Frequently Asked Questions

DMXDesktop is DMX lighting-control software for Windows and macOS, built for DJs, bands, venues, installers and lighting enthusiasts. It drives your fixtures over USB DMX, Art-Net and sACN, with real-time audio-reactive effects, automatic show generation, a 27,000+ fixture profile library, cloud backup and an optional 3D visualiser - so you can run a great-looking show with very little programming.

DMXDesktop is a great fit if you want automated, audio-reactive lighting without programming every scene by hand - mobile and club DJs, bars, restaurants and small venues, bands and live performers, and installers running multi-universe rigs.

It may not be the right fit if you need a traditional theatre desk where every channel is programmed frame-by-frame - although the Pro plan does add a full theatre-style Programmer with cue stacks for that workflow.

A hardware controller gives you faders and buttons but leaves the creative work to you. DMXDesktop automates it: it analyses your music and builds beat-synced movement, colour and beam effects across your fixtures in real time, so you get a dynamic show without manual programming. You still keep full manual control whenever you want it, and because it's software it updates continuously rather than becoming obsolete hardware.

Yes. DMXDesktop is designed to create music-reactive lighting shows without requiring you to program every cue by hand. Turn on DJ Mode and DMXDesktop's Konductor engine generates a full lighting show from the music automatically, adapting at drops, builds and breakdowns. You can also combine ready-made Effect Cues, or let Magic Cues build a set tailored to your fixtures. Many users can get a good-looking show running within their first session, especially with supported fixtures and a simple DMX setup.

To control real fixtures, yes - you need a way to get DMX out of your computer. That can be a USB DMX interface, or an Art-Net / sACN network node. You can still install DMXDesktop and design shows, use the 3D visualiser and explore the app with no hardware connected; you just need an output device when it's time to drive lights.

You need a Windows or macOS computer, the DMXDesktop app, a DMX output device (a USB DMX interface or an Art-Net/sACN node) and one or more DMX fixtures. For audio-reactive shows you also need an audio source - your computer's own audio, a microphone/line input, or your DJ software. New here? Follow the getting-started guide.

DMXDesktop works with a wide range of affordable hardware. Supported USB interfaces include Enttec DMX USB Pro and Pro Mk2, Enttec Open DMX, DMXKing ultraDMX and ultraDMX MAX, SoundSwitch Micro DMX, Eurolite USB DMX512 Pro (Mk1 and Mk2), FX5 and Digital Enlightenment. For networked output, Art-Net and sACN work with virtually any compliant node. See the full supported hardware list for details.

Yes. Art-Net and sACN (E1.31) are both fully supported and work with any standards-compliant node, giving you many universes over a normal network. See the Art-Net and sACN guides. USB DMX is usually simplest for small rigs; Art-Net/sACN is usually better once you need several universes.

Yes. You can broadcast the same universe over any combination of drivers at once - so universe 1 can go to a USB interface, an Art-Net node and an sACN node simultaneously if you need it.

First make sure the interface's driver is installed and the device is plugged in directly (avoid unpowered hubs), then give DMXDesktop a few seconds to rescan - some interfaces aren't ready on the very first scan after boot. Close any other lighting software that might be holding the device. If you use a generic FTDI-based cable, pick the descriptor that matches your box from the device list, as several brands share the same USB identity. If it still isn't found, see the troubleshooting guide or contact support.

DMXDesktop includes a searchable library of 27,000+ fixture profiles covering most mainstream brands and many budget lights. Profiles are marked as official or community-contributed and each carries a user rating. Browse and download them from the Profile Library tab inside the app - you just need to be signed in with a licence, and a free account works fine. If your exact light isn't there, you can request it or build your own - see below.

Use the Request a profile option in the Profile Library tab. It opens a request where you enter the brand, model and a link to the fixture's DMX manual, and our team builds the profile. Please search the library carefully first - many lights are listed under a different brand name - to avoid duplicate requests. If you can't wait, you can build the profile yourself (see below).

The most common cause is a DMX mode mismatch. Many fixtures have several DMX modes with different channel counts, and the profile's mode must match the mode set on the fixture's own menu. Check the fixture's on-board settings and select the matching mode when you patch it. If your fixture uses a colour wheel it can only show the fixed colours on that wheel, so DMXDesktop picks the closest available colour. If the mode matches and it's still wrong, the library profile may contain an error - contact support with the details (or the manual) and we'll correct it.

Yes - and this works on every plan, including Free. In the My Fixtures tab you can add a blank fixture and define each channel, edit an existing profile, or import a profile from a file or from a GDTF definition. The channel types reference explains what each channel type does. (Cloud backup of your custom profiles requires a paid plan, but creating and using them does not.)

When you add a fixture from the library, choose the profile variant that matches the DMX mode set on the light itself (for example a 9-channel versus 15-channel mode). If you need a different mode later, set the new mode on the fixture and re-patch it using the matching profile so the channel counts line up. Keeping the app's mode and the fixture's on-board mode in sync is the key to correct behaviour.

If you've fixed or improved a profile, use the Share Profile option to submit it back to the cloud library. Our team reviews and validates shared profiles, and once approved we publish the corrected version to everyone - usually within two to three business days.

Effect Cues are like bundles of effects. You can set up different movement or beam effects for each of your fixture groups and save them all to a Cue, which can then be replayed at any time, starting every effect automatically and in sync.

You might, for example, run simple colour rotation and movement on your moving heads, pulsating effects on your pars, and something different again on another group. A Cue can be as simple or complex as you like, and can be timed to run for a set period before moving to the next Cue. Switches like Dark On Silence and Dynamic Energy let a Cue adjust its speed and intensity to the music automatically (with Direct Audio Detection enabled). Learn more in the Effect Cue Stacks guide.

Yes! QuickShow lets you apply beam and movement effects to one or many groups on the fly - ideal for an instant static scene or for testing effects. Note that activating manual effects disables any running Effect Cue, and vice versa. See QuickShow.

Yes. With Direct Audio Detection enabled, effects sync to the beat and can adjust their speed and intensity to the music, and switches such as Dark On Silence and Dynamic Energy let a cue respond automatically to the track. See audio configuration.

Free supports 1 universe and up to 64 DMX channels. Standard supports 2 universes and up to 1,024 channels. Pro supports unlimited universes and channels, limited only by your computer and DMX hardware. See the pricing page for the current plans.

You can broadcast the same universes on any combination of drivers, so if you need universe 1 to output to sACN, Art-Net and USB DMX at the same time, you can.

Because the effects run in real time they take a little more processing power, though they are highly optimised. In internal testing, DMXDesktop has run 100 universes of 512 channels each on an Apple M2 MacBook Pro while using under 10% CPU and under 1 GB of memory. Real-world performance depends on your computer, output hardware, refresh rate, fixture count and effect complexity - newer Apple Silicon Macs are particularly fast, for example.

Blended colour palettes are simulated by mixing your fixture's RGBWAUV channels, so the result can differ slightly from the swatch - try a few palettes to find the best match. Fixtures with a fixed colour wheel can only show the colours on that wheel, so DMXDesktop selects the closest available colour, which may not be exact. Choosing a palette that suits your fixtures gives the best result. See colours & themes.

By default the strobe triggers RGB channels and any channel set as type Strobe. Fixtures without a dedicated strobe channel can still strobe if you enable "Strobe Dimmers", which pulses the dimmer in time with the strobe (the General tab in Settings). If a fixture's strobe channel sits at a value that forces it always-on or always-off, check that the profile's strobe channel default and ranges match your fixture's manual.

The order of the fixtures is based on the arrangement, not the DMX addressing, which is not relevant to the order in which lights activate. You can change the layout on the Arrangement tab - there's a detailed walkthrough in the arrangement guide.

DMXDesktop listens to an audio source and analyses it in real time - detecting beat, tempo (BPM) and energy - then drives your effects in sync. You can feed it a microphone or line input, your computer's own audio, or connect your DJ software. See audio configuration.

Yes - DMXDesktop can capture your computer's own audio directly, so in most cases you don't need any extra software.

On Windows:
In the Audio Settings, turn on the option to include output devices, then pick your speakers/output from the Loopback list. DMXDesktop captures the system output directly - no Stereo Mix or virtual driver needed. (Enabling Stereo Mix in the Windows sound settings also works if you prefer.)

On macOS:
From v1.0.52, select the built-in System Audio source in Audio Settings to capture your Mac's output directly (requires macOS 14.2 or later). On earlier macOS versions, install the free BlackHole virtual audio driver from https://existential.audio/blackhole/ (or with Brew: brew install blackhole-2ch), create an aggregate device combining BlackHole with your output in the "Audio MIDI Setup" app (Applications → Utilities), and select it in DMXDesktop.

Once your audio source is selected on the Audio Settings tab, Direct Audio Detection drives your lights from the music in real time. If Direct Audio Capture stops with an error on Windows, see “Why is audio capture not working?” below.

Yes. DJ Mode analyses your track and its Konductor engine generates a beat-synced show automatically, changing behaviour at drops, builds and breakdowns. DJ Mode is available on the Standard and Pro plans.

DJ Mode is layered, so you can shape the automatic show without hand-programming it. Use the build settings to adjust effect speed and intensity, assign fixtures to the right groups so each behaves appropriately, and use the DJ Mode layers and live controls to override anything on top. If a fixture is always on or never triggers, check its group assignment and that its profile's dimmer/intensity channel is mapped correctly.

Yes - DMXDesktop can react to audio from almost any DJ software using Direct Audio Analysis (Direct Audio Detection), which listens to the audio and reacts to beat and BPM in real time. It works with rekordbox, Serato, djay Pro, VirtualDJ, Traktor and more - see the rekordbox audio guide for a worked example.

Some apps also offer tighter, data-level integration: VirtualDJ via OS2L, a dedicated Traktor plugin, and beat sync with rekordbox and other Link-enabled apps over Ableton Link.

For timecode-grade cue sync with rekordbox, you can use an external bridge such as TimecodeSync or the open-source Beat Link Trigger to send OSC or MTC into DMXDesktop - MTC can drive timeline shows in the Programmer.

DMXDesktop ships with all the runtime libraries it needs, so audio-capture errors are rare and there is nothing extra to download.

If Direct Audio Capture starts and then stops with an error, check that the correct audio source is selected on the Audio Settings tab, then try re-selecting the device or restarting the app.

If the problem persists, email [email protected] and we'll help you directly.

If the interface connects but nothing lights up, work through these checks: confirm the fixture is patched at the correct DMX start address and in the DMX mode set on the fixture itself; make sure the Master Dimmer is up and Blackout/Freeze are off; and check the fixture's dimmer or shutter channel is open. The DMX Table shows the live values leaving each universe, which quickly tells you whether the app is outputting. If output looks correct but the fixture still doesn't respond, check your DMX cabling and termination, then see the troubleshooting guide or contact support.

Check the Pan/Tilt invert and swap settings in the fixture profile if the head moves opposite to what you expect, and make sure you haven't set a restrictive min/max on the Pan or Tilt channels, or a very low Movement value on the cue. Use the Position Finder and Pan/Tilt Finder to align heads quickly and save home positions.

This usually means the running cue isn't providing intensity to those fixtures. Check that the fixtures are in a group the cue actually targets, that the cue includes a beam or dimmer element (not only movement), and that the Master Dimmer is up. A quick way to confirm is the DMX Table - if the dimmer channel reads zero during the cue, adjust the cue or the fixture's group assignment.

Before an event we recommend: open DMXDesktop while online and confirm your licence is active; test your DMX output and that all fixtures respond; and save a backup of your show. Once activated, DMXDesktop keeps working offline for up to 7 days for non-cloud features, so a brief loss of internet at the venue won't stop your show.

Yes. The 3D Visualizer renders your rig in real time from the actual DMX output, so you can design and preview beams, colours, gobos and movement without the lights connected. It's available on the Pro plan and as a one-time add-on. See the system requirements.

Yes - RDM lets you discover fixtures and set their DMX address and personality from the app, over Art-Net or a compatible Enttec Pro USB interface. RDM is available on the Standard and Pro plans.

Yes. You can map generic USB MIDI controllers to faders, buttons, macros and cue playback, with ready-made maps for popular controllers. See MIDI controls.

Yes - DMXDesktop can receive Art-Net and sACN as well as send it, so it can take input from another console or merge sources. DMX input is a Pro-plan feature. See DMX I/O.

Yes. The Timeline editor lets you place effects and cue triggers along a track, and AutoScript can generate a starting script for you to refine. Timeline features are available on the Standard and Pro plans.

Yes - the Pro plan includes the Programmer, a theatre-style workflow with cue stacks, tracking, auto-follow, halt (pause mid-fade), multi-stack playback and a cue inspector with next-cue preview.

Yes. The DMXDesktop mobile app (iOS and Android) gives you wireless control, and there's also a built-in web control interface you can open from another device on the same network.

Every paid plan is for a single user across up to 2 of their own devices (the Free plan covers 1 device). A licence cannot be shared with another person. Here is what each plan includes:

Free: 1 universe, up to 64 DMX channels, 1 device, and Profile Library access. No Cloud Backups or other cloud services.

Standard: 2 universes, up to 1,024 DMX channels, up to 2 devices. Full Fixture Profile Library access (subject to a fair-use download limit), Cloud Backups and other cloud services.

Pro: unlimited universes and channels (subject to hardware performance), up to 2 devices. Everything in Standard plus the full Pro feature set.

You can move a licence between your own devices whenever you need to. See the pricing page for full plan details and the Terms & Conditions for licence terms.

Please note: the number of universes and DMX channels can affect performance, which varies with your computer's hardware.

Generally, you must be connected to the internet to activate the software and log in, and to access Cloud features (such as the Fixture Profile Library, Cloud Backups, Cloud Backup Restore and Profile Sharing).

Once that's done, with the exception of the Online Only features above, you're free to use the software offline for up to 7 days, after which you'll need to log in again if you haven't reconnected in that time to refresh your login token. Your login is renewed automatically and frequently whenever you're online, so in most scenarios you'll always have far more offline time available than you need.

Login providers such as Google and Facebook only issue tokens valid for a short period; we renew these automatically when you're online. Even so, after some extended period you may occasionally be asked to log in again - but only ever when you're online and connected, and infrequently (roughly every six months). You can always revoke the login from the provider's website if your computer is lost, damaged or stolen.

Unless cancelled, your subscription renews automatically each month, and as long as you connect to the internet from time to time your licence stays updated. Even if it lapses during renewal there's always a grace period: you'll be told the licence needs renewing and will usually have several days to reconnect and receive a fresh one. We've taken great care to ensure the licensing system, while robust, never impedes your ability to use the software even if you're offline for several days.

Yes - you can buy as many licences as you like from the My Account tab on the Settings page. Each licence covers a single user on up to 2 of their own devices (the Free plan covers 1 device), so an extra licence is only needed for an additional user.

Yes! You can pay monthly, annually, or buy a Version Lifetime License - a one-time purchase that covers the current major version (for example, all v1.x releases). Annual plans usually include a discount over monthly, and a Version Lifetime License removes recurring payments for that version (future major versions may need a separate purchase). See the pricing page for current options.

Yes. Add-ons such as the 3D Visualizer are one-time purchases (bolt-ons) that work within your current plan and are bought from inside the app. They're separate from your monthly, annual or lifetime plan. See the pricing page for current add-ons.

We chose a subscription model to make DMXDesktop accessible and continuously improving. For a low monthly price you get professional-grade features comparable to often very expensive hardware, without the risk of hardware failures or obsolescence, and every update is included as the software evolves with the industry.

If you'd prefer not to subscribe, we now also offer a Version Lifetime License - a one-time purchase covering the current major version. Subscriptions still offer the best ongoing value, since every update is included at no extra charge, whereas perpetual licences for major new versions may involve an upgrade cost. See the pricing page to compare.

You can manage everything - upgrades, downgrades and cancellations - from the Manage link next to Subscription in My Account inside DMXDesktop. Our payment provider, Stripe, also usually emails you a link to its customer portal before each payment, where you can make changes.

If you have any difficulty, email [email protected] and we can support you directly.

Your show, fixtures and settings live in DMXDesktop's local project database. Before reinstalling, use Cloud Backup (on paid plans) to save everything to your account, or export a local backup. After reinstalling you can restore it in a few clicks. See backups.

You can request account deletion through our contact form or by emailing [email protected]. We typically respond within two business days, and upon confirmation your account and associated data will be permanently deleted. In accordance with GDPR, some data (including financial records) may be retained strictly for legal compliance.

The quickest way is through Beacon, the in-app support tool, or our contact page. You can also email [email protected]. We typically respond within two business days.