In this guide: The short answer · Art-Net and sACN · Node or splitter · Ports and universes · RDM · PoE · Switches and IP addresses · Nodes compared · Popular picks · FAQ

The short answer

A node (Artistic Licence also calls it a gateway) turns network data into ordinary DMX512 and, on most models, DMX back into network data. Your console or PC sends Art-Net or sACN down one Ethernet cable; the node sits near the fixtures and gives you one DMX universe per port. That is how a desk with dozens of universes reaches a rig without a loom of DMX cables back to front of house.

• Pick the protocol your console speaks. Almost every node here handles both Art-Net and sACN; the exceptions are noted in the table below.
• Count universes, then ports. One port is one universe. Two-port nodes such as the Chauvet DJ DMX-AN2 or ChamSys GeNetix GN2 suit a single truss or a small venue; 8 and 10-port rack nodes such as the GeNetix GN10 suit a dimmer or data rack.
• Want one cable for power and data? Choose a PoE node and a PoE switch to feed it.
• Only need more DMX outputs from one universe? You want a DMX splitter, not a node.

If DMX universes, addressing and termination are new to you, start with our DMX explained guide; this one picks up where it stops, at the network.

What Art-Net and sACN are

Art-Net

Artistic Licence, which owns the protocol, describes Art-Net as a protocol “that allows DMX512 and RDM lighting data to be transported over an ethernet network”. It was invented by Wayne Howell, the company’s founder, and it is free to use (manufacturers register for an OEM code). The current version is Art-Net 4. Each universe is identified by a 15-bit Port-Address made of Net, Sub-Net and Universe, which gives a theoretical 32,768 universes.

Art-Net also carries device discovery (ArtPoll), configuration and RDM. That is why consoles can find a node on the network and change its universe settings remotely.

sACN (ANSI E1.31)

sACN, or Streaming ACN, is an ESTA standard published through ANSI: E1.31, Entertainment Technology: Lightweight streaming protocol for transport of DMX512 using ACN. ESTA describes it as a mechanism to transfer DMX512-A packets over a TCP/IP network using a subset of the ACN protocol suite. The 2025 revision supports both IPv4 and IPv6, and ESTA makes the standard available as a free download.

Two sACN features show up on node spec sheets. Nodes “join multicast groups as per the specification” (ChamSys’s wording), so a node picks up only the universes it has been told to listen to. And sACN carries a priority, so when two sources send the same universe the node can follow the higher-priority one; ChamSys GeNetix nodes handle priority per universe.

Which one to use

Use whichever your console and fixtures are set up for; on most nodes it is a per-port setting. Artistic Licence’s own specification notes that sACN on its own has no device discovery, configuration or RDM, and Art-Net 4 lets a gateway port be switched to sACN so you can use Art-Net for discovery, management and RDM while sACN carries the live levels. Our ChamSys MagicQ range guide covers how many universes each MagicQ system can output over the network.

Node or DMX splitter?

They look alike (a row of XLRs in a rack box) but they solve different problems.

ChamSys describes its GD4IP splitter as duplicating whatever arrives at the DMX input to all four outputs, with no configuration needed. The GD10 adds a choice of modes: one input split to all ten outputs, or two inputs each split to five. Both splitters have a button to strip RDM data out and retime the signal.

Many nodes can also act as a splitter. The Transcension N8 MkII manual lists three modes: Art-Net to DMX node, eight-universe DMX to Art-Net, or DMX splitter/buffer. The Chauvet Professional Net-X II, an 8-output node with two DMX inputs, is another with optically isolated ports and RDM over Art-Net. For plugs, turnarounds and terminators on the DMX side, see our DMX adaptors and terminators guide.

Ports and universes per node

Each DMX port carries one universe of 512 channels, so a node’s port count is its universe count: the Elumen8 Cygnus NET2 gives 1,024 channels, the Cygnus NET8 4,096. Things to check before you buy:

• Direction. Most ports can be set to input or output, which lets a node bring DMX from an older desk onto the network. The GeNetix GN8 is the exception in its range: ChamSys calls it “a pure output device”.
• Connectors. Most nodes here have 5-pin XLR. The DMX-AN2 has 3-pin XLR. The GN10R outputs DMX on RJ45 and the GN10P on Phoenix terminals, for installs.
• Universe numbering. The Art-Net 4 specification now deprecates Port-Address 0 “to enhance sACN compatibility”. GeNetix quick setup offers Art-Net starting at universe 0 or 1, and sACN starting at universe 1, so check which your console counts from.
• Art-Net 4 and big nodes. Before Art-Net 4, a gateway with more than four DMX ports needed several IP addresses. Art-Net 4 added a BindIndex field so one gateway can present over 1,000 ports on one address, and each port can have a fully independent universe.

Need DMX without any cable at the far end? That is a different job; see our wireless DMX guide.

RDM through a node

RDM (ANSI E1.20) lets a console discover fixtures and read or change their address and mode down the DMX line. Over a network, Art-Net carries it as ArtRdm. Support varies, so check the spec sheet:

• All ChamSys GeNetix nodes support RDM using ArtRdm. ChamSys says they run discovery only when the console asks, never on start-up or on a timer, so show-critical DMX is not affected. RDM can be turned off, or set to read-only so you can survey a rig without anyone changing it.
• The Elumen8 Cygnus NET2 and NET8, the ADJ NET 4 and ADJ NET 8, and the Transcension N8 list RDM support.
• Chauvet’s DMX-AN2 page does not list RDM, so we do not claim it.

For RDM on a single DMX line with no network at all, the City Theatrical DMXcat is a small interface plus a phone app that City Theatrical says “controls, analyzes and tests any DMX fixture”, including DMX/RDM control and testing.

Power over Ethernet

PoE sends power down the same Cat cable as the data, so a node on a truss or in a wall box needs no mains feed. Nearly every node here can be PoE powered; the differences are in detail:

• GeNetix: every node except the GN8 can run on PoE. The GN2, GN5 and GN10 support PoE Mode A and Mode B. The GW2I wall node is PoE only and Mode A only (power on the data pairs); ChamSys warns that many budget injectors only use the spare pairs, so they will not power it.
• ADJ NET 4 and NET 8: PoE to 802.3af, or mains.
• Elumen8 Cygnus NET2 and NET8: PoE to 802.3af (on one of the NET8’s two Ethernet sockets), or local power.
• Chauvet DJ DMX-AN2: PoE or the external 9 V DC supply.
• Nicolaudie eNODE-4: PoE (802.3af/at) or 8 to 15 V DC, on a DIN rail.

The PoE source is usually the switch. The GeNetix GS8 is an eight-port unmanaged Gigabit switch that supplies up to 200 W of PoE in total: ports 1 to 4 to IEEE 802.3bt (up to 100 W per port) and all ports to 802.3af and 802.3at, in Modes A and B. The GS5IP is the IP65-rated five-port switch; it can itself be PoE or mains powered, but does not supply PoE. Network cabling in a permanent install, and any mains supplies to racks, should be designed, installed and tested by a competent person.

Network switches and IP addresses

We only repeat here what the protocol owner and the node manufacturers publish. For a large or shared network, follow your console maker’s networking documentation and get a network engineer involved.

Keep the lighting network to itself

ChamSys advises that “ideally you should set up a separate network” between console and Art-Net devices. Its multi-node layout is simple: console into a switch, each node into the same switch, everything in the same IP range. Its own switches are unmanaged and need no configuration; ChamSys notes that an unmanaged switch passes received data out of all its ports. GeNetix nodes also have a built-in switch with auto MDI/MDIX, so no crossover cable is needed between console and node, and the Elumen8 NET8’s built-in switch and second Ethernet socket let it act as an Ethernet repeater to the next device.

2.x.x.x and 10.x.x.x

The Art-Net 4 specification says products “should default to the Primary IP address of 2.?.?.?” with subnet mask 255.0.0.0. A switch setting moves the device to the secondary 10.x.x.x range, and the rest of the address is worked out from the device’s MAC address so units do not clash. Nodes may also be set to a custom static address or use DHCP. Artistic Licence warns that Art-Net data must not be routed onto the internet, and that any link to a network with internet access must go through a router that filters out these Class A addresses.

In practice, manufacturers ship to these conventions. ChamSys GeNetix products leave the factory on a 10.x.x.x address with a 255.0.0.0 mask, and ChamSys’s example sets the console to 10.0.0.10 / 255.0.0.0. Whatever you choose, console and nodes must sit in the same range: ChamSys points out that if you change a node’s address, Net Manager will not see it again until the console is moved into the new range.

How many universes a network can carry

Artistic Licence gives a rule of thumb for unicast Art-Net: about 40 universes on 10BaseT, 400 on 100BaseT and 4,000+ on Gigabit. Some nodes, such as the Elumen8 NET2, run at up to 100 Mbit/s, which is plenty for the node itself; the GeNetix switches and the NET8 are Gigabit.

If you are also running Dante for audio, our audio networking guide covers that side.

Nodes we stock, compared

Specs below are from each manufacturer’s product page, datasheet or user manual. “In/out” means ports can be set as DMX inputs or outputs.

Two extras if you run ChamSys. The GN5 and GN10 fully unlock free MagicQ PC/Mac software, over USB or the network, while the GN2 (USB or network) and GN4IP (network) unlock it to Core mode; the GN8 does not unlock it. Over a network the unlock only applies in conditions set out in the MagicQ manual, for example two or fewer MagicQ systems on the network, so one node cannot unlock a room full of laptops. And the GN5 and GN10 carry LTC and MIDI timecode, which the GN2 does not. All GeNetix nodes still work as standard Art-Net and sACN nodes with other makers’ consoles; only ChamNet extras such as MIDI notes over the network are ChamSys-only.

If you are choosing a console as well, our lighting desk basics guide explains patching and universes from the desk side.

Popular picks from the shop

Frequently asked questions

What does an Art-Net node do?

It converts Art-Net network data from a console or PC into standard DMX512, one universe per port, and on most models can work the other way, turning DMX from a desk into Art-Net. Artistic Licence’s own definition of a node is a device that translates DMX512 to or from Art-Net.

Is sACN better than Art-Net?

Neither is better for every rig. sACN (ANSI E1.31) is an ESTA standard with multicast and per-universe priority. Art-Net, from Artistic Licence, adds device discovery, remote configuration and RDM. Most nodes do both, and Art-Net 4 lets you use Art-Net for management and RDM while sACN carries the levels.

Do I need a network switch for one node?

No. A console can connect straight to a single node; GeNetix nodes have auto MDI/MDIX, so no crossover cable is needed. Once you have two or more nodes, connect them all to one switch, or daisy-chain them through nodes that have a second Ethernet port.

What IP address should an Art-Net node use?

The Art-Net specification defaults products to 2.x.x.x with a 255.0.0.0 mask, with 10.x.x.x as the alternative. ChamSys GeNetix ships on 10.x.x.x. The console and every node must be in the same range, and Art-Net traffic must never be routed onto the internet.

Can a node power from the network?

Many can. Check the PoE standard the node needs (for example 802.3af on the ADJ and Elumen8 nodes) and, for the GeNetix GW2 wall nodes, that the switch or injector supplies PoE Mode A. The GeNetix GS8 switch supplies Mode A and B.

Is the DMXcat an Art-Net node?

No. City Theatrical’s DMXcat is a test tool: a small interface plus a phone app for controlling and testing DMX and RDM fixtures. City Theatrical’s page does not list Art-Net or sACN, so for network-to-DMX conversion you still need a node.