Adam_Dawson Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 Hi everyone! I wonder if anyone has any tips for controlling moving heads. I currently have a Martin MiniMAC profile, and I am looking at getting another so that I can pair them up, and I control it using a Q12 (lightprocessor) desk, by just storing a static scene, but there must be a better way of creating a sequence of moves. I'd really appreciate any advice on this area of lighting which is new to me! Many thanks,Adam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SceneMaster Posted December 6, 2004 Share Posted December 6, 2004 Ok, Well the Q12 isn’t a LTP (last takes precedence) desk (is it???) which isn’t a great start… Secondly you are going to need more channels than 12 to control more than one Mini Mac* + other to it full as they take 6 channels at minimum (without pan fine ect.) so 2 would take your whole desk although I think you could to some clever patching with the Q12 (not sure never used one) and double up the colour and gobo channels for both fixtures? I would suggest you get another desk with LTP and other memory features so you can copy and paste scenes and edit them. So you do spend hours creating slightly different scenes programming channel by channel for each cue state. (A really pain I have been down that road many time!!!) I know this might be expensive if you want long term but if you can afford a Mini Mac I’m sure you can afford a cheap mover desk like a scanmaster… I’m sure there is lot of advice I could give but I have to go and write a Science Essay but if I think of anything else I’ll post it but try searching the site as there is loads of useful info on controlling movers. (I know I have consulted the site many times!) (*those things that get on my nerves, that’s all school ever want to hire and I personally would rather hire 4 (cheaper to hire) scanners and do more effects than is possible with two ageing Mini Macs!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 It's probably not what you want/need to hear, as it involves some outlay of moolah (either as capital in purchasing a desk, or from a productin budget in hriing one), but if you want to stand any chance of programming moving lights with any degree of success you need a desk which is designed with that purpose in mind. It's possible with a desk which is purely HTP, but it will steadily drive you to the brink of madness and beyond. Speak to a local hire company and ask them about hiring a cheap 'n' cheerful moving light console such as a Zero88 Fat Frog - you'll never go back! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam_Dawson Posted December 7, 2004 Author Share Posted December 7, 2004 Thanks for that chaps! I'll keep my eyes out! By the way what's a HTP desk? This might be a bit imaginative but I don't suppose there is any outboard processing gear that can hold a series of different "scenes" for moving lights, that can then be recalled by using a 'simple' desk like my Q12 is there? What is the correct term for a programmed moving head? I want to say a "chase" or "scene" but don't suppose that's right! Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinny baby Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 HTP - highest takes procedenceLTP- Latest takes procedence I could exsplain it but its a liitle hard to put into text. maybe someone else will elaberate vince Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Well I'll give explaining it a go... If I had a submaster with Channel 1 (say a Par 64) at 50% up on the desk, and then put another submaster with Channel 1 at 25%, the channel would remain to be at 50% due to the Highest Takes Precedent (HTP). Now if I had a submaster with a moving light attritube on, say the colour wheel at 50% on a submaster, then added in another submaster with the colour wheel at 25%, the colour wheel would move to 25%. This is because the attribute would be set to Latest Takes Precedent and therefore will respond to the last command - despite there being a submaster already up at a higher level. This is also means if I took both the submasters and/or the Grand Master down to 0%, the LTP channels would be set at their last given command... Which is handy because the channels wouldn't fade down to 0%, therefore taking everything back to home. Hope this helps!Stu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinny baby Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Well I'll give explaining it a go... I think that was exsplained rather well ;) Out of interest do you set your moving light dimmers on HTP? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Out of interest do you set your moving light dimmers on HTP?<{POST_SNAPBACK}>Any decent moving light console will default intensity channels to HTP. In fact, why would you ever need to set an intensity channel to LTP? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andystone Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Any decent moving light console will default intensity channels to HTP. In fact, why would you ever need to set an intensity channel to LTP?<{POST_SNAPBACK}> If the desk is running in full tracking mode, then surely the dimmers are effectively LTP the same as the moving light parameters? Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Any decent moving light console will default intensity channels to HTP. In fact, why would you ever need to set an intensity channel to LTP?<{POST_SNAPBACK}> If the desk is running in full tracking mode, then surely the dimmers are effectively LTP the same as the moving light parameters? Andy<{POST_SNAPBACK}>Hmmm. Having thought about it, you might have a point! In a way, I suppose it does work that way in certain situations. But it does differ from desk to desk. Let's take two fairly popular examples - Pearl and Hog2. On a Pearl - let's say you have a single fixture programmed into playback A at 50%, and into playback B at 70%. Raise playback fader A to full, the fixture goes to 50%. Raise B to full and it goes to 70%, Drop fader B to zero and it goes back to 50% (playback A still has the fixture live at 50%). So the intensity is behaving in a truly HTP way. Consider the same situation on a Hog, however - which is, as you say, a true 'tracking' console unlike the Pearl. With the same recording set-up as described above (one fixture, two different levels, two adjacent playbacks), one will 'stomp' the other when activated, making it impossible to revert to the other playback's recorded level just by dropping the fader on the second - so I guess in this situation the intensity is displaying LTP characteristics. You can counter this to an extent and make the behaviour more 'Pearl-like' using the "Crossfade IFCB" and "Persist on override" settings on the Hog. But I guess with a tracking desk there's no way of making an intensity channel truly HTP. Having said all that, though, I guess we should consider that the OP is talking about running a couple of MiniMacs off a Q12, so I suspect that the modus operandi of tracking consoles is more or less completely irrelevant. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andystone Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 Having said all that, though, I guess we should consider that the OP is talking about running a couple of MiniMacs off a Q12, so I suspect that the modus operandi of tracking consoles is more or less completely irrelevant. ;)<{POST_SNAPBACK}> Fair point :D However, you have me thinking now (yes, at this time of night my brain is still working!). I was thinking of purely of editing and running one playback where a tracking desk has to be LTP for the dimmers to work. However, having just had a play with the Vector offline running in tracking mode, the dimmers still work in HTP on the playbacks and the ML parameters work as LTP, although you can configure the dimmers to be LTP if you really want them to be. So, what I am probably saying is that you were right and I was wrong ;) Andy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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