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Electronic Theatre Controls Inc

Inrush Current and ETC LED Fixtures

Inrush current refers to the maximum amount of current drawn immediately upon power up of an electrical device. This can vary depending upon the type of load on the circuit. In an incandescent scenario, inrush is high until the filament warms up and resistance increases.

The information below is to help you understand how inrush current works with our LED fixtures.  For in-depth information on how to applies to the number of LEDs you can have on a circuit and how to determine that number, please read this white paper: How Many Fixtures on that Breaker.pdf

In the case of a switching power supply like those used in many electronics including ETC LED fixtures the inrush current is much higher than the nominal operating voltage.  In some cases the current can be as much as 75 times higher for a short period of time, usually worst at the first half- cycle.

This can create an issue with circuit breaker protection for a line of fixtures all coming from the same non-dim source.  The amount of fixtures that you can use at nominal voltage that will cause your circuit protection to engage is much higher than the amount of fixtures you can use upon inrush.  To compound this, most circuit breakers have different inrush trip curves.   To find the trip curve of a particular breaker, it is best to find the datasheet of the breaker in question.  This makes it impossible for ETC to calculate across the board how many fixtures can be on a circuit as it can vary widely and is reliant upon the breaker installed in the system. 

To avoid inrush problems, a good solution is to develop a startup sequence.  This means that not every fixture would be started at the same time.  This is common practice among high end audio gear for the same reason.  This allows a device to power up past the inrush point before another fixture hits its’ inrush point.

Below is a graphic with a scope shot of a fixture upon startup.  The green line is the current the fixture is drawing.  This is a good visual illustration of what is happening when a fixture is powered on and then how it normalizes.

Inrush Current.jpg

ColorSource Cyc Inrush

120V- 39A (First half-cycle)
240V- 74A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit (link up to 9 via power thru connector)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.11 133
240 0.59 116

ColorSource Fresnel V Inrush

120V- 36A (First half-cycle)
240V- 57A (First half-cycle)

  • 9 Fixtures/ R20 circuit (link up to 8 via power thru connector)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.28 148.4
240 0.70 147

ColorSource Linear Inrush

120V- 35A (Linear 1) / 35.6A (Linear 2) / 67.5A (Linear 4) (First half-cycle)
240 V- 49A (Linear 1) / 85.6A (Linear 2) / 153A (Linear 4) (First half-cycle)

  • 10 cells/ R20 circuit (link up to 9 cells via power thru connector)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Model Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
Linear 1 120 0.95 115
Linear 2 120 1.82 218
Linear 4 120 3.68 438
Linear 1 DB 120 0.92 110
Linear 2 DB 120 1.82 218
Linear 4 DB 120 3.70 440
Linear 1 240 0.48 112
Linear 2 240 0.91 213
Linear 4 240 1.82 426
Linear 1 DB 240 0.46 108
Linear 2 DB 240 0.91 214
Linear 4 DB 240 1.83 428

ColorSource PAR Inrush

120V- 35A (First half-cycle)
240V- 49A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit (link up to 9 via power thru connector)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 0.75 90 
240 0.4  89 

ColorSource Spot Inrush

120V- 28A (First half-cycle)
240 V- 46A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit (link up to 9 via power thru connector)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
100 1.69 168
120 1.39 166
240 0.72 166

ColorSource Spot Jr. Inrush

120V- 35A (First half-cycle)
240 V- 45A (First half-cycle)

  • 7 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.40 166
240 0.73 162

ColorSource Spot V Inrush

120V- 55A (First half-cycle)
240 V- 59A (First half-cycle)

  • 8 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
100 2.00 199
120 1.65 197
240 0.90 194

D22 Inrush      

120V- 17A (First half-cycle)
240V- 25A (First half-cycle)

  • 20 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120  0.47 56.5
240  0.25  60 

D40/ D40XT Inrush

120V- 15A (First half-cycle)
240V- 40A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120  110
240 0.5 120

D40XTI Inrush

120V- 15A (First half-cycle)
240V- 40A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120  110
240 0.5 120

D60 Inrush

120V- 15A (First half-cycle)
240V- 40A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120/240 13.5/0.68 161
240  0.68  163.2

D60 XTI Inrush

120V- 46A (First half-cycle)
240V- 77A (First half-cycle)

  • 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.03 123.6
240  0.54  129.6 

Desire Fresnel Inrush

120V- 28A (First half-cycle)
230V- 46A (First half-cycle)

  • 9 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.2 138
230  0.6 132

Source 4WRD II Inrush

120V- 30A (First half-cycle)
240V- 12A (First half-cycle)

  • 120V: 14 Fixtures/ R20 circuit
  • 240V: 6 Fixtures/ ER15AFR circuit
  • line dimming: ETC recommends no more than 1 Source 4WRD fixture per circuit for line dfimming to maximize dimming performance.

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.26 150
240 0.75 175

Source 4WRD Color Inrush

120V- 32A (First half-cycle)
240V- 60A (First half-cycle)

  • 120V: 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit
  • 240V: 10 Fixtures/ ER15AFR circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.25 146
240 0.67 143

Source 4WRD Color II Inrush

120V- 32A (First half-cycle)
240V- 60A (First half-cycle)

  • 120V: 10 Fixtures/ R20 circuit
  • 240V: 10 Fixtures/ ER15AFR circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.25 146
240 0.67 143

Source Four LED Inrush

120V- 11A (First half-cycle)
240V- 15A (First half-cycle)

  • 9 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity

Model Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
Lustr+ 120 1.11 129.9
Daylight 120 1.39 163.63
Tungsten 120 1.35 157.4
Studio HD 120 1.07 127.1
Lustr+  240  0.56  135.36 
Daylight  240  0.72  172.32 
Tungsten  240  0.70  166.8 
Studio HD  240  0.56  135.36 

Source Four LED Series 2 Inrush

120V- 50A (First half-cycle)
240V- 107A (First half-cycle)

  • 9 Lustr Fixtures/ R20 circuit
  • 7 Daylight HD or Tungsten HD Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity 

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120 1.45 174
240  0.81  195.12 

Source Four Mini LED Inrush

120V- 3A (First half-cycle)
240V- 4A (First half-cycle)

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity

Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
120/240 ? 14

Source Four LED Series 3 Inrush

120V- 40A (First half-cycle)
230V- 80A (First half-cycle)

  • 5 Fixtures/ R20 circuit

Nominal Power Consumption at Full Intensity

Model Voltage (V) Current (A) Watts (W)
Lustr X8 120 2.6 307
Daylight HDR 120 2.85 340
Lustr X8 230 1.35 305
Daylight HDR 230 1.5 330
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