Sub Palette
- Thread starterv75vette
- Start date
Well tonight we were running a dance show. The board randomly crashes. Hadn't been doing anything strange. Just running the show and when I was put on Standby I noticed an error message. It read something to the effect of "Something bad has happened. Do you wish to save an error file?" Said yes and restored the board off of a checkpoint file. The checkpoint file had been written 2 minutes before hand and acted like we had recored it a day before.
Whenever it writes a checkpoint file it will delete everything in the syntax line. So say I was about to record a cue "cue 165 time..." writes checkpoint file and it just lets you keep typing so strange things happen.
Fades are jerky. They aren't very smooth and there doesn't seem to be any set thing that will make them jerky. We've tried and tried to replicate them, but can't on a consistent bases.
When a laptop is connected with a Cat 5 cable there seems to be a lag in how the board responds to cues. You hit go and it takes a second or two to read that you hit go.
One of my favorites is the fact that it won't give you a correct read time of cues. So when you hit go on a 15 count cue it will give you the remaining time in a box. However the time remaining is usually incorrect. You hit go on that 15 count cue and it will start with 3 seconds remaining and show that the cue has completed in the cue list. However the levels are still running in that window and it will complete in the correct time. Sometimes it won't even show that it's running the cue until after it's complete. You hit go and nothing on the board will change, but the lights on stage change and then it shows that it's complete.
I'm sure that I'll remember something else later but he's a starter list.
Whenever it writes a checkpoint file it will delete everything in the syntax line. So say I was about to record a cue "cue 165 time..." writes checkpoint file and it just lets you keep typing so strange things happen.
Fades are jerky. They aren't very smooth and there doesn't seem to be any set thing that will make them jerky. We've tried and tried to replicate them, but can't on a consistent bases.
When a laptop is connected with a Cat 5 cable there seems to be a lag in how the board responds to cues. You hit go and it takes a second or two to read that you hit go.
One of my favorites is the fact that it won't give you a correct read time of cues. So when you hit go on a 15 count cue it will give you the remaining time in a box. However the time remaining is usually incorrect. You hit go on that 15 count cue and it will start with 3 seconds remaining and show that the cue has completed in the cue list. However the levels are still running in that window and it will complete in the correct time. Sometimes it won't even show that it's running the cue until after it's complete. You hit go and nothing on the board will change, but the lights on stage change and then it shows that it's complete.
I'm sure that I'll remember something else later but he's a starter list.
So gafftaper, you're getting the "Classic Palette", not the "Light Palette Classic"? Can they make it any more confusing? I'm guessing the _blank_Palettes equate to the 300 series and the Light Palette_blanks_ equate to the 500 series, at least in terms of cost? Seems it will be difficult to control movers with the _blank_Palettes, as no dedicated encoder wheels, but hopefully easier than on an Express.
So as not to be a complete hijack, v75vette, which board do you have? (As the only reference to 48/96 I can find is the Preset Palette.) Link to the Strand console website. Console v3.4.15 Software, dated 11/08/07, seems to be the latest software. Knowing your university's relationship with Strand, dating back to 1980, I'm sure a rep. from Vincent Lighting would be there tomorrow if you needed them. Is this the mainstage or black box? And do you still have the previous console, a 520i, IIRC?
So as not to be a complete hijack, v75vette, which board do you have? (As the only reference to 48/96 I can find is the Preset Palette.) Link to the Strand console website. Console v3.4.15 Software, dated 11/08/07, seems to be the latest software. Knowing your university's relationship with Strand, dating back to 1980, I'm sure a rep. from Vincent Lighting would be there tomorrow if you needed them. Is this the mainstage or black box? And do you still have the previous console, a 520i, IIRC?
This is Hall's new board. It's replacing their old Lightboard M! Which they were still running up until this fall.
The board is this one http://www.strandlighting.com/index...il&srctype=display&refno=15&category=Controls
The board is this one http://www.strandlighting.com/index...il&srctype=display&refno=15&category=Controls
dj_illusions
Active Member
One other thing to think about. When you mentioned that you have been connecting a laptop via ethernet, do you have a network set up for the console? If so, is it connected to the internet? It is even more important now with consoles that run windows that they have no exposure to the internet. It is even possible that the computer you were using had a virus or spyware on it that while connected to the console made it's way over. It is very important that you have a sterile computing environment for your console.
This was less true for the 300 and 500 series consoles, I have seen networks set up that were connected to the internet and never have a problem. ETCNet on the other hand hates sharing a network with internet traffic. All told, this is something to look into with your newer console.
This was less true for the 300 and 500 series consoles, I have seen networks set up that were connected to the internet and never have a problem. ETCNet on the other hand hates sharing a network with internet traffic. All told, this is something to look into with your newer console.
Just to help the confused.
Palette is the basic line from Strand that replaced the 300 series.
Sub palette is the submaster board
Preset palette is a two scene preset
Classic palette is a board with 32 submasters.
When you add the word Light to the console it becomes the replacement for the 500 series. The light palettes have the same software, faster CPUs, add encoder wheels, add a lot in the way of channels and universe options and are priced in the $20k-$40k range depending on what you have them unlock.
They didn't make it easy.
Palette is the basic line from Strand that replaced the 300 series.
Sub palette is the submaster board
Preset palette is a two scene preset
Classic palette is a board with 32 submasters.
When you add the word Light to the console it becomes the replacement for the 500 series. The light palettes have the same software, faster CPUs, add encoder wheels, add a lot in the way of channels and universe options and are priced in the $20k-$40k range depending on what you have them unlock.
They didn't make it easy.
thirdoctive
Member
I have the new preset palette. I've had it about 3 months. Check to make sure you have the newest update loaded. 3.4.15. The problem arose from deleting cues. The console would tell you something bad has happened and to send the dump file to strand. The new update should fix this problem. Also if you are recording cues while running the show the cues tend to drag on the screen but move properly on stage. If you are just stepping cues everything is fine. If you close the file and reopen it it will reset to move properly. Follow the release notes and they will tell you how to load the update. Just to let you know, strand will have a new update out soon and the console will look and operate alot like the old 500. The are calling it the black and tan update. It looks very impressive. If you down load the new installation manual dated 11.06.07 from the stand product download page and look at the screen shots you will see what the new program will look like and some of the new things the console will do. Hope this helps
. Have you heard when "black and tan" will be out?I've heard rumor that the update is supposed to be out by or on the first of the year. This is just something I'd heard second hand so I'm not really sure about it. But if it's going to be more like the 500 I'm still worried. We haven't had good luck with the 520i that we have. However it's problems are more hardware than they are software. But it's much easier to program on and a channel is a channel and a dimmer is a dimmer. Not an output or a fixture. Did they have some computer geek with a little knowledge of theatre program the new software or what?
Thanks for that info. We turn the board off every night. So the show was reloaded everyday. The board crashed again right before the show started, with the house half full(something like 300ish people). We had not edited any cues. We had only gone through a dimmer check and were just chatting over headset. I looked over and there was the error message. Which by the way isn't that helpful or funny "Something bad has happened. Would you like to record a diagnostic file?"
The problem with the cues not reading on the board but going on stage was always there. No matter what we tried to fix it. We upgraded, shut the board off, restarted, and reloaded the software. It may be that the show file was written in the older software and then run on the new?
Thanks for that info. We turn the board off every night. So the show was reloaded everyday. The board crashed again right before the show started, with the house half full(something like 300ish people). We had not edited any cues. We had only gone through a dimmer check and were just chatting over headset. I looked over and there was the error message. Which by the way isn't that helpful or funny "Something bad has happened. Would you like to record a diagnostic file?"
The problem with the cues not reading on the board but going on stage was always there. No matter what we tried to fix it. We upgraded, shut the board off, restarted, and reloaded the software. It may be that the show file was written in the older software and then run on the new?
Just zipped a message off to my Strand sales rep and she said that "Black and Tan" was on display at LDI and that she thought it was great. She said she thought it would be available for download before the end of the year. She said she'll try to see if my new console can come with the upgrade already done. I'll let you know what else I learn.
I've always found the Hog2 message: "Sorry, I've croaked!" to be humorous, except of course when it happens during a performance (but, knock on wood, that's never happened to me. I thought only frogs croaked, and have always wondered if the BullFrog, FatFrog, etc. have the same message? And why would you NOT want "to record a diagnostic file"? Shouldn't it just do this without asking?
Windows XP always asks if I want to tell Microsoft about my problems, as does my Mac (recently when I updated Firefox twice in two days,) I quit the application properly, and 10.5.1 reported "Firefox has quit unexpectedly."
