What is ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls) and what does its website cover?

Updated

ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls, Inc.) is a lighting company that makes fixtures and control equipment for theatre, film and TV studios, architectural spaces, and the entertainment industry. Its website, etcconnect.com, is both a product catalog and a support portal: you can browse product lines, download manuals, datasheets and software, watch training videos, and find the regional site for your part of the world. Use it when you need to identify what ETC makes, locate technical documentation for a specific product, or find training and support resources.

What ETC makes

The site organizes its catalog around these product families:

  • Entertainment fixtures — stage and studio lighting
  • Architectural fixtures — lighting for built spaces
  • Automated fixtures — moving lights and similar
  • Entertainment controls — lighting consoles and control equipment
  • Architectural systems — installed control systems for buildings
  • Commercial lighting systems
  • Power controls
  • Networking
  • Rigging systems
  • Distribution
  • Horticultural systems
  • Atmospherics

The company describes itself as providing "lighting solutions, control equipment for Theater, Film & TV studios, Architectural spaces and entertainment industries," so the catalog spans both performance venues and permanent architectural installations.

What the website covers

Product and technical resources

The support section is the practical core of the site for anyone specifying or operating ETC gear. It includes:

  • Product support pages
  • Articles
  • Professional services
  • Manual search
  • Datasheet search
  • Software downloads
  • User forums
  • ETC apps
  • Training video tutorials
  • Online training

If you are looking for the manual or datasheet for a particular fixture or console, the dedicated search tools are the fastest route rather than browsing the product catalog.

Company and project information

The About section covers ETC's story, news, an events calendar, a project portfolio, management information, an image library, a drawing library, philanthropy, and diversity at ETC. The drawing library and image library are useful if you need dimensional drawings or product imagery for a specification or presentation.

Regional and language entry points

The site splits into regions — North America, Latin America, Eastern Europe, Europe/Middle East & Africa, Asia, Australia, and France — each with its own country list and language selector. The default view is North America | English. Choosing your region matters because it determines which local contact and market information you see.

When the site is the right place to look

  • You need documentation for an ETC product. Go to the manual or datasheet search rather than the general product pages.
  • You are specifying a system for a theatre, studio, or architectural project and want to see the relevant product family and drawing resources.
  • You want training. Video tutorials and online training are listed under Support & Training.
  • You need the right regional contact. Use the region selector before relying on any contact or market detail.

One caveat: the site lists an "upgrade" keyword and a "Buy American" page, but it does not publish prices or state that resources are free or require no login. Treat pricing and access conditions as things to confirm directly rather than assume.