QLab 4 Lighting Tutorials

[cchimi1]

I'm thinking of folding the lighting component of our Bee Gees tribute band show into QLab 4, if I can figure out how to do it.  We presently are using Chauvet's ShowXpress software to automate our lights.  This has necessitated a separate computer and extra cabling.  To have essentially one program meet all our automation needs would be a boon for us.  We managed to figure out how to get things to work within ShowXpress, but that is a fairly friendly, timeline-based software (I mean that the timeline is visual on the screen, not implied as it is in QLab).

Does anyone know of any tutorial videos that demonstrate the basics of how to setup and automate lights in QLab using an ART-NET to DMX interface?

Thanks for any advice.

Carl

[zestie]

Jeremy Hopgood, author of QLab 3 Show Control has a Qlab 4 book planned. 

More here: 

https://jeromyhopgood.wordpress.com/2016/12/08/qlab-4-now-with-lights/

You could ask him when it's due. 

Hordur

[zestie]

Actually, I have managed (with support from the good people at Figure53) to run our lighting system through QLab 4 using a MA Lighting 2 Port Node in ART-NET mode. Previously we ran it in DMX mode using GrandMAonPC software on a WIndows laptop. 

I might be able to answer some specific questions. Just be aware that I am more a sound, rather than a lighting guy. 

H.

[cchimi1]

Thanks.  I finally had a small bit of time to try working with lights.  I got QLab to recognize my ART-NET interface, I think.  And I  thought I defined one of my lights, but I'm not sure.  I tried creating a Light cue, but got nothing to work.  Wednesday I'll have more time.

[Sam Kusnetz]

Hi there

I’m working fast and furiously on a couple of introductory tutorials for QLab’s lighting tools, but until then don’t forget you can always write to us at sup...@figure53.com.

Cheerio

Sam

—

Sam Kusnetz | Figure 53

s...@figure53.com

[cchimi1]

Appreciated, Sam.  I've always been very impressed with the quick and helpful responses I get from QLab techs.

Carl

[Joey Buddenberg]

I'm thinking of using Qlab with lights as well, but curious to know a few things in advance, since it is a touring show, allready programmed on other consoles and thus working in a certain way, I have a few questions.

Reading about patching it says nothing about more DMX adresses on one channel. For instance, all my backwashes in once color are combined in one channel. E.G. channel 21 has 6 par cans.
Also patch related: can you patch proportional. In a lot of theatres in The Netherlands the house lights are different DMX adresses. E.G. 101@100%, 102@70%, 103@50%. But using this now on channel 40 only.

Thanks,

Joey

[Mike Post]

From what I’m seeing, QLab’s light engine doesn’t do ganging DMX addressing in it’s soft patch.  It looks fixture based (Instruments) which works in a range of addresses defined per fixture.  I tried to create a custom definition that could be defined as a bunch of random outputs, but the patch forces a sequential set of addresses so that doesn’t really solve the issue in the way classic light boards operate.

You can define a Group and assign a several channels to it.  That way, you would assign channels to each of your PARs, create a group called BackWash, and assign each channel to that group.  Then in the cue you would refer to the group as a unit.  To me that’s sort of like Groups or Submasters in classic consoles.  You can expand the Group in a cue and control the channels separately, but it looks like they’re no longer grouped in that cue in that case.

That being said, I just spotted some odd behavior in the Group patch and Expand which I’ll report separately...

I don’t see a way to do a proportional patch or custom curve for a channel currently.  You can adjust the curve in the Light cue, which is cool, but it’s handy to put it on the Patch level too.  Hey Figure53!  Any plans for these?

For the sake of definition:

Proportional Patch is when you set a top limit to a channel and the resultant curve is recalculated to make that the max on a smooth fade.  

Custom Curve is literally just that - the ability to define a dimming curve, like a fade curve currently on a Light cue, but applies to the output of a channel directly.  An example would be a Slow Bottom fade which often gets used to correct for dimmers that have a jump at the low end of the fade to help them blend with other dimmers better.

Mike Post

mdp...@mac.com

http://mdpostdesign.com

(601) 307-8657

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[Chris Ashworth]

Good morning Mike & Joey, 

Inline below:

On February 5, 2017 at 6:19:42 PM, Mike Post (mdpost...@gmail.com) wrote:

From what I’m seeing, QLab’s light engine doesn’t do ganging DMX addressing in it’s soft patch.  It looks fixture based (Instruments) which works in a range of addresses defined per fixture.  I tried to create a custom definition that could be defined as a bunch of random outputs, but the patch forces a sequential set of addresses so that doesn’t really solve the issue in the way classic light boards operate.

You can define a Group and assign a several channels to it.  That way, you would assign channels to each of your PARs, create a group called BackWash, and assign each channel to that group.  Then in the cue you would refer to the group as a unit.  To me that’s sort of like Groups or Submasters in classic consoles.  You can expand the Group in a cue and control the channels separately, but it looks like they’re no longer grouped in that cue in that case.

Just a note to Joey that Mike’s description above is accurate: currently you'd achieve a non-continuguous set of addresses via instrument groups.

I don’t see a way to do a proportional patch or custom curve for a channel currently.  You can adjust the curve in the Light cue, which is cool, but it’s handy to put it on the Patch level too.  Hey Figure53!  Any plans for these?

They’re in the tracker, although they aren’t yet tied to a specific release in the roadmap. 

Cheers,

C

[Sam Kusnetz]

On February 6, 2017 at 10:03:10 AM, Chris Ashworth (ch...@figure53.com) wrote:

You can define a Group and assign a several channels to it.  That way, you would assign channels to each of your PARs, create a group called BackWash, and assign each channel to that group.  Then in the cue you would refer to the group as a unit.  To me that’s sort of like Groups or Submasters in classic consoles.  You can expand the Group in a cue and control the channels separately, but it looks like they’re no longer grouped in that cue in that case.

Just a note to Joey that Mike’s description above is accurate: currently you'd achieve a non-continuguous set of addresses via instrument groups.

And I’d like to add, since there is no difference between the way you name instruments and light groups, you could always just give the group whatever name you wanted to give the instrument. From there, working with a light group and working with an instrument are so very similar that there’s nearly no difference most of the time.

Best