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1. Q ep Y OK X Cancel FIGURE 47 SEQUENCE ASSIGNMENT The Streams table on the left shows the streams that are present in the sequence The Targets in stream table indicates the fixtures already assigned to the selected stream The Available targets shows all fixtures not assigned yet to any of the streams The fixtures are taken from the Action s target i e you can only assign fixtures that have been placed in the target first Use the lt lt button to assign fixtures to a stream 48 4 4 USING PRESETS While programming lighting fixtures it can prove to be very effective and time saving to save frequently used lighting scenes as Presets that later on can simply be reused rather than reprogrammed each time they re needed The additional advantage is that when this lighting scene needs to be altered only the Preset needs to be modified any sequence or action referring to this Preset will automatically call the new scene This chapter will discuss the Preset Editor and cover how to make Presets 4 4 1 PRESET EDITOR Presets can be made for any type of fixture and for almost any attribute Only the Reset attribute is ignored by Presets The Preset Editor Figure 48 is accessible via the Tools menu In the editor the Presets are listed in the Preset List table When selected the content of a Preset is shown in the Preset Details table and the Fixtures
2. r ge Patterns Preview Label As i A A O A car Arrow E oa Gr Beachbal Qo En Bouncing Balls Ao car Breaky Ao v4 Butterfly Ao Ta Centrilic Aco ca Chameleon Ao ee CheckerBoard a gt F CheckerGif Do cur Chopper D cr Chopper Tiny Ao Clock Qo cur Crazy Dixo Ao Progress sr Diagonal Colour Chase 00 01 38 7 00 12 00 cur Diagonal Flood Aco Control SIF Disco Fever Ao cur Disco Floor Ao M Stop Fade A F Fire Ao J Fags Oo Call Go Back cur Happy Floor D 32 2 09 SIF Hiphop Ao E T np ause SIF Hopping Red Ao a Z x s E cr Labyrint o Live Gir Lines Blue Z Il Matrix Ao Go Setti ios car Nightfever Ao e Palmtree Ao Layout a Plasma Qo CLOCK Flash GLL fal Close Hang Oo FIGURE 53 MATRIX MANIA 4 5 1 OVERVIEW The Matrix Mania window is divided up into three views 54 This page will be used most offering you an overview of the appearance of the matrix and the full list of all patterns and graphics that can be applied Live The setting section will have its use before and during the show allowing you to customize the many parameters of the patterns This page also contains an editor Settings for the graphics like Bitmaps and GIFs Bea Using Matrix Mania will start here where you will enter the dimensions of the EEE matrix and map each fixture on the pixels of the matrix that it corresponds to
3. and Attributes tabs provide ways to alter the Preset 5 P78 178 Yokes Singer P56 T78 LED Green H P33 T78 PARCans 75 P11 T78 P 11 TE P 33 TH a P 56 TH 8 yokeoos P 78 T7 Fetch B yoke009 P 60 T7 B yokeo10 P 20 T t B yoke011 P20 T78 B yoke012 P60 T78 Rename MUU Cut Copy Paste Add Copied Ed Fixtures Attributes E Colour Mix Preset Editor El Import lt gt gt Support Y Gobo scroll e Gobo random Export fa Gobo rotation FIGURE 48 PRESET EDITOR Furthermore the editor has the following controls ADD Add a new Preset REMOVE Remove the selected Preset s 49 RENAME Change the label of the selected Preset EXECUTE Test the selected Preset FETCH For each fixture in the Preset this will get the values from all the attributes present in the Preset These values will be stored in the Preset CUT Cut the selected Preset s to the clipboard COPY Copy the selected Preset s to the clipboard PASTE Paste the Preset s on the clipboard PASTE COPIED Inserts the Preset s on the clipboard 4 4 2 HOME PRESET When no sequence or live view setting is controlling a fixture s attribute it will fall back to its home value Home values are set by VisualDMX however you can overrule the standard home values by programming a special Home Preset Any preset with the label home will override the stan
4. LIVE The Live view offers the means to control the matrix Figure 54 shows the sections this view consists of Patterns Preview Butterfly dk Centrilic cur Chameleon see CheckerBoard Progress Sr CheckerGif cr Chopper Control car Chopper Tiny Ol DO Dunn DD DDD Clock E Stop car Crazy Dixo car Diagonal Colour Chase car Diagonal Flood 0 Go Back car Disco Fever car Disco Floor A Pause Settings i gt Go yout T La JL Close cr Happy Floor A AA j FIGURE 54 MATRIX MANIA LIVE VIEW Intensity 100 Patterns This table lists the pattern collection For each pattern its label timing source and loop function are shown The pattern s icon indicates the type of pattern Preview This is a preview of the image applied to the matrix Progress The progress bar shows the running time for the currently loaded pattern You can also click and drag in this bar to set its position manually Control The matrix can be control by using the following buttons Call Load the currently selected pattern into the matrix layer 55 0 90 180 270 Rotate the loaded pattern by increments of 90 degrees Clock Manual Set the Timing Source Speed Play back speed of the loaded pattern Attack Cross fade time of the loaded pattern Intensity Intensity of the matrix layer Stop Stop the loaded pattern Go Back Go back one step Pause Pause Go Start
5. Move the DMX Output 1 to the Connected list using the lt lt button Close the window with CLOSE Now universe01 has been connected to DMX Output 1 3 1 3 ADDING TEAMS To make fixture selection quick and easy we ll add a number of teams groups Click TEAMS to open the Teams screen Click ADD to add an empty Team Team01 will appear in the Teams list Select this team On the right select yoke001 till yoke004 in the fixture list click yoke001 press and hold lt shift gt and click yoke004 Click the lt lt button to add these fixtures as Team Members to the selected team 23 The LED fixtures we chose in this configuration consist of 4 sub fixtures 4 areas with individual RGB control In a second team we will add these sub fixtures Click ADD to add another Team Open the Subs page in the Fixture list Select panel001 01 till panel004 04 and add these subs as Team Members to team02 The 6 channel dimmer consists of 6 sub fixtures Make a team for the dimmer subs in the same way as the LED team in the previous step Rename the teams to SmartMacs LED and Dimmer using the RENAME button on the left side of the screen The Team screen will be setup like Figure 20 f F Program Files Visual Productions VisualDMX14926 Configurationsdemo cfg E 01 x Team Members Fixtures Label 4 g g g Select one team 6 PPEPFAPAA 6 4224448 Fixtures Sub
6. ARCHITECTURE The Fixture Independent Architecture FIA forms the fundament of the intuitive VisualDMX user interface This architecture masks the Light jockey LJ from the numerous technical specification of today s complex DMX 512 equipment The FIA translates all this technology to one uniform interface for controlling the equipment The LJ will notice the great benefits of the FIA as soon as he starts to use the system For instance now it is possible to shut an arbitrary fixture simply by pressing the shutter button The FIA enables this although some fixtures lack a shutter capability requiring the shutter to be simulated by a closed gobo or black colour An added advantage of the FIA is that it enables sequences and cues to be applicable to every brand and type of fixture When a sequence is programmed this time consuming labour is not misspent if later on it is decided to switch to another type of fixture Also sequences can easily be exchanged with other LJ s who might use other fixtures 1 3 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS The recommended system requirements are Microsoft Windows XP Intel Core2Duo or equivalent SXGA 1280x1024 512 MB RAM Memory 40MB Disk Space To be able to operate VisualDMX the minimum system requirements are Microsoft Windows Vista XP or 2000 Pentium CPU 1 GHz or equivalent XGA 1024x768 256 MB RAM Memory 40MB Disk Space 1 4 SYSTEM OVERVIEW The VisualDMX product family consis
7. CC r Start with address 4458 _ Address gap O Ea Ea FIGURE 27 ADD FIXTURE DIALOG By default this dialog only asks how many of these fixtures you would like to add More detailed settings can be made by clicking the Advanced gt gt button Default label The base of the label assigned to the new fixture s Start with address Set the first starting address from which the new fixtures will be addressed Each subsequent fixture will automatically be assigned the next available address Address gap This setting determines whether a space should be left free between the address ranges of each newly added fixture The standard value of this setting is O resulting in no space between the fixtures Lens If available different lenses can be selected This setting is only used in the 3D visualizer Fixture list The fixture list presents all fixtures being controlled by VisualDMX organized in universes Also there is a Scenery tab that lists all non controllable fixtures e g truss par cans mirror balls that can be added with the purpose of showing it in the 3D visualizer Dipswitch If a fixture is selected this indicates the required address setting in the case the fixture is set using a dipswitch 30 TEAMS Teams can be used to organize your fixtures into groups This allows you to rapidly select multiple fixtures by clicking on a team in the Selection View Figure 2 or by using the lt F1 gt lt F8 gt
8. Visual Productions is a DMX interface also connected via USB The Elite features the possibility to upload tracks into the device and playback these sequences standalone without a computer FIGURE 65 ELITE 69 INTERFACE The Elite has two LEDs PC Indicates communication with the VisualDMX software This LED should be on when not used standalone DMX Indicates DMX signal is being transmitted This LED should be on continuously Furthermore the Elite has a display and two buttons to select the playback track The display can show 1 8 Tracks 1 till 8 A Auto Mode automatically traverse through tracks 1 till 8 When connected to VisualDMX Live control from VisualDMX When used standalone Blackout INSTALLING THE ELITE The installation of the Elite s driver is similar to installing the Duple as described in chapter 5 1 1 5 1 4 ART NET DONGLE The Art Net Dongle Figure 67 enables VisualDMX to send out its DMX values over the Art Net protocol The dongle is available in various sizes i e the number of universes that will be unlocked for use with Art Net The Art Net signal will be transmitted through the standard network port of the computer Art Net is compatible with a wide variety of DMX equipment and converters are offered by various third party suppliers CODEMETER RUNTIME KIT FIGURE 66 ART NET DONGLE The Art Net Dongle does not require any driver or special software to be installed unless you are us
9. a palette colour the Palette included property of the GIF has to be enabled Also in the editor you can perform the following operations Pen Flood Clear Draw per pixel in the selected colour Flood fill an area with the selected colour Clear the whole canvas with the selected colour The selected colour can be modified by using the Edit button at the bottom of the palette 59 LAYOUT The Layout view is the place where you configure the matrix dimensions and position the fixtures to a specific pixel see Figure 57 r m Dimensions Width Height SS SS 5 5 ESA gt gt Mapping 253 433 RS A O AA A ESA IEC EA AA AAA AA AE AA A maa nne meee 00000 a a o o N ll A e w ane WN SO oe ana oe nS dare Live Import Layout Overlap FIGURE 57 MATRIX MANIA LAYOUT VIEW In the Members section you can control which fixtures should be controlled by the matrix and set their position within the matrix Add Add fixtures to the matrix Remove Remove the selected members from the matrix Clear all Remove all members from the matrix Rotate Rotate the selected fixture s Snap to Previ This will position the selected fixture to the same location as the previous fixture in the list Arrange all Instead of positioning the fixtures manually one by one you can also opt for VisualDMX to arrange the fixtures automatically Pressing the Arrange
10. cm 74 A eee ene eee eee 14 CUSTOM 14 DEVICES 19 DipSWitCh ooccccccoccnonnccnnno 30 DISCONME Clas 29 DMX Input osen 42 71 DMX OU PUE avaricia 70 DMX Output RS 232 72 DOM Ostras 70 O A 67 A cobagaiedeindeedomaads 66 Elda lia ads 69 Enable audio input 18 EXECUTE ia ne 43 EXPO aeeie E 61 FAMINE carra anaE 13 POU UNG A 47 e a 4 Firmware upgrade 19 Firmware version 19 Fixture Configuration 27 Fixture Independent Architecture cocccocccccncocnnc 4 Fixture VIEW oocoocccoconcccnccnononos 7 EIU Scar 29 EOI nds 69 PUD CUON iaa 47 A E 30 Ets 56 57 O 74 OPO tarot 46 74 GQ SZE ii 17 A aea 13 Home preset 50 A 11 17 A 61 NOIA HON Adosado 60 JOYSTICK enn 18 Keyboard cccccceseeeeeeeeeees 42 Keyboard Shortcuts 15 Dti 14 LAVOUL asas 60 A S E 30 LIVE MIS Wii 12 Lock Fixture Windows 17 LOOD xo ee ein eecen cad 9 Low pass frequency filter 18 EEP oaee yucnceeees 11 17 Manuals 10 Manual Assignment 47 Map suetan a TT 61 UA 10 62 Matrix Manial 54 MEg an onarena To 65 MIDI recisi 18 43 46 73 Omit Save Query on Close 17 ODTIONNS enen 16 Orientation ccccccecceeeeeees 62 Paleta carnada oie 58 59 Pala cos 47 Parameters csccscceceseeees 57 O coast aececuuensdemsneasecaonee 31 A A 55 PCB VEFSION isis iaiiiin 19 Personality File 2
11. dialog you can use the lt CTRL gt button to select multiple outputs DISCONNECT Disconnect all outputs from the selected universe THROUGHPUT With Throughput enabled the values of all channels in the universe that are left unoccupied by any fixture are copied from the DMX Input This allows VisualDMX to merge its data with an incoming DMX line This feature can be control for each universe and is only available when a DMX Input is connected FIXTURES The Fixtures page Figure 26 allows you to select which fixtures to control untitled View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help DAS Personality Files Manufacturers Personalities Fixture List Universes Scenery onfiguration Information a d Fixture Manufacturer Model Personalities Y Light 22 Dimmer 8x 2 3kw 22 Dimmer 12 x 23kW 22 Dimmer 24 chn 222 Dimmer 48 chn DMX Channel y Floodlight 1000 y Floodlight 500 y Followspot 1000w y Followspot 575 y Fresnel 1000 y Fresnel 500 y Fresnel 650 7 Mitrorball 100 cm 2 Monitor TFT 17 inch 9 Monitor TFT 17 inch with foot y PAR36 PARA y PARS6 300w ty PARSE 500w Y EEE sy PC 1000 _ ne nan 47 y universeD1 y 8 Light M Fixtures a Address Manufacturer Model a Dinar 1 20d 1 8 yoke001 1 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit Ext am Dimmer 4 x 1 45kw 2 8
12. in the colour mix attribute to be determined by the highest value closest to white throughout all active sequences and live view similar to the dimmer attribute When set to LTP the colour mix will behave like a gobo or fixed colour attribute the last changed value is active User You can fill in your details here Snap to grid The grid option enables the user to neatly arrange the fixture windows more easily When this option is enabled the fixture windows snap to the grid when they are moved The size of this grid is defined by the grid number Grid size Size of the grid 17 E General aimed ES Dh Hardware H Server Factory Defaults Audi Joystick Soundcard Status E igital Output Device SPDIF Communicating with Joystick e Enable audio input Type wing an Attack 2 Detect AS 232 Save Enable low pass frequency filter W Joystick enabled A Audio signal i required to be lt 150Hz MIDI device none present MIDI Enabled FIGURE 12 OPTIONS VIEW MULTIMEDIA PAGE Enable audio input When enabled the tempo timing source is derived from the beats detected in the audio signal fed through the soundcard of the computer Enable low pass frequency filter The beat detection algorithm requires a low pass filter with a cross frequency of 150 Hz The filtering is performed by the software if this option is enabled When the audio is already filtere
13. is useful when VisualDMX and VisualTouch see chapter 5 4 1 both are set to startup automatically and VisualTouch should end up on the desktop s foreground 16 Check for updates at startup At startup VisualDMX can be set to automatically connect to Visual Productions server to check for a new software version If a new version is available then the user will be notified through a popup dialog Startup Automatically Sets VisualDMX to be launched automatically at the Windows start up Please make sure that if this option is enabled that the Codemeter Runtime software is installed on your system if not VisualDMX will create error messages at startup You can obtain the Codemeter Runtime from http www visualdmx com at the Downloads page Auto load last configuration The last used configuration file will be loaded automatically when VisualDMX starts up Omit Save Query on Close This option will prevent the Save changes dialog when VisualDMX is being closed This function is intended for fixed installations where no new changes need to be saved and will prevent saving any accidental changes Lock Fixture Windows Enabling this option disallows the user to move the fixture windows This is preferable once the setup is finished and you want to prevent the operator from accidentally moving the windows while he is operating the show ColourMix Attribute Precedence This option is set to HTP by default resulting
14. lt SHIFT gt EP lt PAGE UP gt lt PAGE DOWN gt Sequence shortcuts lt ENTER gt lt SPACE gt lt BACKSPACE gt lt ESC gt ET Select teams 1 till 9 Black out Insert an item Remove an item Save Select all Copy Paste Zoom in Zoom out Move beam of selected fixture s Select previous fixture Select next fixture Start stop selected sequence Start pause selected sequence Stop selected sequence Stop all running sequences and patterns Navigate through sequence pages 15 Matrix shortcuts ENS Move the selected member lt CTRL gt EPI Move the selected member to the far end lt CTRL gt R Rotate the selected member 2 3 COMMAND LINE PARAMETERS D Force demo mode ignoring any connected hardware L Load all personality files at startup O Reset the options to factory settings 2 4 CUSTOMIZE VISUALDMX You can customize some of the features of VisualDMX by selecting Options in the Tools menu A dialog box Figure 11 appears with tabs and the following customizable features General Multimedia DMs Hardware P Server Miscellaneou 3 W Startup Minimized A Check updates at startup Check Now Startup Automatically Grid size e Auto load last configuration Omit Save Query on Close e Lock Fixture windows Colours Attribute Precedence Organization FIGURE 11 OPTIONS VIEW GENERAL PAGE Startup Minimized VisualDMX will startup minimized this
15. playing the loaded pattern or advance one step Flash Momentarily sets the intensity of the matrix layer to 100 SETTINGS The Settings view Figure 55 enables you to manage and edit the patterns r Patterns Add X Remove j Rename C Rotate Live Settings Layout fl Close A Reload All HI Matrix Label IF F CheckerGif cr Chopper cr Chopper Tiny teen Clock cr Crazy Dixo Diagonal Colour Chase Diagonal Flood Disco Fever cr Disco Floor Fade Fl Fire cr Flags Happy Floor Hiphop Hopping Red Labyrint Lines Blue FIGURE 55 MATRIX MANIA SETTINGS VIEW amp Duration E 00 26 00 E 00 16 07 5 00 10 00 E 00 05 00 00 05 00 5 00 04 00 amp 00 05 00 5 00 06 00 5 00 08 00 E 00 04 00 E 00 08 00 E 00 12 00 5 00 14 00 E 00 13 00 5 00 08 00 E 00 05 00 5 00 32 00 E 00 10 00 5 00 04 00 E 00 08 00 00 12 00 5 00 26 00 E 00 21 00 Dimensions 16x16 16x12 A Preview Primary colour Background colour Speed Attack Some type of Patterns are computer generated they are calculated in real time e g the Fire Pattern Other types of patterns include GIF patterns they consist of one or more images with which animations can be 56 created There are also several Text Patterns available These patterns render text on the matrix in various ways e g horizontally vertically static scrolling etc At the left h
16. system integrators in mind it features a DIN Rail enclosure that allows easy mounting of the unit All connections have detachable screw connectors for a quick replacement of the unit The GPO features 8 contact closure output ports and is USB connected The function of the output ports can be freely programmed within FIGURE 71 GPO VisualDMX and Canvix allowing it to be triggered from software function 74 5 4 SOFTWARE TOOLS VisualDMX can communicate with other software tools so called clients like VisualTouch and Visual3D It communicates via a TCP IP connection a standard Ethernet network and thus can reach clients that run on the same computer as VisualDMX and clients that run on a different computer that is connected to this network 5 4 1 VISUALTOUCH VisualTouch Figure 72 is a freely available software tool from Visual Productions This tool will add a fool proof user interface to your VisualDMX system You can define multiple pages with many buttons that will trigger various functions and Patterns in VisualDMX The user interface is 100 touch screen optimized and password protected it is primarily designed for leaving VisualDMX in a fixed installation to be used by non technical staff Multiple Vi IT h lication n nn n ultiple sualTlouch applications can be connected to one CURED VIGUATTOUEH VisualDMX system 5 4 2 VISUAL3D Visual3D Figure 73 is a 3D visualizer for simulating the fixtures con
17. the pattern Height of the pattern The Colours property determines the size of the palette i e the number of colours it contains To further reduce file size the GIF format allows for the palette to be omitted When no palette is included in the GIF the standard system palettes are used Repeat the playback of the pattern Number of images inside the GIF Cumulative duration of all the steps in the pattern A GIF consists of multiple images which are listed in the table on the right The individual images can be edited The following properties can be set per image Width Height Width of the image Height of the image 58 Duration Transparancy Transparent Colour Palette Duration of this step in the GIF if the attack parameter is set to full fade then this duration becomes the fade time The transparency can be enabled or disabled The GIF format features the option to set one of the colours in its palette as the transparent colour When set all pixels with that colour will be rendered transparent In order to reduce file size GIFs use palettes to store their colour information This means that a pixel in an image is not stored as a real colour instead it is stored as an index number this index refers to a position in the palette in which real colours can be found If you change a colour within the palette all pixels throughout all images that refer to that index will change accordingly To be able to edit
18. view features a wizard that guides the user through specifying all the details of the track before it is generated In general a track is constructed out of a Fixture Configuration indicating the type of fixtures and their starting addresses and a sequence telling those fixtures what to do or even a matrix pattern Tracks Device Slot Help Devices with memory Duration Hz Size bytes Compression 00 05 00 4 218 100 Snapshot 00 00 05 20 19 g9 Rainbow Fades01 00 11 00 40 582 100 Duration Hz S ize bytes Compression Auto 00 00 05 19 96 04 15 04 15 00 05 00 218 100 lt Empty gt lt Empty gt lt Empty gt lt Empty gt Empty gt lt Empli gt lt Empty gt lt Empty gt Empty Empty lt Emply gt lt Empty gt lt Empty gt Track View FIGURE 61 TRACK VIEW Tracks vs Sequences The main difference between a track and sequence is that a sequence on its own is useless because it lacks the information on real DMX values the sequence doesn t know yet on which and on how many fixtures it is going to played On the contrary with a track at its construction information from the Fixture Configuration as well as from the current selection was added to the data from a sequence or pattern This makes a track file complete ready to be played upon lights without requiring any additional information This aspect reveals the true p
19. yoke002 18 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit Ext E Dimmer 4 23kW 3 8 yoke003 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit Ext am Dimmer 6 x 2 3kw 4 8 yoke004 52 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit Ext dimme001 Generic A E FIGURE 26 FIXTURES Personalities Dipswitch A fixture is a DMX controllable device Each fixture differs in the way it is controlled over DMX A file describing its DMX implementation is called a personality file VisualDMX contains a large collection with personality files 29 for over 1 500 different fixtures If however you need to control a fixture which is not present in VisualDMX then you can request its personality file to be made by sending an e mail to support visualproductions nl Sub fixtures Some fixtures are organized into multiple sub fixtures Examples of these include dimmer racks consists of multiple dimmer channels a LED panel consisting of for example 4 individually controllable sections and a set of 8 LED spots driven by one single dedicated controller Each sub fixture can be selected and controlled individually Adding fixtures To add a fixture to the configuration you navigate through the tree structure first selecting a manufacturer and then a model and if available a specific mode Click the gt gt button to add the selected fixture to your configuration When you add a fixture the following dialog will appear Figure 27 Add fixture s How many Advanced 1 EN o
20. you can now start controlling 36 4 2 PROGRAMMING SEQUENCES Sequences are used to program movement shapes chasers theatrical plays or other small light shows for your fixtures Sequences may contain any kind of attribute and can last from a few seconds till a couple of hours Also sequences are transparent i e they are independent from the type of fixture they are played upon A sequence can be used for fixtures with different brands and models The sequences are managed in the Sequence view It is from there where you can add new ones and start editing them Via the pop up menu in the Sequence view you can open the Sequence editor by clicking Edit This chapter will describe the many features of the editor in the overview chapter 4 2 1 as well as provide you with some useful examples in a How to guide chapter 0 4 2 1 OVERVIEW The Sequence Editor Figure 34 enables you to program all the characteristics of intelligent fixtures It s a powerful tool used to easily program movements colour and gobo chasers and other complex sequences a C development VisuslDMX Sequences Movement Disgonal seq Edit View Help R a gt on mie pt f Step Stream armar cora PEA SA ar Attribute y 4 gt Sequence 7 step C stream C Change Tirano source Clock gt Step indent Total duration ey Sh 00 20 00 L 2 D LLI V O z o D u F F
21. 003 2 0002 4 00 08 0000000000000 b i EOCCCEE Or OEE FIGURE 22 MAIN SCREEN 3 2 CONTROLLING FIXTURES In this chapter you ll learn how fixtures can be controlled live 3 2 1 CONTROLLING FIXTURES USING THE LIVE VIEW Fixtures with a DMX controlled lamp ignition like the SmartMac must be ignited first VisualDMX is based on the principle that first a fixture needs to be selected before it can be controlled Select the SmartMacs Press lt F1 gt or select the team SmartMacs in the Selection View Move to the Secondary page in the Live View and click Lamp On 2 om to ignite the lamp of the SmartMacs The state of the lamp can be monitored with the first icon in the Fixture View After igniting the lamp the icon has been changed to Y Click Primary in the Live View to move back to the Primary page Move the dimmer fader to 100 The SmartMacs will show a white beam in the Fixture View Figure 23 yokeD0 2 VOLT y FIGURE 23 FIXTURE VIEW 25 In the Live View all available attributes of the selected fixtures are available for control To get back to the home values of the selected fixtures press Home This will clear all set Live View values 3 2 2 CONTROLLING FIXTURES USING THE FIXTURE VIEW Some functions depending on the type of fixture can be controlled using the Fixture View of the fixture For example to change the pan tilt position of the SmartMacs click and drag aroun
22. 250 Krypton 16 Bit E Expolite 2 g yokeD02 18 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit E FAL E gt gt 3 g yokeD03 35 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit E Fine Art 4 4 8 yoke004 52 Martin MAC 250 Krypton 16 Bit E F Futurelight 5 8 dimmerO01 69 Generic Dimmer 4x 23kW Universes Scenery y Profile 1000 E Profile 500 Profile 650 gt High End Systems RGB colour mixer H Hungaroflash RGB Matrix 2x1 AES E RGB Matrix 2x2 JB Lighting oi RGB Matrix 3x1 fg RGB Matrix 3x3 pa i ss RGB Matrix 4x1 E RGB Matrix 4x4 Lagoled 2 Smoke Generator ss Lampo oo Striplight 10 LT Laser Technique Laserworld a Switchpack 01 chn te Le Maitre q Switchpack 04 chn 14 occupied Information Manufacturer Model Personalities Fixture Configuration FIGURE 31 ADDED FIXTURES Step 3 Creating teams For rapid selection of the fixtures later on it is good practice to create teams So create two teams by operating the Teams page Fr Select the first team and rename it into Yokes You can do this by right clicking the team and choose for the Rename option in the pop up menu Rename the second team Dimmer Now click on the Yokes team to select it The list with Team Members will still be empty Let s add the four Martin Mac 250 Kryptons yoke001 till yoke004 Select all four of them click on the first depress lt SHIFT gt and click on t
23. 4 WORKING WITH VISUALDMX The previous chapter explained the basic functionality of the software This chapter will discuss in more depth the most important functions of VisualDMX like how to create a configuration create sequences program actions or how to control a matrix 4 1 CREATE A FIXTURE CONFIGURATION To control fixtures in VisualDMX you need to create a configuration This is done in the Fixture Configuration window Figure 24 that can be accessed through the Fixture menu amp C development VisualDMX Configurations Demo Yokes and Matrix cfg View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help D gt eja w e Personality Files Manufacturers Expolite e FAL Fine Art F Futurelight IE High End Systems H Hungaroflash A IES x JB Lighting LT Laser Technique Laserworld Models DM Channel Floodlight 1000 y Floodlight 500 oo Followspot 1000W ool Followspot 575 ool Fresnel 1000 ool Fresnel 500 ool Fresnel 650 2 Mirrorball 100 cm 2 Monitor TFT 17 inch PARSE 300w PARSE 500w Information Manufacturer Model Personalities 47 O SS 5 D z O c pam E a LL Universes Scenery Main universe02 Fixtures Address Manufacturer M odel Label 1 GB panema 2 EF paneloo2 3 GB parens 4 EF paneis 5 E panenos 6 E panene 7 E paneloo7 8 paneld08 9 GR paneloog 10 Ef p
24. 9 76 Phase Shift neeese 10 Preset Editor cooommmm o 49 A arniran 49 PSY dadas 13 Refresh rate ccccccceeeceeeeees 64 ROT 60 RL 72 SEN dd 8 Scheduler a ica aiids 43 Secondary aa 14 Selection ViEW ccccseeeceeeee 8 Sequence Editor 37 Sequence VIEW occocccnccnoncnonos 8 SequenCeS cooccoccnccnccnccnonnnnnns 37 SEVEN narran 20 SIOUS aro 65 SMOKE aaa enaa 14 Snap to QPid cccceeeeeees 17 Snap to Previous 60 61 MINO Lai 64 Specifications 4 SPEE dcir T 56 Stacking Sequences 11 Startup Automatically 17 Startup Minimized 16 SIC Sera A 13 A 38 UC Macari 38 A 9 Sub fIXtUTeS osonencs 30 S per Feten 50 SYSTE aaea 42 System Requirements 4 TEOT ea e 44 E o SS 46 A cess 31 o E 10 Throughput ccecccccseeeeees 29 A E AE E 43 Timing Source 9 10 11 Touch Screen seen 43 75 TAS a n 63 Transparancy eseese 59 A T 44 UNIVELS cceeccesceseceeeeeees 28 Uperaden nia 19 A A a 17 7 NOTES 77
25. Additional sequence operations Clicking your mouse with the right button on a sequence will bring up a menu with operations that can be performed on the sequence see Figure 6 Play de Cut Copy 2 Edit E4 Timing source Properties mij Rename x Delete FIGURE 6 SEQUENCE POP UP MENU Many of the menu options speak for themselves Let us focus on a couple that could use some explanation Edit This will bring up the sequence editor For more information on editing sequences please refer to chapter 4 2 Timing source Select a Timing source for the sequence 11 The main menu Sequence Figure 7 offers additional functions Sequence Sequence Tools de Cut i pe cope O New al Rename T T Properties x Delete mae Reset all A Reload all o FIGURE 7 SEQUENCE MENU Save all Saves all sequences to disk including the runtime parameters Reset all Resets all runtime parameter like Speed Phase shift and Margin Reload all Reloads all sequences from disk including the runtime parameters Caution All unsaved modifications will be lost 2 1 4 LIVE VIEW The Live view Figure 8 enables you to manually and directly control the attributes of a fixture The control in the Live view are applied on the current selection of fixtures Fixed Spectrum Mix Primary Secondary Smoke Custom a pis a EN L a ar ie a E ar 5 FIGURE 8 LIVE VIEW The Live view is
26. Gobo selection H panel f Gobo scroll pe A panel003 E BN nanena FIGURE 37 STREAM TAB For your convenience you can give a stream a label Furthermore you have to add attributes to the stream these attributes will be the ones that are controlled by the sequence Editing a stream can be done through the Stream tab Figure 37 at the bottom of the editor or by operating the pop up menu of the stream s box Attribute Adding an attribute to a stream will result in a Sub Stream it is the sub stream that represents the actual data programmed for a certain attribute The Sub stream will be spread across all steps allowing you to create settings for this attribute in each and every step Change The cross section of an attribute with a step is called a Change It is the Changes that contain the actual data that the fixtures will perform when controlled by the sequence You can modify a change by selecting it or a few at once and go to the Change tab Figure 38 at the bottom of the editor This page will automatically show the controls corresponding with the attribute of the selected change s Sequence Ol Step O Stream LJ Change Shape Parameters na Line a Change stop ea gt gt Previous Current value lt lt Next 4 Fetch FIGURE 38 CHANGE TAB 39 4 2 2 HOWTO This topic will show you how to program your first sequences in VisualDMX step by step Sequence 1 We will start with making a seque
27. IGURE 34 SEQUENCE EDITOR The editor presents you with a graphical representation of the sequence which is build up of Steps Streams and Attributes The tabs at the bottom of the editor contain specific settings for those elements Let s discuss the details in this view one by one Sequence The Sequence tab Figure 35 allows you to change general settings for the sequence 37 SEQUENCE Step O Stream O Change Timing source Loop Step Indent Clock E Total duration 00 20 00 FIGURE 35 SEQUENCE TAB The timing source determines how the sequence traverses through its steps Refer to chapter 2 1 3 to read more about timing sources The Total Duration indicates the length of all steps together The Loop option lets you control whether the sequence should stop after reaching its end or continue looping from the beginning No loop stop at the end of the sequence Loop start with step 1 again Step Indent aot An alternative way of using the loop is to create a non linear loop by setting a step indent The use of a step indent will make the sequence initially start at the beginning of the sequence notably step 1 then after completing the full series of steps it will loop however starting at the step denoted by the step indent value repeating this smaller loop indefinitely This feature enables you to program some initial changing of attributes perhaps fading the current state in
28. RE Choose one of the items this task can change FUNCTION Choose a way in which this item will be changed like SET Set to a specific value TOGGLE Alternate between two specific values CONTROL Set to the value determined by the trigger of the action For example if the trigger is a DMX Input channel then the value is the level of that DMX channel INVERTED CONTROL Similar to Control with the value inverted CHANGE PARAM 1 First value PRESET PARAM 1 Do not program a certain value instead link to a preset Refer to chapter 4 4 for more information on presets CHANGE PARAM 2 Second value PRESET PARAM 2 Do not program a certain value instead link to a preset MANUAL ASSIGNMENT Sequences being transparent from the fixtures normally have the fixtures automatically assigned to their different streams The first selected fixture will be assigned to the first stream the second fixture to the second stream etc If this automatic assignment does not suit your requirements then the Manual Assignment function allows you to specify yourself which fixtures are being assigned to which streams The Manual Assignment setting will become available when a task with the type Sequence is selected Press the Set Assignment button to open up the Sequence Assignment dialog Figure 47 47 Streams Targets in stream Available targets 8 yoke0os q Q D 0 0 lt Q O Q
29. VisualDMX Manual Version 1 5 Written for VisualDMX 1 49 March 2009 Author Jeroen van der Velden Translation Maarten Engels 2009 Visual Productions All rights reserved No parts of this work may be reproduced in any form or by any means graphic electronic or mechanical including photocopying recording taping or information storage and retrieval systems without the written permission of the publisher While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this document the publisher and the author assume no responsibility for errors or omissions or for damages resulting from the use of information contained in this document or from the use of programs and source code that may accompany it In no event shall the publisher and the author be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage caused or alleged to have been caused directly or indirectly by this document Due to the dynamic nature of product design the information contained in this document is subject to change without notice Revisions of this information or new editions may be issued to incorporate such changes Products that are referred to in this document may be either trademarks and or registered trademarks of the respective owners The publisher and the author make no claim to these trademarks The Graphics Interchange Format c is the Copyright property of CompuServe Incorporated GIF sm is a Service Mark property of CompuServe Incorpor
30. all button will pop up a dialog that allows you to select the arranging method that corresponds to the physical arrangement of the fixtures Indication This function helps with positioning the fixtures When Indication is enabled the physical fixtures will display the same colour as the pixels in the Mapping overview By watching the real fixtures it will become instantly clear where this fixture belongs 60 within the matrix The 1 pixel of a fixture is indicated in orange showing its orientation ETL Move the selected fixture s Import Load the matrix layout from file Export Save the matrix layout to a specific file Note the matrix settings are already saved in the configuration file Mapping The Mapping diagram shows the positions of the fixtures inside the matrix Using different colours it indicates the state of each pixel Black Contains no fixture Cyan Contains a part of a fixture Orange Multiple fixture overlap on this pixel Dark blue edge Selected fixture Layout view keyboard shortcuts lt ENTER gt Select the next fixture lt BACKSPACE gt Select the previous fixture R Rotate the selected fixture s EN gt V Move the selected fixture s lt CTRL gt EP VU Move the selected fixture s to the very end P Snap to Previous 61 4 6 CALIBRATING FIXTURES The Calibration view Figure 58 allows you to modify the behaviour of the currently selected fixtures Help o Invert Pan t Invert Til
31. and side the following controls are offered Add Insert a Pattern Remove Remove a Pattern Rename Rename a Pattern Edit Opens the in built graphics editor only available for GIF and BMP patterns Clock Manual Change the Timing Source of the Pattern Rotate Rotate the pattern by 90 degrees Parameters Each pattern has parameters the amount of parameters varies through the different types of Patterns A few examples of parameters are Speed Attack Background colour and Text Figure 55 shows the parameter table on the right By clicking on a value you launch a pop up dialog that enables you to change the value of the parameter GIF PATTERNS A GIF pattern consists of one or more images that can run one by one to create an animation You can use the in built GIF editor to change these patterns To access the editor Figure 56 select a GIF pattern and press the Edit button 57 Palette Gif Editor FIGURE 56 GIF EDITOR Canvas Images A Dimensions Duration Transparency 16x12 00 00 80 16x12 00 00 80 16x12 00 01 00 16x12 00 01 00 16x12 00 01 00 16x12 00 01 00 XX Da Dd pd da 00 01 00 X 00 01 00 00 01 00 Off Transparent colour E 4 Total Duration 00 07 60 GIF Properties Image Properties The GIF patterns have some specific properties Width Height Colours Palette Included Loop Images Total Duration Width of
32. anelo10 1 BB panelo11 12 GB panelo12 13 Ef panelo13 14 GB panel014 15 A paneis 16 A panelo16 17 GR panelo17 18 A paneis 19 Ef panelo19 mmnm 1 Multileds 13 Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multileds Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic Multiled Classic om 87 occupied FIGURE 24 FIXTURE CONFIGURATION Configurations can be saved and loaded via the File menu in the main view 27 4 1 1 OVERVIEW The Fixture Configuration window is divided into four pages walt Universes In the Universes page you can add and remove universes you need to connect them here to a DMX or Art Net output EN Fixtures This is the default page in which you can add fixtures to the universes This is also the place to change the starting addresses of the fixtures Po Teams Teams are groups of one or more fixtures Teams are managed in this page ej Patch This page enables you to patch conventional fixtures to specific dimmer channels UNIVERSES A DMX Unive
33. ardware has been detected and Windows will search for the driver i Found New Hardware x visual DMX Output USB Elite STEP 2 Select nstall from a list or specific location Found New Hardware Wizard Welcome to the Found New Po tap Hardware Wizard Y This wizard helps you install software for VisualD MX Elite MkII S lf your hardware came with an installation CD lt gt or floppy disk insert it now What do you want the wizard to do Install the software automatically Recommended Install from a list or specific location Advanced Click Next to continue E Canca STEP 3 Make sure that Search for the best drivers in these locations and Include this location in the search are checked Found New Hardware Wizard 7 Please choose your search and installation options Pha Rae Y Search for the best driver in these locations Use the check boxes below to limit or expand the default search which includes local paths and removable media The best driver found will be installed I Search removable media floppy CD ROM IV Include this location in the search Browse C Don t search will choose the driver to install Choose this option to select the device driver from a list Windows does not guarantee that the driver you choose will be the best match for your hardware lt Back Cancel Click on Browse to locate the drivers The drivers are
34. ated Content De MO GIG O ats au sanaasuscasaece nana E EEE E E eaieanice 3 LASPe CITC ALLO S tas 4 12 FIXture Independent Arecnite cure al dd 4 LS Steam ROGUIFCINGIUS iaa 4 BA SV STSCI OMC A nes T neue a ae 5 2 TNE User Intera Eca r a A E T E end eandebutmadadlagiededrnsmaaanians 6 AS ee A E A A E a 6 AS N A Aa a 15 2 3 Command line Para meters sitiado indicas 16 ZACUStTOMIZE MISA DIV ca dia iicid s 16 3 QUICK Stre MN didas les 21 A el o O abode itant best Aiel cued teehee shod leita 21 5 2 CONTONE TIX EU ES ori os 25 BD Learn ne AUO Csr ete eran A O a 26 AL AWOKE WATE VISA DIV aida 27 fl Cheater eUherC Onn Ie Ura ClO Mica adidas 27 a2 POP ramimine SCOU CI CES nadia iio iaa 37 AS POP raMMINSACUON dad adi 42 AA SINE Presea a a 49 SV Maa tt bd a a dre ls pi e dot a Meu tne E 54 46 Calbratina AXIS A AAA AS A AAA AAA IAS 62 A IVS 0 eed A gin atte ana E SA 63 5 COMMECEAS WIEN VISUalD VIS usado 66 SDE AN dea 66 A O TTT 73 So General Purpose atera as 74 SOI O nido 75 O 76 ME A eh lates cart leidale eeacind 76 S NOTE Si sd decuwacencuuivecedamuncawmetse sd cnceuvconctitl wadus tues ousabedueenumrencusiyss Error Bookmark not defined 1 INTRODUCTION Congratulations with your choice for the VisualDMX Lighting Control software VisualDMX is a control system for entertainment and architectural lighting This lighting controller is used in fixed installations in Discotheques Clubs Restaurants Conference halls and other venues r
35. cted the editor will show a list of all Actions present in that List The editor features various Action related controls at the right of Figure 42 ADD Insert an Action in the currently selected Action List REMOVE Delete the selected Action s RENAME Change the label of the selected Action EDIT Open up the screen for editing the contents of the Action EXECUTE Execute the selected Action s this is quite useful for testing the Action without having to wait for the actual event UP DOWN Move the selected action one position up or down in the list 4 3 3 EDITING AN ACTION Select an Action and press the EDIT button this will launch the edit screen as shown in Figure 43 43 x Trigge Feature Param 1 Add Attribute Dimmer Set FAZ Remove A ey Change Learn Targe Specific Change ty Position Toggle Contral Inverted Contral Set Preset Param Ehange Col II wy alour cro Fetch A Colour random a Gobo 1 Set Preset Gag Gobo 2 Sequence Setting a Gobo 3 Manual Sesignnrent fe Gobo scroll oa Set Assignment b FIGURE 43 ACTION EDIT WINDOW Edit Action TRIGGER With the exception of a Touch Screen Action List each Action requires a Trigger to be set The Trigger determines which specific event created by the Source of its Action List the Action will respond to Select the Change button to choose a different trigger Setting a trigger
36. cute Fetch GULLU Copy Paste Paste Copied ik Fixtures Attributes 3gA Colour random 3 Gobo 1 3 Gobo 2 6 Gobo scroll gl Gobo random f Gobo rotation YG Gobo index Prism selection aF Prism scroll a Prism random Prism rotation 3 Prism index F Sttahe linear Preset Editor Import y Export E fl Close FIGURE 51 PRESET EDITOR BLUE MAGENTA FAN Step 3 Fetch the values The final step for this Preset is to set the values Select the Preset in the Preset List and click on the Fetch button All the attributes values are now fetched from the fixtures and stored in the Preset see Figure 52 52 18 x P78 173 P56 173 P33 173 P11 173 P 11 T7 P 33 TZ 8 yoke007 P 56 T7 g yoke008 P 78 TF Copy Paste Paste Copied Hi Fixtures Attributes GA Colour scroll 394 Colour random 3 Gobo 1 3 Gobo 2 6 Gobo scroll gl Gobo random f Gobo rotation YG Gobo index Prism selection aF Prism scroll a Prism random 32 Prism rotation 3 Prism index fF Gtrnhe linear Preset Editor Export E FIGURE 52 PRESET WITH ITS CONTENT STORED Step 4 Test the Preset To test the Preset first select the moving heads in the Main view of VisualDMX and set them to different values you could use the Home button in the Live View to do this Now go back to the Preset Editor and select ou
37. d in the black area of the SmartMacs fixture views and see how the beam of the selected fixtures will follow the mouse The individual dimmer channels of the Dimmer fixture can also be controlled in the corresponding Fixture View Just move the faders of the individual channels to change their value 3 2 3 PLAYING SEQUENCES ON FIXTURES Sequences can be played back live on selected fixtures Select the SmartMacs team using the lt F1 gt key or by clicking the SmartMacs team in the Selection View Go to the Movements page in the Sequence View and double click Circle The SmartMacs will show a circle movement Using the Speed and Phaseshift faders the playback of the sequence can be changed Together with the circle movement another sequence can be started Go to the Chasers sequence page whilst pressing and holding the CTRL key on the keyboard double click the Shutter Chase This will start the Shutter Chase sequence together with the already playing sequence s 3 3 LEARNING MORE VisualDMX has many editors and functions to start working and programming with the current configuration To automate the lightshow for example by connecting functions to keys MIDI DMX Input and VisualTouch you ll need the Action Editor More about the Action Editor can be found in chapter 4 3 To save lighting presets Presets you ll use the Preset Editor More about this editor can be found in chapter 4 4 26
38. d in the visualizer Furthermore you can directly control the beam position with the arrow keys in combination with lt SHIFT gt Make sure the Fixture view is selected to allow this operation It is possible to have multiple views selected for a joint move In contrast to all the controls the fixture views are allowed to be moved and resized This enables you to organise them in a way similar to their real world layout on your stage or in your grid Adjusting the size of the Fixture view is done using the lt CTRL gt and lt CTRL gt keyboard shortcuts or alternatively by dragging the lower right corner of the fixture view Tip In the Fixture menu of VisualDMX you can find the Auto Lamp Strike function This functions turns on all the lamps of the currently selected fixtures however it does so with a 1 second interval between each lamp strike to lower the power peak when enabling discharge lamps 2 1 2 SELECTION VIEW Many functions within VisualDMX are applied on the current selection of fixtures Selecting fixtures is therefore an often reoccurring action You can make a selection in various ways Selection view Use the mouse the make a selection from this view Mouse action By clicking on the caption bar of the fixture views with or without the use of the lt CTRL gt button to make a multiple selection lt F1 gt lt F8 gt Keyboard shortcuts for selecting the first eight teams lt CTRL gt A Keyboar
39. d outside of the computer then this option can be disabled to save CPU resources The low pass filter is not yet implemented in version 1 49 MIDI Here you can see the available MIDI devices in your computer system To use MIDI to trigger cues you should choose a device and enable this feature JOYSTICK VisualDMX support the usage of joysticks as a source for triggering Actions When this feature is enabled the software will automatically detect any USB connected joystick 18 2 4 1 DMX HARDWARE This section shows you what hardware is detected and used by VisualDMX Tools Help General gt Multimedia Y OMX Hardware ES Auto Load Save py Server Connected Devices Available firmwares A ArtHet Dongle Dongle 12 Elite Mikl 11 10 2007 OM Output Mk Dim Output 1 Elite MkII 11 10 2007 Frontier 11 10 2007 DM Input MEI 11 10 2007 DM Output MkII 11 10 2007 2 Upload FIGURE 13 OPTIONS HARDWARE TAB Connected Devices This table indicates the following Device Type of hardware Label Name of this unit PCB version Hardware version Firmware version Software version Via the menu you can also Blink Several LEDs on the selected unit will blink for a few seconds to indicate which device belongs to which label Upgrade Upgrade the firmware device s internal software of the selected device Firmware upgrade Most devices from Visual Productions contain a firmware that can be upgraded New versions of the f
40. d shortcuts for selecting all fixtures Actions You can program actions to perform a selection Pop up menu Right click on the Selection view to bring up the popup menu This menu offers functions like All Clear Invert Odd and Even The Selection view has 4 sections Teams For selecting a whole team To learn more about how to create teams refer to chapter 4 1 Fixtures For selecting individual fixtures Subs For selecting sub fixtures like dimmer channels Scenery For selecting scenery fixtures e fixtures that are not DMX controllable like Par cans truss mirror balls etc 2 1 3 SEQUENCE VIEW The Sequence View Figure 5 Sequence View in VisualDMX is an overview containing status information on sequences and offers ways to change the behavior of the sequences y tl Sequences are organized in arbitrary pages like Chasers Colours and Movements Pages can freely be added removed or renamed Chasers Colours Misc Min vpl 7 1 E Audience blind a CanCan E Duration 00 05 UU 1 A e Circle Cross Speed i 6 Diagonal Phage shit 32 75 Dual FlipFlop Easy Master 10075 Eight Ocean co OF on E oi a co IHR BRREHRE RHEE ee 8 Ge Quadruple Scan Random Strobe Sunchro nice Twisted Bananas Wave whirl EPR E DA amp ih Aa a fp o a FIGURE 5 SEQUENCE VIEW More on sequences Besides displaying some self explanatory informatio
41. dard home values Fixtures or attributes not programmed in this preset will keep their default home values 50 4 4 3 HOWTO In this paragraph we are going to make a Preset for a couple of moving heads setting their position and colour attribute Step 1 Position the moving heads and set the colours Open the Demo 8 heads cfg configuration Select a couple of moving heads apply the Static control in the Live View on the primary tab as in Figure 49 Static FIGURE 49 FANNING MOVING HEADS Set some moving heads to a colour e g blue Select the other moving heads and set them to a different colour e g magenta Figure 50 now shows the state of the moving heads Byoke009 Byokeo10 Byokeo11 Byokeoi2 dimmer FIGURE 50 FANNED MOVING HEADS IN BLUE MAGENTA Step 2 Add a Preset In VisualDMX s main screen go to the Tools menu and choose Preset Editor Add a Preset by clicking on the Add button Select the new Preset click on Rename and label the Preset e g Blue Magenta Fan In the Fixtures tab you can select the moving heads we ve set up Add them to the Preset by using the gt gt button Now select the Attributes tab and add the Position and Colour 1 attributes to the Preset by using the gt gt button The Preset Editor should now look like Figure 51 51 218 x Add Remove Rename 8 yoke007 8 pokes Ex
42. e Device Manager The Device Manager presents you with a tree structure indicating all hardware connected to your computer You expect to find VisualDMX s devices in the section Universal Serial Bus Controllers If the device is not listed here something went wrong with installing the drivers 5 1 2 FRONTIER Visual Productions Frontier Figure 64 is also a USB connected DMX interface BEGG SEES SEES AENA The unit offers direct control of 16 tracks for standalone FIGURE 64 FRONTIER usage INTERFACE The Frontier features 16 illuminated buttons that allow you to select a Track The rotary knob can be used to adjust the playback speed of the currently active track depressing the knob will reset the speed to the level originally programmed If no track is active then the unit behaves like a normal DMX Output and can be used for live control with VisualDMX TEST FUNCTIONS The Frontier has a few test functions built in To run a test function depress the specific track button while applying power to the unit Button Function 3 LED test all buttons are lit 4 Button test pressing a button will illuminate its LED 5 Encoder test use the encoder to move a cursor around Rotary knob Close any test function go back to the normal mode INSTALLING THE FRONTIER The installation of the Frontier s driver is similar to installing the Duple as described in chapter 5 1 1 5 1 3 ELITE The Elite Figure 65 from
43. elp Fixture Views oe sac eae Selection view Pf Ehosers Colours Misc Movemert Sequence View ais Spectrum Mix js Primasy Secondary Smoke Custom Live View O Label M Comaval 2 Mi Chase Blue Green E Chase Green Blue M Chase Red Yellow J MEM Colowed TA 5 E Fip op vertical E Green Blue Fade O Shutter Dimmer Home Static uf Alw M Puse E Rainbow 0000000000000 Grand Master 100 FIGURE 2 MAIN VIEW To help this interface to be intuitive all the controls share fixed locations This allows you to get used to their position and to be able to rapidly find the desired control during live shows As shown in the screen dump of the main view Figure 2 this view is organized in several sections Let us discuss these sections in more detail Fixture views Every fixture is represented by one fixture view In contrast to all the controls the fixture views are allowed to be moved and resized This enables you to organize them in a way similar to their real world layout on your stage or in your grid Selection view This window helps you to make selections of your fixtures Almost all functions in VisualDMX depend on the current selection of fixtures You will learn that there are many ways of making a selection making a selection using this window is the most self explanatory way Sequence view This section gives you an overview of all the sequences progra
44. elp Dl elalwie Dimmer Channel Unpatched Conventional Fixture Label Capacity w Patches Load fw Gel Power tw Label Gel Power Ww i 01 2300 E 1000 E 1000 02 2300 E 1000 03 2300 04 2300 1000 1000 1000 i b b i i i ee b b Q i O pur 0 3 0 E O O Q L aja A LL FIGURE 29 PATCHES In order to make a patch you select a channel in the Dimmer Channels table Then select one or more fixtures from the Unpatched Conventional Fixtures table and patch them to the dimmer channel by clicking the lt lt button 32 4 1 2 HOWTO To help you create your first Fixture Configuration we will give you a walk through guide that in several steps shows you how to do this This example will include creating teams patching dimmer channels and re addressing a fixture We begin from the point that you have started up VisualDMX and your Main view is empty not having any fixtures so far If necessary use menu File and then New Step 1 Open the Fixture Configuration Open the Fixture Configuration view Figure 30 by using the Fixture menu 2 untitled L0 View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help D gt e fs l M Personality Files Universes Scenery Mhanufacturers JP 5Star Systems Aboutshow A Abstract universell Fixtures Address Manufacturer AC Lighting acme A Ac
45. ename Address Properties DAA KA KALA LALA LALA The DMX Configuration has been made The next step is connecting a Duple to the Universe in the software 3 1 2 CONNECTING A DUPLE TO THE UNIVERSE You can Skip this step when there is no Visual Productions hardware output connected Click in the bottom left corner of the Fixture Configuration view on Universes to open the Universes screen Figure 18 22 105 x Universe Add Label Output Devices Thoughput 1 universel Remove Rename Connect Misconnect Fixture Configuration Blink Universes Fixtures belie Throughput Teams e le li FIGURE 18 UNIVERSE SETTINGS Click on universe01 in the list of universes When the text none is displayed in the Output Devices column of universe01 the universe has not yet been connected to a hardware output Click on CONNECT Figure 19 Connected Available SY on output 1 011330 MEL ArtNet Sub Net 0 Universe 0 fan 5 h E ArtNet Sub Net 0 Universe 1 fia E h E ArtNet Sub Net 0 Universe 2 fan PJ E ArtNet Sub Net O Universe 3 El ArtNet Sub Net O Universe 4 J IME Rel ArtNet Sub Net 0 Universe 5 AE ArtNet Sub Net 0 Universe 6 ART hablar Col Alot Mill 7 ha 102 O O je O ep FIGURE 19 SET CONNECTIONS Connected Visual Productions hardware outputs are displayed in the Available list
46. equiring live or pre programmed lighting control VisualDMX is a software based DMX 512 lighting control system that through its advanced graphical user interface enables light jockeys to quickly change lighting atmospheres and program complete lightshows The product features more than just quality software the VisualDMX product line comes complete with USB to DMX hardware standalone playback units and additional software for visualization and creation of fool proof touch screen user interfaces The development of VisualDMX is ongoing we advise you to visit our website regularly for the latest software releases and the most recent version of this manual You can find the VisualDMX website at http www visualdmx com If after consulting this manual you still have questions then you can obtain additional information and help through the online support forum VisualDMX users and employees of Visual Productions share their experiences and tips on this forum You can find the forum at http www visualproductions nl forum We wish you lots of success in using your VisualDMX Lighting Control software The Visual Productions Team 1 1 SPECIFICATIONS VisualDMX has the following specifications 4 096 output DMX channels Advanced sequence editor Integrated shape generator Password protection DMX input MIDI in amp out Audio input Joystick input Art Net output RDM ready 1 2 FIXTURE INDEPENDENT
47. ext step Tempo The Tempo source will ignore the programmed durations of the steps and make all steps last as long as one beat The tempo of the beat can be set by manual tapping or by the sound to light function The speed settings of the sequences using this source are ignored Modifying a sequence The sequence view allows you to modify several run time characteristics of the sequence This will not change the original programmed information in the sequence However you can swiftly modify things such as playback speed and apply other effects to adapt the sequence to your live situation To summarize all modifications that are featured Speed Playback speed Phase shift This effect causes an interdependent delay proportionally spread between the fixtures that are controlled by the sequence Margin Green square Limits the movement range of a sequence allowing you to position a sequence on the stage or dance floor Only works on sequences which inhibit beam movements Timing source By right clicking on a sequence a pop up menu will appear that allows you to change the timing source Start and stop sequences To start pause or stop a sequence first you have to select it and then click on one of the designated buttons There are alternative ways to start or stop sequences most of them provide faster ways to do this Double click with the mouse on a sequence this will toggle its playing state Right click with the mouse on a
48. he last one and press the lt lt button They now have been added to the Yokes team as in Figure 32 34 Count Members 1 8 yoke001 2 8 yoke002 3 8 yoke003 4 8 yoke004 Fixture Configuration FIGURE 32 YOKES TEAM For the Dimmer team we would like to add the dimmer channels rather than the dimmer itself In order to do this select the Subs tab and add dimmer001 01 till dimmer001 04 to the team Step 3 Patching Now we would like to patch our PAR64 s to our dimmer This is done in the Patch window Figure 33 Label Gel Power w Label Gel Power w Empty sy spot001 _ 1000 C 1000 _ 1000 _ 1000 O L gt O O Dd pd A TE FIGURE 33 PATCH WINDOW 35 Patching conventional fixtures is done in a way similar to arranging teams First select a channel e g dimmer001 01 and select spot001 then use the lt lt button to create the patch Do this for all spots to create the following patches Dimmer01 01 Spot001 Spot008 Dimmer01 02 Spot002 Spot007 Dimmer01 03 Spot003 Spot006 Dimmer01 04 Spot004 Spot005 Step 5 Save our work Close the Fixture Configuration and go to the menu in the Main view Via File you can choose to save your work into a Configuration file This concludes our exercise leaving you with a completed Fixture Configuration which
49. igger external devices with a contact closure signal this can easily be done with the aid of the GPO interface 5 3 1 GPI Visual Productions GPI General Purpose Input interface allows external signals to be connected to VisualDMX and Canvix Our lighting control programs are then able to be triggered by these signals to create a fully automated lighting control system The GPI is intended for fixed installations where our lighting control software can be interconnected to other equipment mechanical switches or sensors The GPI is designed with installers and system integrators in mind it features a DIN Rail enclosure that allows easy mounting of the unit All connections have detachable screw connectors for a quick replacement of the unit The GPI features 8 contact closure input ports and is USB powered The function of the input ports can be freely programmed within VisualDMX and Canvix allowing you to trigger any software function FIGURE 70 GPI 5 3 2 GPO The GPO General Purpose Output device enables the VisualDMX and Canvix lighting control programs to be interfaced with external equipment This technology will allow you to complement your VisualDMX or Canvix system with more equipment even when these do not feature protocols like DMX The GPO is intended for fixed installations where the need for interfacing our lighting control software with other equipment regularly arises The GPO is designed with installers and
50. ilable then automatically the next number is used The port number cannot be changed manually VisualDMX IP address is also shown it is likely that you need to fill in this address and the port number in the client program s settings 20 3 QUICK START MANUAL This chapter has been written for those wanting to start using VisualDMX without reading the entire manual 3 1 NEW CONFIGURATION First of all we start VisualDMX and make a new configuration File menu New 3 1 1 ADDING FIXTURES The next step is adding fixtures to the configuration To do so open the Fixture Configuration in the Fixture menu as shown in Figure 15 EA E lx Personality Files Manufacturers Models JP SS tar Systems Aboutshow Universes Scenery universelt Fixtures Label Address Manufacturer Model Remo Address x ActiveColor Systems ov ADB 7 Alkalite Properties Articulight AYR Y Ayrton Aztek Barco Copy zu e 4 Botex Briteq Chauvet E Coemar 2 Color Kinetics y Information Manufacturer Model Personalities FIGURE 15 FIXTURE CONFIGURATION Select the manufacturer Martin in the list on the left A list of fixtures from this manufacturer will appear in the Models list Scroll to the Smartmac click the to show the available modes and select 16 bit With a click on the gt g
51. in a Touch Screen Action List is not necessary because the VisualTouch software will automatically make sure that each touch screen button is routed to the corresponding action TARGET Some Actions require a Target to be specified this depends on the type of Tasks used in the Action E g if you program a fixture s colour attribute to be set to red then you need to specify which fixtures in the Target setting On the other hand if you program the Master Intensity level to 50 then the Target setting is irrelevant Press the Change button to launch the edit screen for the Target setting see Figure 44 44 Available Present Mode Teams Fixtures Subs Eons Selection Inverted Selection All Q gt L qe v FIGURE 44 SELECTING A TARGET The target can be determined in various ways SPECIFIC Select this mode to manually specify certain fixtures SELECTION Use the current fixture selection INVERTED SELECTION All fixtures currently not selected ALL All fixtures in the system For some actions the Target setting is irrelevant For example if you program an action to control the Grand Master then it does not matter which if any fixtures you ve set as a target ADDITIONAL SETTINGS When editing an action from a Touch Screen action list then additional settings are offered to customize the appearance of the touch screen control Colour Set the screen colour
52. ing the Startup Automatically feature that will start up VisualDMX every time Windows boots up This feature does require the Codemeter Runtime Kit to be installed on your computer You can find the Codemeter Runtime kit on CD ROM that accompanied your Visual Productions hardware Alternatively you can download it from our website http www visualproductions nl 5 1 5 DMX OUTPUT Visual Productions DMX Output Figure 68 is a DMX interface connected via USB This device is obsolete and not supplied any longer by Visual Productions it is however still supported by this version of VisualDMX A maximum of eight DMX Outputs can be connected to VisualDMX however configurations of more than four universes are advised to use Art Net FIGURE 67 DMX OUTPUT 70 INTERFACE The DMX Output features three status LEDs POWER Indicates the device is powered by the USB PC Indicates communication with the VisualDMX software This LED should be on for correct operation DMX Indicates DMX signal is being transmitted This LED should be on continuously 5 1 6 DMX INPUT The DMX Input Figure 68 enables VisualDMX to be controlled by an external DMX lighting desk FIGURE 68 DMX INPUT INTERFACE The DMX Input features three status LEDs POWER Indicates the unit is powered via the USB PC Indicates the unit is communicating with the VisualDMX application DMX Indicates DMX is being received INSTALLLING THE DMX INPUT The installat
53. installed together with our software release in the folder Drivers E g C Program Files Visual Productions VisualDMX Drivers Press the NEXT button 67 STEP 4 Windows will search for the driver in the designated folder Found New Hardware Wizard Please wait while the wizard searches Poa ta 2 VisualDMX Elite MkII STEP 5 Hardware Installation A The software vou are installing for this hardware Visual Mo Elite MII hat not passed Windows Logo testing to verify itt compatibility with Windows lt P Tell me why this testing is important Continuing your installation of this software may impair or destabilize the correct operation of your system either immediately or in the future Microsoft strongly recommends that you stop this installation now and contact the hardware vendor for software that has passed Windows Logo testing Continue Anyway If this warning appears then click Continue Anyway STEP 6 Found New Hardware Wizard Completing the Found New gt Hardware Wizard The wizard has finished installing the software for 2 WMisualDMX Elite MkII Click Finish to close the wizard Cancel Click FINISH The device is now completely installed and is ready to be used by the software 68 You can check whether the driver is installed properly by going to Window s Control Panel and open System On the Hardware tab you find th
54. ion of the DMX Input s driver is similar to installing the Duple as described in chapter chapter 5 1 1 71 ACTIONS By using actions any functionality in VisualDMX can be assigned and triggered by a DMX channel in the DMX Input You can find out more on how to program actions in chapter 4 3 1 5 1 7 DMX OUTPUT RS 232 The DMX Output RS 232 Figure 69 is a DMX interface connected via the computers serial port This device is obsolete and not supplied any longer by Visual Productions it is however still supported by this version of VisualDMX INTERFACE The DMX Output RS 232 has three status LEDs FIGURE 69 DMX OUTPUT RS 232 POWER Indicates the unit has power HOST COMM Flashes when the unit is communicating with the VisualDMX application DMX Indicates DMX is being sent INSTALLING THE DMX OUTPUT RS 232 To install the DMX Output RS 232 first connect the RS 232 cable between the unit and the computer then apply the power to the DMX Output RS 232 Have VisualDMX scan the serial ports for the unit by using the Detect RS 232 Hardware function in the Tools menu this will take a few seconds 72 5 2 MIDI VisualDMX is capable of both receiving and transmitting MIDI messages MIDI is the acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface The MIDI protocol allows electronic devices usually synthesizers but also computers light show controllers VCR s multi track recorders etc to interact and work in synchronization w
55. irmware contain bug fixes or new features and are included in the VisualDMX releases To upgrade select one connected device and select a corresponding firmware from the table on the right Click Upload and the upgrade will start 19 Caution During the upload process the connection between the device and the computer should not be interrupted If this happens the device s memory is likely to become corrupt and would need to be serviced in the factory N B The firmware for the DMX Output MKI and DMX Input MKI models cannot be upgraded via this window Please refer to the online support forum for information on an alternative method of upgrading those models Server The Server functionality enables VisualDMX to communicate with other programs like VisualTouch To allow other programs to communicate with VisualDMX the Enabled checkbox see Figure 14 should be turned on Tools Help General aa Multimedia de Dix Hardware ES Auto LoadiS ave P SEMET Server Information IP Fort W Enabled fi Jde 160 1 435 fi 6945 Use default Connections Application Version IF Port 1 Wisuall ouch 1 01 127 0 0 1 29394 FIGURE 14 OPTIONS SERVER SETTINGS This tab in the Options View further shows the list of programs currently connected to VisualDMX Clients The information includes the client s version and IP address VisualDMX itself uses port number 16945 by default If this port is unava
56. isplay e em Macro A o P y FIGURE 10 SECONDARY LIVE VIEW PAGE This section contains functions that are less often used Most of them are self explanatory let us discuss those that can use additional explanation LAD The acronym stands for Laser Aiming Device a function found in only a few fixtures AutoFocus AutoFocus is a function of the FIA see chapter 1 2 for more on the FIA it makes the focus level automatically adapt when choosing a gobo from a different gobo wheel Prior to using this function has to be set up in the Calibration view chapter 4 6 CTC A Colour Temperature Correction filter is used to change colour temperature of the beam Often these filters are implemented not as a individual control but as one of the slots in a colour wheel Smoke The smoke section allows you to directly control smoke generators either individually or all generators those present in your configuration together It also offers you ways to setup a timer mechanism to have your smoke generator controlled automatically Custom Some fixtures feature attributes that are uncommon in general stage lighting equipment Those attributes are accessible through the Custom tab 14 2 2 KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS General shortcuts lt F1 tot lt F9 gt lt SHIFT gt lt ESC gt lt INSERT gt lt DELETE gt lt CTRL gt S lt CTRL gt A lt CTRL gt C lt CTRL gt V lt CTRL gt lt CTRL gt Fixture shortcuts
57. ith other MIDI compatible devices Using a master controller device such as a keyboard one can play or trigger sounds from other electronic devices remotely This eliminates the need for one keyboardist to perform with nine or ten keyboards around him He can play all the keyboards through one simply by connecting them using MIDI The other keyboards can be off stage he never has to touch them yet he can play them You can find more information on MIDI at http www midi com To enable MIDI communication select a MIDI input and output device in the Options window 5 2 1 RECEIVING To respond to incoming MIDI messages you would need to create an MIDI Action List Within this list you add an Action for each individual message you would like to process Actions allow you to trigger a great many different functions within the VisualDMX software 5 2 2 TRANSMITTING In order to transmit a MIDI message you would need to add a MIDI task to action Within this task you can specify the details like MIDI channel message type and value 73 5 3 GENERAL PURPOSE INTERFACE VisualDMX features GPI and GPO modules to interconnect with external equipment Some project might require VisualDMX to be triggered by an external source When communicating this signal via DMX or MIDI is undesired or impossible VisualDMX has the alternative to receiving signals through its GPI interface Likewise in some cases it might required for VisualDMX to tr
58. keyboard shortcuts Teams are arranged in the Teams window Figure 28 E C development VisualDMX Configurations Demo Yokes and Matrix cfg View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help Dl lm e a S Team Members Fixtures Count Members Label Fixtures Subs Scenery 8 yoke001 g vokeDD2 8 yokes EA panel003 8 yoke004 8 yoke00s HA panel004 yoke 8 yoke006 g yokel07 8 yokeoos 8888 AAA i ARAAAAZAR PARA atat aE 0 JM Aa w N H panel017 E panel018 qu D O O L a Pa A pa FIGURE 28 TEAMS You can add a team via the menu or the pop up menu right click Then add fixtures to the team by first selecting the team then selecting the fixture from the Fixture List and then press the lt lt button Once you have created a team you can use the pop up menu right click to perform actions like rename or remove members Next to fixtures you can also add subs to a team Some fixtures like dimmers consist of multiple sub fixtures that are part of the main fixtures but can be controlled individually PATCH When using dimmers and conventional fixtures e g par cans in the configuration you have the option to make patches A Patch is a connection between a conventional light and a dimmer channel controlling its intensity Patches are organized in the Patches window Figure 29 31 View Personality Universe Fixture Team H
59. mmed shapes and light shows allowing you to run them on your fixtures Live view The Live view presents you with a collection of controls for all the typical functions a modern day fixture can have 2 1 1 FIXTURE VIEW Every fixture is represented by a fixture view Figure 3 The Fixture view will display the primary parameters of the fixture simulating its real world appearance The displayed information depends on the view s mode You can choose out of several modes A yoke001 View as scan i View as beam amp View as icon Properties FIGURE 3 FIXTURE VIEW FIGURE 4 FIXTURE VIEW POPUP MENU View as scan Displays a front view simulating the 2 dimensional movement of a scanner View as beam Only a non moving beam is displayed View as dimmer A row of faders one for each dimmer channel View as panel Used for LED and dance floor panels View as icon Only the icon of the fixture Some viewing modes include showing a couple of icons representing fixture parameters You can control these parameters directly with clicking on these icons with your mouse The pop up menu also contains the Set gel option this feature is intended for conventional fixtures and allows you to specify a colour gel This information is used in the 3D visualizer and in the patch window The Properties option brings up a window showing various properties of the selected fixture including the 3 dimensional position of the fixture to be use
60. n as Name and Duration the view features several icons Streams Status Indicates the playing state which can be either Playing Paused or Stopped Time line The time line offers you an additional impression on the sequence s progress Coloured in green means in Playing state and blue means Paused Attributes A list of icons showing which attributes is programmed within the sequence Timing source The timing source determines how the sequence will be played back The various timing sources will be discussed in the next paragraph Streams Displays for how many different fixtures the sequence is programmed for This number does not limit the number of fixtures the sequence can be played upon it merely gives the maximum number of groups of fixtures that are addressed uniquely by the sequences Adding more fixtures to the sequence will end up in fixtures being paired to perform exactly the same Duration Total duration of the sequence Loop Indicates whether the sequence will be looped infinitely or will stop as it reaches its end Timing sources A Sequence timing source is set to one of the following Clock This is the standard timing source The sequence will run on the internal software clock taking into account the current Speed setting Manual This timing source behaves similar to Clock except it will pause the sequence after each step The operator needs to apply a Go at this sequence for it to resume to the n
61. nce that will control the beam position of one fixture Step 1 New sequence Go to the Sequence view select a page and right click on it This will bring up a menu from which you can select New Step 2 Open the editor Right click on the new sequence and select Edit This will open the editor Step 3 Add steps In this example we are going to program 3 steps So select the one and only step currently present and operate the pop up menu to insert two extra Adding new steps can also be achieved by using the lt INSERT gt key on your keyboard after selecting a step Step 4 Add streams We will only be programming for one stream therefore we do not need to add any extra Step 5 Add Attributes A newly created sequence always contains the dimmer attribute However in our example we only want to control the Position attribute We need to add the Position and remove the Dimmer You can do this by selecting the stream and go to the Stream page at the bottom of the editor There you will find the Available and Present attribute list you can use the gt gt and lt lt buttons to add and remove attributes to the stream Now your screen should look like that in Figure 39 E za C development VisualDMX Sequences Misc Sequence01 seq Edit View Help 2 8 w 00 m ra w aa E t Set tT Set Ht Set Sequence E Step O Stream IO Change Attributes Label Available Seq
62. nput discontinued DMX Output discontinued DMX Output RS 232 discontinued These methods of communication can be combined As soon as a USB device is connected and installed on the computer VisualDMX will detect it automatically The number of DMX Outputs and Inputs found is shown in the caption bar of VisualDMX 5 1 1 DUPLE Visual Productions Duple Figure 63 is a DMX interface connected via USB The Duple has both a DMX 512 output port and an input port The DMX output transmits 512 channels of DMX The optically isolated DMX input port receives 512 channels of DMX When connected to a third party DMX console each channel can be used to control any function in the lighting control software A maximum of eight Duples can be connected to VisualDMX however configurations of more than four universes are advised to use Art Net Only one input is available for use in FIGURE 63 DUPLE VisualDMX INTERFACE The Duple features three status LEDs POWER Indicates the device is powered by the USB PC Indicates communication with the VisualDMX software This LED should be on for correct operation DMX IN Indicates DMX signal being received on the DMX input port 66 INSTALLING THE DMX OUTPUT The screen dumps used in this chapter are taken from Windows 2000 If you are installing on a different Windows system the appearances of the screens might differ STEP 1 Connect the Duple to your PC using the USB cable New h
63. o create a Curve Step 7 Modify the duration Go to the Step page and select a step you can now change its duration You can repeat this for every step Step 8 Set Timing source Go to the Sequence page and from the drop down list select Clock as the Timing source This completes the example You could now save your work and close the Sequence editor 41 4 3 PROGRAMMING ACTIONS This chapter will cover the subject of Actions Actions are a powerful feature that may be of more interest and use to the advanced user Actions allow you to automate various functions within VisualDMX e g you can create keyboard shortcuts and have VisualDMX s functions respond to events from other sources like DMX Input schedulers timers etc The Action editor is accessed by the Tools menu The Action Editor is shown in Figure 42 Label Activity Dimmer 1 flash Remove Shutter open Shutter closed Rename y Timer 01 fs Schedular 01 i System 01 BOB Action Editor FIGURE 42 ACTION EDITOR 4 3 1 ACTION LIST An Action List is a collection of Actions that share the same source When an Action List is created by means of the Add button the following choice of sources is presented SYSTEM The System source contains events produced by the VisualDMX application itself These include application startup and close down events DMX INPUT Action Lists with the DMX Input source will respond to changes in
64. of the control Label Set a specific label for the control Image When enabled this setting allows you to place a bitmap image in the touch screen buttons 45 4 3 4 TASKS An Action will perform one or more Tasks ADDING TASKS Q Q a 4 Y qe O O lt L a O E Q Y FIGURE 45 TASK TYPES Press the Add button to insert a task into the current action A dialog will be shown allowing you to select one of the various tasks types see Figure 45 LAYER 1 ATTRIBUTE SEQUENCE SELECTION SPECIAL ACTION ACTION LIST MIDI GPO Control one of the matrix layers in Matrix Mania Control an attribute of a fixture e g colour dimmer strobe etc Control a sequence Control the fixture selection Contains special functions like the Tempo tap Trigger a different action can be used to link actions Control an action list e g change the enabled setting Send a MIDI message Control a GPO port 4 3 5 EDITING A TASK Once added the new task can be configured by selecting and pressing the Edit button This will open up the screen as shown in Figure 46 46 Task Details Change Param 1 Preset Param Control Change Param 2 Inverted Control SA Colour scroll Set Preset for Param 2 ip Colour random a er Gobo selection E ad Gobo eccoll 4 p FIGURE 46 EDITING A TASK This screen has the following controls FEATU
65. or constructing track files This wizard Figure 62 will guide you through the following settings required for the track Track Creation Wizard Track creation wizard This wizard allow wou to create a track IF You do not wish to create a track click Cancel now othenwise click Next to continue FIGURE 62 TRACK CREATION WIZARD Type This determines the source for the track You can choose from Sequence Snapshot and Pattern A snapshot is merely an exact copy of the current status of your lights According to your selection here some of the following settings can be omitted Refresh rate The refresh rate of the DMX signal will to some extent determine the quality of the track The higher the refresh rate the larger the file size will be Large files can become too big to fit into the fixed sized memory slots of the hardware devices this might restrict the length of track Often a low refresh rate will do fine for the purpose of a track especially when the track involves slow and smooth changes at that point raising the refresh rate would not gain any noticeable signal quality Universe A track has the restriction of covering no more than one DMX Universe When controlling multiple universes you are being asked to choose one Selection You can apply the source of the track i e sequence or pattern on all fixtures in the universe however it is also possible to make a sub selection 64 Sequence Pattern E
66. organized in five sections Colour Gobo Prism Primary Secondary Smoke Custom 12 Colour Gobo Prism This section lets you pick a colour gobo or prism Colours can even be controlled in three ways Fixed Spectrum and Mix RGB Both Spectrum and Mix control the colour mix attribute and are therefore of no use to fixtures with only fixed colours Primary The most commonly used functions of a fixture can be controlled here Some of which require a little more explanation STATICS This is a simple control to create symmetrical beam positions for a group of fixtures Figure 9 Static FIGURE 9 STATICS The tilt is set with the fader and there are three options for the pan position centre spread and cross This control takes into account how many fixtures are selected and spreads out evenly the gaps between their beam positions This feature is sometimes also referred to as fanning Tip To quickly reset the default value in a fader control you only have to right click it with the mouse HOME The Home button removes any values from the Live View and if no other sequences are active this will bring the selected fixtures back to their default values If a preset with the name home exists then the default values are determined by this preset more on presets in chapter 4 4 13 Secondary E Lamp E LAD a a Heset gt Autofocus i a me i stand Alone 2 EE D
67. r Preset and click on the Execute button The moving heads will now show the position and the colour programmed in this Preset 53 4 5 MATRIX MANIA Matrix Mania Figure 53 is a powerful and fun tool to control matrix setups By matrix we mean a two dimensional array consisting of fixtures The fixtures together form one appearance which is usually a dance floor or a wall of panels capable of rendering patterns or even text The fixtures making up the matrix are typically LED panels but can also be any other kind of fixture including dimmers and moving heads Matrix Mania is a light weight version of Canvix Matrix Server and is intended to control matrixes in an easy way allowing you to combine it with the other features of VisualDMX For specific matrix applications that require more control functionality we advise you to download Canvix from www canvix com Canvix operates with the same hardware devices as VisualDMX does This tool inhibits patterns for the matrix using their colour or dimmer attribute all other attributes are not affected by Matrix Mania One of the most powerful characteristics of Matrix Mania is that the patterns are automatically adapted to the dimensions of the matrix In addition to the predefined patterns you can also display general graphics on the matrix Currently supported graphic file formats are Bitmap BMP and GIF The GIF files incorporate an animation feature that is supported by Matrix Mania
68. rse is a single network running from the lighting controller to connected fixtures Each universe has the capacity to control 512 DMX channels CAdevelopment VisualDMX Configurations Demo Yokes and Matrix cfg View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help Ol B le s l Ad Remove Rename Connect Disconnect C O qe Du O O O oO Du jua A LL FIGURE 25 UNIVERSES Universes Label 1 Main 2 Truss 3 ad DJ Booth Output Devices Thoughput MET In the Universe page you can add remove and rename universes as you can see in Figure 25 Furthermore in this page you would need to connect each universe to at least one DMX output This can be either a USB connected DMX device or a Art Net sub net Art Net is a protocol that like DMX is used to control lighting fixtures The difference to DMX being that Art Net uses a standard Ethernet for its connections Using Ethernet has distinct advantages Ethernet has a much 28 higher capacity bandwith and allows much more data to run through one cable than DMX with its limit of 512 channels A wireless network connection is also possible The Universe page contains the following functions ADD Add a new universe REMOVE Delete the selected universe s RENAME Rename the selected universe CONNECT This will bring up a dialog to connect the selected universe to a DMX output In the
69. s Scenery Count Members cS O p ha O e O od bo a LL Universes Fixtures Teams Patch Tf Close v A v A FIGURE 20 TEAM VIEW The configuration has now been made the universe settings are done and the teams have been created Close the Fixture Configuration by pressing CLOSE 3 1 4 SCREEN LAYOUT Select the SmartMacs Click on the name of the team in the Selection View bottom left or press F1 on the keyboard to select the first team Right click one of the selected SmartMacs to open the context menu Figure 21 and choose View as scan View as dimmer EQ View as panel View as icon Y Properties Ep ny amp Set Gel FIGURE 21 CONTEXT MENU VIEW AS SCAN 24 Select panel001 till panel004 Click panel001 press and hold lt CTRL gt and click on panel002 panel003 and panel004 Right click one of the panels and choose View as panel Select dimmer001 and choose View as dimmer in the context menu By dragging the bottom right corner of the dimmer view you can resize the fixture view Now move the fixtures so the screen layout will look like Figure 22 Visuale Progra Be Ficture Sequence ook Hep bobbed ma mana Pamsiy Secondary Smoke Custom E C gt Label Atrib des O amp Durston 4 00 04 2 0004 4 ono 4 000 0012 je 0005 12 0004 212 4 0006 4 0008 4 0
70. sequence and use the pop up menu Select a sequence and then press lt SPACE gt or lt ENTER gt Program an action to control a sequence 10 Stacking sequences and Live View In addition to playing one sequence on a couple of fixtures it is also possible to play multiple sequences on the same group of fixtures To enable this keep the lt CTRL gt depressed as you start the second and following sequences In general it is not possible to have two or more sequences controlling the same attribute e g two sequences cannot move the beam position at the same time That is why when multiple sequences with overlapping attributes are run on the same fixtures they will be stacked on top of each other The last triggered sequences being on top of the stack will have priority following the LTP Latest Takes Precedence principle When a sequence is stopped it is removed from the stack and the previous sequence will become priority You can also manually overrule a sequence s operation by changing e g in the live view an attribute also present in the sequence The Live View will then be the last triggered source and gets priority By clicking the Home button the values in the Live View will be cleared The exception is made for the dimmer and colour mix attribute these attributes can be controlled by multiple sequences and the Live View The joint value will be established through the HTP Highest Takes Precedence principle
71. t button the Add Fixture s window will appear as shown in Figure 16 Increase the number of fixtures to add to 4 Add fixture s How many Advanced gt gt Y con FIGURE 16 ADD FIXTURE S Click OK the fixtures are added now Add 4x a RGB 04x from the manufacturer Generic in the same way The Fixture Configuration will look similar to Figure 17 21 untitled Universes Fixtures Teams Patch Close FIGURE 17 FIXTURE CONFIGURATION AFTER ADDING FIXTURES Fine Art F Futurelight High End Systems H Hungaroflash AES x JB Lighting Lanling LT Laser Technique Laserworld P Lite Puter w Look Solutions a Lupo Lux Lumen MA Lighting Manufacturer Model Personalities y PARSS 300W y PARSE 500w sy PARES 1000W oly Profile 500 oo Profile 650 AGB 01x RGB O02 RGB colour mixer sie Smoke Generator 2 Strobe a Switchpack 01x e Switchpack 04 Universes Scener universel Fixtur 0 op AA UN 8 yoke001 8 yoke002 8 yoke003 8 yoke004 E panel001 H panel002 HA panel003 HE panel004 15 29 43 57 69 81 93 Martin Martin Martin Martin Generic Generic Generic Generic Label Address Manufacturer Model 1 SmartM ac Smart ac Smart ac SmartM ac RGB 04x RGB 04x RGB 04x RGB 04x Finally add a 6 channel dimmer It s available from the manufacturer Generic Dimmer 6x Remove R
72. t Swap Pan Tilt FIGURE 58 CALIBRATION VIEW ORIENTATION Fixture Calibaration ORIENTATION Here you can invert the pan horizontal and the tilt vertical movement or swap the pan and the tilt axes MARGINS The margin control enables you to limit the movement range of the moving head or scanner see Figure 59 This limitation is taken into account throughout the whole VisualDMX application by sequences cues and manual control of the fixture s beam Help Fine Tune AE Fetch Fixture Calibaration F Use beam FIGURE 59 CALIBRATION VIEW MARGINS AUTOFOCUS The AutoFocus feature is set up here Figure 60 For each gobo wheel you ll need to set a corresponding focus level More details on the AutoFocus function can be found in chapter 2 1 4 Help o Wheel 1 amo Wheel 2 Wheel 3 FIGURE 60 CALIBRATION VIEW AUTOFOCUS Fixture Calibaration 62 4 7 CREATING TRACKS A track is a VisualDMX proprietary file format that contains DMX data to control lights The track format is used by equipment like the Elite and the Frontier Unlike other file formats used for storage of DMX data a track is not built up out of steps rather it is a continuous fluent stream of DMX perfectly capable of containing true goniometrical circles and smooth colour changing patterns Tracks are created and managed in the Track View Figure 61 This
73. the incoming DMX signal received by the Visual Productions DMX Input USB hardware For more information on this device please refer to chapter 5 1 6 KEYBOARD 42 This source comprises of any keystroke on the computer s keyboard TOUCH SCREEN The Touch Screen source will handle all incoming events from the external VisualTouch software Refer to chapter 5 4 1 for information on how to connect VisualDMX to VisualTouch JOYSTICK Actions in a Joystick Action List can be triggered through a USB connected joystick Various triggers like X axis Y axis and buttons can be used MIDI Add a MIDI Action List to program events for incoming MIDI messages TIMER The Timer source behaves like a stopwatch that can be started paused and stopped Events are triggered as soon as specific times have been reached SCHEDULER The Scheduler allows you to program actions that should be triggered on predefined moments GPI For actions triggered by the GPI device The Enable checkbox in the Action Editor can be used to temporarily activate or deactivate a certain Action List Page Labels When an Action List with source Touch Screen is selected the Page Labels button will be enabled Clicking this button will launch a dialog that allows you to set custom labels for the pages within VisualTouch These labels will overwrite the default 1 2 3 numbers 4 3 2 ACTION When an Action List is sele
74. tiveColor Systems aoe ADB Alkalite Anolis eee Antari Anytronics NAY Ariane Articulight Chauvet Information Manufacturer Model Personalities FIGURE 30 FIXTURE CONFIGURATION O qu L D O O O L _ A dE Step 2 Adding fixtures We are going to insert our first fixtures a couple of moving heads Select the manufacturer Martin fixture Mac 250 Krypton and we have chosen a mode which will be 16 bit extended Then click on the gt gt button to copy the fixture into our list A pop up window will ask us how many of those fixtures we would like to add let s say 4 We do not need any of the Advance options in our example Next add more fixtures in the same manner Choose the manufacturer Generic and add one Dimmer 4 chn and 8 PAR64 fixtures Note that because a PAR64 is not DMX controllable it should be copied to the Scenery list To do this you should first select the Scenery tab page and then use the gt gt button Go back to the list of DMX controllable fixtures you have created by clicking the Universes tab Figure 31 33 untitled View Personality Universe Fixture Team Help Dl al ef w o Personality File Manufacturers Eliminator y Fresnel 500 universell ETC y Fresnel 650 Fixtures e Euroite 2 Pepi Sap Label Address Manufacturer Model Ma ap EYL Lighting IL 1 g yokeD01 1 Martin MAC
75. to the beginning of the actual light show and then perform a repeating lighting pattern Step A sequence is a series of steps that will be played one by one A step has a variable duration You can give each step a label for your own convenience When played back from the editor the blue box representing the step will indicate which step is currently running by the play icon and the time line At the bottom of the editor you will find the Step tab Figure 36 for modifying the settings of the step When zoomed in using the zoom buttons in the toolbar the step s box will offer ways of directly editing these settings Sequence O Step oO Stream Ol Change Duratior Label 00 04 00 Green movement ih a i v FIGURE 36 STEP TAB Stream A sequence will control one or more streams Each stream will contain its own data on how to change the attributes of the fixtures To have a sequence that controls two fixtures making them perform two different movements will require the programming of two streams in this sequence The more streams you program the more fixtures can behave independent of each other 38 There are no restrictions on how many fixtures can be mapped on a stream resulting in them behaving identically Sequence Ol Step O Stream Oo Change Attributes Label Available Present Pe Dimmer B Position fd Colour scroll E Shutter Linked fixtures z Colour random Colour selection parellOl gt r
76. trolled by VisualDMX in a 3D world When connected to VisualDMX the program automatically fetches all fixture data and renders the lights in real time Visual3D is free to all VisualDMX users and can be downloaded from the website Use the Venue Editor in the Tools menu of VisualDMX to change the dimensions of the room FIGURE 73 VISUAL3D 5 4 3 API In order to communicate with other software programs from 3rd party suppliers VisualDMX features an API Application Programming Interface This API is accessible via TCP IP socket connections and is documented in Developer Manual that can be downloaded from the website 75 6 INDEX 3D visualizer oooccconcncoomm m moo 7 ACUO Merne 43 Action Editor ericcson 42 ACTION LI Sirra 42 AP learnin a 75 Arrange all 60 ATEN ras 28 Art Net Dongle 70 e AAA aa 56 ATTIDU TO sado 39 Audio INpUt cccooccncccccnncnnon 18 Auto Duration seess 65 Auto OOO acia arancianid 17 Auto Mode cccooccccnccncnccnnnnos 70 AUTOFOCUS coococncnocnccanoncnss 14 62 A n a 19 65 Calibration view 62 Canvix Matrix Server 54 CRANE 39 Check for updates at startup 17 Clannad 75 ClO CK romenos 10 Codemeter Runtime 17 ColourMix Attribute Precedence ooccconccccnccncnnos 17 Command line Parameters 16 Compression secceeeeeeeeeee 63 CONNOR 29 Contact Closure c oo
77. ts of several software applications and various hardware devices A VisualDMX system is modular its size can vary from small consisting only of the VisualDMX control application and one DMX Output or large consisting of all family members and multiple hardware devices Figure 1 illustrates an example set up of all VisualDMX components and their interconnections This manual discusses the VisualDMX control software and to some extents the Visual Productions hardware devices Details on the other products can be found on the website http www visualproductions nl General Purpose Input VisualDMX gt i i 3rd party MIDI Controller 3rd party USB Joystick Art Net Dongle VisualTouch VisualTouch 3rd party Art Net Node iii i 11119988 Visual3D a FIGURE 1 SYSTEM OVERVIEW 2 THE USER INTERFACE VisualDMX features a user friendly operating interface This chapter will discuss the various elements in this user interface 2 1 MAIN VIEW This is the main screen of VisualDMX which presents you with an overview of the fixtures lighting equipment indicating their status It also offers controls to directly change the fixtures attributes It is this view that you will be using most of the time when controlling your lights VisualDMX C development VisualDMX Configurations Demo Yokes and Matroccfg 0 DMX output s 0 DMX input s 0 x File Fixture Sequence Tools H
78. uence Editor Linked fixtures fl Close g FIGURE 39 RESULTS AFTER STEP 5 Step 6 Edit the changes Go to the Change page at the bottom of the editor and select the Position change in step 1 You will now see all the controls necessary to program the Position attribute Leave the Shape to Set and choose an arbitrary point to set the beam to Figure 40 40 Sequence E Step O Stream O Change Shape Co ordinates Set Y Co ordinate x Y Center gt gt Previous Start 36 36 Direction r lt lt Next elta Fetch 1 po 100 FIGURE 40 EDITING A POSITION Select the change in step 2 Set the shape to Line Make the green starting point the same as the point in the previous step you can make sure of this by selecting the green crosshair and clicking on the Previous button and choose a new point as the line ending point Figure 41 Sequence step C Stream O Change Shape Co ordinates e Line z Co ordinate 4 Center gt gt Previous Start gt 2 Direction dE De lt lt Next E Delta Fetch 1 100 FIGURE 41 CREATING A LINE MOVEMENT Select step 3 Set the shape to Curve Again make the line start from where the previous step ended Select a new ending point this time the ending point should match the starting point of the first step to do this exactly you can select the red cross hair and click on the Next button Move the intermediate point around t
79. urpose of the tracks that is a file format for standalone playback Compression A consequence of the track s characteristic of containing streaming DMX rather than step wise is that the amount of data to be stored in the file is enormous Without any special treatment the size of a track file would defeat its purpose it would become too big to be held in the relatively small memories of the hardware devices To tackle this issue the data in the track format is compressed The compression technique specially designed for this purpose has some similarities with the popular MP3 compression of audio files in the sense that it has a high compression ratio that makes it very efficient and that the actual compression ratio will differ from file to file depending on its structure Also the rate of compression can be set by the user which will be 63 linear with loss in signal quality at playback This setting is the refresh rate of the DMX signal just like the sample rate setting with MP3 This chapter will give you an overview of the Track View and an explanation of its functions including instructions on how to construct tracks and upload them to a hardware device 4 7 1 OVERVIEW The Track View is used for managing the track files After selecting a track from the list you can operate the pop up menu to save rename or delete it CREATING NEW TRACKS To create a new track you can select New from the menu this will launch the wizard f
80. ventually you would need to denote the sequence or pattern you would like to be used for the track MERGE When selected multiple tracks can be merged to a single new one by using the Merge function in the Tracks menu This way could for instance combine sequence tracks with matrix tracks DEVICES WITH MEMORY The Devices with memory field will list all connected hardware that supports tracks e g Elites and Frontiers When one of these devices is selected the Slots table will show the contents of this device Through the Device menu you can perform several operations on the selected device like Erase all memory slots or Blink Blink will identify the selected device by making its LEDs flash for a couple of seconds The Slot menu offers several operations specific to the device s slots This includes Set Auto Duration this function is to set the duration of each slot when it is played by means of the Auto mode featured by the Elite showing the A in its display If you set this duration to zero the slot will be skipped in the Auto mode 65 5 CONNECTING WITH VISUALDMX VisualDMX can communicate with the outside world in several ways this chapter explains how 5 1 DMX amp ART NET Communication with DMX controlled equipment is done through one of the following devices Duple Elite Frontier Art Net Dongle In combination with a 3 party Art Net Node DMX I

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