is similar to one you
already have.

You can also include DMX information from another console connected
to the DMX in socket.

When you use Include, you specify which attributes of which fixtures
you want to load into the programmer. So, for example, if you have a
memory which contains position, colour and gobo information for 8
fixtures, you can use the include function to load only the colour
information for 4 of the fixtures into the programmer. You could then
“Include” position information from another memory into the
programmer, and build up a new memory using information from
several existing memories.

1> Select the fixtures from which you want to take settings.
2> Press Include (above the numeric keypad).
3> Select the Attributes you want to include. The Dimmer attribute

includes all other attributes (the buttons light up to show which

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attributes will be included)
4> Playbacks containing memories will be flashing
5> Press the playback Swop button for the memory you want to

include. Press Enter. The selected attributes of the selected

fixtures will be loaded into the programmer.
6> Repeat from 2 to include other attributes from the same fixtures,

or repeat from 1 to include other fixtures.

• If you want to put the whole memory into the programmer,

ensure no fixtures are selected and the Dimmer attribute is
selected, then press Include, then the Playback Swop button for
the memory to include. Everything will be placed in the
programmer.

• If the memory contains shapes, all the shapes and all the fixtures

they are applied to will be loaded into the programmer, even if the
fixtures and attributes are not selected. The shapes can then be
edited, see page

87.

• To Include DMX from the DMX In socket, press softkey A, B, C or

D to copy the incoming DMX values into the programmer for DMX
output lines A B C or D.

• You can Include a Theatre Stack step to the programmer by

entering the step number you want to include and then pressing E
[Theatre Stack Step]. If you don’t enter a step number, the
current step is included.

• You can edit the way the Attributes are grouped (e.g. the colour

function always selects the Yellow / Magenta / Cyan functions
too). This is called the “Focus Mask”. Select the attribute button to
change, then hold YPL and press C [User Settings] to enter the
User Settings mode, then press C [Specify Attributes for Bank].
The buttons will light to show which attributes are grouped. Press
the buttons to include or exclude attributes. Press Exit twice to
finish.

6.3.3 The “Off” button

The “Off” button allows you to remove an attribute which has been
stored in a memory, as if you never recorded it.

For example, suppose you recorded a memory which had scans at a
certain position, with the colour set to green. If you later decide that
you don’t want a colour recorded at all in the memory, so that the
previous colour setting of the scans will be used, you use the Off
function to turn off the colour in the memory. You can also use the Off
function to remove complete fixtures from a memory.

Using the Off button is not the same as recording an attribute at zero.
It is like not recording the attribute at all.

1> Turn on the memory you want to edit, so you can see what you

are doing.
2> Select the fixtures you want to change.
3> Press the OFF button (one of the blue command buttons) to

display the Off menu.
4> To switch off all attributes of the selected fixtures, press Softkey A

(this will remove the fixtures from the memory).
5> To switch off selected attributes, press the appropriate attribute

button, then use Softkey B and C to set each attribute to Off (the

screen shows which attribute will be turned off for each button)

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6> Repeat from 3 to turn off other attributes, or from 2 to turn off

other fixtures.
7> Press Memory.
8> Press the Swop button for the memory you are editing to save the

changes. Unchanged information is not affected.

• Attributes which are Off are shown on the screen. (The stage

output will not change as the output valu es remain at their last
settings).

• Attributes or fixtures set to “Off” can be turned back on again by

selecting them in the usual way and changing them using the
wheels.

• You can also use this function to turn off fixtures or attributes in a

palette entry. Use the procedure above, but instead of editing and
recording a memory, edit and record a palette entry instead. See
page

82 for how to do this.

6.3.4 Viewing a memory

You can view the contents of a memory by pressing View then the swop
button for the memory.

The main part of the display shows the attributes for each fixture stored
in the memory. Choose which attribute you are look ing at using the
Attribute buttons. If a palette is stored in the memory, the palette
name is shown rather than the value.

Fixtures

Attribute values Palette stored in memory

6.4 Copy

6.4.1 Copying a memory

Copying a memory is very simple on the DLC-C003. You can either
create a linked copy (if you change a linked memory, all others linked
to it will change too) or a “photocopy”, which is a completely new and
independent copy of the memory.

To create a linked copy:

1> Hold down the Flash button of the playback you want to copy.

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2> If you want to copy to a different page, move the Roller to the

new page.
3> Press the Swop button of the playback where you want to store

the copy. Release both buttons.

• To create a Photocopy, press the blue Photocopy button before

pressing the playback Flash button

• If you have named the memory you copied, the linked memory

will have the same name, as will a photocopied memory.

6.5 Delete

6.5.1 Deleting a memory

To delete a memory:

1> Press the Delete button.
2> Press the Swop button of the memory you want to delete.
3> Press the Swop button again to confirm the delete.

• If the deleted memory is linked to others, the linked memories are

not affected.

6.6 Timing

6.6.1 Setting fade times for a memory

You can set a fade in and fade out time independently for every
memory. The fades only affect HTP (intensity) channels. There is a
separate LTP timer which allows you to set movement times. LTP
channels which were set to “instant” during Patching (see page

69)

ignore LTP fade times.

1> Press C [Edit Times].
2> Press the Swop button of the playback you want to set times for
3> Press Softkey C to set the fade in time, Softkey D to set the fade

out time, or Softkey E to set the LTP fade time (Options A, B, and

F have no effect on memories and are only used on chases)
4> Type the new time using the numeric keypad and press Enter to

save it.
5> Softkey G sets the memory mode of the chase to 0, 1 or 2

(described below).
6> Press Enter to save the changes. If you press Exit, any times you

have set will be abandoned.

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The effect of the times is shown in the following picture.

The times you enter are also affected by the memory mode:

• Mode 0 - No timing information is used. The settings on softkeys C,

D and E are ignored. The HTP channels fade with the 0-100%
position of the playback fader.

• Mode 1 - Channels fade as set by the HTP and LTP fade times

(except Instant LTP channels). If you enter times for a Mode 0
memory, it will automatically change to Mode 1. If HTP times are
set to zero, the HTP levels will fade with the fader.

• Mode 2 - HTP channels fade as set by the HTP times, or with the

fader if times are set to zero. LTP channels are controlled by the
fader position (except Instant channels). Set the LTP fade time to
0 to use this mode.

• If the memory includes shapes, and you have set the shape size

or speed to “timed” (see page

88), then the shape will change
with the LTP channels. The changes will be timed for a Mode 1
memory and controlled by the fader position for a Mode 2 memory.
This allows you to create a shape which gets bigger or faster as
you push up the fader.

6.7 Advanced options

6.7.1 Recording in Blind mode

The DLC-C003 has a useful function called “Blind mode”, which allows
you to program memories without altering the output of the console.
The contents of the Programmer are saved on entering Blind mode, and
restored when you leave Blind mode. Any playbacks turned on continue
as normal, and you can make any changes you like without affecting
the output.

This is useful if for some reason you need to edit a memory in the
middle of a show without upsetting the current lighting state. Obviously,
as you can’t see the changes you are making, you will need to h av e a
good idea of what values to set.

1> Hold down YPL and press F [Blind Mode].

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2> If you don’t want to use the contents of the programmer, press

Clear.

3> Make changes to your fixtures as usual. Use the screen or the

Graphics Tablet to help you set the right positions, colours etc.
4> Save your changes as usual.
5> To go back to normal, hold down YPL and press Softkey F again.

The previous contents of the programmer will be restored (the

contents of the programmer from Blind mode will be lost).

• If you have edited a playback which is already turned on, you w ill

need to turn it off then on again to load the new version.

CHAPTER SEVEN

7. Chases

This chapter contains: Programming a chase; running a chase; setting
speed, crossfade and direction; manually controlling the chase steps;
setting step times and unlinking; editing a chase using unfold; editing a
chase which is running; copying chases; sound activation of chases;
chase options.

As well as being used to store static memories, the playback faders on
the DLC-C003 can also be used to store chases (sequences of static
memories).

7.1 Create

7.1.1 Programming a chase

To program a chase, you have to set up the lighting for each step of the
chase, then save it. The contents of the programmer are recorded as a
step.

You can either set all the fixtures and dimmers manually for each step,
or you can use Include to load in the information from memories you
have already recorded.

You cannot use an existing memory as a chase step just by turning it
on. You need to use the Include button to load the memory into the
programmer.

1> Press the Chase button.