Friday, September 23, 2016

Accessorize Now with New VDO Sceptron Items

The Martin creative LED strips known as VDO Sceptron just received several new accessories.  You can read about the previous accessories here and the great line of diffusers here.  Creative opportunities are abundant with the VDO Sceptron and P-3 System Controllers and now the new accessories allow for even more flexible designs and usages.

The first new accessory is the Pivot Coupler.  With this nifty item you can attach VDO Sceptron strips together and then adjust the angle in 15 degree increments.  In fact, you can select every 15 degree angle between 0-180 degrees!  This part allows designers to come up with amazing configurations that are easy for technicians to build.



This accessory is now available from Martin and Martin dealers as part number "91611793 VDO Sceptron Pivot Coupler".

The next new accessory is a Floor Stand that allows the VDO Sceptron unit to be mounted on the deck.  This is ideal when used as an uplight, a front light, or a direct view source placed on the ground.  The stand can be installed in two different methods, either directly on the end or inset to allow coupling of multiple VDO Sceptron units.  When combined with the Asymetrical Wall Wash Lens it makes for a great uplight system.


This accessory is now available from Martin and Martin dealers as part number "91611792 Set of 2 VDO Sceptron Floorstands".  Note that they are sold in pairs.

The Low Profile Half Coupler allows for a quick and easy connection to a VDO Sceptron and negates the need to use a sliding bracket and half coupler by combining the abilities into a single half coupler.
This accessory is now available from Martin and Martin dealers as part number "91611790 Low Profile VDO Scpetron Half CouplerHalf".

Finally, Martin now also offers a Spigot Adapter which allows the VDO Sceptron units to easily connect to many standard OEM accessories such as a Doughty Turtle Plate and more.  With the Spigot connector endless configurations are possible such as upright stands or other unique placements.

This accessory is now available from Martin and Martin dealers as part number "91611791 VDO Sceptron Spigot Adapter 28mm".

Martin VDO Sceptron units have become very popular with designers around the world and are in use on major television shows, touring acts, and special events.  This video further describes the units and the possibilities:


Thursday, September 1, 2016

Control a Universe for FREE with M-PC!

Martin M-Series systems have many great features that allow programmers to create exciting and dynamic lighting cues and shows.  One of the little-known functions is that M-PC enables one universe of output for FREE.  With no additional hardware or dongles, you can use M-PC to control lighting fixtures, media servers, and any DMX compatible device. 

The output is via Art-Net or sACN and will control anything that is patched to the first universe.  You simply have to connect the Ethernet from your computer to a node or Art-Net/sACN capable device.  There are no time restrictions or DMX interruptions, so anyone could use this in a show environment.  The only M-Series functions that are disabled are DMX IN and RDM capabilities.

In addition, with M-PC you can also access the FREE universe of DMX control via any ENTTEC capable USB to DMX device (USB DMX PRO, PRO MKII and OPEN USB DMX). With these units you can simply plug in the DMX line to the USB device and start programming.  Note that before you can use your ENTTEC device you will need to ensure its drivers are installed.  For details, see this page and scroll down to the "ENTTEC Devices" section.

 
M-PC is a full featured lighting control platform with total access to all the features of the M-Series control system.  Whether working with one universe or many, keyboard shortcuts can be extremely handy.  Here is a list of all the keyboard shortcuts that are compatible with M-PC.




To learn how easy it is to program M-Series on M-PC check out these tutorials: