kgallen

If you're competent to do so, can you open the unit and check the jumper that sets the max current draw for the unit is still in place? On a UK unit this limits the total current draw across the channels to ensure 13A is not exceeded. Just an idea I don't know this is the cause. Otherwise try directly emailing: keithrogers@eaton.com

Have you got a DMX terminator on the end of the line? If you have multiple chains have you used an active DMX splitter? Even with a 'poor' fixture this problem seems strange. Can you try the fixtures one at a time with a short cable from the desk and note the results?

Try setting your problem fixtures to a high DMX address, so they are forced to read the whole DMX packet. However what's interesting about this is that the FLX* will be sending out a full 512 channel DMX packet so the refresh rate is naturally as low as it can be (without adding padding to the break). Maybe the entec sent short packets (maybe up the the top address used?) and thus the "refresh rate" was changed to emulate full 512 channel packets. If the fixtures can't take a fully formed 512 channel DMX packet then they must be *really* rough! Even "off the web" Arduino DMX receiver code isn't that bad!

If I understand you correctly, you have RGB LED tape and the driver (not really "controller") is 3 channel. This is fine, you can have a "virtual intensity" channel - so 4 channels on your lighting desk and 3 DMX channels to the driver. There will be an RGB+virtual intensity already in the fixture library, or just build one in the Fixture Editor. Or attached which is one I built myself for RGB LED tape: led_rgb_vi.ift

Thanks Edward, I'll give that a go. I'll have a think if there is any move on dark impact but I don't think so with a simple rotator. Cheers, Kevin

Hi Jon, Regards my ongoing query about how to handle gobo rotators that only have a beamshape attribute and thus not getting recorded with SmartTag, do you think that adding an intensity channel to the gobo rotator fixture definition and defaulting this to 100%/255 would be the best workaround? Can you see any downside of this "phantom" intensity channel? Could it be a virtual intensity channel that wasn't set to scale any other parameter or is that a "fudge" too far? The other way would be to create a composite fixture with a lantern/dimmer as we'd do with a colour scroller. Regards, Kevin

It's possibly how the fixture is defined - in the Fixture Editor Beamshape->Detail there is an "Is Dark" checkbox and maybe this overrides Intensity=0?

See ‘Output window colours’ post 2 down from yours.

Hi guys, Just interested in any fault diagnosis on this one if it's shareable. Thanks, Kevin

I also found the 7.9.3 PhantomOS (FLX mode) sometimes doesn't draw the Front Panel window - just get a black panel, no buttons etc. This is on my work laptop (shhhh...) which is a relatively high spec Dell Ultrabook i7. I don't know if this has been seen by others. Have to close down PhantomOS and start it again.

Emmanuel, I'm going off topic with Jon a little now, please ignore! Hi Jon, My only experience with the 2-way fader setting was as below, when Edward and I found a playback lockup bug. As you've confirmed with your analysis and report above this is not relevant to Emmanuel's scenario. Regards, Kevin

Hi Emmanuel, The Go button will fade on the basis of the fade settings in the cue. If you have those fade times (up/down/colour) etc set to 0s then they will snap. If these values are non-zero then the crossfade should be dipless between the two lighting states. Note that cue 1 by default is set with fade times of 0s; the default for other cues in the stack is 3s. Of course you can change all of these on a cue-by-cue basis. However it sounds to me like you might be using a playback in "2-way fader" mode (that's on FLX, I assume also on FLX-S series), which you would have set with Setup+MFF button menu. I would also expect that to follow the up/down/colour set in the cues, since that fader mode is just a different way to trigger and release cues in playbacks. However I do know there is a bug (certainly in 7.9.3) with 2-way fader mode but that was it locking up rather than exhibiting the symptoms you describe. Can you upload your showfile here then someone can take a look at it and give you some feedback on how it looks? Regards, Kevin

Hi Emmanuel, If you just record a sequence of cues into a playback this will just happen naturally: set up lighting state RECORD set up next lighting state RECORD set up next lighting state RECORD etc Then when you're done you use the GO button to step through this cue list. Is this your work flow or are you using some other method? Kevin

I guessed my words would be pretty useless and that you would have tried absolutely everything, whilst screaming "Wha' the f**?", I know I would have been! I hope you get sorted for the show and that there is an explanation and easy fix! Good luck!

Hi Rob, 3 years on Zero88 kit since a few years back - but I'd be very surprised if Zero88 didn't help out regardless. Where are you geographically, can anyone else help? I'm Bristol/South Wales area, but I think you're West Yorks? Have you phoned Jon? Could you get a loaner desk tomorrow? Have you power cycled the desk? Unplugged the keyboard and other USB stuff? Kevin ETA: I see from BlueRoom that you could be sorted (assuming your house power supply is ok...). Have you got a UPS you could put in-line as some protection? Seems remote "moral support" is about the best I can give!

There is a "Page Holdover" function. Probably within the Setup+Playback-button settings or maybe the general Setup. I think it's the same question as this one in the FLX forum:

Thanks Rob. Sorry for the "Noddy" questions, I know you're no beginner with the desk! Over to the Z88 guys... If I get chance I'll try and create a setup this week with some LEDs and see what I get. Kevin

Hi Rob, I’d expect this to be the colour fade times of the cues in the playback where the sequence is recorded. Are you finding this not the case? if you split the playback into non chase cues can you run the cue stack with fades as expected? Are you on 7.9.3? Kevin

Is this it? https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1741/5055/files/pixelstorm-cob_manual_rev_a.pdf?9282580857687819222 It's got 8 different modes, one is 68 channels. Is there a particular mode you're interested in before we spend the time coding them all up? Is there a particular way you intend to use this fixture that might guide how we structure the fixture? So, you say you've got 12 of them and using the 68 channel profile would thus require 816 DMX channels, and you can only address 512 with a Fat Frog, so you're not going to be able to do full pixel control with this desk (wonderful though it is...). Have you had a go at using the Zero88 fixture tools to define this fixture and thus tune it to your intended use cases? http://support.zero88.com/Consoles/ORB-XF/975405071/Fixture-Tools.htm

Post a link to the manual in the Fixtures forum and it shall appear!

Jon's offline now, I'll have a go before he comes back and explains properly. I think you've got the desk modes slightly inside out. This is my understanding from asking similar questions: Non-tracking = snapshot = record everything always. Like Full mode on the Frog series if you had one of those and how most "basic" memory desks operate. This generally works fine if you've only got generics/dimmer channels. Basic tracking = Tracking + SmartTag on (SmartTag=record changes for fixtures with intensity>0%). Unless you're doing something special and you're using the desk in say a theatre, then you'll probably live in this mode as "it just works". Advanced tracking = Tracking with SmartTag off -> user has to manually control all tagging and thus is in full control of what gets recorded. So far I've not had to go here... Kevin

Ah ok, I see, it's a multifixture/composite bar. Good clarification, Jon....

(OP - please ignore this comment for now please see Jon's query below). Well if you want individual control of each spot, then each spot needs a unique DMX start address. For example spot 1 is DMX=1, spot 2 is DMX=15, spot 3 is DMX=29, spot 4 is DMX=43 - or any addresses that are separated by at least 14 because your spots need 14 addresses in their 14 channel mode. No spot can have a start address above 499 because all 14 addresses need to fit within DMX channel numbers up to 512. If you give them all the same DMX address they will all do the same thing as they are seeing and responding to the same instructions. Have I understood your question correctly?

I think it means that if a playback is active (MFF is up), then if you change playbacks page, that MFF continues to function as per the original playback page. When you release that playback, the MFF will then move to relate to the current page. Kevin

That's useful to know, although SmartTag works so well I haven't needed to run scared back to a non-tracked mode. I often ended up back in full mode on the Fat Frog when partial scared the bejeezus out of me!