Control apparatus for controlling an aspect of an apparatus are disclosed. In certain embodiments, the control apparatus comprises a dimmer that includes a variable impedance. In certain embodiments of the invention, the dimmer may be a TRIAC dimmer having a voltage at a gate electrode of the TRIAC that is always below a trigger voltage for the TRIAC such that the TRIAC never turns on and the remaining components within the TRIAC dimmer can be used as discreet components in a larger circuit. In the control apparatus, the dimmer may be coupled to a signal generation circuit that may generate an output signal whose frequency (period) is dictated at least in part by an impedance of the variable impedance. The output signal may be used to control an aspect of an apparatus such as the intensity, color or color temperature for a lighting apparatus.