DiyLightAnimation
Software => Light Show Pro => Topic started by: holland lights on July 04, 2012,
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So I see version 2.5 is going to be more focused on the smartstring equipment. I have a few questions on the new version:
1. Is the new version going to run smoother while running the sequencer?
2. Will the scheduler be able to run better?
3. Will the overall product be worth the money to upgrade if a person is not running smartstrings/pixelnet, or is that all the new version is focused on?
Feel free to post other questions if needded.
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Traditionally software developers do not charge for upgrades from minor or point releases... Instead, they charge for major releases.
So if you have 1.x and want to go to 2.5 its a charge.
If you have 2.0 and want to go to 2.5 it is free.
Will Dave at LSP follow this? I don't know.
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1. Yes, the visualizer performance, audio scrubbing and transitions have greatly improved.
2. Yes. (But with the conductor we will not need the scheduler. :D )
2. Yes, there is more support for transitions which makes sequencing RGB lights much easier. I hope to be able to post a video showing how to use transitions to dramatically improve sequencing in the next couple of weeks. When complete, I will post a link here and on the LSP forum.
Check out a video of LSP 2.5 http://vimeo.com/43801855
I think the improvements made will be well worth the investment.
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Until the conductor can output video, i have to stick with the scheduler. I have a 100" screen that comes down before the show starts that i show videos to go along with the music. That was my whole reason i chose lightshowpro. I am currently running 2.0, and have almost all of my sequences finished for both halloween and christmas. Can the conductor just output dmx, or do you have to have the pixelnet hub hooked up to output dmx from it. right now i am just running dmx only.
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The conductor attaches to the etherdongle so I could guess that if the etherdongle were flashed with dmx firmware instead of pixelnet firmware you wouldn't need the smarthub. But it would only be a guess until RJ releases the product when it completes its beta testing which probably won't be too much longer.
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Until the conductor can output video, i have to stick with the scheduler. I have a 100" screen that comes down before the show starts that i show videos to go along with the music. That was my whole reason i chose lightshowpro. I am currently running 2.0, and have almost all of my sequences finished for both halloween and christmas. Can the conductor just output dmx, or do you have to have the pixelnet hub hooked up to output dmx from it. right now i am just running dmx only.
The conductor will send pixelnet to the hubs, but don't forget that each smart hub has a dmx universe that is mirrored from the pixelnet channels. so... one conductor with 4 smart hubs will give you 4x512 DMX channels to work with.
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I wish the conductor had a video output card to output video to the projectors.
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I wish the conductor had a video output card to output video to the projectors.
You will be able to use the slave and just send the sync signal from the software. This will take the load off the computer but still keep the software enabled for running video like i will be with LSP.
Animal
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I wish the conductor had a video output card to output video to the projectors.
You will be able to use the slave and just send the sync signal from the software. This will take the load off the computer but still keep the software enabled for running video like i will be with LSP.
Animal
that's great info... is there a place where this is described more? is it built into the plug-ins for all of the the software, including xLights?
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I wish the conductor had a video output card to output video to the projectors.
You will be able to use the slave and just send the sync signal from the software. This will take the load off the computer but still keep the software enabled for running video like i will be with LSP.
Animal
that's great info... is there a place where this is described more? is it built into the plug-ins for all of the the software, including xLights?
Try this,rj talks about it at the end. http://vimeo.com/27642079
Did this from my phone. I'll update if incorect.
Animal
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I wish the conductor had a video output card to output video to the projectors.
You will be able to use the slave and just send the sync signal from the software. This will take the load off the computer but still keep the software enabled for running video like i will be with LSP.
Animal
that's great info... is there a place where this is described more? is it built into the plug-ins for all of the the software, including xLights?
Try this,rj talks about it at the end. http://vimeo.com/27642079
Did this from my phone. I'll update if incorect.
Animal
Thanks! (...and this is indeed the right video)
The discussion for slave-only configurations starts at 13:00 into the video.
The "you could... software could..." part of the presentation seems a little theoretical at the time he did this video (11 months ago). I'd guess that the plug-ins and software support would still be needed in order to send the sync and control packets over multicast to the slaves. Has there been progress on this?
RJ did show us the conductor/slave control program, but the integration with your sequencing software seems to be a possibility, and maybe not yest a reality. Am I misinterpreting this?
Thanks.
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I wish there was a more indept explanation in that video in using the software to sync the signal to the slave for video output.
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I heard lsp 2.5 will suport this. I haven't confirmed this yet.
Animal
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So you would have the etherdongle connected to the computer playing video and outputing video like normal and it sends signal to the slave which relays the signal to the hub correct?
I dont really know much on how the etherdongle network is setup. I only have a regular dongle running dmx.
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I heard lsp 2.5 will suport this. I haven't confirmed this yet.
Animal
Yea i hope there is much improvement in lsp 2.5, with performance issues and overall easier on the processor. It seems lsp was hard on the computer lasy year.
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my ASSUMPTION is
there will need to be "listener" software running on a PC that is seeing the sync/timestamp signal from the conductor to the slave(s) coming across the network. You will setup events that happen at a specific time code, and a command to run in this PC software, when that time event happens, this software will need to execute the defined command. It will stay in sync just as a slave would do by listening to the sync signal.
Granted yes this scenario has you still running a PC/LapTop for the video and extra stuff - but it will be able to be a less "beefier" computer because it wont have to send out the channel data as the conductor is doing that load.
again this is my ASSUMPTION on how this would work...
Myk
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Another assumption about how things do/might work...
The conductor plays its own sequence data, and sends out sync packets for any slaves to use to maintain synchronization.
After listening to RJs video, it is my assumption that the conductor is removed and the PC serves this purpose. The PC (running xLights, LSP, Vixen, etc.) will send its regular sequence data over all LOR, DMX, or whatever networks it is configured to do. AND it also can drive video in a LSP configuration -- like any other LSP setup is capable of doing. What is 'new' is that the LSP software (and any other slave-aware software) is that it sends out (transmits) its own multicast sync packet, and the slaves receive that packet and play their own local sequences to the connected hubs and controllers.
PC Software replaces the conductor.
BTW, the slave is a receiver and therefore "listens" for the sync packets. It does not transmit anything.
It is my suposition that the PC-based sequencers do not 'listen' for packets... that would be to disruptive to their normal behavior.
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If this is the case, then why even have a conductor - the condutor's purpose is to replace the pc. That is why it plays the show sequences, plays the mp3s, and has its own scheduler to setup/play the show. It sends out sync packets across the network to keep the slaves (2nd, 3rd, 4th ethernet dongle) in sync. RJ has never said it was designed to display video, operate electro mech devices (fogger for halloween etc) - this is going to have to be from external devices.
The conductor plays its own sequence data, and sends out sync packets for any slaves to use to maintain synchronization. From what I have been told it has/is never been designed at this stage to replace anything but a standard show computer running sequences, music and a scheduler.
My assumption was one way to get external 3rd party control of non light (incan, led, rbg led etc) in a show. You take away the conductor and then you have what we have now - a E131 device sending over ethernet directly controlled by a pc ....
btw, if you go over the video again, a slave controllers the ethernet dongle its attached to, just like the conductor controls the dongle that it is attached to.
one the files/songs/schedule is loaded on the conductors memory card, a PC is not required to be connected anymore - hence RJs demonstration - both the conductor unit and slave unit in the video were talking thru each other via wireless bridges - not to his laptop...
Anyways, this is off topic this is about if LSP 2.5 will have this capability - it will - as far as what information RJ has released the conductor will not.
Myk
Another assumption about how things do/might work...
After listening to RJs video, it is my assumption that the conductor is removed and the PC serves this purpose. The PC (running xLights, LSP, Vixen, etc.) will send its regular sequence data over all LOR, DMX, or whatever networks it is configured to do. AND it also can drive video in a LSP configuration -- like any other LSP setup is capable of doing. What is 'new' is that the LSP software (and any other slave-aware software) is that it sends out (transmits) its own multicast sync packet, and the slaves receive that packet and play their own local sequences to the connected hubs and controllers.
PC Software replaces the conductor.
BTW, the slave is a receiver and therefore "listens" for the sync packets. It does not transmit anything.
It is my suposition that the PC-based sequencers do not 'listen' for packets... that would be to disruptive to their normal behavior.
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If this is the case, then why even have a conductor - the condutor's purpose is to replace the pc. That is why it plays the show sequences, plays the mp3s, and has its own scheduler to setup/play the show. It sends out sync packets across the network to keep the slaves (2nd, 3rd, 4th ethernet dongle) in sync. RJ has never said it was designed to display video, operate electro mech devices (fogger for halloween etc) - this is going to have to be from external devices.
The conductor plays its own sequence data, and sends out sync packets for any slaves to use to maintain synchronization. From what I have been told it has/is never been designed at this stage to replace anything but a standard show computer running sequences, music and a scheduler.
My assumption was one way to get external 3rd party control of non light (incan, led, rbg led etc) in a show. You take away the conductor and then you have what we have now - a E131 device sending over ethernet directly controlled by a pc ....
btw, if you go over the video again, a slave controllers the ethernet dongle its attached to, just like the conductor controls the dongle that it is attached to.
one the files/songs/schedule is loaded on the conductors memory card, a PC is not required to be connected anymore - hence RJs demonstration - both the conductor unit and slave unit in the video were talking thru each other via wireless bridges - not to his laptop...
Anyways, this is off topic this is about if LSP 2.5 will have this capability - it will - as far as what information RJ has released the conductor will not.
Myk
Another assumption about how things do/might work...
After listening to RJs video, it is my assumption that the conductor is removed and the PC serves this purpose. The PC (running xLights, LSP, Vixen, etc.) will send its regular sequence data over all LOR, DMX, or whatever networks it is configured to do. AND it also can drive video in a LSP configuration -- like any other LSP setup is capable of doing. What is 'new' is that the LSP software (and any other slave-aware software) is that it sends out (transmits) its own multicast sync packet, and the slaves receive that packet and play their own local sequences to the connected hubs and controllers.
PC Software replaces the conductor.
BTW, the slave is a receiver and therefore "listens" for the sync packets. It does not transmit anything.
It is my suposition that the PC-based sequencers do not 'listen' for packets... that would be to disruptive to their normal behavior.
This was for the "3rd-scenario" when any of the following did not fit an exclusively-conductor/slave configuration:
- You want to add video, or servos, or something else that doesn't "fit" with conductor
- You want to use your LOR, or non-lynx hardware and networks (note that you can still use DMX-connected non-Lynx equipment with conductor/slave using the DMX universe)
You still would choose conductor for the following reasons:
- simplicity, and when a PC cannot be easily be deployed into your show setting
- your show is too big to be driven by a single computer
- you want a stand-alone configuration that can still produce audio (radio-capable)
- you want to avoid spending a lot of money on a powerful show computer --you might prefer to use your sequence-editing system for other things during the weeks that your show is running
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ok, i see what you mean - my brain must has been fuzzy - am troubleshooting a eDongle that just went dead on me today for no reason :(
Myk
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ok, i see what you mean - my brain must has been fuzzy - am troubleshooting a eDongle that just went dead on me today for no reason :(
Myk
Check your pins. This happened to me. This post explains it.
http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=8827.0
Hope this helps. ;)
Animal
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Here's an update from LSP for conductor/slave support.
http://www.lightshowpro.com/future-talk/2645-dla-conductor-slave-support.html#post15026
animal