Busking assistance / Programmer Priority

[PJRichards]

Could you possibly explain the priority levels for items on the command line when busking a show, it seems to be that if you put a manual intensity on a group of fixtures, say "Group 1 @ 10%" then as you would expect you get those fixtures to stay at 10% including when releasing any active playbacks which also contain intensity information. The programmer / syntax is acting as priority.

However if you use a pallet for an attribute then whilst it initially works and you get the look wanted,  if you happen to release an underlying playback which also had that attribute information on it then it seems to release the fixture back to default values for that attribute. Should it not be that the syntax / programmer is still priority and when you release a playback any attributes would refer to anything on the command line as the intensity does but it only seems to control intensity nothing else...

Example -

MFF1 = Intensity only for group 1 at Full.

MFF2 = Group 1 in red

push both faders up - fixtures are at full in red - as expected

then manually change the intensity to 10% and change the colour to blue on the command line - again as expected fixtures are in blue at 10%

however if I then release MFF2 the colour reverts back to the fixture default value but the intensity remains at 10%, is there a way to make sure that all information still in the programmer stays as priority until it is cleared so I could release the colour MFF but the colour would stay at the value sat on the command line?

(coming from a chamsys background where the manual values in the programmer would be priority unless you set a playback to be a higher priority for example a white strobe set to bump over everything)

 

[Edward Z88]

Hi @PJRichards

17 hours ago, PJRichards said:

Could you possibly explain the priority levels for items on the command line when busking a show

Intensity values in the programmer have the highest priority on the console. The CLEAR key is required to remove high-priority intensity programmer values, to allow cues to playback as programmed.

All other attributes (Colour, Beam, Shape, Position) mix LTP, irrespective of whether they are being controlled manually or by a cue.

17 hours ago, PJRichards said:

if you use a pallet for an attribute then whilst it initially works and you get the look wanted,  if you happen to release an underlying playback which also had that attribute information on it then it seems to release the fixture back to default values for that attribute.

17 hours ago, PJRichards said:

if I then release MFF2 the colour reverts back to the fixture default value

You shouldn't be seeing this behaviour. If you have fixtures in red on a playback, you select them and tap your blue palette, lower the playback fader so it releases - the fixtures should stay blue, because nothing has told the fixtures to change colour.

Therefore it sounds like there could be a setting in your show file that is affecting this behaviour. Please feel free to attach your show file, and detail which fixtures, playbacks and palettes you are using. We can then investigate further.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

[PJRichards]

Hi Edward - yeah I would agree I would expect it to stay the colour it was last told on the command window - but seems to be the playback releasing is telling it to revert to default.

Attached test file - prepping for a festival and was going to give the FLX a wirl

 

Playbacks:

1 = LED Par intensity

13 = LED Flood intensity

7 = LED flood colour stack

15 = Mover intensity

16 = Mover colour stack

17 = Mover Beam stack

All stacks have just got 2 cues in just to have a play to see if I could resolve this issue.

If 7, 16 or 17 are faded down / released then the fixtures return to default for that attribute.

Hoping it is just something I've done wrong in the programming

Thanks

 

 

 

Y FEST 2023 Stage 2 - Test File.zos

[Edward Z88]

36 minutes ago, PJRichards said:

If 7, 16 or 17 are faded down / released then the fixtures return to default for that attribute.

These are the exact steps I'm following:

1. Load show file
2. Raise playback 13
3. ENTER ENTER (to select fixtures and see parameter table in the Output Window)
   1. The fixtures are in colour palette 12 (Blue) by default
4. Raise playback 7 - the fixtures go Warm White as programmed
5. Press playback 7's button - the fixtures go Red as programmed
6. Apply colour palette 6 - the fixtures go Yellow as programmed
7. Release playback 7, by either lowering its fader or hold CLEAR and tap playback 7's button - the fixtures remain in yellow, as colour palette 6 last changed the fixture's colour (LTP)

If I DON'T apply colour palette 6 in step 6 above, the fixtures DO go back to default as expected upon lowering playback 7 in step 7. This is because if a playback has control of fixtures, and that playback is released, the fixtures then go back to the values of the playback that previously had control of the fixtures. If no playbacks that have values for the fixtures are currently active, the fixtures go back to their defaults.

It is possible to prevent a playback from releasing when lowered, meaning it will remain in control of the fixtures until something else on the console takes control of the fixtures. To configure this, hold SETUP and tap the playback's button to open the playback's settings. Choose Raise & Lower from the top, set Release On Lower to disabled, and click OK.

Hope this helps.

[PJRichards]

Thanks Edward - Try pushing fader 7 up again and releasing after you've completed the above, so yellow is still on the command line, nothing cleared.

[Edward Z88]

40 minutes ago, PJRichards said:

Thanks Edward - Try pushing fader 7 up again and releasing after you've completed the above, so yellow is still on the command line, nothing cleared.

If you trigger playback 7 again, this then becomes the latest instruction for the fixtures, and so playback 7 takes control over the fixtures. If these fixtures were the only things in the programmer, and playback 7 has taken control of them, the programmer is emptied - you'll notice that the LED in the CLEAR button turns off, because playback 7 has taken control, and so there is nothing left in the programmer. Therefore, lowering the playback fader, results in the fixtures going back to default. This is where you could disable release on lower to prevent the fixtures going back to default.

[PJRichards]

Thanks! Had not spotted the little red little showing the re trigger clears the programmer, used to things staying in the programmer until I clear it!

That's fine - now understand its limitations can try work around them

Cheers for the rapid responses!

[PJRichards]

Hi Edward - sorry just to check one other thing

If for example in a festival situation you suddenly want to use a look you've not already used so you built it using pallets in the programmer - I am correct to think that it's not then possible to have for example a white strobe bump on a MFF which would successfully trigger more than once over the top of this - I'd have to quickly save a cue somewhere with the new look on it and load it in order for any other playback to bump over the top more than once.

 

Thanks

[Edward Z88]

16 hours ago, PJRichards said:

If for example in a festival situation you suddenly want to use a look you've not already used so you built it using pallets in the programmer - I am correct to think that it's not then possible to have for example a white strobe bump on a MFF which would successfully trigger more than once over the top of this - I'd have to quickly save a cue somewhere with the new look on it and load it in order for any other playback to bump over the top more than once.

The "White Strobe" playback would need both intensity information and colour information stored, to ensure that whatever the fixtures were doing, you would achieve an intensity strobe in white when played back. Therefore, if the colour of the fixtures is currently in the programmer, this playback would take that data out of the programmer when it is triggered.

So, you would either need to store your look to a palette (SHIFT-RECORD to include everything in a single palette), and apply this after using the strobe playback, or as you say, you would need to record the current state onto a fader, trigger it, and that way upon releasing your white strobe playback, the fixtures will go back to the state in the active playback.

Hope this helps.