DP4000 + Hog III PC

l think they should make the software better and give extra uninverses and artnet,l use other dongles and they have done same great multi purpose things.Multicompatiable dongles that have incorperated more pc functionality are great.

There are two parts of this discussion in my opinion.

-Number one is that we would need to get Artnet out of H3pc. and that is very easy to achieve, its just a matter of unlocking the same amount of art net universes that you have dongles attached to h3pc. Theese days Art-net is not a feature, it should be the user that decides if he spits out dmx through 5pin connector of the widgets, or if he takes it out through art-net. I can not think of ONE good reason this has not been unlocked before. The feature is already there(on full boar, and they share the code)

-The other issue here is getting more and more important in my opinion if He's wants to stay competitive vs it´s opponents. Unfortunately the Wholehog line is not the clear market leader as it used to in the earlier days. So staying competitive is getting more and more important if HES want´s to stay in the leading group of console makers. Over the years there have risen several cheaper alternatives that more or less can do the same as the hog line in terms of features. Many of these have not been seen as a "threat" and is probably not either. However, there have been some interesting newcomers lately that should be looked out for. And in particular MA´s latest offering. The ma2 line have been very successful, and is now considered the market leader in most peoples opinion(and as much as I don´t like it, but objectively speaking-they probably have a better product than hes has, so it´s only logical that people look in their direction) In the "big" consoles class it´s probably pricing that has kept more from going for ma rather than hog, since the ma range is quite a lot more expensive. But in the wings/software/"entry" level they have been missing an alternative.. But not anymore, and this should not be taken easy upon by HES if they want to stay competitive in my opinion. the new commander wing for MAonpc is extremely competitive vs HES offerings.

-They have built a wing that would be roughly the equivalent to: one programming wing, one faderwing, 2-4 dmx widgets(depending of 8 vs16 bit parameters), One LTC widgets, pluss Midi in/through,Gpio input and 1 DMX input(so you can use any faderboard as extra faders)
-And all this is sold cheaper than One HES wing! I´m a long time Wholehog user and is the "unofficial" wholehog support in Norway for most users here.(I also used to work for the distributor in norway for a while). And this is the first time I´ve seen such a great/competitive alternative in the entry level side of consoles. Keep in mind that tomorrow´s buyers of "real" consoles(the big console lines) are the users that is looking into the entry line today.. When I started learning whole hog, there was a software available(hog2pc) and was important for my learning of the hog. later on the hog3pc came out, I bought first a programming wing and so on.. Today I work for a(read: THE ;)) leading rental house and only uses multi console setups on big shows here in Norway. It hurts me to say, but if i was about to learn a console today, I would most likely not have chosen the hog line. Norway is not a big country, so i can keep quite a good track of what is being used/sold/bought in what companies. And I must say that the new ma wing is selling in crazy numbers.. both to companies but also young programmers..

-I´m afraid that if HES does not open their eyes to the competition they will get hit harder than we would like.. I think HES needs to "answer" the competition quite soon to avoid loosing to much of their current or potential user base.
-I really hope that together with the much awaited Hog4 later this year we will see some kind of "solution" to the growing price/feature disadvantage at least I am seeing. -There´s quite some time since I accepted that my console of choice is not the undisputed no 1 as it used to be. And In business world being number two in the marked means you got be be more Interesting than your opponents, meaning: either have more/better features or be cheaper. In the important entry-level HES is unfortunately neither today.

-This post might seem a bit harsh or rude on hes´s forum, but this is only my honest opinion and i´m still very much a heavy hog user and has no plans on jumping boats. I´m just hoping that I can still be in the same type of "boat" 5-10 years from now.

Anders...

I have to say, that post was dead on. No reason to apologize at all in my eyes. They (HES) need to wake up to some features and options or they are indeed going to lose in the in the long run.

I've mentioned this to them before...but even as a LONG-TIME Hog user, I keep looking at the MA2 for solutions that I have not received on this end.

I'm excited to see where the "console war" goes this year. I hope and pray things get awakened.

Just a thought here, but what about a single gimped (say 50 or 100 channels or so) of artnet/sACN output? Would be great for trying the platform out with real world visual feedback ( great for a lot of the people wanting to learn the system). Another idea would be on a repair bench. Right now I'm using an old hog2, but it takes up so much valuable work space and honestly is overkill while testing 1 or 2 fixtures at a time.

Hi Eric,
Yep i suppose a capped number of channel could also work.
If your going to entertain the possibility of Hog III PC outputting Artnet i think it may as well be a full universe or more IMHO.
Perhaps if you bought a new widget or could provide a widget serial number you would get a code to open that widget for it's equivalent amount of artnet universes or similar.
Not seen any official replies to this thread yet which is a pity because i think some of the posts are quite interesting and have some valid points,would love to hear someone from HE/Barco reply.

Best C

The best, easiest and cheapest way to have a 1 to 4 DMX/Artnet output would be to add Artnet to widget and super widget.

Loads of different and interesting solutions. But the blunt question is: When is it going to happen?