Do you use an RFU?

Does your school have an RFU?


  • Total voters
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Love 'em, love 'em, love 'em.

Really nice in most venues. In a smaller area, it's kind of silly, but nice when you're doing focus by yourself.
 
I have used several. They help you out alot. I use them mostly for moving lights via a wirless PDA. Practly every console comes with one now a days. Not a bad idea if you have alot of lights you need to work with.
 
I've just got the standard that comes with the ETC boards (Not standard with them, but the ETC RFU) Not sure on what model number though. Very nice, can do pretty much everything but record a cue with it. (Great to have a go button while running a spot at the same time ;)

Wireless PDA as an RFU? That's a great idea, definitely think I'll look into that.
 
The_Guest said:
Are you getting one?

HA! I laugh at you implying that I have a big enough budget to get one. I wish i was though. The regional theater i'm just staring to do stuff at has one. I've never used it, but it seems to come in handy a lot.

The_Guest said:
Does anyone have one of those fancy wireless palm pilot device?

Again, HA! I laugh at you implying that I have an even bigger budget to get one of those! I did see them online, and they look very very nice. I'd love to get one. If your doing a focus alone you could just go up on the genie (or whatever you have, my school has ladders and scaffolding) and go to the lights and do the first, and just reach into your pocket to turn on the second one. How nice would that be..... *thinks about it and drools*
 
Yeah those wireless ones look so amazing. No offense, but this isn't about bragging/budget, its about RFUs. Just trying to get a nice discussion going, thats all.
 
I've got a couple of Stand Designer's Remotes (multiple spaces with the same board). They work well except that I had to memorize where the keys are in a blackout for focus, because the keys are not backlit but at least the display is. The other problem is that someone skimiped on installing RFU jacks because the places you need them, they aren't there. Those places are also the farthest away from the board like the balc rail, voms, torms, and one out of two coves. But they did put one in the spot booth. Awe well, I guess that is why they make long cables.

Jeremy
 
"...They work well except that I had to memorize where the keys are in a blackout for focus..."

Why would you be focusing during a blackout? More importantly, why would you be focusing during a show?
 
" Why would you be focusing during a blackout? More importantly, why would you be focusing during a show? "

Not durring a show, but in a dark house, during a focus. Sorry, blackout was a bad choice of a word, in this suituation.

Jeremy
 
Whoops, I'm sorry. Yeah, blackout made me believe it was during a show. Yeah that's one think I don't like about my RFU, the buttons are backlit. Normally when I'm up in the cats, we have bomb shelter style lights that only really light up the catwalks, the light barely leaks into the house and stage. But when sometimes we focus lights on the electrics while rehersals/auditions run ontop of orchestra pitt in front of the curtain. And let to keep it black for focusing purposes and its really annoying when you have to take out the littlelites on the SM panel just to make sure your hitting the correct button.
 
Does a person sitting in the booth listening to you on a wireless mic count as an RFU? ;-)

Seriously, we don't have an RFU, and to be honest I'm not sure what they do exactly other than turning a light on and off (and we can do that on the dimmer strips - to any intensity to boot). Can someone enlighten the sound guy here? :)
 
Well not all of us have dimmer strips...so ughhh. Just kidding. There are more buttons one the rfu than I know what to do with, I can run all the cues and everything that device. Sadly I have not used any other buttons besides thru, enter, release, and the number pad. Oh, and can't foget the on/off switch. Some consoles require the RFU for firmware updates and flashes, which is kinda strange but I've seen them needed. Take a look at that rfu in the post thread, thats more buttons than I can handle.
 
As I said, the RFU is such a great tool =) Versatility is the key, I think. Awesome for 1 man light crews on smaller show. Run a spot, hit go on the RFU, bring up and down the house lights, etc.
 
I have a HP iPaq which has the card that makes it an RFU for the strand desks. they are really useful, specially they new wireless ones, however I am still a big fan of the ones that have a lead, makes focussing so much easier...

we call em riggers remotes ehre too btw, not sure if you guys do but yeah =)
 
Yeah,
The WRFU (Wireless Remote Focus Unit) that ETC makes is very nice. The actual unit is a Compaq IPAQ. I know the software is for the Obsession 2 and the consoles with Emphasis, is the WRFU available for other ETC consoles? (I didn't think it was). I know that is uses ETCNET2 technology and it is a wireless ethernet unit, but I have never personally worked with them.
Has anybody worked with that perticular unit?
 
It's probably possible to adapt a wired ethernet ARFU into a wireless on, but I'm not familiar with the tech. Just plug the ethernet into a wireless router and use the PDA to tap into the system with the appropriate software...however, I'm sure they want you to buy their hardware and the special bits of software for it....so....
 

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