Brand new FLX - questions

[kgallen]

Yes!!!  😁😁😎

Iiyama touchscreens are trouble!

The Touchscreen should continue to work - it will only need a new calibration if you use Factory Reset or when you update Firmware (e.g. 7.9.4 -> 7.9.5).

Here starts a steep learning process on the FLX capabilities - good luck! I have had mine since 2015 and I learn something new every week!

[van den abbeele Eric]

It is obvious that on such a console we learn every day ... Because there are so many menus in every sense ...

In your case you use your FLX with what as material and in what type of show ...?

 

[kgallen]

3 minutes ago, van den abbeele Eric said:

In your case you use your FLX with what as material and in what type of show ...?

Theatre (musical, pantomime, play)

~40 conventional

~20 LED

+accessories -> gobo rotator, smoke, colour scroller, DMX controlled props, LED tape

[van den abbeele Eric]

Ah OK

You re in the same configuration then me.

24 to 48 Conventionnal 

36 to 48 LED 

5 Lyre Wash

4 lyre Beam

Only for dance (Artistic)

[kgallen]

On 5/30/2018 at 6:50 PM, van den abbeele Eric said:

5 Lyre Wash

I've just got two moving head LED units which I used on the show just completed - first time with moving lights (ok I had one MAC250 for years, but rarely used with my Fat Frog). FLX made this very easy with position palettes, move on dark just works and I even got a circle effect going very quickly (Jon will be relieved to hear that with all of our historical moaning about the effects engine!).

You will need to take a few more fixtures home to practice with!

Try very hard to move away from the fader mentality. If your experience is with a much simpler/older desk, learn how to set up groups and palettes and how to dimension effects. With these your movers will become quick and easy to use. Without you will fight the complexity of all of the control handles and get very stressed during show plot.

Reading back through this thread to some of the earlier posts, Edward (maybe Jon) suggests using different playbacks to set up a cue stack for each of your dance sequences. Then you can play back these whole stacks in any order - actually with FLX you could overlay them if you wanted. Another way would be to create "partial looks" on a larger number of playbacks and then overlay these to create different looks for each dance. This is fairly advanced and will take some practice, but would give you a very large range of elements you can mix on the fly if you need to busk.

It might be worth getting some experience in your own time (at your own pace), then getting some more detailed help from your local distributor (ok, I guess you bought your FLX from Thomann though, so you might have to ask nicely...) and getting some support on creating more complex looks once you've grasped the fundamentals.

Good Luck!

Kevin

[van den abbeele Eric]

Hello Kevin,

Today I have been to the theater where I have my equipment installed for a Saturday show.
I spent the afternoon on the console with all the material and so it is more speaking. I have some difficulty for some things because I do not have all the possible manipulations in mind. And especially as you say I'm still with the logic of old consoles ...
But over the hours things are better and I can do things.
For the moment what I do not find more practical is some parameters of not being able to have on hand, except to make a playback. (actually a sub group)
Then the different layers of fade are also to be integrated. It's confusing at the beginning, but in fact logical when one wants to refine things ...

One of the other things that are missing is to be able to 24/48 on the same channel to put several DMX addresses. As for example for dimmers, or we can put several circuits on a same fader. I solved the problem with a playback.

My concern at the level of playblack (in any case this afternoon) I wanted to make a UV playback (since the UV I only with the rotary knob) and in fact I did not succeed to have them. The LEDs first go on white and then after three seconds go to UV ...

Then the other difficulties is when on an effect you position a Lyre on a CUE (example 4) and that it lasts on several cue 5, cue 6, you have to copy the effect then build the entourage to find the position . But since I like that the lyre is positioned before it turns on, it is necessary to find the position for the CUE 3 and ditto I like at the end when the lyre goes black (CUE 7) that the position does not move ... (except when I look for effects)

But I see in the afternoon the power of the machine ... Then I understand why the wings are more positive. There I have one more wings and I think in the times to come (if the money is there) I will go on a wings and more to have more access on hand. canals or playblack ....

In any case a big thank you for your help,

eric

[van den abbeele Eric]

I just saw the function "move to dark" ... that means if I understand correctly that the software automatically places the positions before the placement of the lyres ... this solves the concern evoked if above investments in black before and after utility...

[Edward Z88]

49 minutes ago, van den abbeele Eric said:

One of the other things that are missing is to be able to 24/48 on the same channel to put several DMX addresses. As for example for dimmers, or we can put several circuits on a same fader. I solved the problem with a playback.

My concern at the level of playblack (in any case this afternoon) I wanted to make a UV playback (since the UV I only with the rotary knob) and in fact I did not succeed to have them. The LEDs first go on white and then after three seconds go to UV ...

Hi Eric,

Glad you got your touchscreen working, and feel like you’re getting the hang of the console. As Kevin says, it’s all about practice, and I’m sure you’ll pick it up quickly. To answer the couple of queries above:

Every channel fader can have a single fixture patched to it, but it can have multiple DMX addresses. To add these tap SETUP, select your fixture, and tap Address. Then type in the extra DMX address for the fixture, and tap Add as additional address. This will give the single fixture multiple DMX addresses. 

The reason you faded through white into your UV playback, is due to the colour fade time. Fixtures default to white so that when you turn them on, you can see them lit. Therefore you need to adjust the colour fade time of your UV playback. To do this hold VIEW and tap your UV Playbacks button, and tap the colour fade cell and set it to 0 seconds- the default is 3 seconds. Now when you raise the fader again the fixture will be raised into UV from off. You change the fade defaults on the console, in SETUP -> Defaults -> Colour fade. 

Hope that helps, any queries as always let us know. 

Edward

[van den abbeele Eric]

thank you very much
Still a concern on the fader (chanels) I have no problem on color palettes outside always the famous UV on the encoder wheels. I have a moment ago with the wheel to mount the UV to the max.
And there in fact every time I run the fader to have intensity UV returns to max. I use the button CLEAR UV returns again and always Max. And when with the palette I launch a color, the UV is still there ...
What to do that the UV do not return (in mode channels)?

[Edward Z88]

Hi Eric,

If you push your UV playback up, change to channels fader function, the UV playback will still be playing, as you haven’t released it. The shortcut to manually release all playbacks, is to hold CLEAR, and tap the FADER FUNCT. button. This will return your UV parameter to its defaults (0%). 

Hope that makes sense and is what you’re after. Any queries let me know. 

Edward

[Jon Hole]

On 5/30/2018 at 4:18 PM, kgallen said:

(Now you have FLX [excellent!], should we not move over to the FLX part of the Forum?]

 

On 5/30/2018 at 4:22 PM, van den abbeele Eric said:

OK no problem I will go on FLX forum...

Done 🙂

[van den abbeele Eric]

I also understood the patch operation of several DMX addresses on the same fixture. Convenient to avoid having too many take chants when there are many numbers of circuits. (Example next week I go to a Theater or in traditional, there are 350 DMX circuits.

And apart from a few moments of blocking, I start to understand the base ...
Then in a few months, it will be much better ....

QUESTION
About Capture (For Mac) installation is complicated?
Because I would like to be able to prepare some things at home, just to save time ...
I just have to see the money spend what it gives, because it seems to me that Capture is not given ...

Thank you for your help and I'm happy with my purchase!
Returns in the coming days to talk a little about the things I feel over the days and help the best.
But it is obvious that this product must be able to interest a certain number of structures. So video in French, that I can do to boost things and help you sell this product in France!

[kgallen]

14 hours ago, van den abbeele Eric said:

Then the other difficulties is (1) when on an effect you position a Lyre on a CUE (example 4) and that it lasts on several cue 5, cue 6, you have to copy the effect then build the entourage to find the position . (2) But since I like that the lyre is positioned before it turns on, it is necessary to find the position for the CUE 3 and ditto I like at the end when the lyre goes black (CUE 7) that the position does not move ... (except when I look for effects)

Hi Eric,

Did you get these "issues" sorted out?

(1) Looks like something that should be handled by tracking - FLX defaults to "Tracking (Basic)" which means it's a tracking console but SmartTag is enabled to handle most of the complexity of tagging so you can just program away without worrying about the correct information being recorded in the cue. Tracking means that if "something is happening", that "something" will continue to happen until you hit a cue that has an instruction to "do something else". So you shouldn't have to replicate cue 4 to cue 5 to cue 6 etc to get the effect to continue. I understand from another thread on an intensity chase that tracking doesn't necessarily operate across chase steps, but I don't believe this is your situation here - you have a cue sequence not a chase.

(2) Looks like it should be handled by move on dark (this just "works" - as long as you have the fixture intensity=0% between the two cues - although one thing that caught me out is I recorded a blackout cue as a blocking cue (SHIFT+RECORD) and that stopped the MOD happening in preparation for the cue after the blackout - this makes sense as the cue would be carrying position/beamshape information for the fixture I wanted to MOD, so it was my mistake not the consoles).
 

You also mention Capture visualisation software. I'm also toying with the idea of purchasing this software, however it is 350GBP so quite an investment for me personally. I'm thinking on this one, so any comments on using this with FLX would be interesting - Jon/Ed is Capture the visualisation software you used in the Christmas Advent videos? Which version/name?

 

Regards,

Kevin

[Edward Z88]

Hi Kevin,

For those videos, we were using the free Capture presentation file, that is available to download from our website...

http://support.zero88.com/1004254221/Capture-Visualisation-Software.htm

For testing, we use Capture Nexum.

Edward

[kgallen]

8 minutes ago, Edward- Z88 said:

For those videos, we were using the free Capture presentation file, that is available to download from our website...

http://support.zero88.com/1004254221/Capture-Visualisation-Software.htm

For testing, we use Capture Nexum.

Ooooo, interesting... thanks Edward! Good article by the way, I'll give that a go... 😊

[van den abbeele Eric]

Thank à lot 

 

 

[van den abbeele Eric]

Hello

 

yesterday first repetiion with the FLX

 

overall things are going well!

but at some point I block ...

so either I put aside or parfoid I find the solutions quickly!

I think the first thing that causes problems is that if I record a black and then know the effect before is changed is to have to go back to black to put out what has been added ...

 

the second problem is to manage to add names to the cues ... sometimes I get there and sometimes not ....

 

what is missing :

side effect, management of leds with variations of lights and intensities

 

then saw that I start on the console can be there. What things are going on?

the other thing that raises concerns but it is perhaps not possible to change things is when leds work in addition to the red green blue white example of amber that it is not integrated in the selection of colors ... (except to manually add amber)
indeed when we go on the search for color the picker and we want the amber the software will make the color with the white red green blue .... and since the access to amber is done by the buttons rotational that must be rotated long to have real amber the time is lost quickly if the amber returns often!

so I think in future evolution the management of all colors on the picker would be a big plus!

I keep repeating them ...

full of other things to say later ...
but overall happy with the new rule!

see you later

 

[van den abbeele Eric]

Question :

in daily  use what can be problems that will do bug ?

is there thing that musn’t do during encodage or performance ?

 

thank for information ...

 

Éric 

[van den abbeele Eric]

Other question :

I use lyre and using moving effect... working correcty.

and when going to black I would like to stop lyre moving, but with intensity to zéro there us no recording things and moving us continuing...

so for instances I record with deep blues at 1% and no mouvement can be recording ...

so I m sure that there is sole thing else to do but I don’t Know what ....

thank for a help !

[kgallen]

Your naming question is easy, I generally do the record and name in one movement, for cue 10:

record 10 name <type name> enter

To stop the mover effect you will need to choose Effect->No effect. You could do this when you record your blackout or go back and use Update. You can use shift+record to put in a blocking cue if needed.

 

That’s quite an achievement if you’ve already run a show with moving lights less than a week having a brand new console!

 

[van den abbeele Eric]

Naming

If I undestand when i finish a cue when info to record I can go to name and giving number and validite thé cue ?

 

 

for effect I do this recording with « no effect » option but effet us stil here...

but in option I choise option to prepare moving effect before to send effect with moving and perhaps this option keep all orher things like moving....

so for instance my solution is ok ! I keep lyre in bleu at 1% 

[van den abbeele Eric]

Première photo 

[van den abbeele Eric]

So chek up before performance and some ghosts comes... just about moving and some position wrong. Certaintly mistakes from me ...

but for my first Time it s ok

and just after few hours working with...

[kgallen]

3 hours ago, van den abbeele Eric said:

for effect I do this recording with « no effect » option but effet us stil here...

Edward will probably give better advice but I guess (as you suggest earlier) that intensity@0 means SmartTag does not record to effect off. For that cue when you go to record, on your external monitor you should get the record options page - turn off SmartTag for that record so fixtures with changed but intensity@0 will get recorded. 

 

Great photo. I see you get ch1-24 across one monitor line. That is nice, mine are spread across 2. 

[van den abbeele Eric]

So performance is finish !

at 99,95% Good night !

 

just two Times problems 

Just after going on a next cue (perhaps cue 50) after 30 second a Chanel as led bouton on (without action from me) with à light on stage that illuminate... so i did swirch off quickly...

and perhaps 15 mn after it’ve doing same thing again without any action from me ....

it was strange...

is it normal bug...

so during thé day I was recording Manu effect and doping Manu copy (like black )

 

tell me what this can happening ? Bug from software ?

 

thank for your help 

 

eric