Davidmk
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Posts posted by Davidmk
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That depends on the fixture. A lot of fixtures have a display that shows their address when they are powered up - these are the the easy ones. Some have displays but show nothing when they are powered up (or they display something that isn't the address) - these you will have to go into the menu on the fixture and find the address. Lastly there are ones without a display that have a row of tiny 'DIP' switches - these actually represent the address in binary, usually with the least significant bit on the left.
It really is a nightmare and I'm pretty sure you will be saving your showfile at every turn in future.
One thought, is the desk used by anyone else who might have saved a showfile? If so, you can load that - there are options for how much of it you want to load or you can .old the whole lot and delete stuff you don't want.
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Press the button in the middle of the wheel - see manual here for details. Only learned this myself in the last few weeks 😀
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1 hour ago, DALX said:
Then put a label on the fixtures.
Definitely!
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It's tedious to do but it might be possible to work out what channels the fixture uses and in what order then match that to one of the four models.
Basically, starting with an empty patch, you assign the fixture as as series of dimmers so if the fixture's address is 100 and the maximum number of parameters is 10 you assign 10 dimmers starting at 100 to channels 1 through 10. It might help to assign a few more than the maximum you expect in case your variation has extra ones.
Then, in channel mode, put all channels to full and start playing with them.
If you can, get the fixture near to the desk and listen as well as watching you should be able to hear a colour or gobo wheel rotating for example).
The first one to try and find is the dimmer so that you get some light out of the fixture. What makes this difficult is that other parameters may affect light output. In your case, we already know that the dimmer channel needs to be below 100% to get output.
Remember there may be 16bit parameters so while if one channel makes a bit difference for a small change (e.g. the fixture pans) the change effected by the next one may make a small difference for a big change - so small that you can't see it.
Shutter and control parameters are the worst as they often have multiple positions that stop light output so full on and full off might both be dark. Pan and tilt are probably the easiest because you don't need output to see those. Auto programs and effects can throw spanners in the works because you can get all sorts of responses on those parameters.
I've had a look at one of the manuals and in that version shutter values below 3% (DMX 7) would block output. In your case it appears there is a colour wheel but in the case of colour mixing fixtures at least one of the RGB etc parameters needs to be non-zero. Non LED fixtures probably have values that turn the lamp off.
All these things and more make this a trial and error option - it might help to get as many variations of the manual as you can to inform your experiments but be open to the possibilty that you don't have the one you need.
It may prove too difficult to identify which model you have but it's worth a go if you have the patience. Just don't give up too early, it's a bit like trying to open a combination lock when you've forgotten the combination.
Good luck.
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I'd go for the playback option then because these are like scenes in a show and you probably want to fade between them. Set up a playback with the 4 cues in it as if it was a show with fade times. You only need the 4 cues. Then go to setup/triggers and set the 1st 4 remote switches to execute a cue each. Test it from a USB keyboard using Ctrl/F1 to Ctrl/F4 including going from "show" to "doors open/interval" and FUF to "doors open/interval". Job's a good 'un (hopefully)
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4 hours ago, Edward Z88 said:
If it was me, I would probably go down the route of triggering cues from a "hidden" playback with the remote switches
Me too because the UDKs can all be active at the same time but cues in a playback "replace" each other. Does depend on what you are trying to achieve though and you might need to dedicate one switch to releasing the playback.
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3 hours ago, Jon Hole said:
We’re still working on tidying it up, so performance might improve.
Of course, still a work in progress. Not exactly in sync shouldn't be an issue. After all, with incandescents, the actual time the light stopped varied between lamp types. I'll wait and see.
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12 minutes ago, Jon Hole said:
you don’t see the same speed and responsiveness that you do with DMX based luminaires.
That's a shame but I can still see it being useful, maybe not so much for prop fittings that need to go on or off on cue but it could still be good for dressing.
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I think I'm mildly excited by this development.
I get artists arrive with decorative lighting that has non-dimmable LEDs or which need ballast - I can see this being a simple way to control intensity and, more importantly, colour, from the desk, with just a change of lamp. Then there's all the hassles of prop fittings.
I wouldn't have asked for it but I can see ways I might exploit it depending, of course, on how it is actually implemented. Looking forward to getting full details. Look out Budapest Cafe Orchestra
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Have you had the case open? I opened mine up because I had a screen issue and suspected something coming loose through vibration in transit. Anyway, when you separate the bottom of the case from the top it is possible to dislodge a ribbon cable that runs a from board mounted on the front panel to one in the base. When it happened to me, I had symptoms similar to those you describe although they did show up in test mode. Relocating the ribbon cable fixed them. Might be worth checking if you have already dabbled in the internals.
Edward is away at ProSound ATM, back next week. You could, of course, email support@zero88.com if you are in a hurry.
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1 hour ago, Edward Z88 said:
On FLX S, there is no graphical information to tell you which cues use effects
I'm a FLX user so not always aware of restrictions on FLX S but @Edward Z88 has pointed out that there's no blind mode on the S series. However, the PDF does suggest that Source will tell you what is currently controlling the intensity of each fixture and, if you select fixtures, the Parameter Table will tell you if any parameters reference pallettes and which ones. Not sure if this applies to effects palletes, Edwards reply suggests it doesn't but I think I should leave Edward to deal with this from here on as this is getting into unfamiliar territory for me and I don't want to mislead you.
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I think the answer to this one is in your other (meaning of colours) thread. Check the PDF @Edward Z88 sent you there under "Intensities / Source buttons" and "Parameter Table".
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1 minute ago, Holger said:
I thought I have OS version 7.8.1.2
You're not the first, and I guess you won't be the last to get caught by that one 🙂
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Reading through the steps you say you took I think you may have missed something.
The steps (from the release notes here) are...
Consoles running ZerOS 7.8.3 or later.
To perform the update:
- Download the software from the Zero 88 website ( zero88.com/zeros )
- Unzip the download and save the .exe file onto a USB stick (don’t put it inside any folders)
- Plug the USB stick into your console
- Press SETUP to enter the console’s setup screen and choose “Load” on the monitor
- Select the file from the list displayed on screen and follow the onscreen instructions
- Once the update is complete, remove the USB Memory Stick and reboot the desk-
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16 minutes ago, Edward Z88 said:
From a support point of view, adding the ability to disable the channel faders sounds like a potential headache.
I can definitely see that point. Something (anything) to draw attention to the change or current state would be good. You (or at least I) don't think clearly when caught out by this.
I'll leave this with you. You are clever folk who probably have better ideas and certainly a better appreciation of how welcome a change in this area would be.
Thanks for listening though.
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OK, so maybe I'm the only one this has happened to but...
A few times I have had a near meltdown panic because MFFs are not doing what they should, generally they are doing nothing in fact. Once I've got my hear rate under control I start going through things logically and, very near the bottom of my list is the channels/playbacks status.
You see I never use channels, I select fixtures through touch screen or keypad and, where necessary, set intensities in the keypad. So my faders should always be in playback.
However, somehow, probably when writing on the traditional strips of LX tape above the top faders, I accidentally touch the button. The only time I need the channels/playback button is with clear to release all playbacks.
Would it be terrible to want a way to disable the option to switch between channels and playbacks in setup somewhere?
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2 hours ago, Edward Z88 said:
behind the scenes, ZerOS has an ID for each fixture
I thought this was the case, I seem to recall you mentioning it in an earlier thread. Thank you confirming this.
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24 minutes ago, Paul Bennett 211 said:
Which do I use, its quite confusing as we have a software version and an OS version
I believe it is the software version for ZerOS, the other one is the underlying Linux system however I'd suggest you wait for @Edward Z88 or one of his colleagues to confirm this.
28 minutes ago, Paul Bennett 211 said:I am wondering what people have found is the best way to name.
There's no right or wrong for this, just use what suits you. I give the same name to all fixtures of a particular type in the same location (e.g. "LED Pars Side" and "LED Pars Stage"). It is useful to number your fixtures logically as well - for example, I have...
101 thru 106 1 FOH Profiles, 111 thru 114 Side Profiles, 121 thru 126 DS Profiles, 131 thru 134 US Profiles. That way I can find a specific fixture easily and my screen is nice and tidy - there's room for the full labels to display and all like fixtures are together. Mine have been numbered this way since I've had the desk. Perhaps @Edward Z88 can tell us what effect renumbering would have on existing show files - you should wait for his response before you try renumbering.
Generally, your life will be easier if you can look at a fixture and work out, in your head, what number it is.
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If all you are trying to do is to select the cue you wish to execute then this page in the manual might help.
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22 hours ago, Edward Z88 said:
experienced your FLX being unresponsive whilst running ZerOS 7.10
Sorry, missed this question. At the moment, I'm not sure I have. Certainly the instance that caused me to take steps to protect myself (buying a splitter that continues sending the last state if it loses incoming DMX) was before I updated to 7.10
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Have thought about it. Trouble is I have gigs every few days so I'd be forever loading the Beta version then reloading the current one. Either that or taking risk with the beta on a live show.
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Thank you Edward. What I'd like to do is find a way to repeat the issue under controlled conditions. I'm up to date on software but what conditions have caused it in the past (and have been fixed)? I could at least rule these out and maybe they will give me a clue.
PS I'm qualified software tester (ISTQB Foundation) but I qualified 6 years ago and I haven't been doing it for 3 years so pretty rusty
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32 minutes ago, kgallen said:
networking on mine either
I have a peer to peer network (desk and tablet) but no router.
We need @Edward Z88 to suggest tests and data to collect (if any are possible).
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3 hours ago, kgallen said:
(full size) FLX
I should point out that I have a full size FLX as well
3 minutes ago, Edward Z88 said:router is causing instability
And I don't have router
Help set up a Flx s 24
in FLX S24 & FLX S48
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You need a lot of information to do a patch. Once you know what fixtures you have and their addresses the actual patching is pretty straightforward.
If the desk was patched before then someone must have done it. They may have a showfile. If not they must have had the information you need. They should be able to help - are you able to contact them?
Failing that. What is your situation? Is this a school, a community theatre, etc? Is there a tech responsible for it, other users, etc, who may have showfiles? They may even be on this forum but not realise it's "their" venue.
Where are you? Another forum member may be close by - it would help avoid us asking lots of questions if someone experienced could take a look in person.