First DMX Controller

[DJ Riddims]

I would like to purchase a basic DMX controller mainly for experimenting at home and maybe use it at a few gigs. I have a $150 Amazon gift card and was looking at purchasing the Chauvet Obey10. I have used some extreme controllers before (grandMA2) compared to the Obey10 but I have forgotten much about DMX since then and just would like to have something to refresh my mind and for fun. So my question is what is the best DMX controller for under $150 on Amazon? Or am I just wasting my time with a cheap controller?

[LiteTrix]

Probably wasting your time with a cheap controller to be honest. How about a PC-based controller ? Freestyler is a good one and the dongle can be found on Ebay for about $50 or so. Its very similar to Light Jockey and even has some features that the $1200 Light Jockey doesn't have. You also have ShowXpress, and Magic DMX to name a few. What lights are you trying to control ? If its just some cans then you'll be fine with the obey 10.

[Synaxis]

The Obey 10 is absolutely the bottom of the line... But if you don't need anything special and want to save some money, it's decent enough. However, the price difference between the Obey 10, 40, and 70 is minimal, and you can get an Obey 70 for under $150, which has the most features out of the three.

Personally, I hated my Obey 70, and ended up selling is for a Magic 260. It just felt cheap, the sliders could be removed easily, buttons were made out a cheap plastic that made a loud click when pressed, ect... Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad controller, just cheaply made in my opinion. I think Chauvet tried to put to many features into an affordable unit degrading the quality.

Perhaps an Elation DMX Operator? http://www.amazon.com/American-Dj-Dm...pr_product_top
I have the smaller version, the DMX Programmer, and liked it for the small stuff. http://www.godirectmusic.com/product...ducts_id=30287

There is also a version of the Operator with a joystick: http://www.amazon.com/American-Opera...8929930&sr=8-1

You can also always go the software route. There is some free software out there, and you would just need to buy a dongle to connect to your computer.

[DJ Riddims]

I'll look into that free software route. Will any dongle work with any software?

[Synaxis]

I'll look into that free software route. Will any dongle work with any software?

I don't believe so. However, one of the more popular dongles by Enttec, http://www.enttec.com/index.php?main...ow=description
is know to work with a variety of software.

[ksmalk08]

I don't believe so. However, one of the more popular dongles by Enttec, http://www.enttec.com/index.php?main...ow=description
is know to work with a variety of software.

I have been using an EnTTec Open DMX USB (was like $40) and use a free software called "Q-Light Controller", which is exclusively for Macs.

I have found it to be very stable/reliable, and have done quite a few 5+ hr. gigs with it and it never glitched.
The EnTTec Open never gave me any problems with this software.

I have found the Q-Light interface to be a bit confusing to run some more complex shows on, however, and I am looking into a physical board now like the Elation DMX Operator.

[STLRiverCity]

I have used the DMX Operator and I wan't a huge fan. I then bought ShowExpress 100 and it was OK but I couldn't use it on a Mac so I decided to shelve it. It is just collecting dust now. The solution I have now is Elation Emulation and a MIDIcon controller. So far I really like it. It can be a bit confusing to program at first, but after playing with it for awhile you will figure it out.

I have 12 COLORado 1 Tour, 4 Colorstrip MINI, 2 ADJ X-Scan Plus, and 1 ADJ QuadPhase fixtures that I control. So far no issues using it on a 2010 15" MBP 2.66GHz i7 with 8GB of memory. I can DJ with a Denon MC6000 running VDJ while the light software is running. It has been extremely reliable.

[Capt. Kirk]

I'll recommend the Chauvet Obey 70 controller. A great all around controller for the money spent on it in my opinion. The software option is also a nice route with the right software but the dongle is the part that costs the most depending on which one you get like mentioned above and it all really just depends on your needs.

[LiteTrix]

I have used the DMX Operator and I wan't a huge fan. I then bought ShowExpress 100 and it was OK but I couldn't use it on a Mac so I decided to shelve it. It is just collecting dust now. The solution I have now is Elation Emulation and a MIDIcon controller. So far I really like it. It can be a bit confusing to program at first, but after playing with it for awhile you will figure it out.

I have 12 COLORado 1 Tour, 4 Colorstrip MINI, 2 ADJ X-Scan Plus, and 1 ADJ QuadPhase fixtures that I control. So far no issues using it on a 2010 15" MBP 2.66GHz i7 with 8GB of memory. I can DJ with a Denon MC6000 running VDJ while the light software is running. It has been extremely reliable.

ShowXpress now works with Mac.

[DJ M&M]

what are you planning on controlling with it? movers, LED, lasers, scanners, effects, conventionals??????????