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Electronic Theatre Controls Inc

Proportional patching on Express consoles

Normally, dimmers output with a linear profile at 100 percent unless you scale them to a lower level.

The console allows you to proportionally scale the output of an individual dimmer in the Patch display.12 For example, if you enter a dimmer proportional level of 60 in Patch and set that channel to full in a cue or submaster, the dimmer will output at 60 percent.

Follow these steps to assign a proportional dimmer output level: 13

Keystrokes: Action:
1. Press [Patch] Selects Patch display
2. If the [Dim] LED is unlit, press [Dim] to indicate that the next number entered will be a dimmer. Prompt reads: Select dimmer numbers, then press ENTER to assign to a channel, or press AT to assign a proportion, or press PROFILE to assign a profile
3. Use the keypad to enter the desired dimmer number(s). Use [And], [Thru] or [Except] for multiple selections.a  
4. Press [At] Prompt reads: Select dimmer proportion
5. Use the keypad to enter the desired maximum output level for the dimmer(s). Full is displayed until a new level is entered. Enter a zero before single- digit levels (i.e., 08). Dimmer’s proportional level is set

a  If a dimmer is doubled (see Setting dimmers to Dimmer Doubling, for an explanation) Use [S2], A, and [S3], B, along with the numeric keypad, to enter dimmer numbers as you create your patch. If you select a doubled dimmer without specifying A or B, the system defaults to A.
11  See Dimmer profiles, to alter a dimmer’s profile. The profile takes effect after the dimmer proportion, if any, is first applied.
12  Available only for 8-bit channels—applying dimmer scaling to 16-bit channels will yield unexpected results.
13  Note: If the dimmer’s level is highlighted (white on red), you may use [+] and [–] to adjust the level. Press [Enter] to record the edited level.

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