Pixcon16 DMX Bridge help

[JMHaro]

I just started playing with my boards since I finally got some sequences setup in xLights but having problems.

I have two E1.31 networks setup with 512 channels each.
The converted sequences run correctly on the screen with all channel models displaying which I have just under 900 channels being used.

I run my network cable to the Pixcon16 board.  With it powered on, and xLights with it's "Control Output Lights" turned on, the Pixcon16 status light goes steady.

I have all the RJ45 jack jumpers set to the LOR position on the Pixcon16.

I have a 'regular' cable going between one of the Pixcon16 RJ45 jacks to the CTB16PC (which is a V1 board with firmware 4.3.2).  And I was told as long as I have the jumpers set to LOR to change the pinouts then I don't need a cross over cable.

But the CTB16PC board I just cannot get it's status light to go steady.

Anyone know what I'm missing?

One thing if it helps for info, I don't actually have anything sequenced for the Pixcon16 yet.  That was going to be my next device that I was going to work with once I got everything over to xLights, but shouldn't the connected CTB16PC still get a steady status light?

[scringe]

I was hoping to someone had a solution to this for you since I'm having a similar issue.

I have a matrix setup on my pixcon 16 that is working great and I have the jumpers set to LoR for the pinout correction on port 4. I've used the network utility to configure the output of the dmx port 4 to universe 17. Configured my CMB24D to DMX mode and set the ID to 17. and......nothing. When you setup the E1.31 controller in Xlights it displays a message that says what controllers are supported. The LoR Pixcon 16 is not listed however I was taking it for granted that it would work to "bridge from e1.31 to standard DMX to a different LoR controller. Maybe it won't and that's the whole problem.http://nutcracker123.com/forum/Smileys/default/shocked.gif

[Phrog30]

Why don't you create a ticket with LOR and ask them? You pay for the support, might as well use it.

James

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Gilrock]

I was hoping to someone had a solution to this for you since I'm having a similar issue.

I have a matrix setup on my pixcon 16 that is working great and I have the jumpers set to LoR for the pinout correction on port 4. I've used the network utility to configure the output of the dmx port 4 to universe 17. Configured my CMB24D to DMX mode and set the ID to 17. and......nothing. When you setup the E1.31 controller in Xlights it displays a message that says what controllers are supported. The LoR Pixcon 16 is not listed however I was taking it for granted that it would work to "bridge from e1.31 to standard DMX to a different LoR controller. Maybe it won't and that's the whole problem.http://nutcracker123.com/forum/Smileys/default/shocked.gif

I don't know the pixcon16 but as far as using LOR controllers from a DMX output you set the ID to configure the offset into the DMX stream of 512 channels.  If it's the same as my LOR A/C controllers ((ID-1)*16)+1 to get the start channel it will use.  So if you wanted the CMB24D to operate on channel 1 from Universe 17 set it's ID to 1.  An ID of 2 says start from channel 17.  You tell the Pixcon which universe to send out the port but after the data goes out the port it's only 1 universe of data.  Also LOR uses hexadecimal in their ID numbers so 17 is probably really 0x17 which means the start channel is ((23-1)*16)+1 = 353.

[markrvp]

Just to expand on what Gil said, the LOR CTB16 and CMB24 boards have no idea which universe in your network they are on.  Those boards receive DMX data from ONE DMX-512 universe that is being output by the RS485 port on the Pixcon.  As far as they know it is the only ONE universe in existence.  xLights and the Pixcon are configured to know how many universes there are and how to route that data. 

The unit ID set to 17 on the CMB24 board has no correlation to Universe 17.  By setting the unit ID to 17, you are telling the board that it is responsible for channels 353-368 in the ONE UNIVERSE it is receiving.   

http://www.creativelightingdisplays.com/uploads/DMX-DOC.pdf

[scringe]

Thank you all for the help. I'm happy to say that I sacrificed another night of sleep to figure this out but it paid off.

I changed two things -

1 - Changed the ID back to 1 so the universe that I was outputting from the pixcon16 (universe 17) would start on that device on channel 1.

2 - Changed the CMB24D back to LoR mode. Grrr.. yep.. I would have had this long ago if only.....


From all the documentation I'd read I understood the ID/Universe/Channel settings like you explained but questioned my understanding after hours of no luck or sleep. You start to look crooked at the leaf instead of seeing the tree.. let along the forest. After reading your posts I had some certainty that I had that right originally and thanks to your reply I was sure of it and put it back. That will certainly help when it comes to extending it further to the two CTB16s that I haven't introduced into this yet. THANK YOU!

Second - I probably could have gotten this information from LoR tech support but didn't want to go through the whole..
Me - "I'm using Xlights and..."
LoR Support - "Um... we don't support that" 
Me - "Yes I know but..."
LoR Suport - "Goodbye sir"

No, i'm not an optimist.

But I found a post on a LoR forum from a LoR Developer that said "We probably should have called the jumpers LOR and ESTA rather than LOR and DMX.  They would make more sense then."

Well.. then.. my light came on and I changed the jumpers to LoR mode and powered it up and....

Thank you again for the information. I REALLY do appreciate it and I am a happy Xlights user from here on out.

Hope JMHaro was able to benefit from this since I sort of hijacked the post.

[JMHaro]

Hey if anyone is still listening to this post, I came back to a new similar problem and not sure if it's exactly like the issue scringe was reporting.

I'm using my PixCon16 as a E1.31 bridge to LOR.
On the PixCon16 settings I have the J3/J4 DMX#1 UNchecked.
Port 1, 2, 3, 4 are all set as Universe 1, 2, 3, and 4 respectively.

All my LOR controllers are working fine up through the first 510 (or so) channels.  But since I have 4 CCR ribbons in my network, that's pushing my last 3 LOR controllers (1 AC controller and 2 CCR's) beyond the 510 channels.  By my calculations the AC unit (which I would have the 2 CCR's following it) would have to set to Unit ID 24 which is beyond the tables given for the Unit ID's to DMX addresses.  So anyway when I set that unit to 24, it's sync light no longer syncs when connected to the PixCon16.  So I don't know if I have settings incorrect on the PixCon16 or not connected correctly.

I've go all the RJ45 jack jumpers set to LOR.  I've tried connecting the AC unit to the other RJ45 jacks but no sync on any of them.

So how do I setup and reach these other units that are beyond the Unit ID 20?

[Gilrock]

JMHaro you can't do that.  DMX serial ports cannot drive more than 512 channels.  When you run LOR equipment in DMX mode you can't daisy chain them past that point you need to use additional serial ports on the card.  Not sure what that card has but the F16v2 has 4 outputs you could use.