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11 replies

A few minor problems.........

FM Former Member
Hi Guys,

I have spent a while programming my first show and ran it yesterday with lots of good feedback. I did have a few issues which hopefully someone can help me with:

1: My ADJ Starball DMX's would not respond to the programming at all, we quadruple checked the DMX dip switch settings but still nothing, had to cut them free and run them sound to light but that defeats the programming really. They work fine with my hardware controller so can't figure this out?

2: I have done trial runs for ages before the big day but had major problems for the first time yesterday at the gig, when I tried to start MyDMX it opened in USB mode but no green light on the back of the dongle and the editor seemed to be stuck on play and nothing I clicked would stop it. It took over half an hour of re-booting over and over again to get it working. This happened twice, once when we soundchecked in the afternoon then again before the gig in the evening....any ideas?

3. When using the FX or colour palette on my Kam Par Bars it only changes one of the four heads on each par bar, I can work around on this manually but is it possible to change the profile so all heads are included?

4. When using the FX Generator for my Chauvet Q-Wash's it appears to randomly set the macros on some of the steps meaning that they suddenly go into Auto Mode and then they are doing something completely different to the rest of the lights, I found most of them but hidden away in a 1599 step scene I must have missed a few, is this a problem with the profile or maybe the FX Generator (in which case I assume I would have to live with it)?

Thanks for any help you can give me.....and its not all bad news, everyone here was generally blown away with the light show and it really is a great programme, especially if you put the time in while programming.
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FM Former Member
You might try:

1. Most likely, the Starball profile is the problem. You'll either have to request a good profile from Jingles, or do some research and build your own. I'd suggest building it yourself, as that gives you more insight into the inner workings of MyDmx.

2. If everything worked during your dry runs, it may be a power issue. I ran into a strange problem at a venue. The lights were drawing power from two different circuits in the building. However, one circuit had a ground problem that apparently affected the entire system. Since then, I've done my best to make sure the lights are ALL on the same circuit and that the circuit is at least 30 amps. Also, be sure all you cables are in working order. even one pin can screw up the entire show.

3. Where the FX generator is concerned, it's not the greatest out there, but more a quick way to get results. In the FX panel, make sure you're deselecting "sound". I had the same sort of problem with some MBT light panels. They wouldn't synchronize to the rest of the show and it got annoying until I poked around a bit and did some experimenting with the FX generator.

What I've personally found is that if I build my scenes and effects, I have better results. Unless your using moving heads or scanners, in which case the generator works great if you don't include any other fixtures that have "auto" or "sound" modes running during the generator process. Think simply and try to apply conventional methods in unconventional ways.
FM Former Member
For more elaboration on question number 2: grounding issues can effect DMX. They are just not very common. A simply fix is getting a DMX splitter. Since the splitter isolates everything (effectively a DMX ground lift), it removes the issue. It might also have to do with cable length/poor cabling. Again, a splitter would help in this instance. Also make sure you are using DMX cables and not mic cables.
FM Former Member
Thanks for all your help guys, I am working on it all right now but in response.......

1. I'll have a go at making the profile and see how I get on. When I do this will the profile automatically update in my scenes or will I need to delete and re-add them again as the current show is around 2000+ steps long?

2. I will take your word for number 2 as it is way beyond my technical knowledge. I can't get my head around it but I will have a go in line with your suggestions.

3. I think the problem lies with the Kam Parbar profile as the first of the three heads the little colour box changes as you manually change the RGB mix but does not on the other three. Its also a problem because we use the parbar's on the left and right of our set-up so I have to adjust them to provide a bit of equilibrium to the show. Again, with 2000+ steps for the current show and six pars not responding automatically its a lot of work to dive in and correct manually.

4. I love the FX generator, it has helped me to understand how to manually programme my moving heads but also I made some stunning effects with it for the last gig we did, it just caught me out by throwing some curve balls into the automatically generated steps.

Once again, thanks.
FM Former Member
I think the issue with the Kam Par Bar and the FX generator is probably similar to the issue I had with the ADJ MegaBar.

As the profile is effectively combining 4 individual light fixtures into one profile, the FX generator does not interpret it correctly.
I am sure that Jingles will add to this if I am correct as we have had long discussions on this issue.

There is a work around, the exact process is dependent on the way the DMX channels are assigned to the fixture.

If you can post the DMX traits or a link to them, I will gladly look and see if I can give you correct details for a work around so that the FX generator will work for you.

In the meantime, you can have a read of my previous post to see if get the idea.
MegaBar Profile Discussion

Regards,
Paul
FM Former Member
Regarding Troublemakers reply to the original 2nd point...
2. If everything worked during your dry runs, it may be a power issue. I ran into a strange problem at a venue. The lights were drawing power from two different circuits in the building.

-----------

I've always have this issue if I use a smoke machine while using MYDMX, the green light on the dongle freezes a split 2nd after giving out a blast of smoke.

If I get to a gig and can't use the smoke machine then MYDMX runs faultless all evening.

I get round the problem by unplugging and reinserting the USB lead when the light freezes(This sometimes causes the software to crash), but the problem still exists if I have the smoke machine on a different power source.

I will be replacing the smoke machine soon, so will then be able to prove that it's either a power drain issue or the smoke machine itself, but I thought I'd mention this incase anyone else is experiencing it.
S Studio42 (Guest)
Not sure how valid your observation that it may be a polarity issue on a cable, but it's always something worth investigation.

There are a few cheap cable testers out there. Even though they don't test 5-pin XLR(or 5 pin DMX), the 3-pin XLR test will work just fine for DMX testing. These cable testers are so affordable(under $50 often) that almost all of us should have at least 1. I got a pair of really nice ones with the pair of Cascade Fat Head II Live mics I bought recently. The Behringer works good too but it sucks on unablanced 1/4" cables.

Since Ryanpaddocks is suggesting a cable issue, that brings up another question: WHERE is the fog machine in the cabling and do devices before it or after it become affected?

If you should need to use a polarity reversed DMX cable, you should label it. If it's one fixture that is requiring this, then I would suggest having the fixture modified at the DMX in/outs instead because it would indicate to me it's a fixture issue.

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