Techni-Lux MagicQ Pro Series User Manual

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Page 1 MagicQ User Manual MagicQ User Manual Distributor: www.techni-lux.com Phone: 407-857-8770 Fax: 407-857-8771 Email: sales@techni-lux.com...
Page 2 MagicQ User Manual REVISION HISTORY NUMBER DATE DESCRIPTION NAME v1.6.6.9 06/03/2015 ChamSys...
Page 3: Table Of Contents
..........1.2 MagicQ Pro Series .
Page 4 MagicQ User Manual 4 MagicQ Concepts 4.1 Show Storage ........... . . 22 4.2 Output channels .
Page 5 MagicQ User Manual 6.4.2 Using Outputs via network ......... . 36 6.5 Connecting a MagicQ Playback Wing .
Page 6 MagicQ User Manual 7.10 Applying Offsets using Update ..........53 7.11 Minimum and Maximum levels .
Page 7 MagicQ User Manual 9 Controlling Attributes 9.1 Selecting Heads ........... . 66 9.2 Using Groups .
Page 8 MagicQ User Manual viii 10.5 Updating Palettes ........... 78 10.6 Copying and moving Palettes .
Page 9 MagicQ User Manual 12 Programmer 12.1 What is in the programmer? ..........93 12.2 Clearing the programmer .
Page 10 MagicQ User Manual 14 Editing Cues 14.1 Including Cues into the Programmer ......... 107 14.1.1 Including Cues at a speciﬁed level .
Page 11 MagicQ User Manual 16 Playback 16.1 Playback Display ........... 119 16.2 Activating and Releasing Playbacks .
Page 12 MagicQ User Manual 17.2.1 Flash activates stack ..........128 17.2.2 Flash releases stack .
Page 13 MagicQ User Manual xiii 17.6 Chase Options ........... . . 134 17.6.1 Skip ﬁrst times .
Page 14 MagicQ User Manual 18 Advanced Playback / Cue Stack Options 18.1 Interaction of HTP and LTP channels between Playbacks ......140 18.2 HTP handling .
Page 15 MagicQ User Manual 20.8 Speed Encoders ........... . 150 20.9 Attribute Encoders .
Page 16 MagicQ User Manual 22.4.7.2 MagicQ Media Center ........166 22.4.8 Using text strings .
Page 17 MagicQ User Manual xvii 23.4 Thumbnail view ........... . 189 23.5 Live Previews .
Page 18 MagicQ User Manual xviii 26 Network Manager (SnakeSys) 26.1 Normal (non ChamNet mode) ..........205 26.2 ChamNet Mode (MQ Net) .
Page 19 MagicQ User Manual 29 Remote control of MagicQ 29.1 Remote mode (PC/Mac) ..........223 29.2 Remote control from MagicQ .
Page 20 MagicQ User Manual 34 MIDI 34.1 MIDI Notes Receive ..........244 34.1.1 MIDI Autom events .
Page 21 MagicQ User Manual 38.2.2 View Vis View ..........262 38.2.3 Positioning the Heads in the Visualisation .
Page 22 MagicQ User Manual xxii 41.3.6 MagicQ Dual DMX Interfaces ........279 41.3.7 MagicDMX Interfaces .
Page 23 MagicQ User Manual xxiii 41.8.1 Activate Chans / Heads ..........288 41.8.2 Programmer Tracking .
Page 24 MagicQ User Manual xxiv 41.10.14 Plan Intensity type ..........295 41.10.15 Message Window .
Page 25 MagicQ User Manual 41.14.11 Wireless Mode ..........301 41.14.12 Wireless IP address .
Page 26 MagicQ User Manual xxvi 41.17.5 Hot Takeover Mode ..........306 41.17.6 Hot Takeover Detect Time .
Page 27 MagicQ User Manual xxvii 42 System Management 42.1 Starting Up ............312 42.2 Shutting Down .
Page 28 MagicQ User Manual xxviii 46 Troubleshooting 46.1 No outputs ............332 46.2 MagicQ not responding .
Page 29 MagicQ User Manual xxix This manual is designed for operators of the MagicQ to help them quickly and effectively learn how to use the system. It has been written by lighting designers for lighting designers. The reader is assumed to have a basic familiarity with the concepts of lights and lighting control systems.
Page 30: Introduction
MagicQ User Manual 1 / 348 Chapter 1 Introduction MagicQ supports an extensive array of features to enable lighting designers to quickly and easily realise their innovative and imaginative designs. • Sixty four full 512 channel universes (32768 channels) • Up to 202 playbacks •...
Page 31: Magicq Software And Consoles
Mini Wing, PC Wing and Maxi Wing. MagicQ supports Art-Net I, Art-Net II, Art-Net III, Pathport and ACN streaming DMX network outputs from PC, Mac or MagicQ consoles. MagicQ consoles have multiple network ports for connecting to Art-Net, Pathport and ACN installations. 1.2 MagicQ Pro Series...
Page 32 3 / 348 MagicQ Pro series is built on the MagicQ MQ100 console and the MagicQ Playback Wing and MagicQ Execute Wing. The MagicQ MQ200 is a MQ100 with a Playback Wing physically connected whilst the MQ300 has two Playback Wings connected.
Page 33: Magicq Compact Series
MagicQ User Manual 4 / 348 1.3 MagicQ Compact Series MagicQ Compact series comprises the MagicQ MQ40, MagicQ MQ60 and MagicQ MQ70 consoles together with the MagicQ Extra Wing for more faders and buttons. 1.4 MagicQ Wings for use with PC/Mac The MagicQ Mini Wing, MagicQ PC Wing and MagicQ Maxi Wing connect directly to a PC or Mac.
Page 34: Dmx Connections
MagicQ User Manual 5 / 348 • Connect the power lead to the power socket labelled LINE INPUT. • Put the console lamp(s) into the console lamp socket(s) • Connect the keyboard to the socket on the back panel marked KEYBOARD MagicQ Pro 2010, Pro 2014 and Compact consoles support USB keyboards and mice.
Page 35: Power Supply Protection
MagicQ User Manual 6 / 348 If this has no effect then a hard reset may be required. Hard resets should be avoided as they bypass the operating system shutdown procedures and may cause problems with the ﬁle system. To perform a hard reset, press and hold the reset button on the back panel for 5 seconds.
Page 36: Installing Magicq Software & Drivers
MagicQ User Manual 7 / 348 Chapter 2 Installing MagicQ Software & Drivers 2.1 MagicQ software MagicQ software runs on PCs and Macs and can be downloaded free from the ChamSys web site www.chamsys.co.uk/download. 2.2 MagicDMX MagicDMX devices do NOT need any additional drivers – they use HID drivers within the operating system. Simply plug in the device and start MagicQ.
Page 37 MagicQ User Manual 8 / 348 Open Device Manager. This is found in different places depending on the version of Windows, but it can normally be accessed by opening Control Panel and then selecting System and Device Manager. Device Manager lists all the devices on your system. The MagicQ device is normally listed at the bottom under Universal Serial Bus Controllers but it may be under any other section.
Page 38 MagicQ User Manual 9 / 348...
Page 39 MagicQ User Manual 10 / 348 When you have identiﬁed the device then right click and press Update Driver. Select "Browse My Computer for Driver Software (Locate and Install Driver Software Manually)". Do not let Windows search for a driver. Select the option "Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer".
Page 40 MagicQ User Manual 11 / 348 Select "Have Disk". If you cannot ﬁnd "Have Disk" then click on items in the list until you get it.
Page 41 MagicQ User Manual 12 / 348 For PC Wing Compacts the drivers are in c:\Program Files\ChamSys Ltd\Magicq\MagicQ Wing Drivers\PC Wing Compact\CDM 2.08.24 WHQL Certiﬁed\ftdibus.inf PC Wing Compacts require MagicQ software version 1.5.8.0 or above.
Page 42 MagicQ User Manual 13 / 348 For all other products the drivers are in c:\Program Files\ChamSys Ltd\Magicq\MagicQ Wing Drivers\FTDI\chamsys.inf...
Page 43: Magicq On Mac
MagicQ User Manual 14 / 348 2.5 MagicQ on Mac MagicQ on Mac includes all the required drivers and no action should be required to install them. MagicQ Wings and Interfaces must be powered up and connected to the Mac before MagicQ is started. On OSX 10.9 Mavericks you may need to move the mouse pointer whilst MagicQ is starting to avoid a problem in OSX whereby the mouse/keyboard become unresponsive.
Page 44: Making The Magicq Folder Writeable
MagicQ User Manual 15 / 348 2.5.2 Making the MagicQ folder writeable If you get the message "Cannot write ﬁle" when trying to save a show ﬁle, or your settings changes are not saved then check that the MagicQ folder and all its subfolders have both read and write permission.
Page 45: Magicq On Linux
MagicQ User Manual 16 / 348 2.6 MagicQ on Linux We recommend that only users familiar with Linux based operating systems try to use MagicQ under Linux. We cannot provide generic support on how to set your system up, but there are many forums and communities online which will be able to. To install MagicQ on Linux based systems, we recommend a Debian based operating system, either Debian Wheezy, or Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.
Page 46: Using Magicq On Pcs And Macs
MagicQ User Manual 17 / 348 Chapter 3 Using MagicQ on PCs and Macs The MagicQ software for PCs and Macs has exactly the same features as the MagicQ console software with support for 64 Universes. All 64 Universes are enabled and can be used. A wide range of 3 party USB interfaces are supported on Universe 1.
Page 47: Technician Test Fixture
MagicQ User Manual 18 / 348 In this mode the console simply operates as a 48 channel traditional theatre console with 48 dimmers patched on Universe 1 at channels 1 through 48. If a MagicQ Wing, MagicQ Dual DMX Interface or MagicDMX interface is connected to MagicQ then the 48 channels will be automatically output on the 1 output.
Page 48: Demo Shows
MagicQ User Manual 19 / 348 The picture below shows a Clay Paky Alpha Spot HPE 1200 in Standard mode. The Playback faders are automatically set up with some useful functions including Macros for Lamp On, Reset and Lamp Off, Locate and Movement, Colour, Gobo and Strobe tests.
Page 49: Touch View
MagicQ User Manual 20 / 348 3.4 Touch View The Touch View is designed for use with touch screens with buttons that are sized bigger so that it is easier to select functions. Select Touch View by pressing Touch or Touch2 in the top right corner of the Application. 3.5 Playback mode MagicQ PC supports a Playback Mode which enables MagicQ to be run in a pure “Playback”...
Page 50 MagicQ User Manual 21 / 348 • Execute Window full screen • Scheduled Events • iPhone / iPad / Android Remote • Remote Control Protocol (serial, or network) • Web Server editing (viewing is supported) • Autostarting Playbacks • Playback Synchronisation •...
Page 51: Magicq Concepts
MagicQ User Manual 22 / 348 Chapter 4 MagicQ Concepts A system diagram of the console is shown in the diagram below • 64 universes except MQ40 (4), MQ60 (12), MQ70 (12), and MQ100 Expert (12). Older consoles such as MQ Pro support 18 and MQ Pro 2010 supports 32.
Page 52: Htp / Ltp Channels
MagicQ User Manual 23 / 348 ChamSys adds new personalities for ﬁxtures as the information for new ﬁxtures becomes available. If a personality is not available then it can be requested from ChamSys. Users also have the ability to create the persoanlity themselves in the inbuilt Head Editor.
Page 53: Cue Stacks
MagicQ User Manual 24 / 348 4.4 Cue Stacks Cue Stacks are used to manage sequences of Cues. Cue Stacks keep track of the order of the Cues and the options for how they are played back. A Cue Stack may have only one Cue associated with it or may have a whole list of Cues. The Cue Stack stores a Cue Id and a textual ﬁeld for each Cue so that the different steps in the stack can be labelled.
Page 54: Window Layouts
MagicQ User Manual 25 / 348 4.8 Window Layouts The console provides a means of storing the positions and sizes of Windows as a Window layout to enable easy recall of useful Windows. This allows, for example, a Window conﬁguration consisting of the Group, Position, Colour and Beam Windows to be stored and recalled at a button press.
Page 55: Magicq Layout
MagicQ User Manual 26 / 348 Chapter 5 MagicQ Layout 5.1 Physical layout All MagicQ consoles are very similar - they differ mainly in the number of playback faders. The programming interface is consistent across the entire range of consoles. MagicQ software on PC and Mac mimics the layout of the physical buttons on the MagicQ Consoles - a choice of different Panels is available from the Panel Menu.
Page 56: Windows
MagicQ User Manual 27 / 348 At the top left and top right of the touch screen there are SHIFT and CTRL buttons. Pressing theses buttons selects alternate functions for the soft buttons and encoders. 5.1.2 Windows The area in the centre of the screen is the windows section in which the various control windows are displayed. There are two main types of windows –...
Page 57: Head Control
MagicQ User Manual 28 / 348 When a window button is pressed, that window becomes the active window. The active window is on the top of the screen and is easily identiﬁed as the window with the highlighted title bar at the top. It is also the window with the cursor in it. An item in a window can be selected either 1.
Page 58: Playback
MagicQ User Manual 29 / 348 BLIND and CLEAR affect the programmer REL and SELECT affect playbacks SHIFT selects alternate functions - undoes keyboard input and clears actions 5.1.5 Playback The Playback area is situated directly below the touch screen and consists of 10 playbacks each with a fader and four buttons (FLASH, GO, STOP, SELECT).
Page 59: Setting The Value Of Items
MagicQ User Manual 30 / 348 In spreadsheet style Windows (e.g. Patch) pressing the touch screen or left clicking on the item with the mouse moves the cursor to the item. You can highlight multiple Window items by pressing the touch screen and moving the touch across multiple items. In boxes style Windows (e.g.
Page 60: Copying Items
MagicQ User Manual 31 / 348 5.3.5 Copying items • Press the COPY button. • Press the touch screen / click / ENTER over the source item. • Press the touch screen / click / ENTER over the destination item. You can also press COPY instead of pressing ENTER in the above sequence.
Page 61: Actions On Playbacks
MagicQ User Manual 32 / 348 5.4.1 Actions on Playbacks Actions on playbacks are similar to window items except that the S buttons are used instead of window items. To select a Playback, press the S button for the appropriate Playback. To record a Playback, press RECORD, then press the S button for the appropriate Playback.
Page 62: Quick Start
MagicQ User Manual 33 / 348 Chapter 6 Quick Start 6.1 Starting up MagicQ On MagicQ consoles hold the power button on the rear panel. On MagicQ PC and Mac click on the MagicQ application icon. On start up you are presented with an option to load demo shows or to continue the last show. Selecting last show will load and run the last show used on the system.
Page 63: Starting A New Show
MagicQ User Manual 34 / 348 Press the SETUP button to open the Setup Window. Press the CAL TOUCH soft button. When asked for conﬁrmation press 1 on the keypad or press the CAL TOUCH soft button again. Calibration works by ﬁnding the bottom left and top right corners of the screen. First press the bottom left of the touch screen and then the top right.
Page 64: Enabling Outputs
MagicQ User Manual 35 / 348 6.4 Enabling Outputs To enable output of channel data select the DMX IO VIEW in the Setup Window. This windows enables modiﬁcation of the inputs and outputs for all the universes. MagicQ consoles support DMX directly from the console or via an external Ethernet to DMX convertor.
Page 65: Using Outputs Via Network
MagicQ User Manual 36 / 348 6.4.2 Using Outputs via network MagicQ supports output via the network ports using Art-Net, Pathport or ACN Streaming DMX. To output Art-Net on a Universe enable it and ensure that the output type is set to Art-Net. Choose which Art-Net Universe you wish to Output the MagicQ Universe on.
Page 66: Connecting External Monitors
MagicQ User Manual 37 / 348 6.6 Connecting External Monitors MagicQ consoles have VGA connectors on the rear panel for connecting external monitors. These monitors can be touch screen monitors. 6.6.1 Pro 2010 and Pro 2014 Operating System On MagicQ consoles running the Pro 2010 there is support for two external monitors with resolution up to 1440x900. The Pro 2014 supports two external monitors up to 1920x1080 resolution.
Page 67 MagicQ User Manual 38 / 348 Once you have chosen a head you will be returned to the Patch Window. Press the PATCH IT soft button to patch the head. You will be prompted for the number you wish to prompt and the address where you wish to patch the heads. Use @ to patch at a speciﬁc address.
Page 68 MagicQ User Manual 39 / 348 For example to patch 5 Mac250 mode 4 to Universe 2 channel 1 enter 5 @ 2 - 1 If you wish to patch multiple channels at ﬁxed offsets e.g. ﬁve Martin Mac250s at DMX channels 1,21,41,61,81 then enter 5 @ 2 –...
Page 69: Naming And Numbering Heads
MagicQ User Manual 40 / 348 6.7.1 Naming and Numbering Heads Once you have patched all the heads you can then name and number them as you wish. It is recommended that you name the dimmer or the head based on its location (e.g. front wash / back truss SL). For dimmers you may wish to conﬁgure the gel. This makes programming easier –...
Page 70: Selecting Heads From The Group/Heads Window
MagicQ User Manual 41 / 348 6.8.2 Selecting heads from the Group/Heads Window The console automatically generates a group for all the heads of a particular head type. In addition new groups can easily be recorded. The Group Window has two views. VIEW GROUPS enables selection of heads using groups whilst VIEW HEADS enables individual selection of heads.
Page 71: Locating Heads
MagicQ User Manual 42 / 348 The SQUARE OFF soft button enables fast programming of intensities. Using the touch panel select the channels you wish to have at full and at zero – but don’t bother being exactly accurate with the level of the selection. Pressing SQUARE OFF ﬁnishes the job by setting all channels that are less than 50% to 0 whilst setting channels above 50% to full.
Page 72 MagicQ User Manual 43 / 348 The highlighted window enables controls the soft buttons and rotary encoders. In each of the Windows the X and Y encoders control the most important attributes – Pan and Tilt in Position Window, Col Wheel 1 and Col Wheel 2 in the Colour Window and Gobo Wheel 1 and Gobo Wheel 2 in the Beam Window.
Page 73: Recording A Palette
MagicQ User Manual 44 / 348 6.14 Recording a Palette To record a favourite combination of attributes into a palette (e.g. a rotating triangle with a prism on a MAC500), ﬁrst modify the attributes to the values you wish to record. Then press RECORD and select the palette entry you wish to record. By default only selected heads get recorded into a palette (this can be changed by pressing SHIFT + RECORD and choosing Record options).
Page 74: Recording A Cue Stack (Chase Or Theatre Stack)
MagicQ User Manual 45 / 348 6.17 Recording a Cue Stack (Chase or Theatre Stack) Recording a Cue Stack is the same as recording a Cue - you simply record multiple Cues onto a Playback and you end up with a Cue Stack.
Page 75: Selecting And Recording Complete Window Layouts
MagicQ User Manual 46 / 348 The timing mode can be changed, so that the Cues play back in a theatre style using the GO / STOP buttons. Select the VIEW OPTIONS view and press the CUE TIMING and CHASE TIMING soft buttons to modify the timing mode. 6.18 Selecting and recording complete window layouts The console enables complete window layouts to be recorded and selected.
Page 76 MagicQ User Manual 47 / 348 Make sure the master faders are raised! Note that if you have a large show ﬁle you may wish to turn auto backups off during playback. Remember to turn them back on when you are programming. If you get stuck at any point, just press the HELP button!
Page 77: Patching
MagicQ User Manual 48 / 348 Chapter 7 Patching 7.1 Patching on MagicQ MagicQ considers DMX and console channels to be the same and therefore there is no need for complex patching to be carried out before the console can be used. MagicQ allows access to all DMX channels on all DMX universes supported on the console. Each channel can be controlled and programmed independently.
Page 78 MagicQ User Manual 49 / 348 Choose the head you wish to patch by pressing the CHOOSE HEAD soft button. The Window will change to give you a list of heads. Select a head by pressing the touch screen. Alternatively scroll around the Window using the cursor keys, and press ENTER when the cursor is over the correct head.
Page 79: Head Names And Head Numbers
MagicQ User Manual 50 / 348 To patch a head at a speciﬁc address use @. For example to patch 10 dimmers at DMX address 20 key in 10@20. To patch to the universe use 10@2-20. To patch at the ﬁrst free address on a universe other than the ﬁrst universe use +, e.g. for the second universe use 10@+2-1.
Page 80: Head Names
MagicQ User Manual 51 / 348 By default the VIEW HEADS view is sorted by head number. If you are setting head numbers by entering each head number individually then you may ﬁnd it easier if the view is sorted by DMX. Press the SORT soft button and select BY DMX. Note that the sort also affects the order in the Intensities Window, the Programmer Window and the Group Window.
Page 81: Renumbering Head Numbers
MagicQ User Manual 52 / 348 7.4.3 Renumbering Head Numbers Pressing RENUM HEAD NOS and selecting BEST FIT causes MagicQ to use an intelligent algorithm to allocate heads starting with numbers that you can easily recall. For example, if you patch 4 MAC500s and 4 HPEs then when you renumber using BEST FIT it will number the MAC500s from 1 to 4 and the HPEs from 11 to 14.
Page 82: Inverting And Swapping
MagicQ User Manual 53 / 348 MagicQ recognises three kinds of multi element heads – those which simply have a repeated element, those that have a main element followed by a repeated element and those that have repeated elements followed by a main element. When multi element heads are patched MagicQ generates the “All”...
Page 83: Dimmer Curves
MagicQ User Manual 54 / 348 7.12 Dimmer curves MagicQ supports 10 user dimmer curves that can be selected in the Patch Window, View Chans view. User dimmer curves are speciﬁed in ﬁles of format csv (comma separated variable) with ﬁlename dimmercurveuser1.csv, dimer- curveuser2.csv etc.
Page 84: Changing The Dmx Address Of Heads
MagicQ User Manual 55 / 348 You can also test channels by moving to the appropriate channel and pressing the TEST SELECT CHANS soft button. The channel will be set to the level of the Grand Master fader. Pressing TEST SELECT CHANS soft button again returns the channel to zero.
Page 85: Unpatching A Head From A Dmx Address
MagicQ User Manual 56 / 348 7.16 Unpatching a Head from a DMX address It is possible to “unpatch” a head – i.e. to remove the association between the programmed data and a DMX address. The programmed data for the head is maintained and the head can subsequently be patched to a new DMX address. To unpatch a head move the cursor to the ﬁrst DMX ﬁeld in View DMX view and press REMOVE, or type “u”.
Page 86: Cloning (Adding Extra Heads / Dimmers To A Programmed Show)
MagicQ User Manual 57 / 348 7.19 Cloning (Adding extra heads / dimmers to a programmed show) Cloning enables a show programmed with a certain number of heads to be expanded to use more of the same head type without having to reprogram all of the show.
Page 87: Morphing Multi Part Heads
MagicQ User Manual 58 / 348 After morphing heads your groups, palettes, and cues will be updated to reﬂect the new head types. 7.20.1 Morphing Multi Part Heads From v1.5.1.0 MagicQ supports full morphing between multi part heads, from single part heads to multi part heads, and from multi part heads to single part heads.
Page 88: Vl5 Type Channels (Split Personalities)
MagicQ User Manual 59 / 348 7.23 VL5 type channels (split personalities) MagicQ supports heads such as the Vari-lite VL5 where the head functionality is split between different non- contiguous DMX addresses. The personality for the main channels in the head includes the extra channels. The extra channels are then patched separately and set to have their levels copied from the main channels.
Page 89: Theatre Patch Syntax
MagicQ User Manual 60 / 348 By default, the Locate values and Default values are taken from the personality of the patched head – these typically put the position to centre, beam open, colour white and intensity at full. These values can be re-programmed by creating a Cue that represents the desired Locate Values and/or a Cue that represents the desired Default Values.
Page 90: Quickly Adding Virtual Dimmers To Patched Heads
MagicQ User Manual 61 / 348 7.27.1 Quickly adding Virtual Dimmers to patched heads It is possible to add virtual dimmers to a head in the Patch, View Heads view using a single action. Place the cursor on the head you wish to add a virtual dimmer for and then press SHIFT and ADD VDIM.
Page 91: Setting Intensity Levels
MagicQ User Manual 62 / 348 Chapter 8 Setting Intensity levels The intensity level of heads (including dimmers) are controlled from the Intensity Window. Press the INT button to open the window. 8.1 Using the on screen faders This window displays a fader for each head (including dimmers) patched onto the console. Pressing the slider part of the fader sets the appropriate level.
Page 92: Using The Encoders
MagicQ User Manual 63 / 348 8.2 Using the encoders A single fader or multiple faders can be controlled using the top right rotary encoder in the Intensity Window. The encoder controls the fader, which the cursor is over. Selecting a block of faders by pressing the cursor keys whilst holding the SHIFT button down enables multiple faders to be selected.
Page 93: Multi Element Heads
MagicQ User Manual 64 / 348 8.4 Multi Element Heads From software version 1.6.5.1 the "." operator is now universally used for selecting elements of multiple heads. The repeated element of a multiple head are indexed .1 .2 .3 etc.. whilst the main part of a multi element head in indexed as .0. Note that if a multi element head does not have a main part - i.e.
Page 94: Programming Of Dimmers Using Gel Colours
MagicQ User Manual 65 / 348 To set a Gel Colour in the Intensity Window, either: • Type in the colour number on the keypad. Press the SET GEL soft button. Note that colour numbers are assumed to be Lee – proceed the colour with a dot for Rosco colours.
Page 95: Controlling Attributes
MagicQ User Manual 66 / 348 Chapter 9 Controlling Attributes MagicQ supports many different ways of modifying the values of attributes for moving heads - using encoders, using buttons, and using the touch screen. In order to control intelligent heads it is necessary to be able to select which heads to use. MagicQ keeps track of the currently selected heads to enable it to determine which heads to apply changes to.
Page 96: Recording A Group
MagicQ User Manual 67 / 348 When in the VIEW GROUPS view you can also use the keypad to select a group - simply enter the group number. You can use + and - to select multiple groups. Pressing + before a group is selected adds the group to previously selected heads, i.e. the heads in the group are all selected as before, but other heads are not deselected.
Page 97: Selecting Heads On The Keypad Using
MagicQ User Manual 68 / 348 By default on MagicQ the keypad is used for many functions including selecting heads, settings times, editing ﬁelds in spread sheets. This is different to some other consoles which primarily use the keypad for selection of heads. On MagicQ it is possible to select heads directly form the keypad at any time by entering the head numbers terminated by @@.
Page 98: Selecting Heads Using The Rig Plan View
MagicQ User Manual 69 / 348 9.4 Selecting heads using the rig plan view Heads can be selected from a plan of the rig in the View Plan view of the Outputs window. See Plan View. 9.5 Head Macros MagicQ loads macros for the head from the personality ﬁle. Typical macros are "Lamp On", "Lamp Off" and "Reset" - however they are very head dependent.
Page 99: Using A Mouse Or Track-Ball To Control Pan And Tilt
MagicQ User Manual 70 / 348 select a colour using the touch screen. The COL TYPE soft button enables the user to choose between the default colour library, the Lee colour library or the Rosco colour library. To modify a 16bit parameter in high (i.e. 16 bit resolution), hold SHIFT and turn the appropriate encoder. Layout 1 opens the Group, Position, Colour and Beam windows together.
Page 100: Selecting Individual Heads
MagicQ User Manual 71 / 348 9.11 Selecting individual Heads When programming it is often useful to be able to control one head out of a group of heads - for instance, in order to set up it’s position on the stage. Alternatively you may wish to apply an effect to all the heads, such as fanning the position. The head control buttons situated to the right of the touch screen enable the individual head to be selected quickly.
Page 101: Segments
MagicQ User Manual 72 / 348 Press SHIFT + ODD/EVEN to increase the mode to 3s or more. 9.11.4 Segments Segments is similar to Odd/Even except that the sub selection is a segment of heads - for example if you have selected 10 heads and then select Seg 3’s will sub select the ﬁrst three heads in the selection.
Page 102: Sub Selection Of Heads From Groups / Overall Selection
MagicQ User Manual 73 / 348 9.11.9 Sub selection of heads from Groups / Overall Selection When you select heads using Groups or the keypad, MagicQ then enables the operation on a sub selection of the main selection using the Next Head, Prev Head, Odd/Even, and All buttons. This enables the user to select a group of heads and work on heads individually without reselecting the heads.
Page 103: Reselecting Heads Using Palettes And Intensities (Active Palette And Intensity)
MagicQ User Manual 74 / 348 9.14 Reselecting heads using Palettes and Intensities (Active Palette and Intensity) To reselect all heads using a particular palette, hold ALL and press the palette entry. <Hold ALL> <Green> Or use the keypad <Hold ALL> <COL 5 ENTER> To reselect all heads at or above an intensity level hold ALL and type the level.
Page 104: And Only
MagicQ User Manual 75 / 348 9.16 And Only The AND ONLY (*) function enables selecting of the common heads between groups. It can be used on pairs of groups or on ranges of groups. When selecting a number of groups then the * operator can be used to specify that only the heads that are in both groups are selected.
Page 105: Palettes
MagicQ User Manual 76 / 348 Chapter 10 Palettes MagicQ supports a comprehensive palette system for easy access to your favourite looks. When heads are patched, the console automatically generates palettes for the patched heads. There are four types of palettes corresponding to Intensity, Colour, Beam and Position. Each palette supports up to 1000 different entries.
Page 106: Recording Palettes
MagicQ User Manual 77 / 348 10.2 Recording Palettes To record a palette entry, select the heads you wish to apply the change to. Then open the required palette by selecting one of the Intensity, Colour, Beam or Position Windows. Modify the attributes of the heads until you are happy with them.
Page 107: Intensity Palettes
MagicQ User Manual 78 / 348 10.3 Intensity Palettes From v1.6.5.1 the Intensity window has been enhanced to have a View Palettes view similar to the Position, Colour and Beam windows. Palettes can be recorded, moved, copied and removed and used within Cues just as with Position, Colour and Beam palettes.
Page 108: Linked Palettes
MagicQ User Manual 79 / 348 10.8 Linked Palettes If you select a Palette and then record it as another Palette without changing any of the attributes then all the values in the new Palette will be linked to the ﬁrst Palette. Changing any of the attributes in the ﬁrst Palette will change the attributes in the new Palette.
Page 109: Using Fan
MagicQ User Manual 80 / 348 A short-cut can be used to perform fanned delay/fades – type a time followed by * before selecting the Palette to fan the fade across the currently selected heads. Applying Palettes with times and fanned times can be applied to all Palette types including Beam and Colour. For example to perform a gradual fade from one colour to the next over all your colour mixing heads, select the heads, 0 THRU 5 before selecting a colour palette entry.
Page 110: Merging Of Palettes From Another Show
MagicQ User Manual 81 / 348 10.13 Merging of Palettes from another show It is possible to merge Palettes from any previous show that uses the same type of heads - you can select the palettes from a speciﬁc head or all the heads that match with your current show. It is possible to select Position, Beam or Colour palettes, or combinations of the three attribute types.
Page 111: Fx Engine
MagicQ User Manual 82 / 348 Chapter 11 FX Engine 11.1 Adding in FX To apply a FX to some heads, select the heads then from the FX Window, Group Window, or Prog Window press the ADD FX soft button. MagicQ groups FX into the categories - Intensity, Position, Colour, Beam, Any Attribute, User and Old.
Page 112 MagicQ User Manual 83 / 348 The Any Attribute folder contains FX that are not speciﬁc to particular attributes of the head – these are marked with a * – e.g. Ramp, Sine and Cosine. When one of these is selected you are prompted for which attribute you wish to apply the FX to. For instance you could program a circle using a Sine on the Pan attribute and a Cosine on the Tilt attribute.
Page 113: Fx Speed & Size
MagicQ User Manual 84 / 348 11.1.1 FX Speed & Size The FX Speed can be modiﬁed on encoder X. The soft button stops/starts the FX allowing it to be temporarily stopped. The FX Crossfade can be set on encoder Y – 0% is snap whilst 100% is complete crossfade. The soft button can be used to tap to time the speed of the FX.
Page 114: Fx Parts
MagicQ User Manual 85 / 348 11.1.5 FX Parts This enables the FX cycle to be repeated across a number of heads. When FX parts is 0 the FX is offset across the total umber of heads selected in the FX. Using Parts the FX can be offset so that, for example the FX can be offset (with FX parts = 3) such that the FX is offset other the ﬁrst 3 heads, and then the next 3 heads, the next 3 heads, and so on.
Page 115 MagicQ User Manual 86 / 348 Table 11.2: (continued) Table 11.3: With FX Segments = 3’s Table 11.4: With FX Parts = 2’s Table 11.5: With FX Parts = 2’s, Segments = 3’s...
Page 116: Fx Direction & Inversion
MagicQ User Manual 87 / 348 Table 11.5: (continued) 11.1.7 FX Direction & Inversion The FX direction can be set to the following options: • Forward • Backward • Odd/Even • Even/Odd • Left/Right • Right/Left • Segments • Invert •...
Page 117: Pulse Width
MagicQ User Manual 88 / 348 Invert Even/Odd #-#- -#-# Invert Left Right --## ##-- Invert Right/Left ^^__ __^^ Consider a pulse 4 step FX Waveform on 4 heads: Forward ___^ __^_ _^__ ^___ Backward ^___ _^__ __^_ ___^ Invert ^^^_ ^^_^ ^_^^...
Page 118: Initial Spreads
MagicQ User Manual 89 / 348 11.1.10 Initial spreads If you are running multiple FX from within a Cue then you may wish to select an initial spread between the different FX. Conﬁgure this from the Programmer Window and the Cue Window (use the PAGE RIGHT button to move to the appropriate columns).
Page 119: Joining / Splitting Multiple Fx
MagicQ User Manual 90 / 348 11.1.14 Joining / Splitting multiple FX There is a function to split some heads out of a FX or to join similar FX together in the Programmer – use SHIFT and the JOIN FX and SPLIT FX soft buttons. When Split FX is pressed the currently selected heads are moved out of the FX that they are in, into a separate FX.
Page 120: Editing User Fx
MagicQ User Manual 91 / 348 Convert the chase into a FX by opening the Cue Stack window and pressing SHIFT and MAKE FX. If the chase only contains 1 attribute then you will be asked whether you wish the FX to always apply to the speciﬁed attribute, or to allow it to be applied to any attribute.
Page 121: Fx Using Base Colour
MagicQ User Manual 92 / 348 11.6 FX using base colour It is possible to create FX that use any chosen colour rather than just primary colours – a new example Colpulse.wve is included as part of the standard FX library. When the FX is created, the base level of the colour channel will be used to determine the colour that the FX will use.
Page 122: Programmer
MagicQ User Manual 93 / 348 Chapter 12 Programmer The programmer is the function of MagicQ where show data is conﬁgured for recording. The programmer takes priority over all playbacks. It can also be used during live running to override the outputs – for example, for changing the colour or gobo of intelligent heads.
Page 123: Clearing The Programmer
MagicQ User Manual 94 / 348 12.2 Clearing the programmer To clear the Programmer press CLEAR. All channels will be deactivated and all HTP channels will be set to zero. It is possible to force all LTP channels to zero by using CTRL CLEAR. Pressing SHIFT CLEAR clears the heads that you have currently selected.
Page 124: Levels
MagicQ User Manual 95 / 348 12.4.1 Levels All active channels in the programmer are transferred into the Cue. Thus if "Activation by Head" is in use then all the attributes of activated heads will be stored. If the channel level was set using a Palette, then that is also recorded so that the Cue can keep track of changes to the Palette. When you subsequently change the Palette the changes will be reﬂected in the Cue.
Page 125: View Advanced
MagicQ User Manual 96 / 348 If you select some heads selected then the Individual Times will show you the times for those heads otherwise it will show times for all heads in the Cue. If heads have different then the lowest and highest times are shown. You can set split times in the Individual Times by selecting some heads and entering the shortest time followed by THRU and then the longest time.
Page 126: Recording To A Speciﬁc Cue Id
MagicQ User Manual 97 / 348 12.7 Recording to a speciﬁc Cue Id To Record to a speciﬁc Cue Id in a Cue Stack, enter the Cue Id number on the keypad before you press RECORD and select the Playback S button. It is also possible when the Setup option “Select Heads and Palettes from keypad”...
Page 127: Masking
MagicQ User Manual 98 / 348 Hold S and press REC Record Merge into Current Cue on Playback REC 0 ENTER Record Merge into Current Cue on Playback REC UPDATE Record Merge into Current Cue on Playback Hold + and press REC Record Merge (then choose where to merge) Hold –...
Page 128: Removing Channels From The Programmer
MagicQ User Manual 99 / 348 It is also possible to make active entire Intensity, Position, Colour or Beam attributes by holding Position, Colour or Beam or Intensity and pressing SET. To make all the attributes of a group of heads active, ﬁrst select the heads you want to control, then hold * and press SET. Alternatively in the Programmer Window press SHIFT and select ACTIVE.
Page 129: Making Channels Hard Values
MagicQ User Manual 100 / 348 12.12 Making channels hard values Channels in the programmer can be set to have hard values instead of palette values. This function can be accessed in the Programmer Window, View Levels with SHIFT + MAKE HARD. All attributes of the currently selected heads that are active in the programmer are made hard (non palette) values.
Page 130: Blind Programming
MagicQ User Manual 101 / 348 12.14 Blind programming A show can be programmed without affecting the state of the outputs using blind programming mode. In this mode the program- mer will operate as normal (with the current levels being displayed in the Prog Window) but the contents of the programmer will not be output.
Page 131: Outputs Windows
MagicQ User Manual 102 / 348 Chapter 13 Outputs Windows On MagicQ you can view the Outputs in many different ways. MagicQ supports up to 4 different Output Windows. This allows four different output views to be viewed simultaneously. Press the Out button to open the main Output Window. Press 2 and then Out to open the second Output Window, 3 + Out for Output Window 3 and 4 + Out for Output Window 4.
Page 132: Intensity View
MagicQ User Manual 103 / 348 13.2 Intensity View The Intensity View shows just intensity information for the patched heads enabling a large number of heads to be shown within the window. Press the VIEW CHANS and VIEW INT soft buttons. Intensity level is shown as a percentage (%). Use the VIEW HORIZ soft button to change whether heads are shown horizontally or vertically.
Page 133: Movement View
MagicQ User Manual 104 / 348 13.4 Movement View The movement view shows the relative positions of heads in terms of pan and tilt range on a 2D map. It also shows the current colour of the heads. This enables previewing of FX and relative positions without the lighting rig. Press the VIEW CHANS, VIEW DMX, VIEW MOVE soft buttons.
Page 134: Selection Of Heads In Outputs Plan View
MagicQ User Manual 105 / 348 In the Outputs Window, select View Plan and View Hd Nos. Press Grid Size and enter a matrix size for your lighting rig – e.g. 30/20 gives a 30 by 20 grid. A grid is now displayed. In each of the boxes enter the head number of the head that you wish to be represented in this box. In order to make best use of this feature all heads should have unique numbers.
Page 135 MagicQ User Manual 106 / 348 Clicking on a blank space at the top edge of the grid will select/deselect heads in the whole column depending on the current selection state of the heads. Clicking on a blank space on the left edge of the grid will select/deselect heads in the whole row depending on the current selection state of the heads.
Page 136: Editing Cues
MagicQ User Manual 107 / 348 Chapter 14 Editing Cues 14.1 Including Cues into the Programmer A programmed Cue can be included back into the Programmer so that the information can be used to program further Cues. When a Cue is included all the level, timing and FX information is loaded. The only exception is if the Programmer already contains FX information for the heads - in this case the FX information from the Cue is ignored.
Page 137: Editing Using Include And Update Method
MagicQ User Manual 108 / 348 14.2 Editing using Include and Update method Cues can be edited using INCLUDE and UPDATE. This includes the Cue data into the programmer where it can then be changed, before it is saved back to the Cue using Update. First, clear the Programmer, then include the required Cue back into the Programmer.
Page 138: Editing Using Update
MagicQ User Manual 109 / 348 14.5 Editing using Update MagicQ supports a function for easy updating of Cues and Palettes without ﬁrst Including the Cues and Palettes. This is useful when making modiﬁcations to a pre-programmed show. When you press Update (when not in Include Mode) a list of all the Palettes and Cues that have been over-riden is shown. You can then choose which of the Palettes and Cues to update by selecting from the select box.
Page 139: Cue Stacks
MagicQ User Manual 110 / 348 Chapter 15 Cue Stacks MagicQ stores sequence of Cues as Cue Stacks. Cue Stacks keep track of the order of the cues and the options for how they are played back. A Cue Stack may have only one Cue associated with it or may have a whole list of Cues. When you record a Cue onto a Playback, MagicQ automatically generates a Cue Stack.
Page 140: Chase Timing
MagicQ User Manual 111 / 348 15.2 Chase Timing When you record more than one Cue onto a Cue Stack, the Cue Stack behaviour kicks in to control the transition from one Cue to another. By default the Cue Stack operates like a chase - i.e. each Cue is executed in turn, with timing being handled by a Chase Speed for the whole Cue Stack.
Page 141: The Halt Field
MagicQ User Manual 112 / 348 15.3.2 The Halt ﬁeld This ﬁeld determines whether MagicQ waits for the user to press GO before executing the next Cue. It can also be use to setup Cue triggers from the remote interface, Scheduled events or timecode. Pressing ENTER only toggles between Yes and No.
Page 142: Tracking On Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 113 / 348 Traditionally lighting consoles used tracking mode to reduce show storage by only recording changes into each Cue. This can be confusing as when you jump around in Cue Stacks they may not play back as they were programmed. Busking live shows can be particularly difﬁcult, as it can be more difﬁcult to predict what is going to happen.
Page 143: Viewing Cue Data And Tracking Data
MagicQ User Manual 114 / 348 15.4.2 Viewing Cue Data and Tracking Data The Cue Window shows the Cue data for the current Cue on the selected Playback. The Cue Window, has three views, View Levels, View Times and View FX just like the Programmer Window. When looking at a Cue Stack in the Cue Stack Window it is possible to go directly to the Cue Window by placing the cursor on the required Cue and pressing the View Cue soft button.
Page 144: Mark Cues
MagicQ User Manual 115 / 348 15.6 Mark Cues Mark Cues are special cues that are used to pre-load LTP values before the following Cue is executed thus ensuring that, for instance, moving heads are in the correct position before the Cue executes. Note that Mark Cues only take effect if the corre- sponding head has intensity set to 0 –...
Page 145: Assigning Cues And Cue Stacks
MagicQ User Manual 116 / 348 15.8 Assigning Cues and Cue Stacks Cues and Cue Stacks can be assigned to Playbacks at any time. To assign a Cue, open the Cue Store Window, press the MOVE button, select a Cue, and then select a playback to assign the Cue to.
Page 146: Cue Stack Defaults
MagicQ User Manual 117 / 348 15.12 Cue Stack Defaults The default operation of Cue Stacks can be modiﬁed in the Defaults view of the Cue Stack Window. Defaults can be conﬁgured for all of the Cue Stack options including operation of the faders and buttons, chase defaults and the defaults for each Cue Stack step.
Page 147: Timeline
MagicQ User Manual 118 / 348 Q <Time code> Enable time code gen from time code (disables time code receive) Playbacks can be the master playbacks 1 to 10 or the wing playbacks 1-1 to 1-24, 2-1 to 2-24 etc. . . Playbacks can be playbacks with faders or virtual playbacks (playbacks on non ﬁtted wings).
Page 148: Playback
MagicQ User Manual 119 / 348 Chapter 16 Playback MagicQ consoles support 10 main playbacks situated immediately below the touch screen. Up to 192 additional playbacks available on up to 8 expansion wings. All playbacks have a fader, a FLASH button and a SELECT button. The 10 main playbacks also have GO and PAUSE buttons for control of Cue Stacks.
Page 149: Fader Control
MagicQ User Manual 120 / 348 Pressing SHIFT + RELEASE releases all playbacks simultaneously. It is also possible to enter a time before doing SHIFT + RELEASE. Holding a single SELECT button and pressing SHIFT + RELEASE releases all the playbacks except the one for which the SELECT is held.
Page 150: Dead Black Out (Dbo)
MagicQ User Manual 121 / 348 Both the Grand Master and the Sub Master have FLASH buttons which respectively bump the overall HTP output level, and the HTP output level of the playbacks to full. LTP channels are not affected by the master faders. 16.4.2 Dead Black Out (DBO) Above the Grand Master there is a DBO button.
Page 151: Playbacks Across Multiple
MagicQ User Manual 122 / 348 16.4.6 Playbacks across multiple Pages Multiple Playbacks can be active at one time from different pages. However a particular Playback can only be active on one Page – it is not possible to activate Playback 1 on Page 1 and Playback 1 on Page 2 at the same time. It is possible to temporarily transfer a Playback that is active to a different Playback in order to unblock a Playback.
Page 152: Rate Sub Master
MagicQ User Manual 123 / 348 16.4.10 Rate Sub Master It is possible in the Setup Window to set the function of manual crossfade fader to be a rate sub-master to control the execution rate of the current playback, or the global execution rate of all playbacks. The rate is shown in the bottom right of the Status Display from 0% to inﬁnity.
Page 153: Playbacks Window
MagicQ User Manual 124 / 348 16.5 Playbacks Window The Playbacks Window enables management of all 202 playbacks regardless of how many physical wings are attached. This ensures that shows that will be run on consoles with wings can be programmed on a MagicQ system without wings. It also provides an ideal way of expanding your show control by using virtual playbacks.
Page 154: Playback Rate
MagicQ User Manual 125 / 348 16.5.5 Playback Rate It is possible to set the playback rate of a Playback using Encoder X in the Playback Window. Press the S button of the required playback to choose which playback to change. By default the playback rate is locked to 100%.
Page 155: Set Lists
MagicQ User Manual 126 / 348 16.9 Set lists It is possible to save and load set lists in the Page Window. Set lists are simply text ﬁles with a list of page names. When the set list is loaded, MagicQ rearranges the pages so that they are in the order speciﬁed in the set list. Pages that are not speciﬁed in the set list (for example songs not being used today) are moved after all the pages speciﬁed in the set list ﬁle.
Page 156: Cue Stack Options
MagicQ User Manual 127 / 348 Chapter 17 Cue Stack Options The Cue Stack Window has three Views – View Cue Stack, View Options and View Defaults. The View Options view shows the settings for the Cue Stack on the current Playback. Changing these settings immediately affects the currently selected Cue Stack.
Page 157: Fader Controls Ltp (Ipcb) Chans
MagicQ User Manual 128 / 348 17.1.4 Fader controls LTP (IPCB) chans When set to Yes the fader will control the value of all channels that are patched as LTP channels – generally this is everything apart from Intensity. When the fader is at 0% the LTP channels are not controlled by this Cue Stack. When the fader is raised above 0% then MagicQ crossfades the LTP channels to the values stored in the Cue under control of the fader.
Page 158: Flash Releases Stack
MagicQ User Manual 129 / 348 17.2.2 Flash releases stack When set to Yes releasing the Flash button releases the Cue Stack and sets the level of the Playback to 0%. When set to No pressing the Flash button sets the level of the Playback to 0% but does not release the Cue Stack. Note that if the option Fader Activates Stack is set to Yes then releasing of the Playback is also dependent on the fader.
Page 159: Go Jumps Out Of Loop
MagicQ User Manual 130 / 348 17.2.8 Go jumps out of loop This setting affects Cues that are set to Chase Timing which are in a loop. When set to Yes, pressing Go will exit the loop – jumping to the step after the Cue that loops back to an earlier Cue. When set to No, pressing Go will step one step within the chase.
Page 160: Cue Stack Is A Size Master
MagicQ User Manual 131 / 348 17.3.2 Cue Stack is a Size Master When this setting is set to Yes then the Cue Stack behaves as an FX Size Master. The Cue Stack normal Cue execution behaviour is disabled. The channels stored in the ﬁrst Cue are used to determine which channels are under control of the Intensity Master. The actual levels of the channels in the ﬁrst Cue is not important –...
Page 161: Activate/Release
MagicQ User Manual 132 / 348 17.4 Activate/Release 17.4.1 Halt at last step When set to Yes the Cue Stack halts at the last step in the Cue Stack. When set to No then the Cue Stack will return to the ﬁrst step after the last step.
Page 162: Advanced
MagicQ User Manual 133 / 348 17.5 Advanced 17.5.1 All chans controlled LTP When set to Yes all HTP channels under control of the Playback act as if they were LTP channels. When the Playback with this Cue Stack is the latest activated and highest priority Playback then the Playback has complete control of all HTP channels regardless of whether they are active on other faders.
Page 163: Recalculate State On Jumps
MagicQ User Manual 134 / 348 17.5.6 Recalculate state on jumps This option speciﬁes how MagicQ calculates the Cue State when playing back a Cue Stack. When set to Yes, MagicQ recalculates the Cue State whenever a jump is made in the Cue Stack. The Output of a particular Cue always appears the same regardless of which Cue was executed preciously.
Page 164: Speed
MagicQ User Manual 135 / 348 17.6.2 Speed This controls the speed of any Cue Steps in the Cue Stack set to “Chase Timing”. This setting can also be controlled via encoder X in the Cue Stack view. 17.6.3 Xfade This controls the crossfade of any Cue Steps in the Cue Stack set to “Chase Timing”.
Page 165: Audio
MagicQ User Manual 136 / 348 17.8 Audio Audio Controls Fader Level When set to Yes, the level of the playback is controlled by the received audio level on the chosen. The level of the real fader is ignored. The effect on the Playback is determined by the Cue Stack, Fader settings. The Cue Stack must be active for the audio to take effect.
Page 166: Audio Level
MagicQ User Manual 137 / 348 17.8.5 Audio level When “Audio controls fader level” is set to Yes then the settings Audio parameter 1 and Audio Parameter 2 can be set to control the response: Audio P1 = 0 Normal (direct trigger from level) Audio P1 = 1 Decayed (decays by Audio P2 each sample) Audio P1 = 2 Pulse (triggers at Audio Level, Audio P2 is duration of pulse) Audio P1 = 3 Pulse decay (triggers at Audio Level, decays by Audio P2 each sample)
Page 167: Step Halts Before Executing
MagicQ User Manual 138 / 348 17.9.3 Step halts before executing When set to Yes, the step halts and waits for the user to pres GO before executing the Cue step. When set to No the step executes immediately after the previous step has completed – this is either after it has completed fading (when “Step follows last”...
Page 168: Colour Fade
MagicQ User Manual 139 / 348 17.11.2 Colour fade The default fade times used when new Cues are recorded in a Cue Stack. Used by Cues in the Cue Stack set to “Cue Timing”. Once Cues have been recorded then the times for Speciﬁc Cues are edited in the Cue Window, View Times. 17.11.3 Beam fade The default fade times used when new Cues are recorded in a Cue Stack.
Page 169: Advanced Playback / Cue Stack Options
MagicQ User Manual 140 / 348 Chapter 18 Advanced Playback / Cue Stack Options 18.1 Interaction of HTP and LTP channels between Playbacks Channels are set as either HTP (Highest Takes Priority) or LTP (Latest Takes Priority) in their personality ﬁle – the property can be edited in the Head Editor.
Page 170: Ltp Handling
MagicQ User Manual 141 / 348 If a Playback is set to “HTP Always Active” then raising the fader or pressing the FLASH button will not use any speciﬁed Intensity delay or fade times. If the Cue Stack has multiple steps then delay and fade times will still be used when changing steps –...
Page 171: Playbacks Ignore Masters Levels
MagicQ User Manual 142 / 348 • Normal – same priority as other playbacks – last activated has control • Mid – above Normal but lower than programmer • High – highest priority of all playbacks but lower priority than the programmer •...
Page 172: Intensity Masters
MagicQ User Manual 143 / 348 18.9.1 Intensity Masters 18.9.1.1 Group based Intensity Masters To make an Intensity Master based on a Group simply clear the programmer, then select the Group and record to a Playback. Make sure that there are no active channels in the programmer. MagicQ will automatically create a Group Master, setting the Cue Stack Options, Function, Intensity Master = Yes and setting the Cue Stack Options, Function, Group Id to the selected Group.
Page 173: Live Programming (Busking)
MagicQ User Manual 144 / 348 Chapter 19 Live Programming (Busking) 19.1 Adding individual channels using preset faders Individual channels can be added into the show as required using the Intensities Windows. Channels can be added using the faders in either the Programmer View or the Presets View. Channels added in the Programmer View are added into the programmer in the usual way.
Page 174: Modifying Fx Parameters
MagicQ User Manual 145 / 348 also be selected. Pressing and holding the SELECT button of a Playback with a chase on it automatically opens the Cue Stack Window. Use the top right encoder to modify individual attributes - Position, Beam, Colour, Intensity In and Intensity Out (soft button selects the different attributes).
Page 175: Adding In New Fx
MagicQ User Manual 146 / 348 19.9 Adding in new FX MagicQ does not make a distinction between programming and run modes so it is always possible to busk new FX. For instance, assume that you have an active playback which has the MAC500s statically focused on the centre vocals position. You now wish to temporarily add in a tilt saw.
Page 176: Programmer Master
MagicQ User Manual 147 / 348 19.13 Programmer Master It is possible to make a Playback into a Programmer Master. Record an empty Cue onto a Playback and then set the Cue Stack option, Function, Programmer Master. When the Playback is activated by pressing the GO button then the fader level becomes the Programmer level. Releasing the fader level causes the Programmer level to go back to 100%.
Page 177: Execute Window
MagicQ User Manual 148 / 348 Chapter 20 Execute Window The Execute Window is a special window designed to allow customisation of the look and feel of the MagicQ. This layout of the window is conﬁgurable by the user and can contain Groups, Palettes, Macros, Cues and Cue Stacks. It is also automatically accesible on the MagicQ remote iOS and Android applications.
Page 178: Full Screen View
MagicQ User Manual 149 / 348 20.2 Full Screen View The Execute Window can be run in full-screen mode (View Max), allowing the whole of the screen to be customised. The size of the full screen Execute Window can be set via the Set Win Size button – this defaults to 1024 by 768 for MagicQ PC/Mac and 800 by 600 for the console.
Page 179: Buttons
MagicQ User Manual 150 / 348 20.6 Buttons By default buttons in the Execute Window are set to toggle their function on and off each time the button is pressed. It is possible to set a button in the Execute Window that is controlling a Cue or a Cue Stack to momentary rather than toggling. Move the cursor to the required item and use Soft button E to set the item type “Button Fl”.
Page 180: Attribute Encoders
MagicQ User Manual 151 / 348 20.9 Attribute Encoders The attribute encoder acts like the encoders in the Intensity, Position, Colour, Beam windows, affecting the currently selected heads. 20.10 Preload The Preload function allows execute window items to be selected before the change is applied. Press the PRELOAD soft button to start selecting/deselecting items.
Page 181: Changing Execute Page
MagicQ User Manual 152 / 348 20.12.1 Changing Execute Page It is possible to build up multiple execute grids and to change between them using the Exec Page, Exec Page Up and Exec Page Down special options. For example you could use Grid 1 as an "Home" grid with only buttons to change to other pages. Then each of the other pages could have a Exec Page button to change back to the "Home"...
Page 182: Automation
MagicQ User Manual 153 / 348 Chapter 21 Automation 21.1 MagicQ Automation Window MagicQ supports an automation system to enable it to automatically respond to both external, internal and timed events. MagicQ can trigger on external events such as MIDI notes, DMX input, serial input, timecode, and the remote contact input. MagicQ can also trigger on internal events such as system startup, system shutdown and system powerfail.
Page 183: Autom Functions
MagicQ User Manual 154 / 348 Event Power fail Scene Setter Button Button number 1 to 16 21.1.2 Autom Functions Each Function can have up to 3 function parameters F1, F2, F3. For Playback (PB) functions, F1 is the Playback number. For Stack functions, F1 is the Stack number.
Page 184: Serial Port Events
MagicQ User Manual 155 / 348 21.1.4 Serial Port events If you add serial port events then these override the normal ChamSys serial remote protocol functions. The serial port settings in Setup, View Settings, Ports must be set up with Serial Remote Protocol set to ChamSys RX. MagicQ matches the serial data received to the string you specify in the P2 ﬁeld using the same format as in the Cue Stack Macros but without the X.
Page 185: Sunrise + Sunset (Astronomical)
MagicQ User Manual 156 / 348 21.2.2 Sunrise + Sunset (astronomical) MagicQ has the capability to trigger events based on the sunrise and sunset at the particular location. In order for sunrise and sunset events to occur correctly MagicQ must be conﬁgured with the correct longitude, latitude and time zones.
Page 186: Keyboard Macro Timing
MagicQ User Manual 157 / 348 21.4.2 Keyboard Macro Timing Playback of keyboard macros can use the times that the macro was recorded with or using external time code sources. By default macros are played back using “Immediate” timing. Use the SET TIMING soft button to change the timing to “Real time” or “Time code”.
Page 187: Led & Pixel Mapping
MagicQ User Manual 158 / 348 Chapter 22 LED & Pixel Mapping MagicQ utilises a powerful Cue engine, which enables it to easily handle large numbers of LED heads in the form of panels, battens and moving lights. MagicQ’s ability to handle large numbers of heads independently ensures that Lighting Designers get to make the most of their LED arrays without being limited by the console.
Page 188 MagicQ User Manual 159 / 348...
Page 189: Patching Led On Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 160 / 348 22.1 Patching LED on MagicQ We recommend that you patch LED ﬁxtures in their highest resolution mode (maximum number of controllable RGB elements) and chose a mode without extra inbuilt FX channels if possible. The generic led3chan and generic led4chan can be used with most LED ﬁxtures.
Page 190 MagicQ User Manual 161 / 348 To insert the currently selected heads into the grid use the INSERT HEADS soft button. Choose between horizontally or verti- cally. If no heads are currently selected then all patched heads will be inserted. Note that it is not necessary to allocate a head number to every position in the grid –...
Page 191: Pixel Mapper
MagicQ User Manual 162 / 348 Once the grid is conﬁgured you can then see the Output by pressing the View Colours soft button and the View Grid soft button. For instance, below you can see the Output when all 400 heads were selected from the Group window (using the All LED3chan group) and then a RGB FX was played back on them.
Page 192: Using Bitmaps, Movies, Text And Fx On Grids
MagicQ User Manual 163 / 348 MagicQ asks the user to specify the number of layers required and will patch that number of layers (generic bitmapfx2 heads). The layers will be named according to the grid that is selected in the Outputs Window. MagicQ uses head numbers above the other patched ﬁxtures When operating on a layer within the pixel mapper it will default to operating on the grid that was selected when it was patched.
Page 193: Media Priority
MagicQ User Manual 164 / 348 22.4.2 Media Priority FX, Text and Media interact according to the following priorities, with FX having the highest priority and Media the lowest. FX Page If FX Type is greater than 0 then FX has highest Priority Text Page If Text 1 is greater than 0 or Text 2 is greater than 0 then Text has priority over media Media Page Media has the lowest priority In the Media Window the Media Page (encoder Y) is used to select the media that is played on the grid.
Page 194: User Picture Support
MagicQ User Manual 165 / 348 After a Locate the Media parameters will default to the white cross. Use the touch screen or encoders to select different Bitmaps. 22.4.4 User Picture Support MagicQ supports picture ﬁles in .bmp or .jpeg format and can be loaded using the LOAD PICTURE soft button. In addition the user can add their own bitmaps in .bmp or .png format manually into the Pics Pages 1 to 4.
Page 195: Magicq Media Center
MagicQ User Manual 166 / 348 The application will start streaming as soon as it is run. Click on Add to add a new stream, and Remove. . . to delete the current stream. To edit the parameters of a stream click on it in the top window then enter new values in the main edit window. If the FPS value turns red then the PC is not able to capture the window fast enough.
Page 196: Using Text Strings
MagicQ User Manual 167 / 348 22.4.8 Using text strings Two text strings can be played back on each layer. The text strings can be positioned at the top, middle or bottom of the grid and can be made to scroll in either horizontal or vertical directions. Text strings can be edited live for real time message applications. Control text strings from the Text Page (Beam Page 2).
Page 197 MagicQ User Manual 168 / 348 When the mode is set to single words then MagicQ displays each word in turn. Each word must be separated by a single space in the text string.
Page 198: Manipulating Bitmaps And Text
MagicQ User Manual 169 / 348 When the mode is set to chunks single chunks then MagicQ displays each chunk in turn. Each chunk must be separated by a single underscore (_) character in the text string. Space characters are displayed normally. 22.4.10 Manipulating bitmaps and text Use the Position attributes of the bitmap layer to make changes to the position of the bitmap / text –...
Page 199 MagicQ User Manual 170 / 348 Vert random, Horiz random – enable random movement of elements across the grid. Modify the mode to change thickness of the elements and offset to change the frequency. With this FX it is possible to generate snow and rain type FX.
Page 200 MagicQ User Manual 171 / 348 Spot random – enable random spots on the grid. Modify mode to determine whether the defaults is white spots on black background or black spots on white background.
Page 201 MagicQ User Manual 172 / 348 Vert Rainbow, Horiz Rainbow – enable rainbow patterns across the grid. Modify offset to multiply the rainbow across the grid. Snakes – enable snaking patterns on the grid. Modify the mode to determine the number of snakes, the randomness of the movement and whether they are white or coloured.
Page 202 MagicQ User Manual 173 / 348 Bat’n’Ball – enables simple bat and ball game on the grid. The bats are controlled by FX Parameters 2 and 3. The game starts when one of the bats is moved. Other bitmap layers can be combined with this to make a background for the playing ﬁeld.
Page 203: Pixel Map Audio Fx
MagicQ User Manual 174 / 348 Vert Move, Horiz Move, Move – moves the selected bitmap or text around the grid. The bitmap will wrap around the edges, thus allowing a texture to be moved across the entire surface of the grid. Ramp Horiz and Ramp Vert –...
Page 204 MagicQ User Manual 175 / 348 Parameter 2 select the channels to respond to. When set to 0, it uses all 14 audio input channels. From 1 to 14 it selects one channel to respond to. Value 15 selects the left channels, value 16 the right channels. The mode determines from which grid edge the audio takes effect.
Page 205: Mixing Between Pixel Mapping Layers
MagicQ User Manual 176 / 348 audio range signal is expected. To boost the audio signal, set the Audio Max Level to the maximum value expected between 1 and 255. If there is a lot of noise then set the Audio Min Level to eliminate the noise. 22.4.13 Mixing between Pixel Mapping layers The interaction of the different pixel mapping layers can be controlled using the Col Mix attribute in the colour page.
Page 206: Pixel Mapping
MagicQ User Manual 177 / 348 22.5 3D Pixel Mapping 22.5.1 Conﬁguration MagicQ supports 3D Pixel Mapping, enabling easy control of LED ceilings, chandeliers and other 3D LED objects. MagicQ supports 3D grids and multiple ﬁxtures can be inserted into the 3D grid in one go making it easy to create the grid mapping. In the Output Window, View Plan a grid can be made into a 3D grid by pressing SHIFT and SET GRID DEPTH.
Page 207 MagicQ User Manual 178 / 348 3D FX A2 applies a "trail" to the particle as it moves.
Page 208: Col Offset
MagicQ User Manual 179 / 348 22.5.2.3 Col Offset The col offset uses the colour of the pixels in the 2D frame to determine the offset in 3D. 3D FX A1 allows different colour types to be selected - e.g. using the offset based on red, green, blue or on combinations of colours such as red and blue.
Page 209: Full Up And Fill Down
MagicQ User Manual 180 / 348 22.5.3 Full Up and Fill Down The "Fill up" and "Fill down" modes ﬁll the rest of the 3D space either above or below the media layer with the same pixel value.
Page 210 MagicQ User Manual 181 / 348...
Page 211: Particle Bounce
MagicQ User Manual 182 / 348 22.5.3.1 Particle bounce The particle bounce effect can be likened to a grid of balls, where changes to the Modulate Layer 1 values are used as a "kick" to the ball upwards. Using this method, you can use a ﬂash button to ﬂash on the Modulate Layer 1, and the particles will ﬂick up, and then fall back down again under a simulated gravity.
Page 212: Using Groups Auto Generated From The Grid
MagicQ User Manual 183 / 348 22.8.1 Using groups auto generated from the grid Press the Auto Group button to automatically generate groups based on the grid size. This generates groups using the entire grid but with different orders of selection, e.g. from centre to outside, from the edges, and vice versa. This makes it easy to quickly generate different FX.
Page 213: Making Groups Out Of Led Pixels
MagicQ User Manual 184 / 348 It is possible to make a group out of the currently selected items within the Grid. For example, use CTRL + select a few items and then press SHIFT + MAKE GROUP to make a group i nthe Group Window for all those items. 22.9 Making groups out of LED pixels To get the best out of a large array of pixel heads it is best to make groups.
Page 214: Controlling Media Servers
MagicQ User Manual 185 / 348 Chapter 23 Controlling Media Servers MagicQ is ideally suited to controlling media servers through its dedicated Media window - the eight encoder wheels enable quick and easy access to a large numbers of control parameters. MagicQ has extremely powerful support for media servers.
Page 215: Patching Media Servers On Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 186 / 348 In addition, there is a Live Preview window, which shows the output of the media server, or the output of each of the layers. This is transferred is real time from the media server – so that you can see exactly what the media server is playing. This is particularly useful in situations with many media servers, or media servers that are remote from the control position.
Page 216: Conﬁguring Magicq To Retrive Thumbnails
MagicQ User Manual 187 / 348 23.3 Conﬁguring MagicQ to retrive thumbnails In the Setup Window, Media View conﬁgure the media server parameters. If you have patched using the Choose Media Server method above then the parameters should mostly be set up correctly for you. It is only neccesary to enter the IP address of the media server.
Page 217: Magichd
MagicQ User Manual 188 / 348 Select the type of media server and the version: Set the number of layers you have patched – this is the number of media layers, and does not include master layers, soft edge or camera layers.
Page 218: Hippotizer
MagicQ User Manual 189 / 348 23.3.5 Hippotizer Hippotizers now support MSEX - this is the recommended protocol to use. For older Hippotizer choose either Hippo Stage or Hippo Express depending on which type you are using. For Hippo HD use Hippos Stage.
Page 219: Media Window View
MagicQ User Manual 190 / 348 Enable the Live Preview option in the Media View of the Setup Window. The live preview is shown in the large window on the left of the Media Window. Choose using the top soft buttons whether the preview shows the output, or the currently selected layer.
Page 220: Citp (Msex) Live Feeds
MagicQ User Manual 191 / 348 23.8.1 CITP (MSEX) live feeds MagicQ supports live feeds over CITP (MSEX) for use in the MagicQ Pixel Mapper and for user display on MagicQ. Live feeds do not have to come from a Media Server, they can come from any CITP (MSEX) source such as PixelBeetle or MSexLord. Multiple different live feeds from multiple different source PC/Macs is supported.
Page 221: Head Editor
MagicQ User Manual 192 / 348 Chapter 24 Head Editor The Head Editor is accessed from the Edit Head soft button in the Patch Window. Making changes modiﬁes the head ﬁles stored on the MaqicQ disc and used for all new shows. The Head Editor consists of 5 views for modifying data: •...
Page 222: Loading New Heads Into Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 193 / 348 You can update a head stored in a show ﬁle with the one stored in show/heads using the “Reload Head” soft button. In the Head Editor press the “Reload Head” soft button. The head will be reloaded from disc and all the patched heads in the show will use the updated head.
Page 223: Names
MagicQ User Manual 194 / 348 24.5.1 Names The Manufacturer Name, Short Name and Mode are used to identify the head to the system. These ﬁelds should be unique to the moving light. If you make a new head for a ﬁxture based on one of the standard ones then you should make sure you change the mode to a name of your choice.
Page 224: Multi
MagicQ User Manual 195 / 348 HSI is not used at the moment. For RGBW ﬁxtures use RGBA. Virtual Chans. Some heads such as the Generic Scroller2chan are set up as a “Virtual” head – i.e. the channels in the head can be patched to any location on MagicQ –...
Page 225 MagicQ User Manual 196 / 348 The Type ﬁeld is used to indicate whether the channel is Highest Takes Precedence (HTP) or Latest Takes Precedence (LTP). Generally only Intensity is set to HTP - all other channels are LTP. Note that if a head has combined Dimmer and Strobe channel then this should be set as Dimmer attribute with type of HTP.
Page 226 MagicQ User Manual 197 / 348 Table 24.1: (continued) Attribute Attib No Default Encoder Function Cont7 Cont8 Frame Top left Frame Top left Frame 3 Bottom left Frame 4 Bottom left Frame 5 Top Right Frame 6 Top Right Frame 7 Bottom Right Frame 8 Bottom Right...
Page 227: Ranges View
MagicQ User Manual 198 / 348 24.7 Ranges View This view deﬁnes the ranges for channels that use speciﬁc values to access functions such as colour and gobo wheels, shutter channels and control channels. Ranges can be set up at any time regardless of whether heads of the type have been patched. The range data becomes immediately available.
Page 228: Capturing Ranges
MagicQ User Manual 199 / 348 24.7.2 Capturing Ranges To capture the minimum and maximum values from the programmer you must ﬁrst insert a new range and select the channel number you are interested in. Then using the Group, Position, Colour, Beam, windows in the usual way set the minimum value for the attribute.
Page 229: Attribute Test
MagicQ User Manual 200 / 348 24.8.3 Attribute Test The “Attr test” mode enables the palette to be tested on any patched heads of this type. In this mode moving up/down outputs the Palette to all patched heads of this type. 24.9 Macros View This view deﬁnes the macros that are available to control special features of the head such as turning the lamp on and off and resetting motor channels.
Page 230 MagicQ User Manual 201 / 348 Heads that consist of a single general element in addition to a repeated element are also supported. In these cases two different heads are required – one for the general element and one for the repeated element. The head for the general element is used for patching, and it references the repeated element to enable it to be patched automatically.
Page 231: Patching Heads With Duplicated Attributes
MagicQ User Manual 202 / 348 and repeated elements the general element will be allocated the base head number and the repeated elements will have increasing head numbers from the base element. The Head Editor now shows the full channel list in View Chans including the repeated channels. 24.11.1 Patching Heads with Duplicated attributes From versiosn 1.6.6.2 MagicQ has improved support for Heads with more than one element of an attribute - for example a LED Wash light with 5 RGB elements or a club light with 2 tilt channels.
Page 232: Fx Editor
MagicQ User Manual 203 / 348 Chapter 25 FX Editor MagicQ includes a FX editor added to enable users to create their own waveform FX and to edit existing waveform FX. The FX editor edits the core MagicQ waveform FX stored on the console – distinct from the combination FX stored in the FX Window. Waveform FX are not speciﬁc to a particular personality type –...
Page 233: View General
MagicQ User Manual 204 / 348 It is possible to remove all user Waveform FX from a console. Press SHIFT + REMOVE USER FX. 25.1 View General In View General you can conﬁgure properties for the FX. For FX that only use 1 attribute setting the “Apply to any attribute” enables the FX to be used on any attribute rather than being tied to a speciﬁc attribute such as dimmer.
Page 234: Network Manager (Snakesys)
MagicQ User Manual 205 / 348 Chapter 26 Network Manager (SnakeSys) MagicQ supports a Window for managing SnakeSys network products including the SnakeSys B4, SnakeSys R4, SnakeSys T2 and SnakeSys R8. The Network Manager (Setup, View DMX I/O, Net Manager) can be used for monitoring and conﬁguring SnakeSys products. SnakeSys products can be conﬁgured in two different ways –...
Page 235: Upgrading Snakesys Firmware
MagicQ User Manual 206 / 348 The proﬁles act as a starting point – once a starting proﬁle has been chosen, the detailed conﬁguration can all be set individually for each port by changing to the VIEW PORTS view. The rate, frame, MAB and Break timing can be set for each interface – the timings affect all ports on the interface. When conﬁgured as Outputs the ports can be conﬁgured to output the same or different Art-Net / ACN universes.
Page 236: Older Chamsys 4 Port Ethernet Interfaces
MagicQ User Manual 207 / 348 • SnakeSys B4 334A • SnakeSys R4 342A • SnakeSys T2 419B • SnakeSys R8 330A 26.4 Older ChamSys 4 Port Ethernet interfaces Older Chamys 4 Port Ethernet Interfaces and the SnakeSys B4 interfaces manufactured prior to 2013 (serial numbers with last 4 digits less than 0268) have no storage for conﬁguration data and so when in ChamNet mode they always get their conﬁguration from MagicQ every time they are powered up.
Page 237: Networking Of Magicq Systems
MagicQ User Manual 208 / 348 Chapter 27 Networking of MagicQ systems It is possible to have many different MagicQ consoles on a single network – either to allow control of many different ﬁxtures, remote control or to provide master/slave conﬁgurations. For the purposes of networking a MagicQ PC/Mac system connected to a MagicQ Wing can perform exactly the same function as a MagicQ console.
Page 238 MagicQ User Manual 209 / 348 This should show a list of network ports including any ﬁxed network ports and wireless ports. Right click the required network connection and select Properties. Choose Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). A dialog box should appear with the title Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) properties.
Page 239: Checking Ip Addresses - Ping Test
MagicQ User Manual 210 / 348 Choose "Use the following IP address". Enter the IP address (e.g. 2.0.0.10) and the subnet mask (e.g. 255.0.0.0). The default gateway address can generally be left blank. Click ok. 27.2 Checking IP addresses - Ping Test MagicQ includes a ping test for resolving network problems.
Page 240: Grabbing Shows From Other Consoles
MagicQ User Manual 211 / 348 27.4 Grabbing shows from other consoles It is possible to grab a show that is running on another console onto the current console. Press the Grab Show soft button in the View DMX I/O view of the Setup Window. Choose which console you wish to grab a show from. The show is copied from the other console to the show folder on this console, and the show is loaded into memory.
Page 241: Manual Takeover
MagicQ User Manual 212 / 348 • All Slaves are automatically synchronised to the show ﬁle from the Master console. • All Slaves can take control of part of the output via the selective channel control feature. • All Slaves can edit show data including Palettes, Cues and Cue Stacks on the Master console. •...
Page 242: Auto Takeover
MagicQ User Manual 213 / 348 27.6.2 Auto Takeover The ﬁrst console to start becomes the Master. In Setup, View DMX I/O, Take Control and Release Control can be used to swap which console is the Master at any time. If the Master console stops for any reason then one of the Slave consoles will take over.
Page 243: Checking Slave Synchronisation
MagicQ User Manual 214 / 348 Multi programming enables multiple consoles to access one show ﬁle held on the master console with all consoles being able to make changes to that show ﬁle. MagicQ ensures that the slave consoles are synchronised to the master console show data. Updates from any console are synchronised across the network.
Page 244: Selecting Which Console Controls Which Channels
MagicQ User Manual 215 / 348 27.8.1 Selecting which console controls which channels MagicQ enables several different ways of selecting which channels are controlled from which console on the network – selected channels, active channels, groups of channels, universes and zones. MagicQ defaults to the show master having control of all the channels.
Page 245: Inter Console Messaging
MagicQ User Manual 216 / 348 When the slave has no channels under control it shows “CC-None”. At any time the Master can take control of all channels using the Setup, View DMX I/O, Multi Prog Select soft button. When the Master is controlling all channels then it shows “MCC”...
Page 246: Manual Conﬁguration Of Multi Console Operation
MagicQ User Manual 217 / 348 Chapter 28 Manual conﬁguration of Multi Console operation From software version 1.5.9.4 we recommend you use network sessions to control hot take-over, show synchronisation and playback synchronisation. However it can be conﬁgured manually as below. 28.1 Manual conﬁguratuion of Hot take-over Hot take-over allows the use of multiple consoles in case a console stops working.
Page 247 MagicQ User Manual 218 / 348 • Equal Both consoles have same priority • Split Universes controlled independently. (default) For all modes it is still necessary to set up Setup, View DMX I/O so that all universes that you wish to use as Hot Takeover have their Output and Input universes and type set correctly.
Page 248: Hot Take-Over Type
MagicQ User Manual 219 / 348 28.1.2 Hot take-over type The hot take-over type can be set to manual or automatic. When set to manual the output is frozen until the operator decides what new look to change to. In automatic, a gradual fade is made to the look set on the Playbacks – in this mode an operator will often put up a “safe”...
Page 249: Conﬁguring Which Consoles Playback Sync To Which Consoles
MagicQ User Manual 220 / 348 • None: No synchronisation information is sent • Swap DBO Swap, DBO info only • Page Page changes only • Enhanced Playback Enhanced sync protocol (recommended) • Slave Slave (receive sync only) • Wings Wing data only (no data is sent for PB1 to PB10) •...
Page 250: Manual Conﬁguration Of Selective Channel Control
MagicQ User Manual 221 / 348 Conﬁgure the master console by setting the multi console setting “Show data sync type” to “Master Prog”. On each of the slave consoles set the “Show data sync type” option to “Slave Prog” and set the “Show data sync IP” to the IP address of the master show console.
Page 251 MagicQ User Manual 222 / 348 In the Setup Window, View Settings, Multi Console conﬁgure the “Show sync type” option to “Archive”. When set to “Archive”, MagicQ periodically checks for other consoles on the network and grabs the show ﬁles that are running on those consoles.
Page 252: Remote Control Of Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 223 / 348 Chapter 29 Remote control of MagicQ MagicQ supports the remote control of other MagicQ consoles and PC/Mac systems. Any MagicQ console or any MagicQ PC system can be controlled from any other MagicQ console or MagicQ PC system on the network. This enables complete remote management of any system from any other system.
Page 253: Ios / Android Remote
MagicQ User Manual 224 / 348 You can tell which system you are controlling by looking at the system name in the Status Display (above PB1 to PB5). When MagicQ is remote controlling another console it indicates “REM” at the start of this status line. To end remote control of another system press CTRL 1 on the keyboard of the controlling system.
Page 254 MagicQ User Manual 225 / 348 The MagicQ Remote application can be downloaded free of charge from the Apple App Store. For Android it can be downloaded free of charge from the Google Play Store. To enable support for the remote application, set Setup, View Settings, Multi Console, Remote Control to “Enabled”.
Page 255: Setting Up An Access Point
MagicQ User Manual 226 / 348 29.3.1 Setting up an access point In order to use a wireless access point with MagicQ you must conﬁgure the access point with a SSID, IP address, subnet mask and if required encryption. Most access points have an inbuilt web server that enables conﬁguration from a PC or Mac using a web browser. The web server generally has a username and password –...
Page 256: Making A Connection To Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 227 / 348 The Wireless channel defaults to 0 indicating that the Edimax device will automatically pick a channel. If you wish to force use of a particular channel enter a number between 1 and 11. Enter a name for the Wireless SSID – this will be the how the WIFI appears on the remote device – on iPhone go to Settings, Wi-Fi to select connection to the network.
Page 257: Modifying Palettes With The Remote App
MagicQ User Manual 228 / 348 29.3.2.2 Modifying palettes with the remote app It is easy to modify palettes with the remote application. In the Focus tab (Key tab on iPad), select your heads (e.g. GROUP 1 ENTER) then select the position palette (e.g. POS 5 ENTER).
Page 258 MagicQ User Manual 229 / 348 http://2.9.200.5:8080/index.html The Remote page is a simple remote focus for setting channel levels. It can also be accessed by adding “/remote” to the URL. This is useful for Pocket PC and mobile phones to go directly to the remote control page. chamsys176:8080/remote In order to set up a PC, Pocket PC or mobile phone to connect to MagicQ you must ensure that there is a physical connection to MagicQ –...
Page 259: Custom Web Server
MagicQ User Manual 230 / 348 The Execute page is very similar to the Execute Windows on the console but accessible through any PC with a browser on the network – it enables users to remote manage the console via the Execute window. The Windows pages enable users to view all the windows on the console remotely within a browser.
Page 260: Remote Control Using Magic Wand Simulator
MagicQ User Manual 231 / 348 </head> <body>   <FORM ACTION="user.html" name="user" METHOD=GET>  <!-- Place the command in the value and set the name to "cmd"...
Page 261: Chamsys Remote Protocol Commands
MagicQ User Manual 232 / 348 Chapter 30 ChamSys Remote Protocol Commands ChamSys remote protocol consists of simple commands consisting of a list parameter values separated by commas ‘,’ and ending in a character A to Z (or a to z). Commands can contain spaces, tabs, and carriage returns; they are all ignored. The remote protocol is split into remote playback commands and remote programming commands.
Page 262: Remote Programming Commands
MagicQ User Manual 233 / 348 Commands can be sent back to back – e.g. 1A2A1S2G3,4I 30.1.1 Remote programming commands Remote programming commands enable simple programming actions to be carried out from a remote terminal. Remote pro- gramming commands consist of the program command number followed by parameters and completed with an “H”. The commands are: <01>...
Page 263: Attribute Numbers
MagicQ User Manual 234 / 348 <showfile id> is a four digit decimal number between 0000 and 9999. <state> is 0 or 1 states, or 2 is toggle current state. 30.1.2 Attribute numbers Intensity (0) Intensity Mode (1) Pan (4) Tilt (5) Pos1 (46) Pos2 (47) Pos3 (48) Pos4 (49) Pos5 (50) Pos6 (51) Cyan (16) Magenta (17) Yellow (18) Col mix (19) Col1 (6) Col3 (26) Col2 (7) Col4 (27) Shutter (2) Iris (3) Gobo1 (8) Gobo2 (9) Gobo3 (28) Gobo4 (29) Rotate1 (10) Rotate2 (11) Rotate3 (30) Rotate4 (31) Focus (12) Zoom (13) Frost1 (32) Frost2 (33) FX1 (14) FX2 (15) FX3 (34) FX4 (35) FX5 (36) FX6 (37) FX7 (38) FX8 (39) Macro1 (22)
Page 264: Controlling Magicq Using Tcp/Ip
MagicQ User Manual 235 / 348 Chapter 31 Controlling MagicQ using TCP/IP MagicQ consoles and MagicQ PC/Mac software supports the use of an network protocol for controlling external devices, such as media servers, video or automation computers. The protocol can also be used to remote control MagicQ consoles or MagicQ software via a simple set of text commands. Note that the use of the ChamSys Remote Ethernet Protocol on MagicQ PC/Mac is only enabled when it is connected to a MagicQ Wing or Interface (not MagicDMX).
Page 265: Writing To The Network Port
MagicQ User Manual 236 / 348 31.2 Writing to the network port Commands are transmitted from the network port using the Y macro in the Macro ﬁeld of the Cue Stack window (use Page Right to ﬁnd the Macro ﬁeld). In the View Settings view of the Setup Window, set the Ethernet Remote Protocol to “ChamSys Rem tx”.
Page 266 MagicQ User Manual 237 / 348 struct sockaddr_in name; char opts[100]; socklen_t optlen = 100; flags; // For Windows OS we need to start winsocket #ifndef LINUX WSAData ws; code; code = WSAStartup(MAKEWORD(1,1),&ws); #endif (remote_ether_sock) return (TRUE); remote_ether_sock = socket (PF_INET, SOCK_DGRAM, 0); getsockopt (remote_ether_sock,SOL_SOCKET,SO_REUSEADDR, opts, &optlen);...
Page 267 MagicQ User Manual 238 / 348 (rem->chamsys == ((’C’<<24)|(’R’<<16)|(’E’<<8)|(’P’))) len = wswap(rem->length); remote_ether_bkwd = rem->seq_fwd; (len<(MAX_CREP_MSG-(sizeof(remote_ether_message_t)+1))) (len>size) len = size; memcpy(data,&(rem->data),len); return (len); return (0); char remote_ether_tx(char * data, word16 size) // Format the message byte message[MAX_CREP_MSG]; remote_ether_message_t * rem = (remote_ether_message_t * ) message; nbytes;...
Page 268 MagicQ User Manual 239 / 348 memcpy(&(rem->data),data,size); my_broadcast_address.s_addr = ip_address | ~subnet_address; name.sin_family = AF_INET; name.sin_port = htons (REMOTE_ETHER_PORT); name.sin_addr.s_addr = dwswap (my_broadcast_address.s_addr); nbytes = sendto (remote_ether_sock, message, size(sizeof(remote_ether_message_t)-1), (struct sockaddr * ) & name, sizeof(name) (nbytes>0) remote_ether_fwd++; return (TRUE);...
Page 269: Controlling Magicq Using Serial Port
MagicQ User Manual 240 / 348 Chapter 32 Controlling MagicQ using serial port MagicQ consolea and MagicQ software support the use of a serial port for controlling external devices, such as CD or DVD players, video or automation computers. The serial port can also be used to remote control the MagicQ console or MagicQ software via a simple set of text commands. A standard male 9 pin D type connector is provided on MagicQ consoles.
Page 270: Writing To The Serial Port
MagicQ User Manual 241 / 348 32.2 Writing to the serial port Commands are transmitted from the serial port by placing the command in the Macro ﬁeld of the Cue Stack window. The format of serial commands is X followed by the data. To send serial data, the X command must be the only macro command in the macro ﬁeld.
Page 271: Audio
MagicQ User Manual 242 / 348 Chapter 33 Audio 33.1 Audio Input Audio input can be used in many ways on MagicQ - to bump a Cue Stack from step to step, to set a Cue Stack tempo, to set the virtual level of the playback fader and as part of the MagicQ Pixelmapper.
Page 272: Cue Stack Audio Options
MagicQ User Manual 243 / 348 • Console inbuilt port" • PC/Mac sound card". On MagicQ PC / Mac systems select "Pc/Mac sound card". Audio input is only supported when the PC/Mac is connected to a MagicQ Wing orInterface (not MagicDMX). This function was added in v1.6.0.9 software. On MQ40, MQ60, MQ70, Pro 2014 consoles and PC Wing Compacts the audio is received via dedicated audio ports - choose the option "Console Inbuilt Port".
Page 273: Midi Notes Receive
MagicQ User Manual 244 / 348 Chapter 34 MIDI MagicQ MQ60, MQ70 and MQ100 Pro 2014 consoles have inbuilt support for MIDI. To use MIDI on any other MagicQ systems you need an external MagicQ MIDI/Timecode interface. MagicQ does not support MIDI via 3rd party PC MIDI interfaces. MagicQ can generate and receive MIDI notes commands and can also receive MIDI show control and MIDI beat clock.
Page 274: Midi Autom Events
MagicQ User Manual 245 / 348 When using the MagicQ MIDI/SMPTE interface for MIDI only the Timecode options can be set to none and then the last received MIDI command will be shown in the Status Display. 34.1.1 MIDI Autom events MagicQ supports triggering of automated events via MIDI in the Macro Window, View Autom.
Page 275: Default Miditable.txt File
MagicQ User Manual 246 / 348 To jump within a Cue Stack instead of testing / untesting a Playback just change the remote command in the inverted comments. 144,36”1,10j” // Jump to Cue Id 10 on Playback 1 It is also possible to map the note or velocity directly into the remote command using the %01 for the note and %02 for the velocity.
Page 276: Midi Problems
MagicQ User Manual 247 / 348 MIDI note commands are 3 bytes long, consisting of the command (note on / note off) byte, followed by the note and then the velocity <note on/off> <note> <velocity> For example, to send a note for middle C set the macro ﬁeld to the following: N144,60,127 // Note 60 on velocity 127 N128,60,0 // Note 60 off MagicQ accepts both ‘N’...
Page 277: Midi Show Control Command Format
MagicQ User Manual 248 / 348 34.4.1 MIDI Show Control Command Format For more details on MIDI Show Control protocols see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIDI_Show_Control MIDI Show Control Commands are of the format F0 7F <device_ID> 02 <command_format> <command> <data> F7 <device_ID> is 7F for “all call” ID for system wide broadcasts <command_format>...
Page 278: Timecode Support
MagicQ User Manual 249 / 348 Chapter 35 Timecode Support MagicQ supports both time code decode and time code generation. MagicQ MQ70 and MQ100 Pro 2014 consoles have inbuilt support for Timecode. All other MagicQ systems require connection to an external MagicQ MIDI/Timecode interface. MagicQ does not support timecode via 3rd party PC MIDI interfaces or through the phone (rca) interfaces on MagicQ consoles.
Page 279 MagicQ User Manual 250 / 348 Time code can be triggered from an external time code source using the MagicQ MIDI/Timecode module, or it can run from the internal time code source. To control a Cue Stack using external time code set the “External time code” option in the Cue Stack options.
Page 280: Enabling / Disabling Timecode
MagicQ User Manual 251 / 348 35.2 Enabling / Disabling Timecode It is possible to turn timecode decode on and off for a Cue Stack using soft button A in the Cue Stack Window. When timecode is turned off the Cue Stack will not execute timecode Cues. When turned on it will execute timecode Cues according to the Internal/External setting.
Page 281: Timecode Re-Transmit
MagicQ User Manual 252 / 348 W <enable> Enable / disable time code generation (1 for enable, 0 for disable) Q <time code> Set current time code (also enables time code generation) For example to set timecode to 0:0:10:0 Q0,0,10,0 35.7 Timecode Re-transmit The LTC or MIDI timecode decoded from a MagicQ MIDI/Timecode interface can be retransmitted over the network as Art-Net timecode.
Page 282: Remote Input Port
MagicQ User Manual 253 / 348 Chapter 36 Remote Input port The MagicQ PC Wing, MagicQ MaxiWing and MagicQ consoles support a remote input port on the rear panel, which can be used to trigger functions in MagicQ from an external control device or switch. The remote trigger can be used to trigger Cues in Cues Stacks, to ﬂash playbacks, as a master GO button, or as a ADD/SWAP selector.
Page 283: Enabling The Remote Input In Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 254 / 348 0V and equipment ground Opto isolated input positive Power supply positive (5 Volt, current limited) Opto isolated input negative 0V and equipment ground (same as pin 3) The remote input can be used to receive an external signal on the opto isolated inputs, or it can be wired to an external switch. To receive an external signal wire the signal + to pin 5 and the signal –...
Page 284 MagicQ User Manual 255 / 348 AUDIO BUMP allows the remote trigger to be used in the same way as when triggering from receiving audio. Any Cue Stack set with "Audio Bumps Go" set will bump one step every time the remote input is triggered. TAP TO TIME changes the speed of the currently selected playback.
Page 285: Scene Setter
MagicQ User Manual 256 / 348 Chapter 37 Scene Setter The MagicQ Scene Setter enables control of MagicQ from a remote location using a ﬁxed network connection. The Scene Setter has 4 playback faders and 12 playback buttons, and can be mapped to the wing playbacks on a MagicQ system. An LCD screen shows the legends for the playbacks.
Page 286: Conﬁguration
MagicQ User Manual 257 / 348 POE is required on the unused data pairs (4,5 DC+ and 7,8 DC-). Any suitable power injector that supplies 48V at up to 1Amp on the unused pairs is acceptable. Note that you need to check the speciﬁcation of your network switch or power injector as many common brand names only supply power on the used pairs, not the unused pairs.
Page 287: Setting Up The Serial Port
MagicQ User Manual 258 / 348 When you have connected your Scene Setter to your the PC and the Digi Utiltly has loaded up, it will automatically look for the Scene Setter over your network. Once set up you can change the IP Address. Advanced Scene Setter Conﬁguration The Scene setter can be remotely conﬁgured using a web browser.
Page 288: Magicq Visualiser
MagicQ User Manual 259 / 348 Chapter 38 MagicQ Visualiser 38.1 MagicVis MagicQ includes a visualiser called MagicVis available for Windows, Mac and Linux. MagicVis is available in two versions: • A standalone application called MagicVis that can connect to a MagicQ console or receive ArtNet or ACN data from other brands of console over a network.
Page 289: Using Magicvis With Other Consoles
MagicQ User Manual 260 / 348 setup VIEW SETTINGS Multi Console and ensure that Enable Remote Control and Enable Remote Access are set to yes. Connect the console and the PC/Mac with an inverted network cable. Start MagicVis and click on File Settings.
Page 290: Using The Visualiser In Magicq
MagicQ User Manual 261 / 348 38.1.3 Using the Visualiser in MagicQ Run the MagicQ software then go to the Visualiser menu in the menu bar and click on Show Visualiser. The window can be sized and moved to the required position. As the Visualiser is integrated with the MagicQ app it is not necessary to set up IP addresses or enable/conﬁgure universes.
Page 291: View Vis View
MagicQ User Manual 262 / 348 Once a head has been patched into your show MagicQ will not prompt you again. If you wish to change the setting then you can enable or disable auto insertion in setup VIEW SETTINGS Mode Visualiser.
Page 292: Objects
MagicQ User Manual 263 / 348 Pressing the soft buttons X, Y and F increases the position by 1 metre on that axis. Pressing SHIFT + the soft button decreases the position by 1 metre on that axis. Use fan to spread the position apart on the X,Y, or Z position wheels. Encoders B, C and D are used for rotation around the X, Y and Z axis.
Page 293: Attaching Heads To Objects
MagicQ User Manual 264 / 348 Create a truss and set the model to Invisible to group lights together and create useful plots for them. For example in the ExhibitionDemo show the PixelLine ﬁxtures may be rigged on individual vertical pipes but in MagicVis they are all rigged on one invisible truss which is rotated so that when the paperwork is created there is a plot with all the PixelLines on it rotated so that it is obvious how they are laid out.
Page 294: Coloured Objects
MagicQ User Manual 265 / 348 38.2.9 Coloured objects In MagicVis it is possible to set a Head item to colour an attach object, for truss warmers or for coloured scenic pieces. In Patch, View Vis on the Selected Heads or Vis Heads tab page right to get to the Col Apply column and set it to Yes. If there are more than one heads attached to an object with the Col Apply set then it will use the last one in the list.
Page 295 MagicQ User Manual 266 / 348 You can select what you would like to include and either print it out or create a PDF document. You can also export patch lists into a spreadsheet such as Numbers, LibreOfﬁce Calc or Excel. To do this click on one of the Export CSV. . . buttons, then load the csv ﬁle into a spreadsheet.
Page 296: Converting An Existing Magicq Show File
MagicQ User Manual 267 / 348 38.2.14 Converting an Existing MagicQ Show File Old MagicQ show ﬁles can be loaded into MagicQ, but they will not have any visualiser heads deﬁned. It is easy to take heads from an existing show ﬁle and create a visualisation. Select the heads using groups or the keypad.
Page 297: Plots
MagicQ User Manual 268 / 348 On systems with lower power graphics cards which are using a lot of LED ﬁxtures we recommend to turn off drawing of LED Beams. 38.2.17 Plots MagicQ now incorporates a Plot Window displaying the position and orientation of ﬁxtures within the lighting rig. The Plot Window can show Front, Overhead and Side elevations, restricted to either Flown or Floor ﬁxtures and the view can be moved and zoomed.
Page 298: Blind Visualisation
MagicQ User Manual 269 / 348 Chapter 39 Blind Visualisation MagicQ supports Blind Visualisation and Preview Visualisation when used together with MagicVis, Capture or WYSIWYG. This enables a Visualiser to show the contents of the Programmer during BLIND mode or to preview a Playback that is not active on the real outputs.
Page 299: Using Magicq With Other Visualisers
MagicQ User Manual 270 / 348 Chapter 40 Using MagicQ with other Visualisers In addition to its own free MagicVis visualiser, MagicQ supports connection with other Visualisers via network protocols. Mag- icQ supports transfer of patch and ﬁxture selection information to and from Visualisers. The protocol used to communicate between MagicQ and the Visualiser depends on the particular Visualiser.
Page 300: Wysiwyg
MagicQ User Manual 271 / 348 40.3 WYSIWYG MagicQ interfaces to the WYSIWYG visualiser using a special Wysiwyg driver ﬁle. Download the MagicQ WYSIWYG driver ﬁle from ChamSys download site and install it on the WYSIWYG PC. https://secure.chamsys.co.uk/bugtracker/download_ﬁle.php?ﬁle_id=36&type=doc 40.3.1 Enabling MagicQ to output WYSIWYG data Now you need to conﬁgure the outputs.
Page 301 MagicQ User Manual 272 / 348 The universes in WYSIWYG must be bound to the ChamSys MagicQ device in order for communication to occur with MagicQ.
Page 302: Auto Patch
MagicQ User Manual 273 / 348 40.3.3 Auto Patch MagicQ supports the WYSIWYG Auto Patch protocol. Selecting Auto Patch on WYSIWYG transfers the patch to MagicQ. To transfer a new show to MagicQ ﬁrst erase the show in MagicQ and then select Auto Patch, Send Patch in WYSIWYG. MagicQ identiﬁes the ﬁxtures in WYSIWYG and maps the names to the MagicQ ﬁxtures using a mapping table.
Page 303: Settings
MagicQ User Manual 274 / 348 Chapter 41 Settings MagicQ supports a large number of settings that the user is free to change. These settings are divided into two categories – show settings and console settings. Show settings are settings that the user may wish to change on a show by show basis, whereas console settings are associated with the speciﬁc console and its connectivity to external devices.
Page 304: Programming Mode
MagicQ User Manual 275 / 348 41.1 Programming Mode The MagicQ console allows the programming mode and playback mode to be conﬁgured in the Setup Window. The modes control several of the different settings of the console. All of the settings can be conﬁgured individually – however, the modes make it easy to change between the most frequently used settings.
Page 305: Playback Mode
MagicQ User Manual 276 / 348 Table 41.4: Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Fader Setting Normal(live) Theatre non track Theatre Track Hog II warp Fader activates Fader releases Table 41.5: Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Flash Setting Normal(live) Theatre non track Theatre Track Hog II warp Flash activates Flash releases...
Page 306: Output Settings
MagicQ User Manual 277 / 348 41.3 Output Settings The console universes can be conﬁgured to use different protocols. Outputs must be conﬁgured and enabled before the console will output data. To set up outputs, open the Setup Window and select the VIEW DMX I/O view. MagicQ software supports 64 universes but older versions of MagicQ support less universes.
Page 307: Using Art-Net
MagicQ User Manual 278 / 348 For network protocols such as Art-Net and Pathport it is necessary to set up the Out Uni and In Uni ﬁelds - these determine which the ID of the Universe when carried over Ethernet. These need to be set up to match the Ids conﬁgured on the Ethernet Interface boxes.
Page 308: Magicq Dual Dmx Interfaces
MagicQ User Manual 279 / 348 41.3.6 MagicQ Dual DMX Interfaces For MagicQ Dual DMX Interfaces select MQ Dual DMX. In older software this was ChamSys USB. Then select the module and port in the Out Uni ﬁeld. For example, select Mod 1 Port 1 and Mod 1 Port 2 for the two outputs. Any of the universes can be output to MagicQ Dual DMX interfaces.
Page 309: Wing Settings
MagicQ User Manual 280 / 348 41.4 Wing Settings ChamSys manufacture the following wings that connect to PCs, Macs and consoles via USB Table 41.9: Wings Product No of Playbacks Playback nos. No of DMX No of wings supported per PC / console Mini Wing Main (1-10)
Page 310: Connecting An Execute Wing
MagicQ User Manual 281 / 348 41.4.3 Connecting an Execute Wing The Execute Wing has 48 playbacks arranged as 12 fader playbacks and 36 button only playbacks. The Execute Wing can be conﬁgured simply to control Playbacks, or it can be set in a mode whereby the 36 button only playbacks become a 72 button matrix for use selecting heads, palettes, groups, media and execute buttons.
Page 311: Connecting Magicq Consoles Together
MagicQ User Manual 282 / 348 It is possible to conﬁgure the MQ60/70 to always start up in Net Wing mode - set Setup, View Settings, Window, Start Mode to Net Wing. When in Net Wing mode the status bar shows NETW. Press CTRL CLOSE to exit Net Wing Mode.
Page 312: Compact (Mq60/Mq70) Operating System
MagicQ User Manual 283 / 348 41.5.3 Compact (MQ60/MQ70) Operating System On the MQ60 and MQ70 one external touch screen is supported. We recommend using a 1024x768 resolution monitor for best performance. Touch screens are supported but note that the Linux operating system on use on these consoles does not currently support multi touch touch screens.
Page 313: Touch Screen Settings
MagicQ User Manual 284 / 348 In order to enable Multi Windows connection on the MagicQ set the "Multi Windows" option in the Setup Window, View Settings, Network to “Remote MultiWindow”. MagicQ MultiWindows itself has two modes of operation – automatic window sizing and user window sizing. Automatic window sizing divides each of the selected screens into quarters just like the touch-screen on MagicQ.
Page 314: Conﬁguring An External Touch Screen
MagicQ User Manual 285 / 348 • PanJit TouchSet • eTurboTouch • Gunze AHL61 • DMC TSC-10/25 • IRTOUCHSYSTEMS/UNITOP • IdealTEK URTC1000 • General Touch • GoTop Super_Q2/GogoPen/PenPower tablets • JASTEC USB touch controller/DigiTech DTR-02U • Zytronic capacitive touchscreen • NEXIO/iNexio MagicQ Compact consoles do not support multi touch touch screens.
Page 315: Mode & Security Settings
MagicQ User Manual 286 / 348 41.7 Mode & Security Settings The Settings View of the Setup Window uses tabs to group similar settings together. 41.7.1 Country The country setting determines the Country. Currently the country setting has the options UK, US, F (French), D (German), E (Spanish), P (Portugese), I (Italian), NL (Dutch).
Page 316: Modiﬁcations
MagicQ User Manual 287 / 348 41.7.6 Modiﬁcations This setting prevents Cue Stack and Cue data from being modiﬁed. Use this setting to ensure that programmed Cues and Cue Stacks are played back exactly as they were programmed. Modiﬁcations defaults to enabled. 41.7.7 Test Mode This setting allows Test mode to be disabled.
Page 317: Activate Chans / Heads
MagicQ User Manual 288 / 348 41.8.1 Activate Chans / Heads This setting determines how channels are activated in the Programmer. If set to Chans then when an attribute of a head is modiﬁed only that channel is affected. If set to Heads then when an attribute of a head is modiﬁed all the channels of that head are activated in the programmer.
Page 318: Fan Mode
MagicQ User Manual 289 / 348 In "Advanced (highlight/lowlight)” mode, all the attributes of the heads that are being controlled are set to the highlight values from the Personality. If Single mode or Odd/Even mode is in operation then only the subset of the selected heads is highlighted –...
Page 319: Select Heads On Keypad Intensity Set
MagicQ User Manual 290 / 348 41.9.2 Select heads on keypad intensity set This setting determines whether the current head selection is modiﬁed when you set intensities using the keypad. When set to "No" the intensities are set without modifying the head selection. When set "yes" the intensities are set and then the head selection is modiﬁed, for example: 1 THRU 4 @ 50 ENTER sets heads 1 to 4 at 50% intensity and selects heads 1 to 4.
Page 320: Encoder Mode
MagicQ User Manual 291 / 348 In Theatre Patch it is possible to repatch dimmer channels. If the head is already unpatched then just enter the new address – e.g. to repatch head number 20 to DMX channel 25. 20 @ 25 It is possible to repatch to multiple DMX addreses –...
Page 321 MagicQ User Manual 292 / 348 Normal the keyboard is used for naming items and selecting heads Programming shortcuts the keyboard is set up for shortcuts to programming keys Playback shortcuts the keyboard is set up for shortcuts for playback keys Programming shortcuts Windows are opened using CTRL and the alphanumeric keys CTRL A CTRL D CTRL E Execute CTRL F Fx CTRL G Group CTRL H Help CTRL I Intensity CTRL J Beam CTRL K Colour...
Page 322: Map Keys To Thru, @, Full
MagicQ User Manual 293 / 348 1 to 0 Select playbacks 1 to 10 Q to P GO button playbacks 1 to 10 A to ; STOP button playbacks 1 to 10 \ to Toggle test playback on at 100%. In Swap mode releases all others tested playbacks Add / Swap mode SPACE...
Page 323: Big Text Mode
MagicQ User Manual 294 / 348 41.10.2 Big Text Mode This setting shows all text in CAPITALS regardless of how it is programmed in the show. There is also an option to capitalise only the ﬁrst letter of names. 41.10.3 Icon Size This setting sets the size of icons –...
Page 324: Always Show Record Options
MagicQ User Manual 295 / 348 41.10.12 Always show Record Options When this setting is set to Yes, MagicQ always shows a Record Options toolbar when the Record button is pressed. An Include Options toolbar is shown when Include is pressed. 41.10.13 Force Window on External Monitor This setting determines how windows are shown on the External Monitor.
Page 325: Copy Mode (Linked/Unlinked)
MagicQ User Manual 296 / 348 41.11.4 Copy mode (linked/unlinked) By default when you copy a Cue Stack, MagicQ creates a new Cue Stack but retains links to the old Cues – i.e. no new Cues are made. Using SHIFT COPY and selecting Unlinked you can specify an unlinked copy whereby new Cues are made. This setting allows the default Copy behaviour to be changed so that the copy is always unlinked unless SHIFT + COPY is pressed and Unlinked is deselected.
Page 326: Sub Master Function
MagicQ User Manual 297 / 348 41.12.2 Sub Master function. The Sub Master can be conﬁgured to control either playback faders only, or add/swap buttons only, or both (the default). It can also be set as a programmer master, a preset master or both. 41.12.3 Crossfade Master function The Crossfade master can be conﬁgured in several different ways: •...
Page 327: Crossfade Controls Playback
MagicQ User Manual 298 / 348 41.13.2 Crossfade controls Playback This setting enables the user to lock the manual playback section of MagicQ to Playback Fader 1, 2, 9 or 10 regardless of the currently selected Playback. This is designed for theatrical use where one playback is the master Cue Stack. The default is “Selected Playback”.
Page 328: Tap To Time Buttons
MagicQ User Manual 299 / 348 41.13.10 Tap to Time buttons Enables the GO, PAUSE buttons or the S buttons to be permanently set to Tap to Time. The options are • GO buttons • FLASH buttons • S + GO buttons •...
Page 329: Subnet Mask
MagicQ User Manual 300 / 348 41.14.2 Subnet Mask The sub net mask for the network interface. For communicating with an Art-Net convertor the the Sub net address must be set to 255.0.0.0. 41.14.3 Send to applications on this PC This setting is used to send Output data internally to other applications on the same PC.
Page 330: Control Net Subnet Mask
MagicQ User Manual 301 / 348 41.14.10 Control net subnet mask For future use. 41.14.11 Wireless Mode Choice of wireless mode when using a USB to Wireless interface with the MagicQ Pro 2010 or Pro 2014 console. Also when using the internal wireless support on a MQ70. The options are •...
Page 331: Wireless Key
MagicQ User Manual 302 / 348 41.14.17 Wireless key Wireless encryption type when using a USB to Wireless interface with the MagicQ Pro 2010 or Pro 2014 console. Used when Wireless encryption is set to WEP or WPA. Also for MQ70. For WPA the key must be 8 or more characters.
Page 332: Serial Remote Protocol
MagicQ User Manual 303 / 348 41.15.8 Serial remote protocol Determines what protocol is used on the serial port. If set to “none” then any data received is ignored. Data can be transmitted from the Macro ﬁeld of Cue steps in the Cue Stack. The other protocols are: •...
Page 333: Audio Input
MagicQ User Manual 304 / 348 • PB10 FLASH • AUDIO BUMP The remote trigger can be used on a per Cue Stack basis by setting the Halt ﬁeld of Cue step in the Cue Stack to “Remote”. This is independent of any global action speciﬁed by the Remote trigger action setting. Audio bump simulates audio received at full level.
Page 334: Timecode In Type
MagicQ User Manual 305 / 348 41.16.4 Timecode in type The options are None, LTC, MIDI, Art-Net and Winamp. When this option is set, then timecode generation should be set to None. 41.16.5 Timecode generation The options are None, LTC, MIDI and Art-Net (retransmit). Art-Net (retransmit) causes any LTC or MIDI timecode received from the ChamSys MIDI/SMPTE interface to be retransmitted on the network as Art-Net timecode.
Page 335: Enable Remote Control
MagicQ User Manual 306 / 348 41.17.2 Enable remote control Enables other MagicQ consoles to remote control this console using the MagicQ remote control feature, the iOS/Android appli- cation, or the MagicWand. 41.17.3 Net Session Mode Enables network sessions whereby multiple MagicQ consoles can be used on a network together. The options are “None”, “Manual Takeover”...
Page 336: Playback Sync Slave Mode
MagicQ User Manual 307 / 348 41.17.11 Playback Sync Slave Mode When Network Session Mode is set then this speciﬁes whether the Slave synchronises its playbacks to the Master. When set to “Inhibit PB Sync” the Slave playbacks are not synchronised – this is useful for example when programming a show using multiple consoles.
Page 337: Power Fail Detection
MagicQ User Manual 308 / 348 • Set to 2 to disable Wing 1 lower faders. • Set to 4 to disable Wing 1 upper faders. • Set to 8 to disable Wing 2 lower faders. • Set to 10 to disable Wing 2 upper faders. 41.18.7 Power Fail Detection This setting disables power fail detection for the current seesion in case the power fail detection circuitry has gone faulty and is continually reporting power fail.
Page 338: Debug Mode (Must Be 0)
MagicQ User Manual 309 / 348 41.18.11 Debug Mode (Must be 0) For ChamSys internal debugging only. Must be set to 0. 41.18.12 Standard Logging This option allows logging to be disabled. This option should always be enabled except when directed by ChamSys support. 41.18.13 Extended Logging This option allows extended logging to be enabled.
Page 339: Console Lamp Brightness
MagicQ User Manual 310 / 348 To turn off the all the lights on the console (i.e. the displays, the console lights and the LEDs) press CTRL and the "All Lights" off button. To modify the contrast of Playback wings use the Wing Contrast encoder. When multiple Playback wings are connected press CTRL and the Next Page button of the Wing you wish to change the contrast on.
Page 340: Button Test Mode
MagicQ User Manual 311 / 348 41.27 Button test mode The console supports a button test mode for checking suspect buttons and faders. To enter button test mode on MQ100/200/300 consoles press the two SHIFT buttons either side of the touch screen together (i.e. hold one down and press the other). To enter button test mode on Compact consoles MQ40/60/70, press CNTRL + ALT + SHIFT together to enter and exit board test mode In button test mode the buttons do not have their usual function - instead when pressed a message will be displayed in the status display indicating which button has been pressed.
Page 341: System Management
MagicQ User Manual 312 / 348 Chapter 42 System Management 42.1 Starting Up On PC and Mac systems click on the MagicQ application icon. On MagicQ console systems hold the power button on for 1 second. On ﬁrst start up an introductory window is displayed on the screen. You are prompted to choose demo shows or to continue the last show.
Page 342: Show File Name Auto Increment
MagicQ User Manual 313 / 348 When you shut down MagicQ through the QUIT soft button in the Setup Window, it automatically saves a backup copy of your show with a .sbk extension. When you subsequently restart MagicQ this ﬁle will be re-loaded. This ensures that MagicQ starts up as it was when the QUIT soft button was pressed.
Page 343: Erasing
MagicQ User Manual 314 / 348 • Media Server Settings • MIDI SMPTE Settings • Port Settings • Multi Console Settings • Hardware Settings Selecting all the options loads the complete console settings and show settings – enabling the complete cloning of a console. Note that the console settings include the network settings and IP address –...
Page 344: Merging / Importing Shows
MagicQ User Manual 315 / 348 42.7.2 Merging / Importing Shows Select SHIFT + IMPORT SHOW to merge or import a show. MagicQ gives you a simple menu of Entire Show, Palettes or Advanced. Entire Show loads the entire show as separate ﬁxtures, i.e. adding the show to the existing show. Palettes allows just palettes to be loaded from the imported show ﬁle.
Page 345: File Manager
MagicQ User Manual 316 / 348 42.9 File Manager You can organise you show ﬁles using File Manager in the Setup Window. File Manager supports renaming, moving, copying and deleting of ﬁles. All show ﬁles are located in the show directory. The show directory has sub directories for fx, heads and icons. File manager can operate on both the internal hard disk and external USB memory sticks.
Page 346: Backup Archives
MagicQ User Manual 317 / 348 42.12 Backup Archives By default the console stores an archive of the show ﬁles for every quarter of an hour of the day, and for every day of the week. This enables the user to revert to a previous copy of their show. Archive ﬁles are only made when the console auto saves –...
Page 347: Magicq Proﬁles
MagicQ User Manual 318 / 348 Shows that only use universes 1 to 6 can to be loaded into consoles set to either 6,12,18, 32 or 64 universes. MagicQ MQ100, MQ200, MQ300 consoles purchased before March 2006 require a hardware upgrade to run 12 universes – this increases the processor power to guarantee performance.
Page 348: Software Upgrade
MagicQ User Manual 319 / 348 Chapter 43 Software Upgrade MagicQ software versions are fully compatible and show ﬁles can be created and loaded into any software version. 43.1 Changing MagicQ Console Software MagicQ consoles store all versions of software that have been loaded onto the console allowing easy changing between different versions.
Page 349: Upgrading Console Kernel
MagicQ User Manual 320 / 348 Table 43.1: (continued) Product Date Proc O/S disc Pro 2014 h/w name upgrade to upgrade 1.6.5.0? possible? MQ100 Pro Nov 2008 to Non-X .cde 8310 Oct 2009 MQ100 Pro Oct 2009 to Pro2010 .cdx 8310 2010 Mar 2013...
Page 350: Kernel Recovery
MagicQ User Manual 321 / 348 • Copy it to a USB stick keeping the same ﬁle name • Insert the USB stick into the console • In Setup open the File Manager and select View USB • Locate the kernel installer ﬁle and press the COPY button, then click on the ﬁle. The command window should then say "Select Destination"...
Page 351: Recovering "No More Processes Left In This Runlevel
MagicQ User Manual 322 / 348 If the ﬁle already has the above text in it, but with wireless conﬁguration at the bottom, use the arrow keys to goto the ﬁrst line which says "auto wlan0", then press F9 on the keyboard to delete each line after and including that, so the content of the ﬁle should be left with just the lines above.
Page 352: Console Command Entry
MagicQ User Manual 323 / 348 reboot and the console will shut down and restart. If for any reason the console does not restart, then hold the white reset button on the rear for 15 seconds until the console powers off completely.
Page 353 MagicQ User Manual 324 / 348 CH331_V0 Original ﬁrmware CH331_V1.0 Added audio support CH331_V1.1 Added MIDI and LTC timecode support (MQ70 only - not for MQ40/60) CH331_V1.2 Fixed RS232 serial port communications Disconnect any Wings and network devices and remove any USB drives from the console. Press Setup, View System, View Status and change to the USB Links tab.
Page 354: Handy Hints
MagicQ User Manual 325 / 348 Chapter 44 Handy Hints • Use the “Lamp On All” and “Lamp Off All” soft buttons in the Macro Window to make turning on/off an entire lighting rig easier. • Use a pan offset and/or tilt offset in Patch to adjust all the programming for some heads. •...
Page 355: Magicq Short Cuts
MagicQ User Manual 326 / 348 Chapter 45 MagicQ Short Cuts Table 45.1: Saving / Loading New show SETUP <View Settings> <New Show> Save show SETUP <View Settings> <Save Show> Load show SETUP <View Settings> <Load Show> Save settings SETUP <View Settings> <Save Setting> Load settings SETUP <View Settings>...
Page 356 MagicQ User Manual 327 / 348 Table 45.3: (continued) Reselect last heads after CLEAR Select Group 1 1 * * Select Groups 1 to 4 1 THRU 4 * * Sub select 1st head 1 NEXT HEAD Sub select 1st and 2nd head in selection 1 + 2 NEXT HEAD Sub select 3rd, 4th and 5th head 3 THRU 5 NEXT HEAD...
Page 357 MagicQ User Manual 328 / 348 Table 45.7: Playback Step through Cue Stack > Step back up Cue Stack pass:[ (also SHIFT + >)] Go to next step without time >> Go back a step without time << Reassert Playback S + FLASH button Take manual control of Playback S + move manual fader...
Page 358 MagicQ User Manual 329 / 348 Table 45.9: Removing Values from the Programmer Clear all values CLEAR Clear with 3 sec time 3 CLEAR Clear selected heads Select heads, SHIFT + CLEAR Clear to 0 vals CTRL + CLEAR Remove attrib <REM + turn encoder>...
Page 359 MagicQ User Manual 330 / 348 Table 45.12: (continued) Remove Cue ID 2.5 REM 2.5 S Copy Playback COPY <source S> <dest S> Copy Playback unlinked <SHIFT + COPY> <Unlinked> <source S> <dest S> Table 45.13: Palettes Record Palette Select heads, REC, select item Re-record Palette Select heads, REC, select item Name Palette...
Page 360 MagicQ User Manual 331 / 348 Table 45.16: (continued) Hard power off Hold rear reset button 15 seconds Reset graphics SHIFT + DBO Shut down console CTRL + DBO Lock/unlock console <CTRL + SOFT button Encoder A> Console lights on/off <CTRL + SOFT button Encoder B>...
Page 361: Troubleshooting
MagicQ User Manual 332 / 348 Chapter 46 Troubleshooting 46.1 No outputs Check whether MagicQ is operating correctly by opening the Outputs Window and looking at the data in View Heads. If the intensity or other attributes are not at their correct levels then check: •...
Page 362: Magicq Responding Slowly
MagicQ User Manual 333 / 348 46.3 MagicQ responding slowly Check memory usage in Setup, View System, View Status. Try • Closing all windows (SHIFT + CLOSE) • Ensure you have saved your show to hard disk not to a USB stick •...
Page 363: Magicq Console White Screen
MagicQ User Manual 334 / 348 46.7 MagicQ console white screen MagicQ console white screen indicates that the display has power but no data signal. This could be because the main processor has halted or because the display signal cable is broken/disconnected. Try pressing S buttons.
Page 364: Button Functions
MagicQ User Manual 335 / 348 Chapter 47 Button Functions Shift The shift buttons are used to select alternative functions for buttons and faders. There are three shift buttons on the console – one at the top of each side of the touch-screen. The third is in the row of action buttons above the keypad. The shift keys on external keyboards also have the same function.
Page 365 MagicQ User Manual 336 / 348 Used to maximise a window. Windows appear in the windows section of the screen. A maximised window is sized to the complete main window area. The buttons around the edge of the screen and the status screen continue to be displayed. Close Used to close a window.
Page 366 MagicQ User Manual 337 / 348 This is a Window select button. Pressing this button makes the Setup Window the active window. If the window was not open, then the window is opened. The Setup Window is used to perform major operations on show data such as loading, saving erasing shows.
Page 367 MagicQ User Manual 338 / 348 Pressing and holding the Playbacks button causes the Playbacks Window to be temporarily made the active window until the button is released. This is a Window select button. Pressing this button makes the Cue Window the active window. If the window was not open, then the window is opened.
Page 368 MagicQ User Manual 339 / 348 This is a Window select button. Pressing this button makes the Intensity Window the active window. If the window was not open, then the window is opened. Intensity Window is used to set the level of dimmer channels and the intensity attributes of intelligent heads. The Window supports two views, Programmer and Preset.
Page 369 MagicQ User Manual 340 / 348 Used to enter Mode. Fan mode enables adjustments to a number of selected heads to be applied in a non-linear fashion. Pressing and holding Fan enables Fan mode to be entered temporarily. Make your changes and then release the Fan button. Highlight Used to enter Highlight...
Page 370 MagicQ User Manual 341 / 348 Used to name playbacks and other items. Also used to set the values of items such as parameters. Shift and Set is used for selecting icons. Record action button for recording show data. Used to record Cues onto playbacks and to record...
Page 371 MagicQ User Manual 342 / 348 Pressing and holding a S button causes the Cue Stack Window / Cue Window to be temporarily made active until the button is released. The Cue Stack / Cue Window shows data for the playback associated with the S button. This enables easy modiﬁcations of Cue and Cue Stack parameters such as FX size and chase speed.
Page 372 MagicQ User Manual 343 / 348 Can also be used for selecting intensities and selecting groups. Used for entering numbers. Numbers are assumed to be Lee gel numbers unless preceded by a dot in which case they are assumed to be rosco gel numbers. Used for entering fractional numbers such as Cue Ids and times.
Page 373: Licensing
MagicQ User Manual 344 / 348 Chapter 48 Licensing MagicQ consoles run under the Debian Linux operating system. www.debian.org Versions prior to v1.5.6.0 of the software also used the MicroWindows library. www.microwindows.org The software uses Qt libraries. www.http://qt-project.org/ Linux and MicroWindows are subject to the GNU Public License (GPL). Qt is subject to GNU Lesser Public License (LGPL)
Page 374: Glossary
MagicQ User Manual 345 / 348 Chapter 49 Glossary Active Function of loading all parameters for selected heads into the programmer. Art-Net A protocol for transporting DMX over Ethernet LAN. Attributes Intelligent heads support a number of different functions that can be controlled via DMX – typically pan, tilt, colour, gobo etc. . . Each of these functions that can be controlled by a separate DMX channel is referred to as an attribute.
Page 375 MagicQ User Manual 346 / 348 Crossfade of a chase or an FX refers to how changes are made to the output channels when moving from step to step of a chase or FX. Crossfade of 100% indicates a smooth fade from one value to the next. Crossfade of 0% indicates a snap from one value to the next.
Page 376 MagicQ User Manual 347 / 348 The master fader which controls HTP levels for the entire console. Gobo A patterned object placed in front of a light source to modify the shape of the beam. Intelligent heads typically contain one or more wheels of gobos.
Page 377 MagicQ User Manual 348 / 348 A protocol for transporting DMX over Ethernet LAN. Palette The console supports Intensity, Position, Colour and Beam palettes. Entries in each palette can be used to quickly store and recall your favourite looks. Playback A fader or button which activates a Cue Stack.

Techni-Lux MagicQ Pro Series User Manual

1 Introduction

2 Installing Magicq Software & Drivers

3 Using Magicq on Pcs and Macs

4 Magicq Concepts

5 Magicq Layout

6 Quick Start

7 Patching

8 Setting Intensity Levels

9 Controlling Attributes

10 Palettes

11 FX Engine

12 Programmer

13 Outputs Windows

14 Editing Cues

15 Cue Stacks

16 Playback

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Summary of Contents for Techni-Lux MagicQ Pro Series