Moving light repositioning error

[nico_ah]

Hello,

 

We're currently using for a performance 4 CLAY PAKY Stage Profile + SV and

10 ADB Warp/m.

 

On show days, when checking the Stage Profile, we need to re-set every focus

palette for they all are wrong about 25 cm (6 inches) at 10m throw : this is quite

a big repositioning error !!!

 

We drive them in 16bit mode with 16bit control board. Our ADB Warp/m are all ok

about that (they have their own errors, not this one!!).

 

Anybody has an idea? Are the Stage Profile that bad or is there a trouble somewhere?

 

Thanks

[Tomo]

First step - confirm that your lighting console is really spitting out the same thing every time!

 

That sounds like a 1 or 2-bit error in the Coarse (MSB) DMX control channel.

 

Which console are you using?

[jfitzpat]

I'm with Tomo, the chances of four of them having that much error seems low to me. I'd check the board, and I'd look where they are hung. IE, are you sure the pipe is staying exactly at trim?

 

-jjf

[nico_ah]

Thanks for quick reply,

 

The board is very reliable AVAB Pronto with Safari software (which makes it

Jaguar I think). We have 315 fixtures in the show, the only trouble is with the

CLAY PAKY ones.

 

I checked every mode, and used ROBERT JULIAT EspionII to check the data

values. It's all good.

 

The pipes are in scenery stuff, 2meters long steel pipes, hung at each end

from our grid. On the pipes also are mounted 2 ETC profiles and a 2kW PC

with scroller, none of which has moved at all.

 

So any idea ?

 

Thanks.

[woody74]

When you patched them, did you have options as to which mode they were in (I am basing this on my experience with Vari-Lite and Martin, so forgive me if CP don't have modes)? Perhaps removing the fixtures in question and re-patching them? Or perhaps changing the fixture type to a different mode (if that is even an option).

 

-w

 

Edit: I just re-read your last post, and realized you said you tried every mode, so maybe my above statements may be pointless...

[Rob Halliday]

Have you tried setting the lights in zero time?

 

Some lights, particularly older Vari-Lites, 'miss' their position by an amount proportional to the speed at which they move to that position and the amount they're moving to get to that position. The error also often varies depending on which direction they're approaching the position from.

 

Clay Pakys I've used don't have this problem, but I haven't used the Stage Profiles. I'd try doing some cues that set them to a position in zero seconds and seeing if the problem persists.

 

Also, in terms of modes, many Clay Pakys have one mode where the parameters are ordered pan, pan fine, tilt, tilt fine, and another mode where they're ordered pan, tilt, panfine, tiltfine. If the light's settings don't match the consoles you'll be seeing some very odd movement as you position the lights, but it might be worth checking this.

 

Finally, just make sure that your console is not accidentally setting odd values to any built in speed or timing channels that the light might have.

 

Rob.