Guide · GDTF Maker
Create a GDTF file for any fixture
No fixture file? Make one from the manual, or by hand.
Manual To GDTF
Almost every fixture ships with a PDF manual, and buried in it is a channel table listing exactly what SDC needs to know. Manual To GDTF reads it for you. From a single PDF it pulls out:
- ·The DMX modes your fixture offers, so you can pick the one it is set to
- ·Every channel and what it does, straight from the channel table
- ·Colour wheel slots and their colours, so palettes show the true output colour
- ·Gobo wheel slots
The time difference is the point. Typing in a 14-channel fixture by hand and getting every value range right is an evening's work. Manual To GDTF turns that into a couple of minutes - and you end up with named channels and automatic palettes instead of a row of numbered faders.
Simple GDTF Maker
Sometimes you just want to do it yourself. Four steps:
Set your channel layout and how many channels the fixture uses.
Name each channel with its real function.
Define your colour and gobo wheels.
Save the finished .gdtf file.
What you get out
Both Makers write a standard GDTF file. That matters more than it sounds: the file is not locked to SDC. It follows the same open format every GDTF-capable console and lighting program reads, so the work travels with you.
Inside SDC, a fixture added from your new file behaves like any other GDTF fixture:
- ·Every fader is labelled with its real function, not just a channel number
- ·Colour palettes show the true output colour of each wheel slot
- ·Gobo palettes show the actual shape you will get
- ·Ready-to-use palettes appear the moment the fixture is patched
If your model is missing from the public library, you can upload the file you made to GDTF-Share so the next person searching for it finds it waiting.
What it costs
Simple GDTF Maker
Free, unlimited
It runs locally, so there is nothing to meter.
Manual To GDTF
Two free tokens
An online service that works on tokens. Two free is enough to run it on your own fixtures and judge the result. Extra tokens can be bought inside SDC.
Both Makers open from the Add Fixture screen, right next to where you would normally load a GDTF file. SDC is free in 2-hour sessions, so you can install it and make your first fixture file without paying anything.
Questions
Can I really create a GDTF file from a PDF manual?
Yes. Manual To GDTF reads the channel tables, DMX modes and wheel data out of the manual and writes the file for you.
Do I need an account?
No. The Simple GDTF Maker runs entirely on your PC. Manual To GDTF is an online service with two free tokens included.
Can I use the file in other software?
Yes. Both Makers save a standard .gdtf file - an open format read by other consoles and lighting software, not something proprietary to SDC.
What if my manual is a scan or a photo?
Manual To GDTF works from the text in the PDF, so a picture of a page gives it little to read. Use the Simple GDTF Maker and enter the channels yourself.
Is this the same as the GDTF Builder on GDTF-Share?
The GDTF Builder is a free online tool for writing a file by hand, and worth using if you want to contribute to the public library. SDC's Makers sit inside the software you are already using - and Manual To GDTF is the only one of the three that generates the file from a manual.
Download SDC, open Add Fixture, and point Manual To GDTF at the manual for a fixture you own. Free in 2-hour sessions; unlimited use is $29.99/year.
Download SDC v8.1