Light Stream Converter Setup

A converter is a device that receives a network signal from the computer and distributes it across its ports to the fixtures. To make it work on site, it needs to be configured: set its network address, port mode, pixel chip type, and universe numbers. All of this is done directly from Light Stream, over the network, without any separate utilities.

This article is about configuring the physical device itself. The converter's parameters inside the project (which address and protocol to send data to, how many ports and universes are described in the project) are a different window, described in the article Light Stream Converter Parameters. The device settings and the project settings must match: if they diverge, the program will keep sending data correctly, but the fixtures will stay dark.

Configuration is done over the network using broadcast requests. The computer and the converter must be connected to the same network, and the computer's network adapter must be on the same subnet as the device.

Finding Devices on the Network

It all starts with the Art-Net Node Discovery window. You can open it in two ways:

in the Fixtures window — the magnifying-glass button (Search) on the bottom panel, next to the Add Device button;
in the program settings, Network section — the Search button (see Settings).

Steps:

In the Network Device list, select the network adapter your converters are connected to. The choice is remembered and suggested the next time you open the window.
Click Search. While the network is being polled, a progress indicator runs under the buttons; the search takes a couple of seconds.
The devices found appear in the list on the left: the device's IP and Name.
Select a row — information about the selected device appears on the right: full and short name, IP address, device report (Node report), firmware version, ESTA and OEM codes, MAC address. The device report shows which mode the ports are currently working in and which chip is selected.

A device report looks roughly like this: #0001[0035] UCS1903(High,340)Tb=125,T0=30,T1=100,Tr=290. Here UCS1903 is the selected chip, and 340 is the port mode (340 pixels per port).

Good to know:

While searching, the program stops sending Art-Net and resumes it once the search finishes. If the lights on site go out during setup — that's normal, they'll come back.
The Ping button makes the selected device respond: a real converter will blink its indicators. This makes it easy to tell which box in the cabinet answered to the found IP. The button only works for Light Stream devices.
The Settings button opens the settings window for the selected device. It's available only when a single Light Stream device is selected in the list: equipment from other manufacturers and the Light Stream Player have no settings here.
If the list is empty, check that you selected the right network adapter and that it's on the same subnet as the converter.

Adding a Found Device to the Project

The Add Selected Nodes button adds the checked devices to the project together with their real settings. You can select several rows at once.

A found Light Stream Player is added to the project as a player, with its IP address.
A found converter is added as a converter: with the device's name and IP address, its starting universe, and the actual number of ports the device has. If the ports work in 1024-channel mode, the program accounts for two universes per port.

This is the fastest way to describe already-configured equipment in the project: there's no need to manually cross-check addresses and universes. After adding it, all that's left is to patch the fixtures to the ports — see Patching Fixtures.

Adding a device is undone with Ctrl+Z, like any other action in the project.

The "Controller Settings" Window

The window is opened with the Settings button in the search window and is divided into four parts:

Main Settings — network address, device name, port mode, and chip;
Ports — a table of universes by port;
Information — what the device currently reports about itself;
Send Art-Net Macro — a service field for support commands.

All changes are sent to the device only when you click the corresponding Set button. Just typing a value into the field is not enough.

After each successful write, the program marks the device as changed, and when you close the window, the network search repeats automatically — the list of found devices becomes up to date.

IP Address and Mask

Enter the desired IP Address and Mask.
Click Set IP.
Confirm the action in the Change IP? window.
On success, the message IP set successfully appears.

Next to it is a Ping button — it does the same thing as in the search window: makes the device blink its indicators. It's a convenient way to make sure you're editing the settings of the right converter.

After changing the device's address, be sure to set the same address for the converter in the project — in the IP Address field in the Properties window (see Light Stream Converter Parameters). Otherwise the program will keep sending data to the old address.

If the computer and the converter end up on different subnets, the device may disappear from the search after the address change — switch the computer's network adapter to the new subnet and search again.

Device Name

The Full Name field and the Set button next to it write the device's name into the converter. The name is shown in the list of found devices and in Art-Net reports, so meaningful names ("North Facade", "Roof") make working on a site with a dozen identical boxes much easier.

Port Mode and Chip

The Port Mode list sets how the device's ports work:

Value	What it means
DMX 512	Regular DMX: 512 channels, one universe per port
DMX 1024HS	DMX with double the channel count: 1024 channels, two universes per port
SPI 170 Pix	Pixel mode, up to 170 pixels per port
SPI 340 Pix	Pixel mode, up to 340 pixels per port
SPI 680 Pix	Pixel mode, up to 680 pixels per port

The Chip list only appears in SPI modes — DMX ports have no chip. It selects the type of driver chip used by the LED strip or pixel module: GS8206, WS2811, WS2811L, WS2812, WS2814, WS2818, SK6812, UCS1903, UCS8903, TM1803, TM1914. The value must match what's actually installed on the connected line, otherwise the pixels will flicker chaotically, glow the wrong color, or not light up at all.

The program determines the current values of both lists from the device report, and only for pixel modes. If the converter is working in DMX, the Port Mode field may appear empty — that's not an error, just select the value you need yourself.

To apply the mode and chip, click the Set button to the right of the Port Mode list — it sends both settings at once. The device doesn't reconfigure instantly: the cursor will turn into an "hourglass" for a dozen or so seconds, after which the program rereads the converter's state and shows the new report in Information. Wait for it to finish without closing the window.

Mode and chip are set for the whole device at once, for all of its ports.

Individual Port Mode

An individual port's mode is assigned in the Ports table: right-click a port row to open a menu with the options DMX IN, DMX OUT, RDM, and SPI. After selecting one, the program reports Port mode set successfully and refreshes the device data.

DMX IN — the port receives DMX from an external console.
DMX OUT — the port sends DMX to fixtures.
RDM — the port works with feedback over the RDM protocol.
SPI — the port drives a pixel line.

This is handy, for example, for leaving one port set to receive external DMX while using the rest as outputs.

Port Universes

The Ports table shows which universes are assigned to the ports right on the device.

Column	What it shows
Short Name	The port's name as reported by the device. If a port carries two universes, it will have two rows with the same name
Universe	The overall universe number, from 0 to 32767. This is the number you compare against the port universes in the project
Net / Subnet / Univ.	The same number broken down per the Art-Net standard into three parts: Net (0–127), Sub (0–15), and Universe (0–15)

Both representations are linked: change the overall number, and the three fields recalculate, and vice versa. The overall number is calculated as Net × 256 + Sub × 16 + Universe. Set the number whichever way is more convenient for you.

Net and Subnet are shared for a single port. If a port has two universes assigned, editing these two fields in one row also changes them in the other — such rows differ only in the last field, Universe.

Buttons under the table:

Select All — selects all rows.
Edit Selected — asks for a Starting Universe and numbers the selected rows sequentially from it. The fastest way to lay out universes in order.
Set — writes the changes to the device. Art-Net transmission stops while writing. When done, the program rereads the device and checks the result: if everything was written, Saved successfully appears; if not, Save error.

The universes written to the device must match the converter's port universes in the project. In the project they're not set one by one: you specify a Starting Universe and Universes per Port, and the rest are calculated in order. The simplest approach is to number the device's universes in sequence with the Edit Selected button, and set the same starting universe in the project.

Information

The Information section shows what the device is reporting about itself right now: Full Name, Short Name, IP Address, MAC, Status (device report), firmware Version, ESTA and OEM codes. These fields are read-only and update every time the program rereads the device — after writing the name, port mode, chip, or universes. They're a convenient way to check that the changes were actually applied.

Service Elements

The Data field and the Send Macro button in the Send Art-Net Macro section send a service command to the device. Use them only on the instruction of technical support. The Reset Settings button in this window is inactive.

Steps for Setting Up a New Converter

Connect the converter to the network and give the computer an address on the same subnet.
Open Art-Net Node Discovery, select the network adapter, and click Search.
Find the device you need in the list, and use the Ping button to confirm it's the right one that responds.
Click Settings and set the device's working IP Address and Mask.
Set a Full Name you'll recognize the device by.
Choose the Port Mode and, for SPI modes, the Chip. Click Set and wait for the device to reconfigure.
In the Ports table, number the universes and click Set.
Close the settings window — the program will repeat the search on its own — and add the device to the project with the Add Selected Nodes button.
Check the converter's parameters in the project: IP Address, Starting Universe, Number of Ports, Universes per Port, and Controller Type (SPI for pixel lines).
Patch the fixtures to the ports and enable Art-Net.

If Something Goes Wrong

The search finds nothing. Check the selected network adapter, the physical connection, and that the computer's address is on the same subnet as the converter. Some network switches and Wi-Fi adapters don't pass broadcast requests through — connect with a cable instead.

The device disappeared after the IP change. The new address ended up on a different subnet. Switch the computer's network adapter address to the new subnet and search again.

Save error when writing universes. The device didn't confirm the changes. Retry the write; if the error persists, check the connection to the device with the Ping button and make sure no one else is accessing the converter during the write.

The "Ping" and "Settings" buttons are unavailable. More than one device is selected in the list, or the selected device is from another manufacturer or is a Light Stream Player. Settings in this window are available only for Light Stream converters.

Mode and chip didn't apply. The device needs time to reconfigure — up to several dozen seconds. Don't close the window until the wait cursor disappears, and check against the report in the Information section.

No light appeared on site. Cross-check the device settings against the converter's parameters in the project: IP address, universe numbers, port mode. A pixel line needs SPI mode both on the device and in the project (the Controller Type parameter), otherwise the image will shift at the universe boundaries.

Pixels light up in the wrong colors or flicker. The Chip type doesn't match what's actually installed on the line.