Hints for Operators Used to Other Consoles
Users familiar with Hog II Consoles
Choose “Hog II Warp Mode” or “Theatre Tracking Mode”
Feature |
MagicQ |
Hog II |
Alternate functions |
SHIFT |
PIG |
Playback select |
SEL (S) |
CHOOSE © |
Include for editing |
INC |
LOAD |
Position control |
Position button |
Position button |
Colour control |
Colour button |
Colour button |
Beam control |
Beam button |
Beam button |
Programmer |
Prog button |
Prog button |
Naming items |
Enter text followed by enter |
SET, enter text followed by enter |
Clear programmer |
Clear button |
Clear button |
Release playback |
Select playback (S) then Release |
Release |
Release all |
SHIFT RELEASE |
PIG RELEASE |
Close all windows |
SHIFT CLOSE |
PIG CLOSE |
Record Options |
SHIFT RECORD |
RECORD |
Active |
Hold SET + soft button of attribute |
Active |
Knockout |
Hold REMOVE + soft button of attribute |
Knockout |
Common Problems for Hog II users
Keypad will not select heads in Normal and Theatre modes
On MagicQ it is possible to edit the on-screen windows directly using the keypad without pressing SET, just like you would do with a spreadsheet on a computer. This means that unlike the Hog the keypad does not support direct entering of head numbers to select heads – instead to select heads from the keypad you must add @@ after the head numbers, e.g.
1 THRU 4 @ @
Note it is possible to force selection of heads from the keypad, but this in turns means that you must press SET to edit data in windows and restricts the live features of the console. If you want this option, then set the “Keypad always selects head” option in Setup.
Users familiar with Avolites Consoles
Choose “Normal Mode”
MagicQ operates most like an Avolites console when you set it into “Normal” mode rather than “Tracking mode”. You can choose the mode when you start a show, and at any time via “Prog Mode” on Soft Button B in the Setup Window.
“Normal mode” automatically sets the following Setup options:
Programmer Tracking No
Unused chans return to defaults No
Highlight mode Normal
Select Multiple Groups No
It also sets the defaults for multi-step Cue Stacks to Chases rather than Theatre Stacks.
Step controlled as chase Yes
Step halts before executing No
Cue Stacks are set to auto activate and release when the fader is moved:
Fader activates stack Yes
Fader releases stack Yes
Users familiar with Strand Consoles
Choose “Theatre Tracking”
Channels
Unlike Strand consoles MagicQ does not distinguish between intensity channels and attribute channels. MagicQ consoles support 9160 channels of any type – e.g., you could patch 9160 dimmers, or you could patch 9160 channels of moving lights, or any combination.
Moving lights are patched as one entity – it is not necessary to patch intensity and attributes separately. On MagicQ we refer to all fixtures as “heads” regardless of the number of attributes – so “generic dimmer” is a head with 1 channel, “Martin Mac500 mode 2” is a head with 14 channels. A “generic dimmer” has only 1 attribute, “Intensity” whereas a “Martin Mac500 mode 2” has multiple attributes including Intensity, Pan, Tilt, Colour 1, Colour 2, Gobo1, Gobo2 etc…
Presets
These are standalone virtual faders which can be set at any time. Channels set in this way are not used in programming. Preset channels are accessed through the View Preset soft button in the Intensity Window.
Programmer
Channels that are in the programmer over-ride any values for these channels that may be present from Playbacks (Subs). Channels in the programmer get recorded into new Cues and Palettes. Channels are set in the programmer using the keypad or from the Intensity, Group, Beam, Colour or Position windows.