Over the past two decades, as
stage
lighting has come into its own and been recognized as a vital part of the artistic design of a
stage
or television production, the amount and sophistication of equipment used to produce
lighting effects
for a show has escalated. Manual control boards, however extensive, could no longer fulfil the control demands of lighting setups using hundreds of luminaires and other accessories. Coincidentally, lower priced dimmers created an environment where many small dimmers could be employed; leading to dimmer-per-circuit systems which in turn created the need for patching functions on the control end of the system, soft patch, instead of on the
load
end.
This technological proliferation necessitated new types of lighting control. It became apparent that computerized control for soft patching and
playback
was the next step.
The introduction of the communication protocol DMX 512 in the mid-eighties, which in a very short time has become the international industry standard for lighting control, contributed greatly to practicality of computer lighting boards. Computerized lighting boards control not only dimmers, but other devices using DMX 512 protocol such as color changers, smoke machines, and, of course, intelligent luminaires.
The introduction of computers for
lighting control
also freed lighting designers from having to consider whether a complicated crossfade sequence could be performed by a live operator, with only ten fingers, working on a multiple fader
manual control
desk. Now computer consoles can
playback
multiple cues, each having different crossfade times, simultaneously. The creative freedom thus provided has done much to further light design as a vital participant in any production.
The most sophisticated computerized control boards provide many more functions beside recording and playing back presets. The ability to employ a communication protocol used by other theatrical technical systems expands control capabilities, enabling complicated sequences involving sound,
stage
machinery, special effects, and video.
The advent of intelligent luminaires demanded a more advanced type of control for operational ease. Originally, each type of intelligent luminaire required its own dedicated controller. This greatly increased the quantity of control equipment and the number of technicians needed to run a show. The Israeli Compulite R & D, with the introduction of the Animator control board, was a pioneer in the field of computer lighting desks that integrated conventional dimmer control with dedicated intelligent luminaire control.
There are many computerized lighting boards available. Selection of a board depends on the following factors:
The type of lighting devices used. Some consoles comfortably control both intelligent luminaires and conventional luminaires, while others operate only conventional luminaires.
The size of the lighting rig. Since the number of channels and dimmers controlled by various boards differs, it is important to select a board which can comfortably handle the number of luminaires in the lighting layout, with space for some expansion.
Whether other control protocols such as
MIDI
or SMPTE interfaces will be used.
Consoles, containing many sophisticated functions, not only expand
playback
options, but also help make efficient use of the all too little
stage
time usually allotted to lighting. Off line editing functions and CAD lighting
interface
programs allow the designer to show up at the first
lighting rehearsal
with a diskette of cues ready to be fed into the control board.
