Change sequenced channel from dim to on/off

[eravndal]

I have some lights that is not dimmable. They have AC/DC adapter etc. 

Is there a way in the LOR Sequence editor to change a channel from Dim/Sparkling etc effects to only ON/OFF effects automatically, or do I need to do this manually?

 

I am not lazy, but would make sure I don't make anything burst info flames by accident... So a safety function that a channel can not be other than on/off would be nice.

[Box on Rails]

I'm not sure what you mean by AC/DC adepter. I think if I had to question the safety of any light string to be used in my show, I would not use them, The LOR controllers are completely safe with any kinda lights that are serge protected by a fuse. With that said the shimmer feature is an on/off effect. that's the only one I know of. 

Edited August 20, 2014 by Box on Rails

[ItsMeBobO]

yes you can change all effects in one click. Select the pointer tool then select the entire row to change.  Turn on the 'Foreground Effects'  (overlapping squares)  then select the ON tool  then hit enter on your keyboard.

[k6ccc]

Make sure you keep a copy of the original file in case you replace the lights with something that dims.  Bob's technique works perfect, but you cant go back once you exit the editor.  If you keep the original file, you will have the version that dims if you need it later on.

[EARLE W. TALLEY]

As I remember, if you have a Gen 3 controller you can go to the "advanced configuration" and make a single channel on/off.

Check out the manual on pages 15-20.

This way no sequence changes required.

Edited August 20, 2014 by EARLE W. TALLEY

[George Simmons]

Thanks Earle!  I didn't know that. 

 

I mean, really ... who has time to actually read the user manuals? 

[Orville]

One thing to watch for when using lights that are on a wal-wart, some will NOT turn off, even if you have the channel completely off, the light using an adapter that converts AC to DC, will sometimes keep the triac in the controller locked ON FULL.   I converted some White LED Solar spot lights using the same voltage that the battery supplied, 3.8VDC using an adapter, the spotlight turns on fine, but it won't turn off once it gets turned on, so I unplugged it, put in a basic AC powered incandescent light strand and it shut off the channel, plugged the spotlight back in, sure enough it somehow latched the triac on full, unplugged, put in a basic LED AC powered light strand, channel turned off.

 

This is using a V2 board {GEN 2 controller with 4.40 firmware installed}.   And this would happen on ANY channel on the controller I plugged the 120VAC to 3.8VDC into, all 16 channels behaved the same way.

 

So after that, I decided I'm not plugging in any more AC to DC adapters into my controllers for fear it could cause damage to the triacs on the board.

 

So in my opinion sticking with regular AC powered lights with an AC Controller like the CTB16PC is the safest and best way to go.

 

I did find it strange that the controller could not turn off the power to this adapter, only allow it to be ON only.   And that sure isn't going to work at all in a display!

 

So time to break down and buy some AC powered LED spotlights, and make sure I only use strictly AC powered items with my controllers.

 

BTW: The same thing happened on my other 4 controllers, and the controllers control incans and LED strands that operate off an AC plug perfectly.  Just this adapter and spotlight hold the channel completely on and refuses to turn off!   Very, very weird.

 

BTW: to the OP about your ON/OFF question, you can set the entire cell either ALL ON or ALL OFF, you can not automatically have the cells change to match different ON and OFF times along the cells,  so if you have effects that are only ON for a few cells, then OFF, then back ON, the only way to change that is manually.  There is no automatic function for doing multiple changes along the same cells or columns of cells.   So if that's what you're attempting, yes, you will need to make those changes manually.

Edited August 21, 2014 by Orville

[Don]

BTW: to the OP about your ON/OFF question, you can set the entire cell either ALL ON or ALL OFF, you can not automatically have the cells change to match different ON and OFF times along the cells,  so if you have effects that are only ON for a few cells, then OFF, then back ON, the only way to change that is manually.  There is no automatic function for doing multiple changes along the same cells or columns of cells.   So if that's what you're attempting, yes, you will need to make those changes manually.

 

Incorrect.

 

There is a way to change multiple cells at once. See foreground/background tools. 

 

It is possible to change the 'off' cells in between a few 'on' cells.

[ItsMeBobO]

Thank you Don for getting here before me.   Almost got some completely unnecessary bold red warning points on this one.

[George Simmons]

LMAO!  Yeah Bob - let Don take one for the team this time.

 

It amazes me how many people don't know or understand (even some who've been around for years) just what the background and foreground tools give you.  I admit it took me a little while to wrap my mind around it, but there are some time-saving things you can do and some cool effects that can be made as easy as cake.

Edited August 21, 2014 by George Simmons

[dgrant]

This just answered a nagging question of mine on an effect that I accidently created and was unable to create it again. Thank You all!

[Orville]

Incorrect.

 

There is a way to change multiple cells at once. See foreground/background tools. 

 

It is possible to change the 'off' cells in between a few 'on' cells.

Really?   Because I've never had it work that way for me, and I've tried it several times and differing ways, all were very unsuccessful,  

 

Maybe the newer versions can do this, but the one I use, I have never been able to just change a few cells that have different effects down one line of cells at once using that, or any other method I tried, sure I can do it *manually", providing I highlight those sections and do each area manually from a fade or whatever effect to an full on or full off, but I have never succeeded, not once, in getting the varying effects to change to two different effects at the same time, i.e. ON and OFF from say a fade to a shimmer and back didn't convert to just on/off,  I've have always had to do it manually.  I can change the line to one effect down the entire line. either all off, all on, all shimmer, etc., but I have never been able to convert multiple effects to varying on/off or any other effects down those cells, they were either all on. off, or whatever effect I was attempting, i could not just change varying broken fades to become somethilg like this example: 5 cells on, 12 cells off, 20 cells on, 8 cells off.  I have never been able to do that except manually, again by highlighting anc changing those areas independently from each other.

 

If it's possible then something must be set wrong somewhere in my settings, because I do have to do this manually whenever I want, or need to make those type changes in a sequence.

 

I am not saying it can't be done now, just saying *I* have never been able to get it to work like that.

 

I AM NOT trying be argumentative here, just stating the method described has never worked that way for me, if my example is what you're talking about.

 

Either that, or we're describing two entirely different things here and I didn't quite get what the OP is or was trying to do.   Which could be the case.  Sometimes it's difficult to know what answer may or may not be the correct one, because the written word can be interpreted in different ways by different folks.

[George Simmons]

Relating to the OP's question, if the objective is to have the strobes lit in ALL the places where a different command is currently used, the quickest and most simple solution might be the toggle tool.

Select the entire channel and press the toggle button twice. Your result will be full on in every cell where there was formerly ANY type of lighting command.

[shfr26]

Hey George or any of you smart folks, do the foreground and background tools work like that in the version Orv has,  3.8.2??

 

        Just wondering if it work in all versions.

[ItsMeBobO]

Those buttons have been there a long time.  So yes it works for older versions but apparently not all users. 

[dougd]

My first year I built my own controllers using relays. When I used other peoples sequences with fades I used the toggle button. If you toggle a sequence with fades, fades go off, then toggle again and the fade is now completely on. 

[shfr26]

Those buttons have been there a long time.  So yes it works for older versions but apparently not all users. 

 

Thanks Bob, just wanted to make sure.

[George Simmons]

I AM NOT trying be argumentative here,

 

Aw c'mon Orv - admit it - you like a good argument as much as the next person. 

 

Hey George or any of you smart folks...

Well I'm happy that one of the smart folks got your answer for you.  And to think - I said something nice about you once...

Edited August 22, 2014 by George Simmons

[Don]

For those who wanted to see some of the foreground and background tools in action ... see this video.

[Orville]

Can't watch the videos Don.

 

MP4's don't work in my browser {Google Chrome} or IE11 on my system.  I have never been able to view MP4 video files, tried downloading and converting them, that didn't work either.  My system just won't support that format.  So all those I downloaded I just deleted since I could not make them watchable. {Using WIN XP Home Edition} and I do have all the latest drivers that are{or were since XP is no longer supported now} available installed on my system.

 

I can view MPG,AVI,SWF,FLV,WMV files perfectly fine, along with a couple others I can't recall, but MP4 has never worked.  Just get a black screen, get the play/slider area, slider moves to left right as video plays, just no video and audio usually is distorted, breaks up{starts/stops or sounds like it has long gaps as it plays}, tried conversion software, but get a grainy, distorted, very weird looking video and audio sometimes gets distorted even more after the convert or no audio track at all.

 

So I can only go by what my experience has been, what I've tried to do and how I do it.   If something doesn't work for me, well, as I've said in the past it might or might not work.   Not everything works for everyone and this just happens to be one of the issues that does not work for me, tried it and was unsuccessful at using the method.

 

And since I have yet to see any of the LOR Video Tutorials, again, since I can't play them, sure can't watch them, maybe I'm not fully understanding how they work in the "text version" in the help/manual files.

 

Despite what anyone thinks about me or my explanation, I was only trying to be of help because this just did not work out for me,  so I really believed the only way to do it was manually.   I wish it had, and would have worked for me.  It sure would have made making changes in a lot of my sequences a whole lot easier.

 

So yes, I will say I am somewhat wrong, but I can't say completely, not just yet anyway, because, like stated, this has never worked for me, if it had, then I could say I was 100% incorrect and there is a way to accomplish this other than doing it manually.

 

So either I have something set/configured incorrectly in my SE somewhere that I'm missing?   Or as stated, I am not fully understanding the help file or manual where it tells you how to accomplish this, and that is also entirely possible.  Again written word interpretation comes back into play here, one person may see it one way, someone else in another.

 

Just wish I could view these videos to see if, and what I am doing incorrectly that it doesn't work the way you folks say it's supposed too.

 

Thank you, and I will now go over and stand in the bad boys corner.

Edited August 22, 2014 by Orville