CE Controller - Club64 Contents Contents 1. THE ABSTRACT CE CONTROLLER 2. A QUICK GUIDE TO THE CONTROLLER 3.1 WHAT IS A HEAD, AND HOW DOES THE CONTROLLER TALK TO THEM? 3.2 HOW DO I MAKE THE HEADS WORK? 3.3 MANUAL OPERATION 3.4 USING SCENES - STATIC POSITIONS 3.5 USING CHASES - SEQUENCES OF SCENES 3.6 LIGHT SHOW 3.7 CUSTOMISING HOW THE CONTROLLER WORKS 3. SETTING UP 3.1 CONNECTING UP THE CONTROLLER 3.2 SETTING UP THE CONTROLLER 4. HEAD 4.1 HEAD SELECT 4.2 CONTROLLING SELECTED HEADS 4.3 HEAD SETUP 5. COLOUR 6. GOBO 7. SCENE 7.1 SAVING SCENES 7.2 RECALLING SCENES 7.3 SCENE SETUP 8. BANK 8.1 CHASE BANK SELECT 8.2 SCENE BANK SELECT 9. CHASE 9.1 PROGRAMMING CHASES 9.2 RECALLING A CHASE 9.3 CHASE SETUP MODE 10. CANCEL 11. SAVE 6 8 8 8 9 9 9 10 10 12 12 13 14 14 15 16 22 24 26 26 28 29 32 32 32 34 34 37 40 44 46 Page 2 Contents 11.1 SAVING SCENES 11.2 SAVING CHASES 11.3 SYSTEM SETUP 12. BLACKOUT 13. SOUND 14. LIGHT SHOW 15. USING MIDI 15.1 RECALLING SCENES BY MIDI 15.2 RECALLING CHASES BY MIDI 15.3 SPECIAL FUNCTIONS BY MIDI 15.4 MIDI THRU MODES 15.5 SYSTEM EXCLUSIVE A. DMX IMPLEMENTATION CHARTS B. MIDI IMPLEMENTATION CHART C. ERROR MESSAGES D. SYSTEM OPTIONS 46 46 46 52 54 56 58 58 59 59 60 61 62 64 66 68 Abstract CE Controller manual: Issue 1.2 Jan 2000 (software v1.6) Designed & written by Tim Mitchell, Sabre Technology Ltd for Abstract Design to Light, Leicester, UK © Abstract Design to Light 1996 Tel: 0116 278 8078 Page 3 The Abstract CE Controller Page 4 The Abstract CE Controller Page 5 The Abstract CE Controller 1. The Abstract CE controller The Abstract CE controller gives you total control over your lighting effects. It is a sophisticated and flexible unit designed to control all of the CE range, and also other similar units. Its main features are: Controls · · · · · · · · · Back-lit LCD display giving step by step instructions and information Tactile membrane control panel Joystick for beam positioning Pan/tilt can be swapped and/or inverted for each head Two sliders for control of other functions All scenes, chases and options retained by backup battery when power off 4U 19" rackmount case Reversible connections panel permits rackmount or table top use Control (GPI) socket, MIDI input and thru/out Functions · · · · · · · · · · · · · · Individual or multiple control of up to 16 heads 512 scenes; 384 user programmable, 128 pre-programmed 128 chases of 64 steps; 64 user programmable, 64 pre-programmed Fast programming and recall of scenes and chases Two independent chases can be run concurrently Scene can be overlaid on chases Manual override of heads in chase Variable crossfade between chase steps and between scenes Chase step triggered by sound, timer, footswitch, or MIDI. Direct access to colours and gobos with display of names Comprehensive `automatic' light show function Sequential or random selection of chases for unattended operation Automatic light show can be combined with chases and manual control Chases can be linked to recall two on one button Page 6 The Abstract CE Controller User configuration · · · · · · · Personality of each head can be set Automatic DMX re-patch for 2,3 or 4 channel heads DMX soft patch (up to 64 channels) Graphic display of dip switch settings for heads `Playback only' lock mode to protect programs Remote reset of CE range heads Control of other brand 2, 3 or 4 channel heads possible External control · · · Comprehensive MIDI control functions Memory save/reload via MIDI System Exclusive dump Assignable actions from footswitch Page 7 Quick Guide to the controller 2. A quick guide to the controller This section explains quickly how to access the main features of the controller. If you don't know much about intelligent lighting, this section is for you. Each function is described in more detail later in the manual. If you are familiar with intelligent lighting or you want to know something specific, you can probably skip this section. 2.1 What is a head, and how does the controller talk to them? The controller can operate up to 16 individual heads (intelligent lighting effects). The controller continuously sends out commands for all 16 heads, whether they are connected or not, one after the other. These commands are sent out in a standard control format called DMX (Digital MultipleX). Each head has its own unique numerical address telling it which commands to respond to from the controller; this is usually set by miniature switches on the heads (called dip switches). In standard operation, the controller sends 4 commands for each head; one moves the mirror left-right, the second moves it up-down, the third controls the colour and the final one controls the gobo (pattern). So Head 1 has addresses 1-4, Head 2 has addresses 5-8, Head 3 has addresses 9-12, and so on. On each head, you set the lowest address it is to use, so Head 1 will be set to 1, Head 2 will be set to 5, and so on. The dip switches are set in binary code. If you are not sure how to set the dip switches, the controller can show you a picture of how they should be (see section 4.3 on page 16), or the head will have a label on the back of it. 2.2 How do I make the heads work? There are 4 ways to make the heads work: · · · · Manual operation - use the joystick and controls to manually work the heads Scenes - When you have positioned the heads to give a nice effect, you can save the position of all the heads as a Scene. Then you can recall the effect whenever you want with one button press. Chases - You can string together up to 64 scenes to form a dynamic moving chase Light show - The controller will automatically work the heads for you. You'll probably want to use all of these ways of operating the controller. Each one is useful for different applications. Read on... Page 8 Quick guide to the controller 2.3 Manual operation You can manually control any or all of the 16 heads by selecting the heads you want to use. Press the Head button, then the number corresponding to the head you want to control. You can do this for as many heads as you want. The green light above the head number will come on to indicate that the head is selected. If you press the button again it will go off and the head will be deselected. If you get confused at any point or want to start with a `clean sheet', hold down Cancel to turn everything off. This useful " all off" can be done at any time. OK, so you've got some heads selected. If you move any of the front panel controls, the heads which are selected will respond. If you move the joystick, the mirror will move (if the head has a mirror). If you change the colour or gobo (pattern), then the head will change its colour or gobo. If you have got more than one head selected, they will all do the same thing. When you deselect the heads, they will lock in the position you left them. You can now select some other heads and set different positions. 2.4 Using scenes - static positions Manual control is OK, but it's a bit fiddly. You don't want to have to position all the heads by hand every time. This is where a scene comes in handy. A scene stores the current position of all 16 heads. When you have got a nice effect with your heads, you can save the effect as a scene by pressing Save, then Scene, then pressing the number of the scene you want to save. When you are saving or recalling a scene, the green lights light up to show you which scenes have already been programmed. You can save up to 384 scenes, and the controller has a further 128 scenes which are pre-programmed. The scenes are organised in 32 banks of 16. Once you've saved a scene, you'll want to get it back. To recall a scene, simply press Scene, then the number of the scene you want to recall. All 16 heads will be repositioned according to the settings you saved in the scene. To recall the next scene, press another number. When you get a bit more advanced, you can tell the controller to move slowly (crossfade) between scenes if you want. You can turn the current scene off by pressing Scene then Cancel. 2.5 Using Chases - sequences of scenes So you've stored some nice effects, but now you want to get a bit of movement. You want the lights to dance in time to the music, without having to keep selecting different scenes. What you need is a Chase. Page 9 Quick Guide to the controller A Chase is simply a sequence of scenes which are displayed one after the other. You can run through a chase automatically at a preset speed or in time with music. You can also jump between scenes in a chase or move slowly (crossfade) between them. You can save up to 64 chases and each chase can have up to 64 scenes in it. The controller has a further 64 pre-programmed chases. You save a chase by pressing Save, then Chase, then pressing the number of the chase you want to program. To choose the scene you want at each step of the chase, just select the scene you want. When you've finished, press Chase again to end. (You can set the chase speed and crossfade now if you want). To play back the chase, you simply press Chase, then the number of the chase you want to play back. The chase will start to run. For more variety, you can run two chases together; the controller calls them Chase A and Chase B. This allows you, for example, to have a chase which moves the mirror around, and other chases which just change the colours. By running the " mirror" chase with one of the " colour" chases, you can get a wider variety of different patterns. 2.6 Light show There will be occasions when you don't have time to program a light show, or you're bored with the one you have programmed. This is where the Light Show function comes in. Simply press the Light Show button, and the controller will produce a very impressive automatic light show. You can alter the speed, crossfade and sound activation of the light show using the controls. You can manually override any head by selecting it as described above. But any controls you don't change will still be controlled by the light show - if you move the joystick but don't set the colour to white, the colour will still come from the light show. You can also run scenes or chases to override the light show. 2.7 Customising how the controller works The controller has got lots of options so that you can make it work the way you like. When you first get the controller, it will be set up in the simplest possible mode of operation so that you can get started quickly. However, as you get more experienced with the controller, you'll want to start using some of its more advanced features. Hold down the Save button for about 2 seconds to set system options, the Head button to set head options, and similarly for scenes and chases. The controller remembers all the options you set even when turned off. Page 10 Quick guide to the controller Page 11 Setting up 3. Setting up This section explains how to get started with your new controller. 3.1 Connecting up the controller The controller has a reversible connector panel which allows you to have the connections on the rear (for table-top use) or on the base (for rack-mount use). WARNING! If you are going to turn the panel round, ensure that the unit is switched off and disconnected from the mains supply before removing any screws. Remove the four screws from the connector panel, lift the panel out of the case, rotate it so the connectors are on the opposite side, then refit it into the case. Make sure you do not trap any cables between the panel and the case. Replace the four screws. M ai nspow er Audi lne i oi n Contoli rn M I II DN M I ITH RU D D M X out put i ng cr anot her2 on base) Connectonspanelfxi s ew s( i Connect the DMX output socket to the first lighting effect that you want to control using a standard XLR lead. Pin 2 is `hot' (any cable with the pins connected straight through will be OK for Abstract CE range effects). Connect other lighting effects up in a chain to the first one. If you are using MIDI, connect the keyboard or sequencer to the MIDI IN connector. If you have other MIDI equipment, connect it to the MIDI THRU connector. Note: The MIDI signal is buffered inside the unit, and will not pass through if the unit is turned off. If you are using an audio line feed, connect it to the audio line in socket using a 1/4" mono or stereo jack. Do not connect speaker level signals to the controller as this will damage it. If you are using a footswitch or GPI (General Purpose Interface) trigger, connect this to the control in socket. Finally connect the mains lead to a mains outlet and turn on. Page 12 Setting up 3.2 Setting up the controller Before using the controller for the first time, you need to tell it what type of heads you are going to connect to it, and what DMX channels you have set them to. It is worth spending a little time to start with setting the controller up properly, as this will make it much easier to use and will allow you access to all th ...