Using EPOS/programmable keyboards with QLab?

[Matt Padden]

Hi,

Has anyone had any joy using EPOS-style programmable keyboards with MacOS, and particularly QLab? It seems a very elegant way of firing frequently-used scripts etc without tying up an ipad or remembering hotkey combinations; there’s the added luxury of being able to freely label the keys.

Of the ones I’ve found (Ceratech Accuratus S120B, ExpertKeys EK-128), the latter is apparently not recognised by the more recent MacOS editions (but I’d be interested to know if anyone’s got it to work). All have programmers that are Windows-only, but they also claim to be standalone once programmed. There’s also the XKeys XKE range which work via ControllerMate, but they’re significantly more costly. I’d love to know if anyone’s tried this approach. 

Many thanks,

Matt

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Matt Padden
matt.pa...@gmail.com

www.mattpadden.com

[Joshua Langman]

I've successfully used a Genovation keyboard with QLab. Photo of early version attached.

Josh

[Brendan Aanes]

I use an XKeys XK-24 to fire scripts mapped to keyboard shortcuts to expedite level changes or batch edits in tech. It works great.

On Sun, Feb 25, 2018 at 6:24 AM Joshua Langman <jlangma...@gmail.com> wrote:

I've successfully used a Genovation keyboard with QLab. Photo of early version attached.

Josh

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[Andy Leviss]

On Sat, Feb 24, 2018 at 10:23 AM, Matt Padden <matt.pa...@gmail.com> wrote:

Has anyone had any joy using EPOS-style programmable keyboards with MacOS, and particularly QLab? It seems a very elegant way of firing frequently-used scripts etc without tying up an ipad or remembering hotkey combinations; there’s the added luxury of being able to freely label the keys.

On my current show, I started using an elgato Stream Deck for macros and shortcuts, and it's been working quite well. It's 15 keys, and priced comparably to a 24-key X-Keys, but the buttons are customizable LCDS, so there's a lot more flexibility. I currently have it set with a "home" page and four category pages: New Cues, Timing, Levels, and Utilities. 

There is an extra step to select a page rather than having everything on a single large 48 or 64 key pad, and I debate which I prefer, but I'm digging it so far. Hitting the menu and selection keys has pretty quickly become second nature, and there's less moving around and hunting and more ability to find them by touch with the smaller pad. 

-Andy

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Andy Leviss

Production Sound Engineer, LCT3

Claire Tow Theater at Lincoln Center

An...@SoundGuyAndy.com

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[Matt Padden]

Hi Andy,

I'd not come across the Stream Deck before; nice approach. How squishy/clicky/OCD-mitigating do the keys feel?

Matt

[Andy Leviss]

On Sun, Feb 25, 2018 at 2:15 PM, Matt Padden <matt.pa...@gmail.com> wrote:

I'd not come across the Stream Deck before; nice approach. How squishy/clicky/OCD-mitigating do the keys feel?

You know, they live in a weird middle ground. They don't have the level of distinct tactile click in the way that  the Team Sound Go Boxes do, but feel more solid and defined to me than an X-Keys. You can definitely feel when you overcome the resistance more cleanly than with an X-Keys. 

I trust it for programming use; I'm not sure how I'd feel about running a show off it--I have a Go Box 6 for that. I might be okay using it for a more random access cart type situation, where it's definitely more tactile than Ye Olde Instant Replay's buttons were. 

The other thing to keep in mind is that currently it can send keyboard shortcuts, or it can run an AppleScript compiled as an application. They're apparently considering MIDI for a future update, and I've seen a few requests on their official user subreddit for the ability to run scripts within their app instead of having to compile as an app, like how it works with the X-Keys software. There are also some reverse-engineered libraries for rolling your own software to go with it, if you're so inclined, and elgato's said they're working on an official SDK of some sort.

-Andy

P.S. - Another tangential tip; on this show I started implementing a Network cue with the /save command, set to the same trigger as my GO, with a 3s pre-wait on it. So my workspace auto-saves every time I take a cue during tech. #SaveEarlySafeOften #JustLikeVoting (The pre-wait is not always strictly necessary, but makes sure the save happens after the cues are loaded if not auto-loading, and also avoids disconcerting redraw lags when starting all those cues bumps against saving and any potential save progress bar. Do it for your own sanity, if not for any actual need :o)

[Matt Padden]

Thanks Andy. I have a borrow of a 35-key Accuratus keyboard just now which is giving me lots of food for thought. I like your autosave cue idea too. 

Matt

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[Sam Orange]

Hi Andy,

I am interested in how you made this setup work with the stream deck. 

I have literally just received mine thinking it may be easy than it currently seems and then spotted this thread while seeking the answers. It seems as though you are doing almost exactly the same thing i'd like to do.

Did you build all of your controls as apple scripts linked to key short cuts of some kind?

Any help much appreciated.

Sam

On Sunday, February 25, 2018 at 6:32:56 PM UTC, Andy Lang wrote: