Jump to content
Light-O-Rama Forums

Intensities and CCRs... etc


telecatprod

Recommended Posts

I just played with one of my shiny new CCRs for the first time (they've been sitting in the box since Wednesday... eek!).

My first impression is "very cool!"

My second is "theses are gonna be a PITA to program." Unless I'm not finding some existing features.

Thoughts and desires...

* As seen in another thread, it's very hard to tell if a channel has a value of 1 or 2, unless you blow up the vertical scale a lot. I'd go for the solution of showing a percentage in the box. Perhaps selectable on a per-channel basis so it can be set for only the Macro channels. I also love the idea (which I think I also saw mentioned) of an 'intelligent channel' that knows it's the Macro Mode or Color Effect Mode channel for a CCR and would show "Mode 3" or "Fill C-E" or something. Perhaps also be able to pick the mode by right clicking and selection of the popup, which would have choices appropriate to what channel it is. Anyway, something is needed for the small values common with the CCRs.

* The bigger thing that I don't see (unless I'm missing it) is an easy way to set a specific intensity. I can have a selection of 10 intensities on the Intensity Tools Setting, but that's not nearly enough with the 18 Color Effect values, plus the need to select any value for the sub mode of the chases (5 & 6). One could want any value for the on-off pairings. Easiest solution I'm surprised isn't there already... right click "Set Intensity..." Note the ... Would bring up a little dialog I could put any intensity into, saving the Intensity Tool Settings for values I use a lot. Or is there some other way to set an intensity directly without having to make it a choice on the Intensity Tool Settings first?

* I eagerly await RGB channels!

* It would be nice when adding a CCR to a sequence if the software knew (or could be told) it was a CCR and name all the channels. Channel 1, Channel 2.... Channel 153 is not really useful. Red 1, Green 1.... Macro Submode would be a lot more helpful. Of course if would have to know or have a selection for the CCR being in RGB RGB RGB or RRR GGG BBB mode. Yes, I can do it by hand. But it's 157 channels and October 19th. ;)

* Not exactly CCR specific, but I see no way to be able to view two tracks on the screen at once (top and bottom). Wasn't there a time when all the tracks were a long 'stack' and one could scroll such that they could see the bottom part of track 1 and the top part of track 2 in a 'split screen'? For me at least it would be useful to be able to see both this year as I transfer programing for my arches from the old 8-segment style to the CCRs. I was planning to just throw the CCR onto a new track to keep its 157 channels 'out of the way'. I suppose what would actually be better, as I think while writing, would be the ability to split the screen and see two tracks at once, with independent scrolling for each track (so I could see the middle of each, rather than just the bottom of one and the top of the next). But perhaps I'm just weird (well ok, I AM weird, but you know what I mean).

Thanks to others for any guidance. Thanks to LOR for some new software updates... I hope. :)

-Scott

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You are not alone.

I agree with all 5 of your points. I'm sure they are working on at least some of these but I haven't seen anything about what they have planned for the software and what they don't.

I have to find time to play with the CCR when my Halloween show isn't running. I spent most of Saturday playing around with it to understand the current functionality we do have. Now that I know that, I can begin to work my ideas into my sequences.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

telecatprod wrote:

...Of course if would have to know or have a selection for the CCR being in RGB RGB RGB or RRR GGG BBB mode....

We don't expect people to use RRR GGG BBB mode. The purpose of it is to allow people to use FireFly sequences without modification. You set the Unit ID mode to Legacy, Resolution to 16 and Channel Mode to Sequential.

RRR GGG BBB mode is crazy to use when you change the resolution on the fly because the channels squish down. RGB triples are a more sensible arrangement.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I agree with the intensity selection, I think software needs a better way to do this. I kept changing the Itensity Tool's ten settings but it is painful to do this. And I quickly started changing the 10 choices over and over again.

After playing with this CCR some, I am going to try to just use the firmware color and marco effects due to time and learning constraints for my Christmas show sequences. I will set resolution 1 to have just one R channel, G channel, B channel that I pick. If I stick to this plan, programming it will be easy to just label the control channels and the RGB channels on my channel grid for the ribbon. There is much power to program to very fine detail on the ribbon but this will take far too much work.

In another topic about choosing RGB values I think the Hardware Utility test Console is great for that. Set ribbon to 1 RGB controls whole thing, play with RGB level and then write down the value for use in programming. I think this may be a good way to do that. I will see as I get to sequencing.

First order of business for me now is to get the ribbon mounted to a PVC pipe to better see it as an arch. And start trying it with my sequences.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • The topic was locked
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
×
×
  • Create New...