The NovaStar MCTRL660 is an LED display controller with one SL-DVI input, one HDMI 1.3 input and one audio input, four Gigabit Ethernet outputs, and a maximum input resolution of 1920×1200@60Hz. Each Ethernet port drives up to 650,000 pixels, a screen can be configured from the front panel in about 30 seconds without a computer, and up to 20 MCTRL660 units can be cascaded from a single source.

This page is a complete NovaStar MCTRL660 guide: verified specifications from NovaStar’s official MCTRL660 specification sheet (V1.4.5), a plain-English explanation of the loading capacity, the manual, firmware and NovaLCT downloads, step-by-step setup, indicator-light meanings, price factors, common problems and the exact differences between the MCTRL660 and the MCTRL660 Pro.

In short: the MCTRL660 suits a screen that runs from one 1920×1200 source and stays within the capacity of the controller, or of a cascade of up to 20 units. If you need 3G-SDI, 10G optical outputs, Genlock or web-based control, compare it with the MCTRL660 Pro first. If your screen is smaller and only needs one DVI source, the NovaStar MCTRL300 usually costs less.

The NovaStar MCTRL660 is a standalone LED display controller, also described as a sending box or master controller. It converts a video signal into the data that LED receiving cards need, and sends that data to the screen over Gigabit Ethernet. NovaStar’s own MCTRL660 LED Display Controller Specifications document, version V1.4.5 released on 2026-04-17, describes one SL-DVI input, one HDMI 1.3 input, one audio input, four Gigabit Ethernet outputs, USB control from a PC and UART cascading for up to 20 devices.

Because it is a controller rather than an all-in-one video processor, the MCTRL660 has no built-in media player, no switching between several live sources and no network control page. NovaStar lists rental and fixed installations, concerts, live events, security monitoring centres, the Olympic Games and sports centres as its main applications. Those limits decide which screens it can drive, and they are explained in sections 2 and 3.

Key roles of the MCTRL660 controller:

• Accepts video from a PC, media server, camera or switcher over DVI or HDMI
• Processes and scales the signal for the LED screen resolution
• Sends the processed image data to LED screen modules through four Gigabit Ethernet ports
• Configures the screen without a computer, using the front-panel knob and LCD in about 30 seconds
• Supports pixel-level brightness and chroma calibration with NovaStar’s calibration tools

Every value in the table below comes from NovaStar’s MCTRL660 LED Display Controller Specifications, document version V1.4.5, released on 2026-04-17, and from the matching MCTRL660 LED Display Controller User Manual V1.4.5. Note that specification V1.4.4, released on 2025-06-11, updated the resolution information, so older reseller listings still quote 1920×1080@60Hz for the HDMI input.

The honest answer has two numbers, and third-party listings usually quote only one of them.

• Port capacity: each of the four Gigabit Ethernet ports carries up to 650,000 pixels, so the four ports together are rated for 2.6 million pixels of data.
• Practical ceiling for one controller: the picture cannot exceed the input format, and the MCTRL660 accepts up to 1920×1200@60Hz, which is about 2.3 million pixels. That is where the 2.3 million figure in many datasheet summaries comes from.
• 10-bit and 12-bit sources: NovaStar’s user manual states that a 10-bit or 12-bit input cuts the loading capacity in half, because the extra colour depth uses part of the same bandwidth.

For a real project, add the numbers up per port rather than per controller: divide the screen into four data groups that each stay at or below 650,000 pixels, then check that the source resolution is at or below 1920×1200. If the screen needs more pixels than one 1920×1200 source, the usual solutions are a larger controller such as the MCTRL1600, a video processor such as the VX1000 Pro, or several MCTRL660 units cascaded from one source.

The MCTRL660 rear panel has three groups of connectors. The numbers below follow the official specifications document, and the front panel is shown in the photo above.

• Inputs: 1x SL-DVI (up to 1920×1200@60Hz) and 1x HDMI 1.3 (up to 1920×1200@60Hz, HDCP 1.4) plus 1x audio input. There is no DisplayPort input and no SDI input on the standard MCTRL660 – SDI appears on the MCTRL660 Pro instead.
• Outputs: 4x RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet for LED data, with redundancy between ports, plus 1x HDMI and 1x SL-DVI output used to cascade to the next controller.
• Control: 1x USB Type-B (USB 2.0) to a PC for NovaLCT configuration, and UART IN / OUT ports to cascade up to 20 controllers.

The MCTRL660 Pro is the newer, more capable member of the same family, and it answers two questions people ask constantly: what the Pro adds, and whether the two are interchangeable. They are not. The Pro adds an SDI input, two 10G optical outputs, Genlock, web control and image mirroring, while the standard MCTRL660 keeps the simpler four-port layout.

How to choose: pick the MCTRL660 if your content comes from one DVI or HDMI source and the screen fits inside a 1920×1200 picture. Pick the MCTRL660 Pro if you need SDI, optical transmission, Genlock, image mirroring or a browser-based control page. The MCTRL660 Pro listing in our own store lists the full port layout if you want to compare them side by side.

The MCTRL660 is configured with NovaStar’s NovaLCT software, and the controller and its receiving cards each have their own firmware. Use the links below to download the documents and files from our own server, then follow section 5 to configure the screen.

• MCTRL660 specification sheet (PDF): MCTRL660 LED Display Controller Specifications V1.4.3 – the table in section 2 follows the newer official V1.4.5 document.
• MCTRL660 firmware: DATA_MCTRL660_V4.7.4.0.STD. Update the controller only after reading the release notes that come with the file.
• MCTRL660 Pro documents: MCTRL660 Pro specifications (PDF) and MCTRL660 Pro firmware.
• NovaLCT software: the current version and the full version archive are on our NovaLCT download page, and older builds are listed on the NovaStar LED control software download page.
• Receiving card files: cabinet configuration files are usually supplied as RCFG or RCFGX files – see our RCFG and RCFGX file page if you cannot find the file for your cabinet.

The official user manual covers the menu tree, the front-panel button functions, screen configuration without a computer, NovaLCT operation, firmware upgrades and every connector pin-out, so keep a copy with the controller when the screen travels.

A first-time MCTRL660 setup follows the same five steps whether you configure the screen from the front panel or from a laptop.

Connect the laptop, media server, camera or switcher to the DVI or HDMI input of the MCTRL660. Set the source output to 1920×1200@60Hz or lower and make sure it is a progressive signal, because interlaced signals are not accepted. If you chain several MCTRL660 units, take the HDMI or DVI output of the first controller into the input of the next one.

Run Cat5e or Cat6 cables from the four Ethernet ports to the receiving cards in the cabinets. Keep each port at or below 650,000 pixels, and remember that a 10-bit or 12-bit source halves that figure. For very long runs, or where a cable could be damaged on stage, a fiber converter or the optical ports of the MCTRL660 Pro are the safer option.

Install NovaLCT on the PC, connect the controller with the USB cable, then open NovaLCT and let it detect the device. If the software does not list the controller, try another USB port or cable, close other software that may be holding the port, and confirm the receiving card configuration files are installed.

In NovaLCT, enter the screen size, the cabinet layout, the data group of each port, the receiving card type and the refresh rate. The MCTRL660 does not set the refresh rate by itself: the value the screen reaches depends on the receiving cards and the pixel load on each port, so a heavily loaded port lowers the achievable refresh rate. When the layout is correct, save the configuration and send it to the controllers.

Play test content, check the indicators on the front panel, and confirm the screen is not showing a split or repeated image. Save a copy of the configuration file so the same screen can be restored quickly on the next event.

Once the screen works, the MCTRL660 gives you the controls an LED wall normally needs on site. Brightness can be adjusted from the front panel, which is faster than opening a laptop when the stage lighting changes.

Inside NovaLCT the image settings cover brightness, contrast, saturation, hue and colour temperature. Gamma is adjustable, and the controller supports 18-bit grayscale processing, which helps low-brightness detail stay smooth instead of banding on gradients.

For screens that mix cabinets from different batches, pixel-level brightness and chroma calibration removes the visible colour difference between modules. Calibration is done on the bench with NovaStar’s calibration tools and the results are stored on the receiving cards, so the screen keeps its correction as it travels.

The three front-panel indicators tell you what the controller is doing before you open any software.

The LCD screen next to the indicators shows the menus, the current input resolution and the messages used during screen configuration, so a slow-flashing RUN light combined with a blank input reading points straight at the source rather than at the cabinets.

The MCTRL660 price moves with the market rather than with a fixed list price, so treat any single figure you see online with care. Four things change the number you are actually quoted: whether the seller still holds stock of the standard MCTRL660 or has moved to the MCTRL660 Pro, the accessories and cables included in the box, the warranty and support offered, and shipping, duty and tax for your country.

Our own store lists the current-generation Pro model at a published price, which makes it the simplest reference point: the NovaStar MCTRL660 Pro is listed there with its price and the full specification. For the standard MCTRL660, ask for a current quotation rather than relying on an old listing, because remaining stock and hardware revisions vary between suppliers.

Value check before you buy: confirm that the controller you are offered has the connectors your content needs (DVI or HDMI, SDI on the Pro), that the pixel capacity covers the screen with the bit depth you will use, and that the supplier can provide the specification sheet, the user manual and firmware for the exact version they ship.

• The RUN light flashes slowly and the screen stays black. That pattern means the controller sees no usable video input. Check the cable, the source resolution and the refresh rate of the source, and remember that interlaced signals are rejected.
• Part of the screen is dark or repeats. The data groups in NovaLCT do not match the way the cabinets are cabled. Re-map each Ethernet port so that no port exceeds 650,000 pixels, then resend the configuration.
• Colours look different after a 10-bit or 12-bit source is connected. A 10-bit or 12-bit input halves the loading capacity, so a port that was full at 8-bit is now overloaded. Reduce the pixels per port or switch the source back to 8-bit.
• NovaLCT does not detect the controller. Try another USB port and cable, unplug other USB devices, and check that the NovaLCT version you installed supports the firmware on the controller.
• The screen tears or flickers on long cable runs. Ethernet data is reliable up to its rated distance, and beyond that the answer is optical transmission – either a fiber converter or the optical outputs of the MCTRL660 Pro.
• You want to add a 21st controller to the chain. Cascading stops at 20 devices, so the 21st needs its own video path.

The NovaStar MCTRL660 remains a practical controller for rental and fixed LED screens that work from a single DVI or HDMI source: four Gigabit Ethernet ports at 650,000 pixels each, setup from the front panel in about 30 seconds, cascading up to 20 units, and a specification sheet that has been kept current through version V1.4.5. Its limits are just as clear – no SDI, no optical output, no web control and a 1920×1200@60Hz input ceiling.

If those limits match your screen, the MCTRL660 is the straightforward choice. If your project needs SDI, fiber transmission, genlocked cameras or browser-based control, the MCTRL660 Pro covers those cases in the same rack format. Tell us the screen size, the pixel pitch and the source format you plan to use, and we will confirm which controller and which receiving cards fit the job.