Ready… GO

This week’s Quick Tip comes from programmer Paul Sonnleitner.

The syntax on the GrandMA lighting console is both powerful and flexible. It’s easy to sometimes overlook how a simple macro, however, can make common actions even easier.

How often does a designer say to a programmer, “Okay, take this exact look and record it as cue X”? While recording the existing values of all channels is the standard behavior with some lighting consoles, only the active values in the Programmer are, by default, recorded with STORE on the GrandMA. While a programmer can change the store default settings via holding down STORE on the GrandMA, the resulting cue can contain more than desired as all attributes of all channels/fixtures will be stored with the new cue. How can this request be best accomplished without all the tracking baggage? How about creating a simple Macro to help?

Create a Macro that does the following:
• IfOutput (This selects all fixtures that have an intensity above 0%)
• On Preset 1 thru 9 (This activates all parameter information for previously selected fixtures)
• IfOutput At 0 (This selects all fixtures with an intensity at exactly 0%)
• On Preset 2 (This activates the Dimmer information for the fixtures at 0%)
• Off Group 999 (This deactivates any fixtures stored in Group 999* so they will not be stored in the cue)

This macro takes the value of all parameters of all channels/fixtures currently above zero intensity into the Programmer, and only the intensity value of all channels/fixtures currently at zero. This means when the new cue is stored, only the intensity of channels/fixtures that are off are brought into the new cue so fixtures not adding to the new look won’t be fading out and moving and changing color, for instance; they’ll fade out and all their other attributes will track. Other manufacturers might call this a Snapshot cue or a Snapshot record option, and it’s very useful when building a lot of states quickly, such as when cueing a television show.

* Notice the macro’s last lines; any channel/fixture recorded into Group 999 (choose your own macro number that you will be unlikely to use in a show) won’t be recorded into the new cue, regardless of level. Houselights and hazers, for example, would be good choices for members of Group 999.

Quick Tips are exactly what the name should imply. We’re adding these to our blog in an effort to help programmers and operators of all levels. If you’d like to suggest a Quick Tip, drop us a message on this blog, or on our Facebook page, or even via Twitter.

Tags: grandMA programming, tips, Training

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 9th, 2010 at 10:11 am and is filed under MA Series 1 Consoles, Quick Tip Tuesday. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.