MagicQ programming questions

[mark_s]

Hi all,

 

I've just ran into a slight issue that I'm not sure how to fix. I want to stick the gobo rotation for a group of movers on a playback (or ultimately, on a fader in an execute window). I've recorded a cue with just the gobo rotation attribute in it at 255, enabled 'fader controls LTP channels' and assigned it to a playback. It works as expected...with one slight flaw. It seems to treat the gobo rotation attribute as HTP - that is, the playback has no effect if the attribute was originally at something above 0 until the level passes what it was originally at. If the attribute was originally at 255 (for example, if I'd just recorded a cue with it at 255 and then cleared the programmer), it has no effect whatsoever. Is there any way to make MagicQ treat it as LTP while being controlled by the fader, so that it 'asserts' the attribute to 0 when the playback is activated? Alternatively, is there a neater way of achieving what I want to achieve?

[indyld]

What you describe is surely the attribute behaving as LTP. You have set it, you have no other playbacks running, your programmer release is not set to "home" the fixtures so it stays where it is until you tell it to do something. This makes your fader not "do" anything until the level is reached? Options would then change one of the above. Either run a playback active all the time with the 0, organise some stomping, change the way your programmer releases (although I hate them set like that) etc.

 

Alternatively, you might be able create the playback to be a two cue follow on, the first one zeroing the attribute the second cue is controlling. That's my first thoughts, anyway, without more detail. The issue you may be also having is what happens to the attribute AFTER the controlling playback is auto-released again.

 

Edit to add: A rather crude test on MagicQ for Mac (X11, groan) it seems to activate and release as I'd expect.

[mark_s]

I'm no doubt being dim, but I don't follow. If I raise the fader from 0 and 'tell it to do something' (ie go to 1), it remains at its original value until the fader passes that, and then when fading down it takes on its original value again when the fader dips below whatever that is. I can't grab control of it at all below the level it's already at. That's HTP to me.

 

I tried a follow-on cue and that just results in bizarre behaviour - for example say the original value is 255, with an initial cue to set it to 0 and a follow-on cue, when the fader is raised from 0 it will 'jump' to 243, and then can be controlled from 243-255. If you repeat that, it jumps down again, etc. I assume that that's due to some interaction with the initial cue with the LTP channels controlled by fader option.

[themadhippy]

have you checked the profiles correct

[mark_s]

The profile is indeed correct (although I hadn't thought to check until you mentioned it).

[Richard CSL]

you need to activate the cue by pressing the forward button, then activate the fader? or am I missunderstanding.

 

alternative when the page is selected activate the cue automatically, then it is ready for the slider to be raised.

[indyld]

I tried a follow-on cue and that just results in bizarre behaviour - for example say the original value is 255, with an initial cue to set it to 0 and a follow-on cue, when the fader is raised from 0 it will 'jump' to 243, and then can be controlled from 243-255. If you repeat that, it jumps down again, etc. I assume that that's due to some interaction with the initial cue with the LTP channels controlled by fader option.

 

Indeed, that may take some thought or actually never work, as the IPCB fader is set globally I assume.

 

Further thoughts on the subject:

 

To my reckoning, none of the grown up consoles behave in a "true LTP" all of the time. This seems to me because they would be inflexible and all the concepts of active, release, stomp, priorities, additive FX etc. would grind to a halt. With my pet hate for busking with desks set up to HOME all the heads on a CLEAR (or channel release), the LTP behaviour only appears to work in a tracking cue stack. Drives you wild trying to busk with all your heads going open white and pointing at the deck if you hit CLEAR.

 

All this leads one to assume that LTP is a, er, flexible concept in terms of desk behaviour..

 

I am not sure if you can alter the way your ICPB channel behaves to do want you want, although on the MQ there are always things somewhere that seem to have been already thought of by Chris. On the face of it, there are many cases when you don't want the fader to behave in this way.

 

If you have a Blinder or other position that you wish to LTP fade into place from the current Pan/Tilt, you don't want it to go via 000. Similarly, a LTP fade from current CMY values to a new colour. Again, going via Open White isn't desirable. In the case of using LTP faders to control strobe or rotation channels in a "set by fader position" situation it probably only works if your channels are already at 0 or held there by something else.

 

If there was no other way around it, I would create an executor that dragged things to 0 that I wanted when nothing else was active on that attribute channel. It's certainly a way I've got around this in the past, including some funky ways to get the operational details sorted with media servers.

 

E2A: It's been a while since I've been using an old Pearl, but I seem to very vaguely remember that my Strobe Mode 2 faders behaved in the way you describe but could be wrong. The Pearl had a much simpler approach to activation and release which was a little less flexible in some ways but also was easier to predict.

[Grum]

Just reading the first post, what you want is a fader to trigger the gobo rotation but for the fader to control the value i.e. you can use the fader to control rotation speed?

 

Select the heads and adjust ONLY the gobo rotation to the maximum value you require.

In the options for that cue stack select the ICPB option in fader options.

 

This will allow you to add gobo rotation to any scene.

 

If you've got gobo rotation already included in some programming that you want to be able to override then change the priorities on the rotation cue stack to be above programmer and set in so that the fader does not release the cue stack. Personally I'd set the flash button to release but that won't work on the execute page.

 

This will mean that only that cue stack can control gobo rotation until it is released.

 

I'm guessing the confusion is because the gobo rotation channel is often set to be an instant channel meaning that no matter what the fade in time the DMX value will jump to its final value as soon as you trigger the cue. The reason for this is to stop the embarrassment of seeing a gobo rotate clockwise slowly then really fast then stopping then really fast counter clockwise before settling to the nice slow counter clockwise rotation you wanted in your scene.

[cameroncoats]

Modifying the personality file and setting the gobo rotation channel/attribute to HTP (is that possible, I haven't gone near the head editor for a while?) might be a solution?

Although if you're planning on using anything other than this fader to control the gobo rotation then this probably isn't a good idea.