Programmable DMX lighting controllers are great. You can program scenes, colours, sweeps, colour temperature, pretty well anything you want. Higher end controllers can automatically bring lights on at certain times of the day; even special scenes for Christmas Day. And the latest trends in well-being, such as circadian lighting? No problem. DMX has more than enough capacity and precision.
The problem in the real world is this: People like to use light switches.
There’s a new, neat solution to this. A DMX Overrider simply sits between the DMX controller and the lights. You wire a 3 position retractive switch (or the dry contact from an occupancy sensor) to the overrider and, hey presto!, you’ve got switch control.
A short press down turns the lights off, a short press up turns them on. A long press in either direction dims either up or down. And when the overrider detects a change in the control channel from the DMX controller, it reverts to the level set by the controller.
As well as standard white lighting, it supports RGB/RGBW fixtures (selectable via a DIP Switch). And there’s an emergency input that turns ALL lights on at 30%.
Available to buy for around £50 for a 3 channel version here. (There’s also a comprehensive datasheet.):