Patching scrollers on a Pearl

[jhaynes199]

I want to patch scrollers to an AVO pearl and was wondering what was the easiest way of doing it. Can you get hold of the personality files for scrollers and patch them like a moving light? I want to be able to put each colour on a store focus so can change colour on the fly during a show.

 

Thanks

[niclights]

Maybe. Depends what the make/model is! http://www.avolitesdownload.com/Personalit...ary/Default.asp

 

If one does not exist you could write or modify one yourself. It's not as hard as it might first seem. You could patch the required channels as dimmers, but this will mean they are HTP which would not be ideal for your purpose. LTP must be defined in a personality.

[jhaynes199]

If one does not exist you could write or modify one yourself. It's not as hard as it might first seem. You could patch the required channels as dimmers, but this will mean they are HTP which would not be ideal for your purpose. LTP must be defined in a personality.

 

Excuse my ignorance, but what does HTP / LTP stand for? I think I get what you're saying. If you patched the lights themselves on page 1 and then patched the scrollers as dimmers on page 2, would it be possible to then bring up each colour on the scroller at a time and record them as a store focus like you would do for the colours or gobos in a moving light thus doing away with needing personalities which I can't find!

[niclights]

HTP = Highest Takes Precedence.

LTP = Latest Takes Precedence.

 

This is fairly basic terminology and crucial to understand in relation to modern intelligent lighting. I suggest you do some Googling and learn about this. I do find it rather surprising you don't know, looking at your memberships...

 

The questions you are asking are a litte too wide-ranging to explain here IMO. That's what the Pearl manual is for. Ideally you want LTP for this which would be the mode used for all channels of a moving light other than dimmer (usually). That means a personality file. If you used dimmers (HTP) you can store them as palettes, but you will not be able to do timed recalls. Also, if you store memories based on HTP palettes, the memories are stored as actual values and not references to the palette. Therefore if you later adjusted the palette values the memories would not be updated.

 

It is not important where things are patched although good layout is key to flexible operating.

 

If you provide make/model of scroller or the channels used maybe I can help further?

[gareth]

HTP = Highest Takes Precedence.

LTP = Latest Takes Precedence.

 

This is fairly basic terminology and crucial to understand in relation to modern intelligent lighting. I suggest you do some Googling and learn about this. I do find it rather surprising you don't know, looking at your memberships...

Indeed. Most surprising that someone who claims to be a freelance lighting technician and a member of BECTU and the ALD doesn't know about these two basic, fundamental lighting control concepts ... :P

 

In answer to the question, there are scroller personalities for some units from major manufacturers to be found on the other end of the link in niclights' post. I'd imagine that, if your particular scroller manufacturer isn't there, one of the other simple (i.e. not with fan control, speed control, etc. channels) scroller personalities would do the job - after all, it's just a dimmer with a single colour attribute attached, so as long as you can define the number of frames to suit your requirements you should be able to make it work. I've never actually run a scroller from a Pearl, tho (always Strands or Hogs), so I'm doing a bit of guessing here .... :)

[jhaynes199]

Thanks for all your help. And just for the record I know what you mean when you talk about highest / lowest takes precedence, I had just not come across it as an acronym.

[lxhipster]

hi all!

 

When I came across patching the scrollers on the Pearl, I patched them as Generics and I assigned it like this

 

e.g. PC Light with Scroller - Dimmer DMX Ch. 1 - Scroller DMX 255

 

Then I patched in on the faders like

 

Fader 1 = DMX 1 (PC Light)

Fader 2 = DMX 255 (Scroller of the PC)

 

so, this way it is faster to control the intensity and the colors at the same time. Put them into the Moving Lights sometimes makes a pain when you have oo many fixtures and have to switch between pages.

[dbuckley]

... I know what you mean when you talk about highest / lowest takes precedence...

 

Hmmmm...

 

Knowing when to use HTP on an all (by default) LTP desk seems to me to be one of the most important base descisions one needs to make.

[gareth]

I know what you mean when you talk about highest / lowest takes precedence

Clearly not! :P It's latest, not lowest ...

[dosxuk]

<snip>

Then I patched in on the faders like

 

Fader 1 = DMX 1 (PC Light)

Fader 2 = DMX 255 (Scroller of the PC)

 

so, this way it is faster to control the intensity and the colors at the same time. Put them into the Moving Lights sometimes makes a pain when you have oo many fixtures and have to switch between pages.

 

 

 

Few problems with this approach

 

- You'll loose the level of the scroller if you change page and clear at the same time

 

- You need two faders to control one light

 

- You need to remember which fader position is which colour

 

- No use of the shape generator colour options

 

- Interaction between the Grand Master / Preset Master / Memory Master and your colour

 

In fact, all of the reasons that the Pearl has the moving lights section! Doing it this way you loose all the advantages of LTP channels without really gaining anything.

 

(Sorry if you like it this way, but it's something I'd never ever consider doing for the reasons above!)

[lxhipster]

Shape generator doesn't really makes any use for Scrollers from my experience with the Pearl. The color isn't that difficult to remember on my FORERUNNER and changing pages doesnt effect the levels.

[Tomo]

But pulling down the GM will - this is the main advantage of LTP for scrollers.

[tokm]

Had to do this a few times my self. It's easy as pie. If your just using a basic 1 channel scroller then use the in build fixture personality, never seen the real need for using the one for chromaQ or wybron units, not like they have a standard colour string on them..

 

From memory, its:

 

Go into patch > choose a fixture > select fixture: 'scrollerD' > put in the DMX address u want to start from, i.e. DMX 1 through 12 (thats for 12 scrollers for example) on DMX universe 1 (with the rest of your movers/effects), then assign them to handles in the usual way > then go back to patch, and choose the dimmer patch option > stick in the 1st DMX address that your scroller generics are on I.e dimmers/DMX addresses 1 through 12 on DMX universe 2 > then assign them to the same 12 handles you assigned the scrollerD fixtures to.

 

Exit patching etc, make sure every things plugged up. Then select the 12 handles controlling the scrollers, then moving light menu & locate. Your scrollers should go to the 1st colour in the string and the lamps should be fully illuminated. From there, you control the lamp intensity via the fader or the dimmer button and the wheel on the ML section of the desk & to change colour on a scroller, just select the scroller & click colour button and change it via the designated wheel.

 

I used DMX addresses 1 thru 12 as an example, you can patch any DMX addresses for scrollers and generics that you like.

 

HTH.

 

Shape generator doesn't really makes any use for Scrollers

:( does plenty of things on my pearl 2004 and when Ive used scrollers on a sapphire! Select them, go into colour shapes, hit rainbow or one of the many other shapes and they'll do some crazy stuff for u! Its just as if you were using the colour shapes with some macs.. Some shapes look a bit random, but theres some good fun to be had, try using the offset feature as well.

 

Tom

 

*edit - added quote and associated text. Then again to remove line between quote and text*

[niclights]

I totally agree with above reasons for using LTP over HTP (basic dimmer patch) for scrollers, most importantly is the change page issue which will be a disaster for you when you accidentally change and press [clear]. Shape gen, full palette use (as I detailed above) and no effect of masters are also very good reasons. Writing or modifying personalities is not difficult. Honestly! Anyway, tell us what the make/model is or give channel definitions and maybe can help further :(

[jhaynes199]

Go into patch > choose a fixture > select fixture: 'scrollerD' > put in the DMX address u want to start from, i.e. DMX 1 through 12 (thats for 12 scrollers for example) on DMX universe 1 (with the rest of your movers/effects), then assign them to handles in the usual way > then go back to patch, and choose the dimmer patch option > stick in the 1st DMX address that your scroller generics are on I.e dimmers/DMX addresses 1 through 12 on DMX universe 2 > then assign them to the same 12 handles you assigned the scrollerD fixtures to.

So you just use the basic principle behind patching in a VL5, where you select the personality from the library, patch it in and then patch the dimmer over the top so that you can control all the attributes on one handle? And this ensures that the scrollers work LTP and don't the scroll doesn't revert to OW once the grand master is pulled down or if you exit clear?

 

I am guessing that you can use any scroller personality and don't need to specify the number of colours in the scroll? And finally this method allows you to save each scroll colour as a store focus?

 

Thanks for your help!