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    Pedro Alves
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Question and issues about Congo

Hi everybody

First of all sorry for this long text but I've got a question and some issues about Congo and maybe someone can help me.

The question is about MIDI.

How can I use MIDI to have a sound cue at the same time of a light cue? OK the details are this: I've got some cues on this play that as to be at the same time of Sound but sometimes on of us is a little bit late. So I think that we can solve this with MIDI but I don't know how to do that. Today we connect the consoles like this:

YAMAHA LS9 to MOTU ULTRALITE (Sound) to Congo Jr

I don't see any information on Congo Jr if MIDI is connect even after I went to SETUP to enable the MIDI Program Change and also the MSC. I read several times the online help of Congo but despite I almost understand the implementation chart I don't understand how the sound can do a GO on Congo Jr. So PLEASE can someone tell me how to connect this consoles?? What is the information that the sound console has to send to Congo Jr? How and where can see that information?

 

Now the issues:

  • With a Congo as a server and a Congo Jr as backup, connected with a Hub the hourglass appears and blocks both consoles during some time. Not a long time, about 10 seconds, which is more than enough to miss a light cue. This happen sometimes but we can't say when or why because it's never on the same place of the play neither everyday. Just sometimes happens so we can't use this system because we don't want to put a show at risk but we need this.

 

  •  On Congo we've got a Macro that blocks also the console. This is a Macro just to dim the console lights for the show that opens the Browser, Console settings, put a number on those several boxes, Modify, and close the Browser. The problem is that sometimes it doesn't do everything and the window of the Console settings stays open. We can understand that is missing some steps of the Macro but we can't say exactly what steps. Every time this happen on the Display it appears the number 5655.

 

  •  If we try to do a crossfade with a Channel time using a Split mode a strange thing happen. Example:

                         Seq 9   Prs 6                      OUT/IN 0.01            x(mode)

                         Seq 10 Prs 6.5   Wait 0.1 OUT 0.01 IN 1:30   s(mode)

                                                      Channel time 30

This Channel time is to put a channel at 50% before everything else but what happens is that channel goes to 50% on 30 seconds and after that, instead of remain at that intensity until the end of the crossfade, it goes down to some level and goes to 50% only after the remain minute of the crossfade. This is a very strange thing and we try with different channels and different times but this happens every time we use the Split mode. With the Crossfade mode the channel time works like it's supposed to work. So the question is why this happen? I thing that isn't a normal thing to do.

 

  • We are using 5 ETC Revolutions on this show and when select all the 5 and send them to Home Attributes on the colors column we see a strange thing. 4 of them are with "1-White" but on the other one (the first one) doesn't appear anything. The color is on the right place but the color column it's different of the others. If we chose the Color palette 1 for the 5 Revolutions then appears on all "1-White". It's the first time that I saw this.

 

  • We are using also 3 American DJ 1200 strobes and when we select all of the channels, 1Ch 1024 thru, we can't change the colors of the Revolutions. We send the colors to the last color that we've got on the scrollers but it only goes to the second color. We've got to deselect the Strobes so that we can see all the colors of the scrollers changing. Why this happen?? I think it's not normal cause Strobes doesn't have anything with Colors only with Beam.

 Like I said before sorry for this long text and I'm hopeful that someone can help me about the MIDI.

 

Best regards

Pedro Alves

  • 0
    • MIDI Show Control (MSC) is a standard way to send "GO" or "# GOTO" commands over MIDI.
      - The "Device ID" is the MSC address, like a DMX address. Valid numbers are 1-16.
    • The "Program Change" option offers "GOTO STEP X" using MIDI Program Change commands.
    • MIDI Notes press buttons on the console.
      - One note per button, Note On is "Button Down", Note Off is "Button Up".

    You only want one of these. I would recommend MSC, it's usually the easiest to configure.

    Step One: Find out if and how your sound console can send MIDI Show Control, Program Change or MIDI Notes.
    You can do nothing whatsoever without that information, and this is not something ETC can help with - MOTU or Yamaha.

    When a given MIDI input type is enabled, Congo executes any commands sent, and completely ignores any commands it doesn't understand or can't do.

    On your issues:

    • The hourglassing sounds like the console sending the show file to the backup. You may have auto-send on Record turned on or are doing something that sends the play.
    • Macros blindly press the buttons, either as fast as possible or at the same speed you pressed them when recording ("Real Time Mode").
      - Macros that open or close dialogs and tabs should be run in Real Time mode for the best results.
      Therefore, if you run a Macro starting in the wrong place (eg Browser focussed, different place in the Browser), you will get the wrong result.
      - I'm guessing that "5655" are the numbers the Macro is supposed to type into the boxes.
    • Split fade mode is for pure manual crossfades.
      It turns the A/B pair into "A-Master" and "B-Master", as on a dual-preset console.
      - In this mode you can get a "dippy" crossfade if you so desire, dipping the A or B field during the fade.
      This does not support Channel Times as individual timing is anathema to a manual fade.
      What are you trying to achieve by the Split fade mode coupled with advanced timing?
    • The Revolution scroller display is because the Scroller Home for one of the Revolutions is not in exactly the same place as full-frame #1 (White) is calibrated to be.
      Both Home and scroller calibration can be changed in each show and for each fixture.
    • Strobes/Revolution: Insufficient data for a meaningful answer.
      We need your show file and exactly how you "send the colors to the last color that we've got on the scrollers".
      - Do you recall a palette? Move an encoder? Type number and hit a Wheel Key? etc etc
  • 0 in reply to Richard

    Hi Richard

    About MIDI we don't find any MSC on sound console but the sound guys will try looking better because we think that it as MSC cause we find the Program Change option. I still have one question that is how can I send a MIDI command from Congo Jr to other consoles? Maybe it's a silly question but I can't understand were and how I can do that. I went to setup and enable the MIDI and also the MSC bur I can see anything happen.

     

    About the issues

    • The hourglass appears without any change or record during the show. The only key that my colleague touches is the GO. This is not the first time that happens and so we are curious why this happen. We now that if we make any change or Record anything that an information while be send to the Backup but only with Go it's strange.

    •  About the Macros we only see this happen on Congo not on the Congo Jrs we've got. Now my colleague prefers to do everything by hand instead of using the Macro so I can't tell if problem still remain. 

    • The Split fade was to have a B.O. between two Sequence steps without saving a B.O. Preset (which he did). We came from AVAB consoles and at that time we eventually use the Spilt to do this kind of B.O. The channel time is only for a Channel that as to be at 50% before everything else.

    • About the Revolution Scroller they all use the same Template and only 1, that it's not this one, has a little bit difference on the Calibration Scroller. So the strange thing it's 4 with "1*White" and 1 without anything written on the Colors column when we send all to Home.

    • Strobes/Revolution. I don't bring the play to send to you, and it's my day off, so when I get to theatre I'll send you an email with play. We use all options that you say, recall the last palette, use the encoder wheel and even type any number of the scroller gel it only move 2 colors. But if we deselect the Strobes channels we can change the scollers to any color that we desire. More strange is if we select again the strobes everything works normally.

     

    Best regards

    Pedro Alves

     

  • 0 in reply to Pedro Alves

    If you want to trigger Congo from the sound system and it doesn't support MSC, the second best option is MIDI Program Change. Does it support this type of MIDI message?

    To send MIDI from Congo to an external system, there are several different methods: 

    1. Activate MSC messages like GO. Most secure way since the cue number is specified.

    2. Activate button presses like the GO button as MIDI Note On/Off messages. Not very secure at all since there is no synchronization of which cue you are at.

    3. Send an arbitrary MIDI command from a sequence step through the use of Action Macros.

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