Art-Net Nodes

The Art-Net Nodes panel lists every Art-Net node the engine has heard on the local network. Spectralite broadcasts an ArtPoll roughly every 2.75 seconds and collects the ArtPollReply each node sends back, so the table stays current without any manual scan. Each row carries the node's IP address, its short and long names, the universes it accepts on its Art-Net output ports, its ESTA manufacturer id, and the age of the last reply.

Discovery is inform-only. It tells you which nodes are on the wire and which universes they accept; it does not change where Spectralite sends Art-Net. Output routing stays governed entirely by each fixture's Target IP and the output's network mode. Selecting a node here never subscribes that node to a universe or alters traffic.

The panel is not part of a default workspace preset. To add it, use Window > Add panel > Art-Net Nodes.

Enable toggle

A toggle at the top of the panel turns Art-Net discovery on or off for the whole application. It is on by default. Polling runs continuously while it is on: Spectralite keeps broadcasting ArtPoll and updating the table as replies arrive.

Turn it off when you run on a locked-down show network that forbids unsolicited broadcast traffic, or where another controller owns the discovery role. With discovery off, Spectralite sends no ArtPoll, the table clears, and the Target IP picker reports that discovery is disabled. Output is unaffected either way, since discovery and routing are separate.

Node columns

• IP: the source address the node replied from. This is the value the Target IP picker copies into a fixture.
• Short name: the node's short name field from its ArtPollReply.
• Long name: the node's longer descriptive name.
• Universes: the universes the node accepts on its Art-Net output ports, that is, the universes it converts to DMX.
• Manufacturer: resolved from the node's ESTA manufacturer id.
• Last seen: age of the most recent ArtPollReply from this node.

A node that stops replying for about eight seconds is considered stale and drops off the list. When it starts answering again, it reappears on the next poll.

Filling a fixture's Target IP

The fixture editor's Target IP field, used for unicast output, has an inline picker beside it. The button opens a popover listing the nodes discovered here; choosing one writes its IP into the Target IP field. Typing an address by hand still works, and the picker is only a shortcut for finding a node's address without copying it from elsewhere.

The picker draws from the same live list as this panel. If discovery is disabled or no nodes have replied, the popover says so and the field stays manual.

Empty and disabled states

When discovery is enabled but no node has replied yet, the table is empty and shows a short waiting notice. Nodes appear as their replies arrive, usually within one poll cycle.

When discovery is disabled, the table clears and the panel shows that the enable toggle is off. Re-enable it to resume polling.

Troubleshooting

Node does not appear

1. Confirm the enable toggle at the top of the panel is on.
2. Check that the node sits on the same subnet as the host interface Studio is bound to. ArtPoll and ArtPollReply are broadcast, and most setups do not forward that broadcast across subnets.
3. Confirm the node is powered and cabled to the same physical network as the host.
4. Give it a poll cycle. The table updates roughly every 2.75 seconds, and a node that just powered on may take a reply or two to show.

If the node still does not appear but you know its address, type the Target IP by hand. Discovery is a convenience for finding nodes, not a requirement for sending to them.

Related panels

• RDM Devices: discover and configure E1.20 responders behind an Art-Net node.
• Fixtures: set a fixture's Target IP for unicast output.
• Address Space: see which universes each fixture occupies.