At this year’s CEDIA Expo/CIX, Liteline is raising the bar (booth #4334) for smart residential lighting. While DMX has long been known as a reliable standard in theatrical and commercial applications, Liteline is introducing a breakthrough that redefines how their fixtures work within DMX-controlled environments — making it easier than ever to achieve dynamic, tunable color in the home.
We sat down with the Liteline team to talk about this exciting innovation, the evolution of lighting control in the home, and what integrators can expect on the show floor.
CE Pro: Liteline is already well-regarded in commercial lighting. What’s driving your push into the home integration space?
Liteline: While we’re a newer name in the AV and smart home integration channel, we’ve spent decades manufacturing high-performance downlights and track lighting for commercial and residential projects across North America. Our fixtures are known for their quality, aesthetic appeal, and ease of installation. With smart homes becoming more sophisticated, we saw an opportunity to bring that same innovation and reliability into integrated residential lighting systems.
CE Pro: In your view, what sets truly exceptional lighting design apart?
Liteline: We always say: we make the paintbrushes — the designers are the artists. Our role is to empower them with the tools to make a space come alive. That means delivering fixtures that are discreet yet powerful — small apertures, tight beam angles, and deep regress to minimize glare. Lighting should enhance textures, materials, and spatial intent, not distract from it. Done well, it’s almost invisible — until you turn it off and realize what you’re missing.
CE Pro: What is Liteline showcasing at CEDIA this year — and how does it relate to color control?
Liteline: This year at CEDIA, we’re showcasing full-color RGBTW fixtures that are paired with DMX controls for seamless integration into smart home systems. These fixtures bring dynamic color capabilities — from rich RGB accents to tunable white — all within compact, high-output designs.
We’re also demonstrating how our fixtures dim smoothly and reliably across the entire spectrum. DMX allows for granular control and avoids the flickering, dropout, and other issues that often come with traditional dimming methods. It’s a robust, proven protocol that brings professional-grade color control into the residential space — without the complexity.
CE Pro: What’s unique about Liteline’s approach to DMX? Haven’t DMX solutions existed for years?
Liteline: Yes, DMX has been around for decades — but most residential implementations have relied on constant voltage systems, which are fundamentally limited. In those setups, the system fades voltage levels across channels, meaning you can’t control current precisely. The result? Less efficient power use, limited output, and reduced flexibility when trying to balance color output — especially when mixing RGB with white light.
Liteline is taking a different approach. We’ve introduced constant current DMX decoders, which allow for precise power allocation to each individual channel. That means, for example, we can drive 10 watts to the white channel for crisp general illumination, while simultaneously running just 2 watts each to red, green, and blue for subtle accenting — all within the same DMX universe.
This unlocks new performance levels from compact fixtures. We’re now able to deliver powerful, high-lumen output (1000–2000 lumens) in RGBTW COB (chip-on-board) point sources — all packaged in our best-in-class downlights and track heads. These fixtures maintain a small, architectural footprint while delivering rich, full-spectrum color tuning and smooth dimming from 100% to 0% — no flicker, no dropout.
CE Pro: How does this impact integrators and homeowners?
Liteline: For integrators, this is a game-changer. It’s a robust, DMX-based solution that natively integrates with existing control systems, bypassing the frustration of trying to dim LEDs using outdated methods. Designers gain granular control to create layered, nuanced lighting scenes.
For homeowners, the payoff is high-performance lighting that feels effortless — theatrical-quality environments that are stable, smart, and stunning.
CE Pro: Final word — what would you say to integrators coming to CEDIA?
Liteline: Come see us. We’re excited to show you how we’re making it easier to deliver sophisticated, beautifully controlled lighting within the smart home ecosystem. With our constant current DMX integration, integrators can offer clients an experience that’s technically advanced but refreshingly straightforward.
