Chapter 6. Version 1.9.5.0

It is now possible to control Speed Masters from Cue Stack Macros.

Use the H10 Cue Stack macro to control the Speed Master.

H10,<Speed Master ID>,<Command>,<Parameter>

The Speed Master, Resync and Resync Beat options now affect Chases as well as FX.

Speed Masters set to Audio Beat or DJ Beat now ignore the beat if they are halted.

The Cue Stack window now has a new Theatre view mode to add to the existing view modes selectable from Soft button A. This view mode is automatically selected when starting a new show in Theatre mode or when changing programming mode to one of the Theatre modes.

In Theatre View there are extra columns for Position, Colour and Beam fades which show the maximum fade time for Position, Colour and Beam within the Cue, and enabling setting of the general Position, Colour and Beam delay and fade times.

In Cue Stack view it is now possible to replace a Cue with a different QID by entering the new QID in the Cue Column. Note that entering a number in this field will set the Cue ID, entering text will change the name of the Cue.

In the Patch Window, View Chans there is now a summary at the top of the usage of the Universe. Where there are gaps in the patch the number of free channels is displayed. Clicking on the gap will scroll the Patch Window to the first free channel in that gap. Heads can then be easily patched at that ion using Patch It.

Preset intensity levels can now be set directly in the Patch Window, View Chans. This is the same as setting them in Intensity Window, View Presets.

The Output and Input vals can now be viewed in Patch Window, View Chans.

In Outputs, View Chans, View Int a new option VIEW HEAD COLS shows the RGB/CMY colour of the Head as well as the intensity level. For clarity, the soft button VIEW COLOURS that colours the intensity text according to the tracking / changing values has been renamed VIEW TRK COLS.

Added the ability to record to multiple new Cue IDs in a Cue Stack using the + and THRU syntax. All Cues will be linked to the same Cue (QID) in the Cue Store.

Added the ability to record to a specified Cue and name at the same time using the / as a separator. The Cue name must have at least one alpha character (A..Z or a..z) in it to be accepted as a Cue name.

The FX Window has been enhanced to have a VIEW DATA view where the overall parameters of the FX can be viewed and edited.

The FX in the FX window can now be used as FX palettes whereby updating the FX in the FX window will update instances where the FX has been used in Cues. The overall FX speed, size, crossfade, width, direction, spread, parts and segments, add mode, initial offset and rnd type can be changed and will be updated to the Cues. Note that changes to individual channel parameters within the FX are not updated, only the overall parameters.

The top text in the window shows which Cue the FX is used in, or if used in multiple Cues the number of times it is used. Filtering by FX in the Cue Store and Stack Store provides further information on which Cues and Cue Stacks are using the FX.

The FX can also be edited by including the FX from the FX Window, edit in the programmer and then update. Note that when updating, any changes to the type of FX, or individual channels will not be updated to the Cues - only overall parameters will be updated.

If users do not edit the FX in the FX Window and do not include and update FX in the FX Window then MagicQ will operate as in previous versions - the FX in Cues will never be updated from the FX.

Cues that are linked to FX in the FX Window are shown in the Cue Window with FX X preceding the name where X is the FX number in the FX Window. For example, a Cue that is linked to a circle FX in FX 2 in the FX Window will show as FX 2 Circle.

Moving FX items in the FX Window will update the Cues to maintain the link to the moved FX item.

Removing a FX from the FX Window will remove any links to that FX from all Cues - this is similar to when removing Int, Pos, Col, Beam palettes items, which also remove links from all Cues.

Note that FX will only be linked to Cues that have been recorded in this version of software or above. Cues created in older versions of software will not have a link to the FX Window.

Use SHIFT + EXTRACT FX soft button in the FX Window to extract FX from the Cues in an older show. The FX are extracted from the Cues and created in the FX Window, with the Cues linking to the FX. Where identical FX have been used in multiple Cues only one FX will be created in the FX Window.

Cues can also be linked to FX already in the FX Window using the CHECK FX LINKS and CHECK ALL LINKS soft buttons. The CHECK FX LINKS soft button checks for identical FX to the cursor item FX that in all Cues, creating a link if the FX match. The CHECK ALL LINKS checks for all FX. No new FX are created in the FX window - it only creates links where FX are identical between the Cues and the FX Window.

The REPLACE FX soft button can be used to replace a FX with another FX in specific Cues, or all Cues on the system. This works in the same way as REPLACE GROUP in the Group Window and REPLACE PALETTE in the Pos, Col and Beam windows.

When recording a FX to the FX Window, if no name is specified then the FX will take the name of the FX type.

The Views in the Head Editor window have been reorganised to improve usability and to enable expansion of features. VIEW MACRO has been replaced by VIEW OTHER, which brings up tabs with Macros, Elements, Element Data, Emitters and Functions.

Greater support has been added for fixtures with multiple functions - e.g. a centre LED spot and a separate ring of LEDs, or a strobe with both colour plates and strobe bar

The Functions tab enables parameters for the different functions of the fixture to be specified.

The Function Name is used when generating function auto groups - previously the auto groups were just named FN1, FN2 etc…

The Function Mix type is used to specify if a particular function is CMY, CIE XY or HSI. By default it is set to Emitters - i.e. LED emitters. It should only be set to something other than Emitters if the mix mode of the particular function is different to that specified for the whole fixture in the View General, Options tab.

When set to "Emitters" MagicQ uses the Emitter data from the Emitter tab for colour mixing purposes. By default all the Emitters in the Emitters tab are applied to each function.

For each Function it is possible to specify a sub set of Emitters - this is useful where different Functions have different Emitters with different colours. Set the number of emitters for the function, and then select the specific emitters in the following columns.

Note that the number of emitters in the Functions tab should normally be set to "0 (All)", unless there are different emitters for each function.

For fixtures with only one function the Functions tab should be left blank.

In the Head Editor there is now an indication in View General, when the personality in the show file is older than library version.

The Window sizing dialog has been improved with an extra Layout mode function.

When clicking on the window symbol at the top right of the title bar of a window it will set the position and size for that window as in previous software versions.

The window size dialog now shows unopened windows at the bottom.

MagicQ will switch the window size dialog into Layout mode when any window is dragged and dropped within the window size dialog

Pressing ALT and CLOSE will open the window size dialog in Layout mode.

Double clicking on an unused window will open that window at full size on the first monitor and will hide the window size dialog.

Added support for using SEL to cursor select items in windows without activating them. Added for Execute, Group, Int, Pos, Col, Bean, Pages, Cue Store, Stack Store windows.

This is particularly useful in Execute to cursor select an item to VIEW ITEM without activating it. Similarly for viewing contents of Groups, Palettes and Macros.

Also added support for VIEW ITEM in Execute Window for Macros, FX and Groups which were not previously supported.

ChamSys has simplified the feature unlocking rules to create three simple categories of unlock, depending on which hardware is connected to the PC or Mac, into DEMO MODE, CORE MODE and UNLOCKED MODE.

Support for all legacy 3rd party DMX interfaces has been removed on MagicQ PC. Pepperoni, DMX4ALL, DASHARD, USBDMX, Vellemen and Enttec devices are no longer supported. Lumen Radio CRMX is still supported on MagicQ consoles.

All MagicDMX Full devices (With USB-C Connector) manufactured from May 2023 now support RDM as well as DMX input giving an enhanced single universe DMX solution.

Previously manufactured MagicDMX Full and MagicDMX Basic devices continue to be supported. Older MagicDMX Full interfaces do not support RDM.

The Playback col tags has been enhanced to support colouring by Patched channel. This enables easy identification of different Heads on faders. The Playback will takes it colour tag from the first channel in the first Cue of the Cue Stack. If there are no channels with base levels in the Cue it will take it from the FX.

There is also an option to use both Cue Stack col tag and channel col. The Cue Stack col tag when set, takes priority over the channel col.

In Setup, View Settings, Window, the Playback Col Tag setting now has the extra options

MagicQ includes an Emergency Hot Takeover feature that forces all universes to output the data from itself rather than from received data from other consoles. This mode is designed for installations where 3rd party consoles may be connected to the network, or where there is a stand alone MagicQ system as the primary house control system for controlling the house lighting / emergency lighting.

When MagicQ enters Emergency Hot Takeover, all universes set to Hot Takeover are immediately enabled and any looping through of received Hot Takeover data is stopped.

When MagicQ leaves Emergency Hot Takeover, normal Hot Takeover will operate - the Hot Takeover Mode determining which universes are controlled by which consoles.

Emergency Hot Takeover can be triggered from the Remote Input port.

It can also be triggered from Automations (hence can be triggered from 10Scene input ports, MIDI, OSC, incoming DMX etc…)

Cue Stack Macro H 112, H 911 and H 999 can be used set Emergency Hot Takeover on and off.

ChamSys Remote Protocol Command 112 H, 911 H and 999 H can be used to set Emergency Hot Takeover on and off.

It can also be manually triggered from Setup, View DMX I/O with SHIFT + the top soft buttons EMERGENCY ON and EMERGENCY OFF.

The Hot Takeover options in Setup, DMX I/O have now been enhanced to support an additional Hot Takeover, Loop as well as the previous Hot Takeover. Hot Takeover without the Loop, remains the same as before, automatically disabling the universe when incoming network DMX is received, and enabling it again when there is no incoming network DMX.

The Hot Takeover, Loop operates in a similar way, disabling the universe - but will loop through the received DMX from input to output. This is useful when using the Emergency Hot Takeover - it enables universes to be looped through the MagicQ system and over ridden in an emergency regardless of the state of any other consoles on the network. When using loop through the Input and Output Universes should be set to different ranges in the Art-Net / sACN universe ranges.

To set a MagicQ system for Emergency Hot Takeover:

In Setup, View Settings, Multi Console

In Setup, View DMX I/O

Arrange that any other consoles on the network output to the different universe range.

An additional Autom Type "Emergency" has been which triggers when Emergency Hot Takeover is entered and left. This enables triggering of Playbacks/Cues etc… dependent on the Emergency state.

This is a new feature that enables quick set up of a live copy from one set of Heads to another set of Heads. This can be used where there is not time to clone and morph a lighting rig, or where a Head fails and the programming needs to be replaced by another Head.

The Live Copy can be activated and released on a Cue Stack enabling it to be turned on and off when needed. For HTP channels the playback fader controls the level that is live copied from the source Heads - when the fader is at full then the copied Heads match the level in the source Heads.

Live Copy converts channels in a similar way to morphing - taking into account pan and tilt angles, RGB inverts and trying to match ranges types between the source and destination Heads.

There is no need to program all attributes of a Head into a Live Copy Master - some attributes can come from the Live Copy Master whilst others come from normal playbacks or from the programmer.

Live Copy is supported between Heads with and without Duplicated Elements.

Note that Live Copy is a simple copy between heads using the information in the personalities. It does not take into account palette information. Group Cues, and Cloning/Morphing Heads provides a more controlled method of adding extra Heads to a rig where palettes can be updated to give specific data to the new Heads.

To set up a Live Copy Master:

Alternatively:

Allow different personality functions to have different colour attributes and still support VDIMs.

MagicQ now handles previews from Megapixel Helios with bigger sizes. The preview from Helios depends on the incoming video source resolution.

When Speed Masters are linked, the fader operation and the run/halt state is now linked. The activate/deactivate and divisor remain independent in all cases.

The Cue Stack Macros A and T can now take an extra parameter to override the fade time in the Cue of the Stack being activated.

When recording to Execute window without anything in the programmer, MagicQ creates an intensity master in the same way as when recording direct to playbacks.

Added shortcut for saving the show. Press SHIFT + CTRL + RECORD to save the show. If auto increment show file is being used then the show file will be saved to the new incremented name. There is also an inbuilt macro SAVE SHOW which performs a SHIFT + CTRL + REC.

The Palette View window now supports scrolling on Encoder F.

The Palette View window now supports filtering to selected heads only - soft button B.

The Cue Window, View Levels and View Times now support filtering to selected heads only - soft button B.

Log files can now be directly opened from the File Manager by clicking on the file.

The Programming mode in the Setup window now indicates the last programming mode chosen, even if it has been customised. If it has been customised then it is additionally marked as customised.

The number of FX supported in a Cue has been raised from 15 to 30. Note that shows programmed with more than 15 can be loaded into older versions of MagicQ software and will play back - but including/editing/snapshot of Cues is the old software version will cause the FX to be cut back down to 15 FX. It is recommended to not use more than 15 FX in a Cue if you expect to need to downgrade to older software.

MagicQ now does not support undo when selecting soft palettes as it was causing significant slow downs on bigger shows. Updating the cues and multi console sync still goes ahead, but undo will not bring back the previous soft palette. #0036765

MagicQ PC now indicates if there is more than one network port on the PC within the IP address range selected IP address for the main lighting network. This should help identify when users incorrectly set up both their laptop network port and the Connect network port to IP addresses in the same range.

When Art-Net type is set to V4 or V4 Unicast, or any universes are set to Hot Takeover = "Yes, Loop" MagicQ will report all Art-Net input universes using V4 Art Poll reply. In other cases MagicQ will continue to report using Art-Net V1 Art Poll reply.

Added support to CREP for triggering loading of Grids from csv file. Uses the 93 , <Grid Id> H command.

When choosing heads, if filtering to the patched heads, status is provided for each of the patched heads. A (U) indicates the head has been user modified. A (N) indicates there is a newer version in the library.

Added reporting of number of Automs to Setup, View Status, Show Data.

Added indication in Output Window when Intensity channels are under control of Int Master or Group Master from the inbuilt Masters.

Replacing palettes, replacing groups, cloning groups and removing groups are now possible using the Cue Stack window in addition to direct on playbacks and in the Cue Store and Stack Store. #0037098

Palettes can now be replaced in all Cues by pressing ENTER after selecting the source and destination palette - in a similar way to replacing groups.

Replace Palette is now supported for Intensity Palettes in the Intensity Window.

The number of Head Types that can be used in a show has been increased from 100 to 200.

On Stadium consoles with Playback Encoders, when toggling the Encoder Playbacks it now uses the level of the encoder similar to using the level of the fader for fader playbacks.

The Speed Master column in the FX view in the Prog and Cue Windows has been modified so the option "Ignore" has been renamed "Cue Stack" in order to resolve confusion withe the Speed Master setting for the entire Cue Stack. The operation has not been changed, just the naming. When set to a Speed Master the per FX Setting is used. When set to "Cue Stack" the Cue Stack setting is used.

The Default Cue Stack options have been tied up to hide options without defaults.

MagicQ now prevents setting of a sACN priority higher than 200 (the limit in the E1.31 sACN spec).