The second rollout of the popular lighting control app from ARRI now allows users to control third-party products. Stellar 2 also has other new features to make the lighting workflow fast and easy.

Since its introduction, Stellar—ARRI’s lighting control app—has paved a new way for lighting control. Complete with a highly intuitive user interface for advanced network configuration and management, Stellar made working with modern LED fixtures easier than ever before.  With Stellar, light control is reimagined. The app automatically manages complex DMX settings through control interfaces with, says ARRI, a stunning graphic design.

While there are other apps that allow DMX lighting control from a phone or tablet, Stellar is the perfect app to quickly and easily control ARRI lights while on set, without having to worry about the mechanics of it all. Whether a large film with many scenes and setups or a small project with just a few fixtures, Stellar is built to work in all scenarios. Coded intelligence and advanced communication make connecting ARRI SkyPanel and L-Series fixtures to the app simple and straightforward. After using Stellar, it will be difficult to go back to controlling lights in any other way, said ARRI when the app was announced, in 2018.

Control third-party products

With Stellar 2, ARRI has taken the next step forward. Now third-party products are able to be controlled with Stellar 2. Other features, such as grouping, have become much more convenient making setups faster and more flexible. This second rollout of the popular lighting control app really offers users more flexibility. Here are some of the key features present in the new version of the app:

• Control of third-party luminaires
  Stellar 2 is ready to control luminaires from other manufacturers including Litegear, Astera, and Kino Flo. A set of generic dimmers can even be set up to work with tungsten lights (on a DMX dimmer). With Stellar 2, the correct DMX addresses can be assigned to the luminaires in only a couple of steps.
• Swap out fixtures
  If any fixture needs to be swapped out, possibly due to malfunction, it can be easily exchanged without affecting the setup. A re-scan will detect it, if the fixture has not been in your setup before.
• Grouping of different CCT ranges
  With Stellar 2, it is now possible to group fixtures with different CCT ranges. The fixture with the smallest range takes precedence while all the other ranges are cropped.
• Intensity
  Not 100%, not 20%, not zero—Stellar 2 is able to accommodate a variety of unique requirements. Apply your personal value as the default intensity by simply storing it as a favorite in the app settings. The intensity will also remain at the same level throughout all modes.
• Additional fixture data
  If a fixture can provide these RDM functionalities, temperature and mode information will be displayed in the fixture setups.

The “final link” for ARRI products

With every Stellar update, many small improvements are also made to create a better user experience and improve performance. In Stellar 2, several smaller enhancements have been introduced as well including: a trial phase expiry warning, smoother looks application when no color mode change is necessary, improved connectivity handling, presets that apply on different fixtures, and minor usability, layout, and stability improvements.

First introduced at IBC 2018, the app from Arnold & Richter Cine Technik (ARRI) is not free, and if you do not use ARRI lighting, you don’t need it. But if you use products from ARRI, Stellar is what the company calls the “final link” in a complete ecosystem of advanced lighting control products. And, now, it also allows users to control third party products.

Stellar 2 will be available on the App Store and Google Play. For more information about ARRI Stellar 2  and its new features follow the link to the app’s webpage.