1. Mount the head securely, release any transport locks, and leave the head and cables clear of its full movement. Follow the fixture manual's mounting, power, and beam-clearance instructions.
2. Connect your computer or show player to your lighting network, and connect the Ethernet-to-DMX controller to that network.
3. Connect the controller's DMX OUT to the first Phoenix Ray Max's DMX IN with proper DMX cable. Add further heads from DMX OUT to the next DMX IN.
4. Fit a 120-ohm DMX terminator to the last head's DMX output. Connect each fixture to correctly rated, grounded AC power.

The head needs DMX data. A normal WS2811 pixel output cannot connect directly to its DMX input. If your controller uses an RJ45 DMX connector, use its documented DMX pinout and the correct adapter.

Keep the lamp off while establishing positions. Before opening the beam, confirm a clear test area away from people, vehicles, aircraft, and combustible materials. The manual requires at least 20 minutes of cooling before restarting a lamp that has been switched off.

1. Allow the fixture to finish its startup/reset cycle.
2. On the fixture display, open the MODE menu and select DMX Ctrl.
3. In Address Settings, select 20-channel mode and set the first head's DMX address to 001. Confirm/save the setting.
4. For the initial positioning test, use Lamp Mode: Manual and leave the lamp off. Use Lamp Switch to turn it on later, after positioning is checked.

Each 20-channel head uses 20 consecutive DMX addresses. For independent control on the same DMX output:

Next address = current address + 20. Two heads with the same mode and address receive the same commands. Keep each fixture's entire channel range within one 512-channel DMX universe.

If your unit is running the early 18-channel mode, change to the matching 20-channel mode before using this example. If its available modes or chart differ, use that unit's manual and contact us before applying these settings.

This example uses E1.31 / sACN, Universe 10, and 512 channels. Universe 10 is an example: choose an unused universe in your show and use that same number throughout.

1. Open your show folder in xLights. Back up an existing show before changing its output configuration.
2. Open Controllers, click Add Ethernet, and name the new controller Phoenix DMX.
3. Select E1.31 as the protocol. For unicast, leave Multicast off and enter the actual IP address of your DMX controller. The computer must be able to reach it.
4. For this manually addressed example, leave Auto Layout Models and Auto Size off. Set Start Universe = 10, Universe Count = 1, and Universe Size / Channels per Universe = 512.
5. Open the controller's own configuration and map its physical DMX output to Universe 10, starting at channel 1. Enable that output and save its configuration. Follow that controller's instructions for these settings.
6. Set the controller active in xLights and click Save. Leave Output to Lights off until the test steps.

If you already use a working DMX output, keep its actual settings and use its universe below. Art-Net, USB-DMX, FPP, DDP-based controller inputs, and pixel-to-DMX converters need their own matching configuration; this E1.31 example does not define those paths.

1. Go to Layout. Choose the DMX model tool and the Moving Head Advanced subtype, also called DMX Moving Head Advance in the xLights manual. Place one head in the layout.
2. Name it PRMax_01, set # of Channels = 20, and set Fixture = MH1.
3. For the manual addressing used here, set the model's Controller dropdown to Use Start Channels. Open Start Channel, choose Universe Number, and select Universe 10, channel 1. Use the appropriate controller IP if your show reuses universe numbers on different controllers.
4. Enter the model settings below, then save your layout.

The channel numbers above are relative to each head. Head 2 still uses Pan Channel 1 in its model; its model start moves to Universe 10, channel 21. A moving head uses 20 DMX channels, not 20 RGB pixels.

Shutter Open Threshold controls the preview's shutter visibility; it is not the command that opens the real shutter. Use the actual On Value of 255 for steady light. The raw DMX effect in Step 7 requires you to set channel 16 yourself.

Use the separate Dimmer settings to control brightness from the Moving Head effect's Dimmer tab. The Color Wheel section has its own dimmer channel field; leave that one at 0 so two controls do not compete. Leave dimmer fine, channel 18, at 0 for this basic setup. Keep reset/lamp control, channel 19, at 0 during normal sequencing. Do not assign the prism rotation channels to Gobo Rotation.

The Phoenix Ray Max uses a physical color wheel. In the model's Color Wheel settings, add the fixed-color entries below, pairing each DMX value with an appropriate preview swatch. Preview swatches are approximations of the actual filters.

Test the colors on the real fixture. Similar preview swatches, especially white and color-temperature filters, may resolve to the same nearest color. For exact filter selection, the DMX effect can send these values directly. Higher ranges on channel 6 include split colors and wheel rotation; do not use a generic 0–255 color sweep when you want one fixed color.

1. Create a short Animation sequence and add PRMax_01 to its view. Keep the fixture's lamp off. Stop other show software or players from sending to this DMX output.
2. Place a DMX effect on the head's model row. Set all 20 values to 0 for this initial dry positioning check. Enable Output to Lights and play the effect. The head should move to its raw DMX zero position.
3. In Layout, use Orient to Zero for pan and tilt to make the preview match that physical zero position. Confirm the movement directions; adjust Reverse and Upside Down to match the installed head.
4. In a separate, non-overlapping part of the test sequence, place a Moving Head effect. Select MH1 in its fixture controls and click the center of its Position grid to command Pan 0 / Tilt 0 degrees.
5. Adjust Orient Forward and Orient Up in Layout until that effect's home position corresponds to the intended forward/up orientation. Re-select the effect after changing the settings. Verify the actual fixture as well as the preview.
6. Set conservative Min Limit and Max Limit values for the intended installation. Make small test moves and confirm the preview and head agree.

DMX zero and the Moving Head effect's home position are different. The DMX effect sends raw 0–255 values; the Moving Head effect uses degrees and your orientation settings. There is no universal pan/tilt offset that is correct for every mounting position.

Keep position calibration separate from brightness testing. Software limits do not replace checking the real fixture's direction, startup, reset, and loss-of-data behavior.

Use a DMX effect on the model row for this test. Its Channel 1 is the first channel of that model, even when the head's physical address is 021 or 041. Use the Channels 1–16 and Channels 17–32 tabs to enter all 20 values.

1. Send the positioning values with channel 16 = 0 and channel 17 = 0. Confirm the head has settled and its intended beam path is clear.
2. Use the fixture's Lamp Switch: On control and allow the lamp to start and stabilize.
3. Set channel 17 = 32, then channel 16 = 255. Increase the dimmer only as needed. A low dimmer value does not make the beam eye-safe.
4. Check one function at a time: color 0 to 8 for white/red; gobo 0 to 4 for open/gobo 1; prism 9 or 11 to 32 for insertion, returning it to 0 afterwards. Adjust focus, then make a small pan or tilt change within your checked area.
5. Before stopping output, send shutter 16 = 0 and dimmer 17 = 0 and confirm the beam is dark. Do not assume stopping playback will black out a fixture configured to hold its last data.

Do not run an all-channels-on, chase, or twinkle test across this head. Channel 19 contains lamp and motor-reset commands. Setting every channel to 255 can reset the fixture.

1. Place a Moving Head effect on PRMax_01 and select MH1. Begin with a fixed, verified position. In the effect's Control tab, check Enable Shutter and leave Auto Shutter off for this first steady-beam test. Enable Shutter uses the model's Shutter On Value = 255. Choose a color in the Color controls. In the effect's Dimmer tab, enable dimmer control and set a low, steady, non-zero output level. This guide uses that separate dimmer control for brightness.
2. Add a small movement with the Position controls or a restrained Path. Increase the movement only after checking the real beam path. Keep your raw DMX test in a separate time range so it does not compete with the Moving Head effect.
3. For constant extra-channel settings, use the model's Number of Preset / DMX preset settings. Useful starting values are channel 5 = 0, channel 19 = 0, and your tested focus value on channel 14. These model presets apply to non-DMX effects; enter values explicitly in raw DMX effects.
4. Duplicate the working model for each additional head. Change its name, layout position, Fixture assignment, and Start Channel. For head 2, use PRMax_02, MH2, Universe 10 channel 21, and set the physical fixture to 021. Repeat the orientation and first-test checks for each head.
5. For group effects, use Per Model Default render style. Confirm each physical head responds independently before adding fan or coordinated movement.
6. Save the layout and sequence, render the sequence, and test through your actual show player. The player's outputs must feed the same DMX controller, universe, and channel range that worked from xLights.

No-Fly Zones: On Max units with this feature, configure each head in its final installed position. In the fixture's No-Fly settings, define the pan/tilt boundaries, set the zone's Strobe Value to 000 for darkness, and enable No Fly. Check all equivalent directions across the 540-degree pan travel. These zones close the beam; they do not switch the discharge lamp off. Verify them on the real fixtures before using imported sequences.

Imported sequences must match your channel map, fixture order, color wheel, and calibrated orientation. Keep lamp/reset commands out of normal effects. At the end of a test or show, send a deliberate blackout and follow the manual's lamp shutdown/cooling procedure.

Still stuck? Send us the fixture's model/firmware and 20-channel setting, DMX address, controller model, a screenshot of the xLights controller/model settings, and a short video of the issue. Contact Mattos Designs support.