Adding universes to Ion 1024

Hi JMStahl, 

an Ion Console has initially 1024 Outputs installed. 

A 512 Output Upgrade can be purchased from your local ETC Dealer. 

A total of 4x Upgrades can be installed on the Ion giving 

it a max. total of 3072 Outputs (6x Universes). 

Please contact your local ETC Dealer for pricing. 

and there was a prototype for an ETC cyc light to be seen at PLS in Frankfurt!! it's an accessory for source4 LEDs and replaces the lenses.

You are talking over $300,000 for fixtures as well as infrastructure improvements to get that gear functional (power, control, etc...).

If it were me, I'd get an Eos Ti or at least a Gio, that will be better able to handle the extra universes, provide some future wiggle room, have the built in touch screens as well as add'l monitors and whose improved functionality over an Ion for all that gear, will prove useful.  Maybe upgrade the Ion anyway and use it as a deck focus unit as well as backup.  

SB

You wouldn't actually have to stack up the addresses... a two-universe Ion can patch 1024 addresses to channels, but those addresses can be spread across as many universes (within reason) as you need.  You don't get penalized for unused addresses.

That said, you wouldn't have much room for future expansion.

An Ion is certainly up to the task of controlling the gear you're talking about.  I regularly light shows with well over 100 color scrollers on an Ion.

What did you end up doing? I know I’m reading this thread 8 years late, but I’m also trying to convert an auditorium with all conventions to LED. I think your first calculation was off because you were probably accounting for replacing every conventional with an LED, when in fact, 1 LED can replace probably 3 conventionals. I also manage an auditorium.