Request- Hold Playback On Show Load

Please consider ....

Would be nice if the H4's would save playback activity upon console shutdown or crash to be hot loaded upon show load. This way the console will send saved playback DMx values instead of default Values on show load so the show doesn't go black on reboot.

The current workaround is to unplug DMX outputs after shutdown or crash, then re plug DMX after show load and playback. The above solution would be a nice feature.

Thanks for the consideration.
  • Nice idea...
    Maybe by pressing a button as an option, like holding down a special key or key-combination during shutdown/log off
  • Well, then we wouldn't have the playback snapshot if the desk shuts down unexpectedly.

    The way I look at it is....

    The desk records a macro of playback every 10 seconds or so. Then when it finishes loading a show file it executes that macro. If you release everything before voluntarily shutting down, then the macro is empty and we get a blank startup with no playback running. This idea is not my own. There are other desks that do this and it's a good feature that I would consider a standard feature for the latest desks.
  • What about startup macros then? Will the override this macro?
  • After thinking it over, having the desk record a playback snapshot every 10 seconds just wastes system resources. The record snapshot should just occur anytime playback is changed.
  • Not sure how to handle priority of manual startup macros versus snapshot macros. Haven't considered that. But I'm sure there is an elegant solution somewhere.
  • Nice idea, i can imagine that you can choose your priority, or using the startup macro, or using the back on track option in case of not regularly quiting or logging off your show.
    An other way can be for example rebooting the console, while using the open-button, or an other one, to go on with your running show.
  • [QUOTE=Buzz313th;68775]Please consider ....

    Would be nice if the H4's would save playback activity upon console shutdown or crash to be hot loaded upon show load. This way the console will send saved playback DMx values instead of default Values on show load so the show doesn't go black on reboot.

    The current workaround is to unplug DMX outputs after shutdown or crash, then re plug DMX after show load and playback. The above solution would be a nice feature.

    Personally I think the current "clean start" is best along with the "keep alive" signals used by the DPs and widgets.

    If you really need to be sure you can keep signal going to your rig in the rare event of a console crash, you really should be running another console/processor or HPC system either on the network or as a separate system with an A/B switch between them.
  • [QUOTE=Marty Postma;68811]Personally I think the current "clean start" is best along with the "keep alive" signals used by the DPs and widgets.

    If you really need to be sure you can keep signal going to your rig in the rare event of a console crash, you really should be running another console/processor or HPC system either on the network or as a separate system with an A/B switch between them.

    The keep alive signals both coming from DP's, Widgets and most other modern DMX devices including End devices will hold dmx values if signal is lost from the source. It is the new DMX signal of default values from a loaded show that blacks the stage out. The "keep alive" only sustains until there is a new input signal.

    I agree that you should always backup, but in the event it's either not an option, or both go down, or in the case of a voluntary reboot to clear a glitch, we are currently forced to have a short period of a blackout until we can establish playback again.

    Again, having the option to load into playback would be nice. If you like the clean show load with programmed default values, then a release of all playback, or disabling the option to load into playback would be there for the user to choose from.