DiyLightAnimation
Hardware => Lynx EtherDongle => Topic started by: urthegman on October 05, 2012,
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Hello all, I finally got around to flashing my etherdongle with the new firmware and was ECSTATIC to see a 45 degree line of pixels on my 10 x 90 node matrix that used to stay on and give the wrong colors go out. I loaded a sequence with just the effects for the matrix and it played back PERFECTLY!!!!! I then loaded a complete sequence with the same exact matrix effects in it and on playback, the effects are extremely jittery, almost like a shimmer or twinkling effect where there shouldn't be one. I loaded the sequence with just the matrix effects up again and the effects are once again solid. I tried 2 other sequences with all effects and I get the same jittering/shimmering problem. Any ideas? George
P.S. Forgot to mention I am using LSP on a Windows 7 I7, 8gb ram machine. and I am posting this issue on LSP's forum as well.
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What address range are you using.
I noticed that the ETD seems to stutter if there is nothing going on in the first 512 channels. It's on RJs list to look at, but I think the conductor has been a much bigger challenge than anticipated...
The firmware that has the boundary pixel problem doesn't stutter, but now you are trading one issue for another.
I think if you put some fades on channel 1 so that it is always changing, it will fix the stutter issue...
RM
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I have a similar issue and can't figure out whether it's a S/W issues in LSP (throughput), or a HW issue (throughput).
I am also pushing about 5000 channels through the Etherdongle and out to the LED Flexstrips via two 16 port active hubs and on my more complex sequences I experience stutter and sometimes lights lagging the music. I can confirm that I do have effects that are changing in the first 512 channels, so I know it's not that.
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What address range are you using.
I noticed that the ETD seems to stutter if there is nothing going on in the first 512 channels. It's on RJs list to look at, but I think the conductor has been a much bigger challenge than anticipated...
The firmware that has the boundary pixel problem doesn't stutter, but now you are trading one issue for another.
I think if you put some fades on channel 1 so that it is always changing, it will fix the stutter issue...
RM
I am using channels 129-3548, My expresses will be on the first 128 channels which all have effects on them but I haven't hooked the controllers up for testing yet. I will take the boundary pixel problem over this any day! ;) Do you think hooking the 8 Lynx expresses up might help the stuttering? I don't understand why when it's the matrix by itself I don't get the stuttering. Many Thanks, George
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What address range are you using.
I noticed that the ETD seems to stutter if there is nothing going on in the first 512 channels. It's on RJs list to look at, but I think the conductor has been a much bigger challenge than anticipated...
The firmware that has the boundary pixel problem doesn't stutter, but now you are trading one issue for another.
I think if you put some fades on channel 1 so that it is always changing, it will fix the stutter issue...
RM
I am using channels 129-3548, My expresses will be on the first 128 channels which all have effects on them but I haven't hooked the controllers up for testing yet. I will take the boundary pixel problem over this any day! ;) Do you think hooking the 8 Lynx expresses up might help the stuttering? I don't understand why when it's the matrix by itself I don't get the stuttering. Many Thanks, George
If you mean will hooking the 8 Lynx Expresses help the issue, then my guess is no, since the PC and the dongle should be sending that data, irrespective of whether there are "live" expresses on the output
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So I guess it's go back to the v1 etherdongle firmware?
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So I guess it's go back to the v1 etherdongle firmware?
I haven't looked at my version of the ETD firmware, I'm assuming I'm running version 1 (what's the difference between 1 and 2?)
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Here is a video to demonstrate the differences in the firmware. Left is old EtD, right is current. Lower left corner of tree starts at 100, last address is 2308, star follows and sign is something like 3370-4095. White pixels are stuck (early pixels not very waterproof).
https://vimeo.com/39738085
Only difference in the two runs is the EtD firmware. Everything else is the same.
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What address range are you using.
I noticed that the ETD seems to stutter if there is nothing going on in the first 512 channels. It's on RJs list to look at, but I think the conductor has been a much bigger challenge than anticipated...
The firmware that has the boundary pixel problem doesn't stutter, but now you are trading one issue for another.
I think if you put some fades on channel 1 so that it is always changing, it will fix the stutter issue...
RM
Also, since I always use channel 1 to set my timing marks, it always ends up with effects. It's a shame because after seeing it eliminate the boundary pixel problem and work so well with just the matrix I was ecstatic!!!! I won't get a chance until tomorrow afternoon to try the full sequence with the v1 firmware until tomorrow afternoon.
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Really BAD news!!! I just reloaded v1 etherdongle firmware and tested a full sequence for the first time and playback is jittery using THAT as well. Ugghh!!! When I play a sequence with just the matrix or just the snowtubes playback is perfect. The only thing I can see is in LSP the snowtubes DMX pro output says not configured yet I am getting output to them. Another strange thing is that in devices I see the 4 DMX clones but I DON"T see the 4 port usb hub they are attached to. Could the unconfigured output or the hub not being seen(even though I have output) by the computer be causing the shimmering/jittery playback? Thanks, George
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To make matters even worse, the first 128 channels of the Matrix are now featuring Madrix effects!!!! <fp. (They're not supposed too!)
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Playback from within LSP... How fast is your computer???
I would export the file
Install xlights, if you haven't already
Use xlights to convert the sequence to an xseq file
Play the xseq using xlights.
I don't know about the new version of LSP, but 2.0 uses a lot of resources. If you are playing thousands of channels, that could be your problem.
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I missed the part about the USB hub. LSP won't see the hub - that should be transparent. However, better make sure it is a usb2 hub and recognized by the computer as a usb2 hub.
Usb1 is limited to 12Mb (megabits) or 1.2MB (mega bytes) per second. With USB overhead, that might get you 2000 channels before you start loosing data due to the USB limits.
Usb2 is 480Mb - you should not have any issues there...
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Playback from within LSP... How fast is your computer???
I would export the file
Install xlights, if you haven't already
Use xlights to convert the sequence to an xseq file
Play the xseq using xlights.
I don't know about the new version of LSP, but 2.0 uses a lot of resources. If you are playing thousands of channels, that could be your problem.
Firstly thank you for your help on this. It doesn't seem to be a speed issue as the effects are perfectly on cue, just shimmering/jittery. I'm thinking there is some kind of interference going on since on their own the effects play perfectly. With the exception of the first 128 channels on the matrix being jittery when Madrix is on(when I shut Madrix down and play a matrix only sequence) and the first 128 channels of the matrix playing Madrix effects when I play a Madrix effects only sequence. I'm thinking it has something to do with LSP not being able to configure a controller correctly for the Enttec DMX pro,DMXUSBPro or Lynx DMX USB protocols. As I said before I am able to get output, but it shows up in output configuration as not configured. I'm thinking LSP sees the 4 Enttec pro clones I am using as it gives me the option but not the ability to configure comports 12,15,16 and 17. There was an issue with LSP using comports higher than 10 last year, and I am not sure if that has been repaired in v2.5. As far as xlights goes, FrankR was kind enough to include me on his beta test of converting LSP sequences directly to .xseq so I can give your recommendation of trying to use xlights a try. Oh and I just checked the USB hub and it is a USB2 hub. Thanks and feel free to drop any other recommendations my way, as your advice/input is always top notch. Thanks, George
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How are you connecting the dmx controllers". Are you using dmx out of the pixelnet hub?
Sent from my Lumia 900 using Board Express
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Yes I am using DMX out of the pixelnet hub. I just hooked up the USB hub to do some more testing and got the successfully installed Generic USB Hub message. Although under devices, it is still not showing.
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I am confused. What are you using USB for? Aren't you using the etherdongle?
Sent from my Lumia 900 using Board Express
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Yes, I am using the etherdongle and LSP to send a DMX signal to an Enttec clone which sends an input signal to madrix Madrix which outputs effects to programmable RGB snow tubes.
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Having just noticed problems with unexpected voltage drops on long strings, have you checked the voltage at the end of a string? See how close it is to 12vdc when a SS is turned full on.
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Yes, I am using the etherdongle and LSP to send a DMX signal to an Enttec clone which sends an input signal to madrix Madrix which outputs effects to programmable RGB snow tubes.
You should be setting your controllers to e131 if they are receiving dmx from the smarthub. The hub itself is creating the dmx signal as a duplicate for 512 channels of pixelnet depending on your jumper position. If in DMX universe 1 position the first 512 channels are broadcast as both pixelnet and DMX.
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These are actually flexible strips shortened to 90 nodes that work perfectly when in a sequence of their own and are on their own hub. It's only when they are played in the full sequence that the effects become jittery/shimmering. I will try plugging them into a different outlet, heck it, can't hurt to try.
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Yes, I am using the etherdongle and LSP to send a DMX signal to an Enttec clone which sends an input signal to madrix Madrix which outputs effects to programmable RGB snow tubes.
You should be setting your controllers to e131 if they are receiving dmx from the smarthub. The hub itself is creating the dmx signal as a duplicate for 512 channels of pixelnet depending on your jumper position. If in DMX universe 1 position the first 512 channels are broadcast as both pixelnet and DMX.
Yep, they are e131, the three output controllers are entecc pro clones.
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I tried it with just the etherdongle and the active hub, no enttecs and no snowtubes and playback is still jittery.
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Have you tried exporting to LOR and then using xlights to play it back yet?
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Keith that was my next move. In the meantime I have some sort of good news. The lone channel I had setup for the Madrix DMX channel was on its own hub and as I had plans to have three active hubs which I eliminated hub 2 due to the late release of LSP v2.5. I had the hub for Madrix set up as Zone 3. Well I first copied the effects for that one channel to a new sequence of its own and saved that as a work sequence. I then removed that 1 channel and the configured output for that channel from the sequence. And playback on the matrix is no longer flickering. That is good, but I really really really want to add the prgrammable snow tubes, they are THAT good with the Madrix effects.
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I am going to see if changing that one channel to zone 1 still gives me output to the snow tubes AND no jittering on the matrix.
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Usually the same controller types are kept in the same zone. For instance all my e131 are in zone 1. If I had an LOR dongle those would be zone 2. If I had a separate DMX dongle that would be zone 3. ect. This year I will be using LOR controllers in DMX mode and using the smarthubs DMX output to run them and my DMX floods so I only have 1 zone for everything.
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We are almost there!!!!! The matrix is not jittering!!!! The snowtubes are playing!!!!!!! the only problem left is the first 128 pixels of the matrix are STILL playing Madrix effects????? I don't understand how they are getting output sent to them?????
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I don't know if it helps or not, but I am grabbing the first 128 channels of DMX from the same active hub and my 8 Lynx expresses are not hooked up yet.
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Do I dare try it with v2 firmware on the etherdongle???? I think I do!!!!! Fingers crossed!!!!! I'm going in!!!!!
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We are almost there!!!!! The matrix is not jittering!!!! The snowtubes are playing!!!!!!! the only problem left is the first 128 pixels of the matrix are STILL playing Madrix effects????? I don't understand how they are getting output sent to them?????
For the jumper on DMX universe 1 for example it will output both DMX and Pixelnet for the first 512 channels so you would set your start channels for your DMX stuff within the first 512 channels and you can begin your pixelnet stuff at above that. Or lets say you only need 200 DMX channels, you can start your Pixelnet start channels at 201. I always leave some extra channels for future expansion of DMX so I don't have to go back and change my Pixelnet start channels.
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Thanks Keith I did exactly that, My pixelnet channels start at channel 129, since my Lynx Expresses are channels 1-128. The matrix that has the snowtube effects bleeding into the first 128 channels is on channels 129-2828. and I have two RGB arches on channels 2829 -3548. The one channel that controls the Madrix effects is channel 4106. The etherdongle v2 firmware is working fine for me. The only problem left is the Madrix effects that are playing on the first 128 channels of the matrix. Which might be caused by my not having the 128 channels of Lynk express hardware set up???? What do you think?
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I don't know anything about Madrix, I'm assuming it is software and/or hardware... Check how you have the Madrix outputs set up.
If it is outputting to e1.31 universe 1 on the network cable, that will be accepted by the etherdongle and displayed as addresses 1-512.
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Warner, It is software and if you saw the effects that it has you would LOVE it. I'm pretty sure you can download a trial version where it will cut output out after a certain amount of time. The best part is that the effects are able to be changed and made custom, you can change the rate, the color, the frequency. And then you store the effects in bins in the program and different DMX values trigger the effects that you stored. It is outputting to three enttec pro clones. I have LSP sending DMX values to an Enttec clone that is configured as an input device,it is connected to a four port usb hub and sends the input DMX signal to Madrix, the DMX value determines what effect gets triggered, it then send the effects out to the four port hub and into the three enttec clones that are configured for output to the programmable snowtubes. I changed the settings on the controller in LSP from zone 3 to zone 1 in LSP to fix the other two problems, aaahhh I think I got it!!! I never changed the corresponding setting in Madrix!!!!!! BRB Let me try that!
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YEP!!!! YEP!!!!! YEP!!!!! I think we GOT it!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!! EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!
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<la.. tell us how you REALLY feel :P
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YEP!!!! YEP!!!!! YEP!!!!! I think we GOT it!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!! EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!
Darn!!! This is a great hobby. (sorry about the naughty :P)
animal
Edit by RJ for Language