Smart Bar Ghosting & not dimming

Hi there,

We have a room on our campus with 6 Smart Bars with stage pin connectors. Each Smart Bar has 4 575w source four ellipsoidal's connected.

Recently, 1 Smart Bar has two fixtures that "ghost" on, or stay on with a very small percentage of power, no matter what fixture is plugged into it. Since this issue has come up, we also have 2 separate Smart Bars where one two of the fixtures dim perfectly normal, but the other 2 fixtures on the same bar will not dim. They will only turn on when the dimming reaches 100%.

We use two dmx systems for the room - a unison wall panel & ADJ myDMX 2.0. The problem occurs under use of both systems. I don't believe this is a DMX issue, but I'm not positive. I've also been told this room has been known for electrical problems, so I wouldn't be surprised if it was a power phasing issue. Is there anything I can do on my end with the Smart Bars to continuing troubleshooting?

Thanks a lot!

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ueliriegg over 10 years ago

both issues sound like the wrong dimmer curve: the one that glow could have teh Pre-heat curve and the switching ones could have could have a non-dim curve. go to the menu, to the option Dimmer Curves.
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Jon Jarosinski over 10 years ago in reply to ueliriegg

Thanks for the quick response!

I've looked at all the curves on each bar, and each bar is set to square law. The bar with the "ghosting" did have constant levels sent to the fixtures, so I cleared that problem. I'm still having issues with other two bars, however. There are no abnormal settings on either of those bars, and I also did a factory reset and dmx re-address to no avail - still the same problem. I took a quick video to demonstrate the problem (if that helps).
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PatrickBoozer over 10 years ago in reply to Jon Jarosinski

Address one of the bad lights the same as a good light. If that fixes the problem - then it's something with the console. If it doesn't fix the problem - it's the light.
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Jon Jarosinski over 10 years ago in reply to PatrickBoozer

I've changed the addresses to the same as a working light, and I still have the same issue. I've also plugged the "non" working lights into a "working" channel, and they dim just fine, so it's not the lights either. I'm starting to think there is an issue with the SmartBars. I've gone through every setting, including the manual dimming and chase settings on the bars, having the same issue with dimmers either being on or off. No matter which way I configure the system, still the same problem.
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Jon Jarosinski over 10 years ago in reply to PatrickBoozer

I've changed the addresses to the same as a working light, and I still have the same issue. I've also plugged the "non" working lights into a "working" channel, and they dim just fine, so it's not the lights either. I'm starting to think there is an issue with the SmartBars. I've gone through every setting, including the manual dimming and chase settings on the bars, having the same issue with dimmers either being on or off. No matter which way I configure the system, still the same problem.
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Jon Jarosinski over 10 years ago in reply to Jon Jarosinski

For now I have a workaround in place by plugging in the 4 lights with faulty dimmer channels into spare channels, so that will work for the time being. I'll call the local AVL company and have them take a look at the electrical system.
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Richard over 10 years ago in reply to Jon Jarosinski

Which exact type of SmartBar? We've done a few different ones.

The original SmartBar 1 had two ways to set Switched mode - Switched dimmer curve and "I/O" mode. Make sure that is off.
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