kgallen
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Posts posted by kgallen
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I think your settings are correct for what you want to do.
Hopefully @Edward Z88 will confirm!
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On 4/10/2024 at 10:47 AM, Edward Z88 said:
If there is a particular thread you have found that you think it would be helpful for me to jump in, please let me know. Otherwise, I'll just keep a watchful eye out.
Recent example. The respondent has replied to my post quoting a Vari-lite page but still hasn't recognised in respect of the OP being suggested an "FLX-24" that FLX-S range is NOT discontinued as he continues to assert ambiguously. What's worse is kitlane is a UK operator and posts on Blue Room too.
To be frank this is partly down to Zero88 continuing to use unclear/subtly similar product names for quite different products. (I won't mention "Leap Frog"!).
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Note to Z88 folks ( @Edward Z88, @Jon Hole ) and other active members:
It seems on other forums, misinformation is being spread that suggests or states (incorrectly) that all FLX - including FLX S- production has been stopped. Prospective buyers are being dissuaded from FLX S series consoles because they are "discontinued".
I'm rebuffing this where I can, including a link to Jon's original statement at the top of this thread. Please be aware of this misinformation being propagated and do your bit to correct the statements where required.
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No I wouldn’t switch off SmartTag.
The only time SmartTag is a ‘pain’ is when needing to record ‘Effect Off’ going into a blackout. Unless you are a hyper-advanced user, or creating lots of overlayable busking playbacks, SmartTag will be your friend (so I’m not sure it creates ‘more problems than it solves’). What SmartTag does is stop you worrying about what fixture attributes are tagged in order to get them recorded into a cue, there isn’t anything really to ‘understand’ about it. If you turn it off, then you need to be on top of your game with what you want recording.
If what you observe is truly a desk issue then @Edward Z88 needs to be able to reproduce it. I’ve never seen anything like this though in 9 years of having my FLX.
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I’m not sure what in the fixture definition could cause this.
Is this fixture well behaved (I guess I’m asking is it a cheap and nasty one!) - if you use it manually will it fade nicely to zero without doing silly colour things?
If you record cue 1 freshly to a clean playback (say PB6), then use the fader to fade up then down, do you get the same bad behaviour?
What if you assign another playback ad a Grand Master. If you light your fixture with PB6 and then use the GM to fade out is it still badly behaved?
Did you record cue 2 with SmartTag off and change the colour as well as setting intensity to 0 when programming that cue?
Is there a cue 3 with a different colour and did you set the move on dark delay to 0?
just some ideas to try or confirm.
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WTF??????!!!!!
Oh no!
I've known Ian since 1996 when he joined CTS. I bought my Alcora and FLX from him when he was there plus countless other theatre items as I'd hang about his "sweet shop" on a Saturday morning waiting for him to open up. He obviously contributed on this Forum regularly and we were loosely in contact over the years; I gave him my "spares" and he got me a Line Backer.
I had no idea he was ill, or maybe he wasn't and this was a shock event. I'm speechless.
I would also like to convey my sadness and condolences to his family.
Kevin
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Thank you for the updates and roadmap.
The FLX S fixture and universe upgrades are interesting and welcome. I’m working on my local hall moving to FLX S.
However I can’t help but feel a little scared for my own FLX. I hope you are genuinely able to keep supporting and developing for this platform as there is a lot a capability under the hood.
Are you developing a replacement high-end console to supersede FLX or is the Neo-X now that offering? I’ve never seen Neo mentioned outside of Vari-lite - no one on any of the forums I contribute on ever mentions or recommends the product (and neither do I as I know nothing about it). FLX and FLX S do, despite their undoubted reduced market share compared to the ETC offerings.
Thanks,
Kevin
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Oh no! Keith that is such a shame. But we have to all thank you for your many years of tireless support and answering all of our stupid questions.
We will remember you with the ‘KR’ stickers inside of our equipment.
With best wishes for whatever you are moving on to. If it’s still inside the entertainments industry then maybe we’ll see you around. If not, then good escape!
Kevin
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Looks like there is a Test Mode within Setup (SHIFT+MODE):
Setup Mode JesterML Operating Manual
73-406-00 Issue 3.0 59 of 85Test Mode
This option is provided primarily for factory and dealer servicing only. It allows the hardware of the JesterML to be tested in isolation from setup options or programming in the show data, which can be useful in diagnosing some problems.- Pressing a button will display it‟s name on the Main LCD, optionally toggle nearby LEDs, and optionally display the level of a nearby fader.
- The 7-segment displays will show a count pattern
- Wheel levels will be displayed on the wheel LCD.
- The DMX Input and Output ports will be tested (this test may fail if a DMX-Input source is present).
- Shaded colour bar patterns are displayed on the monitor output.
- MIDI test messages are transmitted if MIDI is enabled.
Press ENTER to leave test mode and return to the Setup menu.
Manual:
See also this thread:
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Marco I'm sure it will be something simple - but might be a ribbon cable come loose inside the desk. I expect it will be readily fixable, so don't worry.
I can't find a Service Manual - there will be a test mode that can be enabled from boot that will allow testing of all buttons and faders.
Hopefully Keith @KWR88 will be along shortly to help you diagnose the issue.
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I don’t think you can directly with a UDK (*)
What you need is an Inhibit playback. Record the same lights to another playback (probably you could copy) and then SETUP and set playback as an inhibit. But then I think you’ll have to drag the fader down for the ‘out’ which is not as snappy as just pressing a button.
(*) There might be a convoluted way: create a macro to trigger the above inhibit playback and then set a UDK to trigger the macro.
I’m sure Edward will have a better idea!
ETA: On FLX you can now reconfigure the Blackout fader/button. Probably you could reprogram the Blackout fader/button as an Inhibit for just your above lights then hopefully the Blackout button is your "UDK". (Blackout is usually an Inhibit for the whole lighting rig).
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Adding updated links for Alcora:
https://www.vari-lite.com/global/products/alcora
and Elara:
https://www.vari-lite.com/global/products/elara
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That all sounds in order. If your trigger cue only has the macro trigger and no other lights recorded then I’d expect fade times all to be blank.
The next (or maybe a later) cue in your main stack will be a Release of PB1 to stop the effect.
I’m not sure why your trigger is not happening. I’m assuming you are viewing and GO on your main cue stack. Maybe there are some other playback settings that are not default. I’ll have to defer to Edward for what other settings you should check.
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36 minutes ago, rickw said:
Ah ok. Can you point me towards some info on those settings?
Do they need to be set before you programme the show?
Yes. If you start recording your cue stack with snapshots then these cues will just take control of everything, stopping you overlaying your effects just on certain fixtures. There is an Unblock feature so probably if you have cues recorded, you can Unblock the whole cue stack to allow you to do the overlaying you want.
Hopefully Edward will clarify for Solution.
You should take a look at some of these training videos on Record and Tagging. Ok they use FLX but you will have the same features on Solution but they keys will be different. I’m assuming you’re on pretty recent ZerOS version. -
What you want should be easy. But you will need to be in Tracking mode. If you use Snapshot then you won’t achieve what you want.
Tracking mode plus SmartTag on should automatically just record the fixtures you want to change and leave everything else alone. It should just work.
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What you did should work and is the right approach - ie create a playback with a sequence of cues. Maybe convert to Chase.
Then in the main stack trigger and release that playback to get your effect. That is indeed the neatest and the best way.
We need to work out what’s going wrong with your special playback recording…
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That’s strange - I’ve rigged Strand Quartet F in my own Capture designs. Your Quartet PC will be in there somewhere. You must be looking in the wrong place or your search is too specific, or that you don’t have a Capture license is stopping you finding their full library of fixtures.
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1 hour ago, frostyboy said:
Although I still can't find Strand Quartet in the fixtures list!
Well you won’t, it’s not in there. Generic tungsten lanterns are just patched as Dimmer, they don’t need any other information for the console.
The same way you’ll never find ETC Source 4 in there or CCT Minuette or Strand Prelude. The console doesn’t talk to these types of fixture over DMX, it talks to a dimmer. The console couldn’t care less what type of generic lantern you plug into that dimmer output, it can only dim it.
If the fixture were more complex, say an LED, then the console needs to know which channel is red, which green, etc, which channel is the strobe. If it’s a mover then it needs to know the pan and tilt controls etc. In that case you have to find the correct fixture definition (and mode) so the FLX knows how to control all of the parameters of that light. None of this is required for a generic light which can just go on or off.
If you were building a design in Capture then you would look up Strand Quartet PC in their library so that Capture knows what beam angle the light supports, if it has a barn door, what gel colour is in it, what it’s luminous intensity is compared to other lights in the rig, so it can model it. But from the FLX point of view it’s just a dimmer channel.
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All the stuff you need for Dock House is on this page - there is a section ‘Capture Files’ including instructions to get it working:
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A Strand Quartet would be just patched as Dimmer. All conventional lights just patch as Dimmer as they only have intensity control. You can rename within the Fixture Schedule if you’d like to see a different name (eg ‘DSL’) in the Output Window.
In Capture you will pull up a Strand Quartet PC so it has the correct focus and photometric data.
Re Dock House I think you have to download a package from the Zero88 website, I can’t remember I’ll have a hunt. I’m sure it says in Edward’s video.
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3 hours ago, frostyboy said:
I did record the 2 lights to a user defined key and that works perfectly to manually flash the lights.
I do that a lot for transient lightning type effects, nothing wrong with that approach. The reason this works is that when you stop pressing the UDK it does a "release" operation that allows the lights to be re-controlled by whatever other cue stack is active.
3 hours ago, frostyboy said:What would be perfect though would be if I knew how to create my own 'effect' so that it was exactly how I wanted it instead of the preset lightning effect.
I'm sure there is a way, maybe with waveforms, but it is beyond my early use ability. Kor maybe a macro!)
Since there is no "visualiser" for the Waveform engine this is hard. I've only had limited success. You really need the lights there so you can see what is happening. A usability improvement for the Waveform Generator is long overdue for the console, Z88 have been promising something for a long time now but as yet nothing has materialised (and it's #2 request here:
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In this case one of the presets is probably the most practical approach, but use the Speed and Size to try and get it to work with the right feel. We need to encourage the Z88 folk to build in more effects presets like strobes and explosion type effects. But also to continue to include effects that support tungsten and not just newer LED fixtures. Your requirements aren't unreasonable or uncommon and I feel this is harder than it should be with such an advanced console.
3 hours ago, frostyboy said:I've been using Phantom to try and familiarise myself with the board, but it is very limiting not being able to see the results of the settings (like on Edward's videos) without the Dock house Capture, which I assume costs a fortune.
You can use the Dock House setup with Capture for free but if you want to design your own rigs then you have to buy Capture, which I think starts close to £400 for a Solo license. I bought a license a few years back (Capture 2019), but honestly I don't get on with it very well, I find it very un-user-friendly and clunky. Edward swears by it though...!
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You could use a chase and set Shots to 3 or 4 (or a multiple of depending on your sequence).
Lightning effect might be too quick for tungsten.
If you use an effect your follow cue needs to programme No Effect. If you are using SmartTag and set your effect lights to 0 intensity this No Effect won’t record. So make that cue then go back in with Update, select fixtures and No Effect then turn off Smart Tag for that update. If you’ve recorded later cues make sure Track Forwards is also enabled in that Update.
This behaviour of SmartTag and No Effect is well known as a PITA even though the console is behaving consistently with the definition of SmartTag.
Your other comments on programming do suggest you’re making life needlessly complicated though, no wonder you feel confused.
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Change permanently or temporarily?
I think your main options are to select the fixtures/group and then tap the palette so this is in the programmer (enable programmer time if you want this to fade). To keep this use UPDATE to change in the cue, or alternatively RECORD this into another playback and then use this LTP to override the colours in the running playback.
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Which takes preference?
in FLX
Posted
Not that I know of. I think this is due to the software needing to detect press-and-release versus press-and-hold so it uses the ‘falling edge’ to detect a press-and-release event.
Of course I don’t actually know but this would be a typical approach in software (or hardware) where the button has multiple functions.
Does the master go behave like this? Compared to the other playbacks.
I rarely use the Go of other playbacks so maybe the master go works on the downward press? Sorry, a little off topic…