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MagicQ User Manual

Revision History
Revision v1.7.6.026/07/2017ChamSys

Table of Contents

1. Introduction
1.1. MagicQ software and consoles
1.2. MagicQ MQ500 Stadium Console
1.3. MagicQ Compact Series
1.4. MagicQ Wings for use with PC/Mac
1.5. Plugging Up
1.6. DMX Connections
1.7. Powering Up
1.8. Powering Down
1.9. Resetting the Console
1.10. Hard Reset
1.11. Power Supply Protection
1.12. Care of your MagicQ console
1.13. Safety Information
1.14. Disposal Information
2. Installing MagicQ Software & Drivers
2.1. MagicQ software
2.2. MagicDMX
2.3. MagicQ Wings & Interfaces
2.4. MagicQ on Windows
2.5. MagicQ on Mac
2.6. MagicQ on Linux
3. Using MagicQ on PCs and Macs
3.1. Simple Generic Console
3.2. Technician Test Fixture
3.3. Demo Shows
3.4. Touch View
3.5. Playback mode
3.6. MagicQ PC / Mac Restrictions
3.7. MagicHD Stand Alone Restriction
4. MagicQ Concepts
4.1. Show Storage
4.2. Output channels
4.3. Cues
4.4. Cue Stacks
4.5. Playbacks
4.6. Pages
4.7. FX
4.8. Window Layouts
4.9. Shift Functions
4.10. The Programmer
4.11. Help
5. MagicQ Layout
5.1. Physical layout
5.2. Keyboard, Keypad, Select & Confirm Windows
5.3. Common Actions
5.4. Icons
6. Quick Start
6.1. Starting up MagicQ
6.2. Calibrating the Touch Screen
6.3. Starting a New Show
6.4. Enabling Outputs
6.5. Connecting a MagicQ Playback Wing
6.6. Connecting External Monitors
6.7. Patching
6.8. Controlling Heads
6.9. Naming a Group
6.10. Recalling a Group
6.11. Setting Levels for Dimmers
6.12. Locating Heads
6.13. Modifying Attributes
6.14. Recording a Palette
6.15. Adding in FX
6.16. Recording a Cue
6.17. Recording a Cue Stack (Chase or Theatre Stack)
6.18. Selecting and recording complete window layouts
6.19. Saving the Show
6.20. Playback
7. Patching
7.1. Patching on MagicQ
7.2. Getting started with patching
7.3. Patching a Head or Dimmer
7.4. Head Names and Head Numbers
7.5. Gel name and number
7.6. Generating auto groups
7.7. Auto Palettes
7.8. Multi Element Heads
7.9. Inverting and Swapping
7.10. Pan and Tilt Offsets
7.11. Applying Offsets using Update
7.12. Minimum and Maximum levels
7.13. Dimmer curves
7.14. Testing channels
7.15. Changing the DMX address of heads
7.16. Patching a Head to multiple DMX addresses
7.17. Unpatching a Head from a DMX address
7.18. Patching scrollers
7.19. Editing Heads
7.20. Cloning (Adding extra heads / dimmers to a programmed show)
7.21. Morphing Heads (Changing Head type)
7.22. Importing Heads
7.23. Exporting Heads
7.24. VL5 type channels (split personalities)
7.25. Merging with DMX input
7.26. Customising Locate, Default, Highlight and Lowlight values
7.27. Theatre Patch syntax
7.28. Virtual Dimmers
7.29. Patch Head Filtering
8. Setting Intensity levels
8.1. Using the on screen faders
8.2. Using the encoders
8.3. Using the keypad
8.4. Multi Element Heads
8.5. Setting intensity levels for DMX channels
8.6. Using Selected Heads
8.7. Using gel colours in the Intensity Window
8.8. Setting levels whilst running a show
8.9. Viewing Intensities in the Outputs Window
9. Controlling Attributes
9.1. Selecting Heads
9.2. Using Groups
9.3. Selecting Heads using the keypad
9.4. Selecting heads using the rig plan view
9.5. Head Macros
9.6. Locating Heads
9.7. Modifying Attributes
9.8. Using a mouse or track-ball to control pan and tilt
9.9. Colour Attributes
9.10. Flip / Mirror
9.11. Setting attribute values using the keypad
9.12. Reversing rotations
9.13. Selecting individual Heads
9.14. Highlight Mode
9.15. Lowlight function
9.16. Reselecting heads using Palettes and Intensities (Active Palette and Intensity)
9.17. Fan Mode
9.18. And Only
10. Palettes
10.1. Using Palettes
10.2. Recording Palettes
10.3. Intensity Palettes
10.4. Duplicate elements in Palettes
10.5. Naming Palettes
10.6. Updating Palettes
10.7. Copying and moving Palettes
10.8. Removing attributes from Palettes
10.9. Linked Palettes
10.10. Viewing / Editing Palette contents
10.11. Using Palettes with times
10.12. Making Palettes into Cue Stacks
10.13. Selecting Palettes from the keypad
10.14. Merging of Palettes from another show
10.15. Modifying Palettes in the personality
10.16. Grabbing Palettes from DMX input
10.17. Expanding Palettes
11. FX Engine
11.1. Adding in FX
11.2. Generating user FX
11.3. Editing user FX
11.4. Palette FX
11.5. FX colour flicks
11.6. FX using base colour
11.7. Group based FX
11.8. FX Window
11.9. Importing and Exporting the FX Library
12. Programmer
12.1. What is in the programmer?
12.2. Clearing the programmer
12.3. Activation by Channel or by Head?
12.4. Recording a Cue
12.5. Split Cue Times
12.6. Recording to a specific Cue Id
12.7. Snapshot Icons
12.8. Record Options
12.9. Active
12.10. Removing channels from the Programmer
12.11. Making channels hard values
12.12. Copy between heads
12.13. Blind programming
12.14. Parking (freezing) channels
13. Outputs Windows
13.1. Heads View
13.2. Intensity View
13.3. DMX Channels View
13.4. Movement View
13.5. Chart View
13.6. Plan View
14. Editing Cues
14.1. Including Cues into the Programmer
14.2. Editing using Include and Update method
14.3. Record Merge (Updating a Cue with the contents of the programmer)
14.4. Making changes to multiple Cues
14.5. Editing using Update
14.6. Direct Modification of Intensities in Cues
14.7. Copy heads in Cues
15. Cue Stacks
15.1. Cue Stack Window
15.2. Chase Timing
15.3. Cue Timing
15.4. Tracking
15.5. Cue Only
15.6. Mark Cues
15.7. The Cue Store and Cue Stack Store
15.8. Assigning Cues and Cue Stacks
15.9. Copying and Moving Cues
15.10. Linked Cues
15.11. Removing Cues and Cue Stacks
15.12. Cue Stack Defaults
15.13. Audio Sound FX Cues
15.14. Cue Stack Macros
15.15. Timecode Cue Stacks
15.16. Cue Stack time code tracks
15.17. Timeline / Track Sheet
15.18. Selective copying of Cue Stacks
15.19. Creating a new Cue Stack for different heads
16. Playback
16.1. Playback Display
16.2. Activating and Releasing Playbacks
16.3. Fader control
16.4. Playback Buttons
16.5. Playbacks Window
16.6. Wing Playbacks Pages
16.7. Default Cue Stacks
16.8. Synchronising Playbacks
16.9. Set lists
17. Cue Stack Options
17.1. Faders
17.2. Buttons
17.3. Function
17.4. Activate/Release
17.5. Advanced
17.6. Chase Options
17.7. Chase Times
17.8. Audio
17.9. Step (View Defaults only)
17.10. Step Times (View Defaults only)
17.11. FX (View Defaults Only)
18. Advanced Playback / Cue Stack Options
18.1. Interaction of HTP and LTP channels between Playbacks
18.2. HTP handling
18.3. HTP always active (Use HTP) option
18.4. LTP handling
18.5. Interaction of FX between Playbacks
18.6. Playback Priority
18.7. Playbacks ignore masters levels
18.8. Playback Stomping
18.9. Group Masters (Inhibit Masters)
18.10. Advanced activate and release options
19. Live Programming (Busking)
19.1. Adding individual channels using preset faders
19.2. Over-ride / take-over
19.3. Viewing Cues and Cue Stacks
19.4. Modifying chase speed / contrast
19.5. Modifying FX parameters
19.6. Stop / Starting Cue Stacks
19.7. Jumping to a Cue in a Cue Stack
19.8. Over-riding using the programmer
19.9. Adding in new FX
19.10. Applying palettes with time
19.11. Releasing / Clearing with time
19.12. Busking Master
19.13. Programmer Master
20. Execute Window
20.1. Design View
20.2. Full Screen View
20.3. Password Protection
20.4. Automated Start
20.5. Faders
20.6. Buttons
20.7. Regions
20.8. Timing
20.9. Rate and parameters
20.10. Execute Window FX
20.11. Execute Window Soft Palettes
20.12. Button appearance
20.13. Speed Encoders
20.14. Attribute Encoders
20.15. Preload
20.16. Wallpaper
20.17. Special Options
20.18. Execute Window on ioS/Android remote
20.19. Execute Buttons on console/wing Playback Go/Pause buttons
20.20. Multiple Execute windows
21. Automation
21.1. MagicQ Automation Window
21.2. Scheduled Events
21.3. Automated Start of Playbacks / Executes
21.4. Keyboard macros
22. LED & Pixel Mapping
22.1. Patching LED on MagicQ
22.2. Using the Grid view in the Outputs Window
22.3. Pixel Mapper
22.4. 3D Pixel Mapping
22.5. Multi Element Heads
22.6. Making Grids of Groups
22.7. Programming LED using standard FX
22.8. Making groups out of LED pixels
22.9. Making new LED personalities on MagicQ
23. Controlling Media Servers
23.1. Patching Media Servers on MagicQ
23.2. Connecting via network
23.3. Configuring the Media Window
23.4. Thumbnail view
23.5. Live Previews
23.6. Media Window View
23.7. Using MagicQ and Media Server software on the same PC
23.8. CITP (MSEX) live feeds and MagicCap
23.9. Troubleshooting
24. Head Editor
24.1. How Heads are stored in MagicQ
24.2. Loading new heads into MagicQ
24.3. Copying head files created on PC/Macs to MagicQ consoles
24.4. Modifying existing heads
24.5. Removing old heads
24.6. General View
24.7. Channels View
24.8. Ranges View
24.9. Palettes View
24.10. Macros View
24.11. User Icons
24.12. Heads with multiple elements
25. Curve Editor
25.1. Creating a curve
25.2. Editing a curve
25.3. Setting a dimmer curve
26. FX Editor
26.1. View General
26.2. View Chans
26.3. Palette FX
27. Network Manager (SnakeSys)
27.1. Normal (non ChamNet mode)
27.2. ChamNet Mode (MQ Net)
27.3. Upgrading SnakeSys firmware
27.4. Older ChamSys 4 Port Ethernet interfaces
27.5. Output Setup
28. Networking of MagicQ systems
28.1. Network addresses and host names
28.2. Checking IP addresses - Ping Test
28.3. Checking consoles on the network
28.4. Grabbing shows from other consoles
28.5. Zoning
28.6. Setting up Network Sessions
28.7. Multi Console Programming
28.8. Selective Channel Control
28.9. Playback Sync modes
28.10. Inter Console Messaging
29. Manual configuration of Multi Console operation
29.1. Manual configuration of Hot take-over
29.2. Manual configuration of Playback synchronisation
29.3. Manual configuration of Show Data Synchronisation
29.4. Manual configuration of Selective Channel Control
29.5. Automatic backing up of shows from other consoles
30. Remote control of MagicQ
30.1. Remote mode (PC/Mac)
30.2. Remote control from MagicQ
30.3. iOS / Android Remote
30.4. Remote control via web server
30.5. Remote control using Magic Wand simulator
31. ChamSys Remote Protocol Commands
31.1. Remote Playback Commands
31.2. Remote programming commands
32. Controlling MagicQ using TCP/IP
32.1. ChamSys Remote Ethernet Protocol
32.2. Writing to the network port
32.3. Reading from the network
32.4. Sample code fragments
33. Controlling MagicQ using serial port
33.1. Enabling the serial port
33.2. Writing to the serial port
33.3. Reading from the serial port
33.4. Testing receiving serial commands
34. Audio
34.1. Audio Input
34.2. Audio play
34.3. Control of Winamp
35. MIDI
35.1. MIDI Notes Receive
35.2. MIDI Notes Transmit
35.3. MIDI problems
35.4. MIDI Show Control
35.5. MIDI Beat Clock
35.6. MagicQ MIDI/Timecode firmware versions
36. Timecode Support
36.1. Timecode Decode
36.2. Timecode from Winamp
36.3. Timecode Simulator
36.4. Timecode Generation
36.5. Timecode Re-transmit
37. Remote Input port
37.1. Connection (MagicQ Consoles, MagicQ PC Wing Compact and MagicQ MaxiWing)
37.2. Connection (Original PC Wing)
37.3. Enabling the remote input in MagicQ
38. Scene Setter
38.1. Powering the Scene Setter
38.2. Configuration
38.3. Using the Scene Setter
38.4. Changing the IP Address
38.5. Setting up the Serial Port
39. Open Sound Control (OSC)
39.1. Setup
39.2. Receiving messages
39.3. Sending messages
39.4. TouchOSC
39.5. Troubleshooting
39.6. Notes
40. MagicQ Visualiser
40.1. MagicVis
40.2. Using MagicVis
40.3. Plot Window
41. Blind Visualisation
41.1. Split Visualisation in MagicVis
41.2. Automatic Source Selection
42. Using MagicQ with other Visualisers
42.1. Connecting to a Visualiser
42.2. Capture
42.3. WYSIWYG
42.4. ESP Vision
43. Settings
43.1. Programming Mode
43.2. Playback Mode
43.3. Advanced Settings Option
43.4. Output Settings
43.5. Wing Settings
43.6. Monitor Settings
43.7. Touch Screen Settings
43.8. Mode & Security Settings
43.9. Programming Settings
43.10. Keypad / Encoder Settings
43.11. Windows Settings
43.12. Cue Storage Settings
43.13. Playback Settings
43.14. Crossfade button function
43.15. Network Settings
43.16. Port Settings
43.17. MIDI / Timecode Settings
43.18. Multiple Console Settings
43.19. Hardware Settings
43.20. General Settings
43.21. Individual Playback Settings
43.22. Calibrating the touch screen
43.23. Displays brightness and contrast
43.24. Console lamp brightness
43.25. Button LED brightness
43.26. Controlling console lamp from the programmed show
43.27. Locking the console
43.28. Button test mode
44. System Management
44.1. Starting Up
44.2. Shutting Down
44.3. Saving Shows
44.4. Backing up to an external system
44.5. Loading Shows
44.6. Erasing
44.7. Icon Snapshots / Extras file
44.8. Import and Export of Show Data and Show Merging
44.9. Saving and Loading Settings
44.10. File Manager
44.11. Transferring files over network
44.12. Storage of MagicQ user files on PC/Mac
44.13. Reports
44.14. Status Window
44.15. Backup Archives
44.16. Using shows on different MagicQ products and show versions
44.17. MagicQ Profiles
44.18. User management
45. Software Upgrade
45.1. Changing MagicQ Console Software
45.2. Upgrading Console Kernel
45.3. Kernel Recovery
45.4. Disc Repair
45.5. Resetting a MagicQ console to factory defaults
45.6. Upgrading MQ40/40N/60/70 firmware
45.7. Upgrading MQ80 firmware
45.8. Upgrading MQ500 Stadium firmware
45.9. Upgrading Pro 2014 DMX card firmware
46. Handy Hints
47. MagicQ Short Cuts
48. Troubleshooting
48.1. No outputs
48.2. MagicQ not responding
48.3. MagicQ responding slowly
48.4. Strange key presses, unexpected window changes
48.5. MagicQ console not booting
48.6. MQ80 console blank screen and not booting
48.7. MagicQ console blank screen
48.8. MagicQ console white screen
48.9. MagicQ console distorted screen
48.10. MagicQ console internal touch screen not working
48.11. All 10 S buttons flashing blue
48.12. Fader, Encoder or Button not working correctly
48.13. Unable to save shows or patch fixtures after performing a *777 erase all on the console
48.14. "MagicQ needs to write to the install folder…" message on Mac
49. Button Functions
50. Licensing
50.1. Qt
50.2. LibPNG
50.3. LibJPEG
50.4. LibJPEG-Turbo
50.5. LibICU
50.6. FFmpeg Binary
50.7. FFmpeg Library
50.8. LibArchive
50.9. Zlib
Glossary

List of Tables

11.1. 100% FX spread (no FX Parts or FX Segments)
11.2. With FX Segments = 2’s
11.3. With FX Segments = 3’s
11.4. With FX Parts = 2’s
11.5. With FX Parts = 2’s, Segments = 3’s
24.1. Attrib No field
39.1. OSC Addresses
43.1. Setup, Prog Settings
43.2. Setup, Keypad/Encoders
43.3. Setup, Windows
43.4. Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Fader
43.5. Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Flash
43.6. Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Step
43.7. Setup, Cue Stack Defaults, Step Times
43.8. DMX I/O Out Protocols
43.9. Wings
43.10. Programing Wing Shortcuts
45.1. Pro upgrades
45.2. Expert upgrades
47.1. Saving / Loading
47.2. Patching
47.3. Select Heads
47.4. Lamp On / Lamp Off / Reset
47.5. Setting Intensities
47.6. FX
47.7. Playback
47.8. Loading Values into the Programmer
47.9. Removing Values from the Programmer
47.10. Recording Cues
47.11. Record Merging / Removing
47.12. Editing Cues
47.13. Palettes
47.14. Information Windows
47.15. Net Session
47.16. Wing / Keypad short cuts
47.17. Console
47.18. Cue Stack Macros
47.19. Window Control
47.20. MQ500 Shortcuts
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