Control/Dimming - Two-Scene Preset with Strand 300???

[0d085d]

Hi,

My theatre uses a Strand 300 console with 24 submasters (two sets of twelve). I've been trying to set it up so that I can set up a scene with the top row of submasters, set up another scene on the bottom row and fade between them.

I gather that there is a two-scene preset mode: [2 SCENE 0 SUB] and [2 SCENE 24 SUB]. When I use [2 SCENE 24 SUB] the desk appears to act as normal. I fiddle with the X1 playback faders and the red and green lights change but they don't appear to have any effect on which lights are actually on.

If I use [2 SCENE 0 SUB] I get the effect that I want but the submasters become channel faders: Sub 1 controls channel 1 and so on.

I've checked the user manual for the console but I still can't get it to work.

Anyone got any ideas as to how I can get the [2 SCENE 0 SUB] effect whilst still using the submasters I've set up?

Any help greatly appreciated.

0d085d

[cprted]

I've never been behind a Strand 300 (I'm in die-hard ETC country), but I did spend a few hours behind a Strand 200 last night. Does the 300 have the Hold feature? If so, you should be able to freeze the onstage look by pressing Hold and then pulling the A/B faders down. From there you should be able to reset your subs without affecting what is onstage. When the time comes, push the A/B faders back to the top for your new look. Repeat as necessary. Unless the 300 doesn't have that feature ...

[0d085d]

Thanks for the quick reply:

I don't think the 300 does have a hold feature - but it's certainly a good idea. I think that's what the [2 SCENE 24 SUB] is supposed to do, but I can't for the life of me get it to work.

0d085d

[derekleffew]

Now I've only once ever seen a Strand 300, just long enough to say "get that out of my way so I can put my HogII there," but...

Originally Posted by 0d085d

...Anyone got any ideas as to how I can get the [2 SCENE 0 SUB] effect whilst still using the submasters I've set up?

It would appear your only alternative is to patch your show into 12 control channels.

On all consoles, from ANY manufacturer [except SteveB's (recently-retired!) ETC Emphasis with "SuperMasters"] Channel Faders have very different functionality than Submasters.

[icewolf08]

I don't think that there is a way for you to configure the console to do what you want. I also don't think that this is limited to the Strand 300. There are not any consoles that i know of that will let you run two scene preset and have your scenes be submasters as opposed to channel faders.

You could create the operational mode you are looking for by patching all the dimmers that you have in each sub to one channel. So if Sub 1 controlled channels 2, 4, 6 and those channels had dimmers 13, 15, 17, 19, 21, and 22 patched to them, you could just patch all those dimmers to channel 1 and then not use subs at all.

I suppose my real question is why you would want to do this. You have a console that is amazingly simple to use and relatively powerful. Why not just record all your cues and then play them back with the GO button?

[0d085d]

Sadly the channel faders only reach up to channel 12, all of which are behind the stage pointing at the audience. The theatre has a good 100 lights which I use for this performance anyway.

Having read the console manual again I reckon that the X1 playback faders contain some version of the hold feature. This is the bit which I can't get to work though.

I've attached the page with the only two mentions of 'hold feature' on it.

Many thanks,

0d085d

[0d085d]

icewolf08:

Thanks for the reply, I suppose you're right - I'm not going to get the exact effect I was looking for. I'm still confused as to why I can't get [2 SCENE 24 SUB] or even [1 SCENE 24 SUB] to work. I've tried the examples in the manual but the X1 playback faders don't appear to have any effect. When I move the submasters the lights come on irrespective of the position of the faders.

I normally do use cues, but this performance is a little more ad hoc and I need more control over the timing as what happens when on stage varies drastically.

0d085d

[icewolf08]

Originally Posted by 0d085d

icewolf08:

Thanks for the reply, I suppose you're right - I'm not going to get the exact effect I was looking for. I'm still confused as to why I can't get [2 SCENE 24 SUB] or even [1 SCENE 24 SUB] to work. I've tried the examples in the manual but the X1 playback faders don't appear to have any effect. When I move the submasters the lights come on irrespective of the position of the faders.

I normally do use cues, but this performance is a little more ad hoc and I need more control over the timing as what happens when on stage varies drastically.

0d085d

The scene modes don't relate to submasters. This kinda goes back to the definition of a submaster. Submasters control a group of channels and the only thing that takes precedence over a submaster is a grand master.

The 2 scene with 24 subs means that you have access to 24 subs and your channels operate in 2 scene mode.

Another option is to see if anyone is selling off some of the additional fader panels for the 300 so that you can get more channel control.

I assume that you know that even with a programmed cue stack you can run manual fades and every time you complete a fade the console will load the next cue for manual fade. Then you have the same timing control as you would on a two scene preset and the same tactile control of running the faders.

[0d085d]

Okay, I kind-of see what you're saying...

So when I move the X1 playback faders what does that actually do?

[icewolf08]

Originally Posted by 0d085d

Okay, I kind-of see what you're saying...

So when I move the X1 playback faders what does that actually do?

When? In two scene mode it switches between the scene on the top and the scene on the bottom, thus why your faders act as channels not subs. This should be the same as any preset desk. If you have a sub up, it won't be affected by the positions of the X1 fader pair as it is a higher priority function.

In the standard cue playback mode, if you set the faders to manual then the faders just fade from one cue to the next in the stack. One of the faders controls the upfade of the new cue and the other, the downfade of the current cue.