Control/Dimming ETC Express HTP Annoyances

[ajblanck]

I recently started volunteering at a local church, and yesterday, I got a chance to use the ETC Express that lives in the secondary auditorium. I'm sure that it's a good console to know, and it's my first experience with ETC. For some reason, programming on the Express seemed extremely cumbersome. I think that I've narrowed it down to two things.

First, I am not familiar with the channel plot, so I had to look up each channel in the paperwork (hooray for LightWright). Second, the HTP nature of the Express's channel faders really bothered me. I understand the point of having submasters as HTP, but the HTP default for the channel faders seems illogical. It is especially annoying when programming the pair of i-cues that are in the venue. Not being able to bring the values down from a cue's value without using the keypad is frusterating, and the same thing goes for channels that control dimmers.

Also, if you want to see a sequence of cues, you have to pull down all your faders and reset them later because the cues do not necessarily take precedence over the faders. Because of this, I had quite a time going back in the cuelist and presetting some of the color scrollers. I eventually just settled on doing that in blind. I believe that the express can be set to LTP, but why would HTP be preferred? I must not be seeing something that the engineers at ETC saw.

 

[soundlight]

Even when given channel faders on an Express, I almost never use them except when busking a show. I almost always program straight from the keypad, or from a few submasters of major systems which are easy to bring down quickly with one hand. If you simply learn to do everything on the keypad, which is essentially how things are done these days (most major consoles don't have channel faders), you won't have to worry about the faders and if you release things the cue will take effect.

Essentially, you just have to sit down with the console and learn how it thinks. The Express is one of the best-known consoles in the industry for theatres and other events. Most rental houses stock them. Many community and professional theatres use them. It's a standard, and can become easy with practice.

With the Color Scrollers, use the keypad when programming live - it will help.

 

[ajblanck]

Even when given channel faders on an Express, I almost never use them except when busking a show. I almost always program straight from the keypad, or from a few submasters of major systems which are easy to bring down quickly with one hand. If you simply learn to do everything on the keypad, which is essentially how things are done these days (most major consoles don't have channel faders), you won't have to worry about the faders and if you release things the cue will take effect.

So, how do you go about looking at different levels when using the keypad only? Do you use the + and - keys extensively, or can you usually pick the intensities of the channels fairly well the first time? I would imagine that it would be difficult to use something like color scrollers on the express by just using the keypad (a cheat sheet would be in order). I'm sure that something like an i-cue would be even more difficult to just guesstimate, but I assume that the express was never really made to control anything except for dimmers.

 

[marcusianl]

My Express 125/250 has a TrackPad which I use for on the fly level setting. I don't know how it works with moving lights, but might be worth a try?

 

[ajblanck]

My Express 125/250 has a TrackPad which I use for on the fly level setting. I don't know how it works with moving lights, but might be worth a try?

I haven't used the trackpad. How does it work, and what are the two things that look like smaller trackpads just to the left of it?

 

[soundlight]

So, how do you go about looking at different levels when using the keypad only? Do you use the + and - keys extensively, or can you usually pick the intensities of the channels fairly well the first time? I would imagine that it would be difficult to use something like color scrollers on the express by just using the keypad (a cheat sheet would be in order). I'm sure that something like an i-cue would be even more difficult to just guesstimate, but I assume that the express was never really made to control anything except for dimmers.

I often know what level I want the lights at just from experience. That innate feeling did not take long to grasp. Sometimes I need to add or drop by ten percent, but I'm so quick on the keypad that it doesn't take any time at all, really.

For scrollers, I have a table that sits next to me which has a box filled in with a color, and a percentage value next to it in order to snap right to the color. I prep these sheets before tech by going to the gel manufacturer's website and using their color swatches (I have a firefox add on that lets me grab RGB values in Firefox) to get the right color to fill in the blocks. Or if I know the colors well, I pick out a color with the color picker that best represents the gel color on paper. I often remember a lot of the values for colors after using the scrollers for a little while.

For I-Cues, I record Focus Points ahead of time and don't need to actually use the faders to program the I-Cues for cues - this also enables you to properly update things in cues if something changes.

 

[marcusianl]

Basically when you select a channel using the keypad, the trackpad can be used to alter the intensity value. Honestly it's easier just to type the value as soundlight detailed, but the trackpad makes it easier to see the changes gradually.

 

[icewolf08]

The trackpad on the Express can be used to control moving lights and I-Cues when they are patched using fixture patch. IIRC, the two smaller pads can be tapped multiple times to change the tracking "speed" of the tackpad, in that if you tap the the top one the trackpad will track faster. I could be totally wrong about his, it has been a while since I have really been on Express.

As for HTP faders, there are very few consoles outside of the most recent generation that have LTP faders by default. None of the ETC line pre Eos nor the Strand 300/500 lines had LTP faders by default. On the 300/500 series desks if you programmed attributes to subs they became LTP, but not for intensities. As has been mentioned, unless you are busking a show, it should be much faster to key things in (at least for intensities). You don't have to hunt for a fader or try to manipulate a group of faders.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[derekleffew]

The trackpad on the Express can be used to control moving lights and I-Cues when they are patched using fixture patch. IIRC, the two smaller pads can be tapped multiple times to change the tracking "speed" of the tackpad, in that if you tap the the top one the trackpad will track faster. I could be totally wrong about his, it has been a while since I have really been on Express. ...

From the Express User Manual:

Sensitivity
To the left of the trackpad you will find two buttons that control trackpad
sensitivity. The top button has a rough texture. Press this to set the
trackpad for low sensitivity. The lower button has a smooth texture. Press
this to set the trackpad for high sensitivity. Use high sensitivity for precise
level or rate adjustments. Use low sensitivity for faster, less precise
adjustments.

For intensity parameters, the trackpad also functions as a wheel, to allow adjusting without typing in a level while watching the stage.

 

[Grog12]

aj, at the risk of sounding a little snarky...the Express wasn't meant for scrollers or a basic moving light like the IQ. I assume you're more familiar with something a bit more modern. Being unfamilar with the channel plot is hardly a board limitation.

I tend to program most consoles as a mix between subs and 10-keying. Namely because I type like a maniac, and "wheeling it in" just annoys the crap out of me.

Also feel free to set focus points for scrollers it helps a lot for on the fly color changes.

This still young and bugeoning CA http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/...96-programming-moving-lights-etc-express.html might have a few helpful hints in it for you as well.

 

[ajblanck]

As for HTP faders, there are very few consoles outside of the most recent generation that have LTP faders by default. None of the ETC line pre Eos nor the Strand 300/500 lines had LTP faders by default. On the 300/500 series desks if you programmed attributes to subs they became LTP, but not for intensities. As has been mentioned, unless you are busking a show, it should be much faster to key things in (at least for intensities). You don't have to hunt for a fader or try to manipulate a group of faders.

I think that my conception that the faders should be LTP came from the board that our high school has (a Levaton innovator). I'm surprised that this board would have a feature that is in more modern boards. I usually think of this console as anything but modern. As you mentioned, I should really get used to programming with the keypad. It's easy to see that many consoles are lacking faders these days.

aj, at the risk of sounding a little snarky...the Express wasn't meant for scrollers or a basic moving light like the IQ. I assume you're more familiar with something a bit more modern. Being unfamilar with the channel plot is hardly a board limitation.

Alright, the Express wasn't meant for these things. However, I'm sure that many people have added a scroller or i-cue to their rig and controlled them with the express. As for a board that is a bit more modern, the auditorium that I am talking about has an Ion downstairs that is waiting to get a DMX connection dropped in. The channel plot was new to me, but I am the only one at fault there. I'm not sure how I could blame the board for that.

 

[Esoteric]

I learned to program lights on an Express. 4 of our 5 theaters in college had them (the other one was an Obsession II). If the Hog was not available we patched movers into the Express with no problems.

I learned on HTP so for the longest time LTP drove me NUTS! I hated it. Now I can do both equally well, but it takes a change of mindset.

It is very simple to control movers on an Express. Either in mixture mode or just patched as channels. I have done it both ways.

I am with the guys that use the kaypad almost exclusively. I hate programming with faders, etc. You are going to have to use the keypad to adjust cues during tech, you might as well use it to program them.

Mike

 

[Les]

I also use a hybrid of the keypad and faders. The community theatre where I volunteer at on a less consistent basis has an Express and usually I will program my color washes and cyc into subs. Then I use channels 1-24 manually because they coincide with the FOH lighting, and I find it much easier to set up my facelight with the sliders. After that I'll add in whatever color wash, cyc look, etc using subs. Then I will go in and add any other detail or specials armed with my magic sheet. This way when they say "DSL needs more face light" I can just bring up the slider rather than keying it in. Normally if I'm programming the board someone else will have to sit out in the house because the stage looks much different from the booth. Trying to program a show from the booth exclusively would be a nightmare.

 

[Esoteric]

Oh yeah. I NEVER design a show fom the booth. I will only design from the house.

Mike

 

[PMWest]

Icewolf is right about the Express trackpad "speed" settings, but I've found that the trackpad is one of the Express' weakest components. They tend to be erratic, or fail, especially on rental desks. When I modify channel levels on the fly I'll use the keypad "@ +" or "@-" keys to bump a channel up or down 1%. Unlike higher-end ETC desks, this one doesn't have dedicated "+10%" or "-10%" keys, so it's a good idea to program those functions into two of the numbered macro keys.

 

[Esoteric]

Good idea PMWest. I let my ops set the board how they want usually. But I know my last op complained about the lack of +10 and -10 keys.

Mike

 

[ajblanck]

How would you make a +10 or -10 macro? I'm still not very familiar with ETC boards, and I'm guessing that the answer is simple for someone else.

 

[xander]

A +10 macro would just be: @++++++++++. For -10 you would obviously replace the + with -. The only problem is that I don't think that you can use the @+ and @- with groups for some reason. I maybe wrong, but I seem to recall that causing a problem for me.