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    Dale Philip
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Request advice from regular Smartfade user?

I have used a Strand two scene analogue lighting console for some years and have just started using a new Smartfade 2496 console for a forthcoming show.  I plan to use the memory faders as cues and work through them as the show progresses.  Someone has suggested that I should connect to my laptop and make a note of all the channel settings for each cue immediately after the technical rehearsal, so that I have a hard copy to fall back on if the SD memory card fails.  However this will take some time to do on the day after the technical rehearsal when time is limited.  Presumably in reality, very few lighting managers have time to do this and rely on their memory cards with backups?  

Also, I was thinking of recording cues on alternate memory channels i.e. 2, 4, 6, 8, etc so I can insert additional cues easily at short notice.  Does this sound sensible?

If anyone has further 'belt and braces' suggestions of how to organise things during the frenzy of the technical rehearsal, I would be please to hear them.  

Many thanks in anticipation.

Phil

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  • For me the backup would be a copy of the showfile, either onboard the SD card or on the computer. Heck why not both! Yes, I highly recommend using a computer with a SmartFade. File backups are easy and quick so make lots! SD failure is highly unlikely and you would know it when you first try to use it. Leave it in the console and don't worry.

    The cue structure lets you enter cues from any memory any time, or even without a memory. No need to space them out, but the only reason not to is to have fewer pages. Really, changing pages seems to be a hard thing.

    To be honest, using memories as cues creates dips when fading between them. Your strand probably had a 'dip less' crossfader but the smartfade doesn't do that between memories. The cue stack is far easier and more reliable than your fingers. If you're busking (running on the fly) then jump right in. But if you have the time to pre-program cues and the timing between them you will be much happier. I started on non-preset boards and lived through all the preset variations. Cue stacks are vastly better!!!

    If you do get a hard copy of the cues, look into the Next button. It's the manual version of 2 scene preset that doesn't cut your board in half. But I would only use that as a last resort.

  • in reply to RickR
    Rick - Thank you for your helpful comments. I haven't explored Stacks seriously yet but I will get around to it. I thought the memory fader control may be best for our UK Panto style theatre where things do not always happen according to the script. I thought it may give me more spontaneous control. I have noticed the dip in the lighting when moving from one cue to the next. I will have to experiment with this. Perhaps fading the new one in before dropping back the old one?

    Phil
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  • in reply to RickR
    Rick - Thank you for your helpful comments. I haven't explored Stacks seriously yet but I will get around to it. I thought the memory fader control may be best for our UK Panto style theatre where things do not always happen according to the script. I thought it may give me more spontaneous control. I have noticed the dip in the lighting when moving from one cue to the next. I will have to experiment with this. Perhaps fading the new one in before dropping back the old one?

    Phil
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