LSC maXim Operator'S Manual Download

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LIGHTING CONTROL DESK

OPERATOR MANUAL

DEC 2001

Software Version 0.85

L.S.C. Lighting Systems (Aust) Pty Ltd

A.B.N. 090 801 675

7 University Place, Clayton,

Victoria, 3168 Australia

Tel: +61 3 9561 5255
Fax: +61 3 9561 5277

Email:

[email protected]

Web site:

www.lsclighting.com.au

Summary of Contents for maXim

Page 1: ...L DEC 2001 Software Version 0 85 L S C Lighting Systems Aust Pty Ltd A B N 090 801 675 7 University Place Clayton Victoria 3168 Australia Tel 61 3 9561 5255 Fax 61 3 9561 5277 Email info lsclighting com au Web site www lsclighting com au ...

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Page 5: ...lue bank select the page containing the scene or chase using page blue bank Fade up the blue Playback containing the scene or chase and also fade up the blue master CONTROLLING A SCENE OR CHASE The select button is used to take control of a playback The recorded memory is not changed only the way that it is currently being played back Press select F A playback to control Repeatedly press function ...

Page 6: ...ssing function again shows the current step number and allows you to record the next step Continue to record steps as above When all steps have been recorded complete the stack by pressing record stack PLAYBACK A STACK Stacks can only be played back on the stack master To assign a stack to the stack master press assign page optional select the page in either the red or blue banks containing the st...

Page 7: ...SCENE PLAYBACK _________________27 8 4 EDITING A SCENE _________________28 8 5 COPYING A SCENE ________________29 8 6 REMOVING DELETING A SCENE ____29 9 0 CHASES _______________________ 31 9 1 OVERVIEW _______________________ 31 9 2 CHASE RECORDING _______________ 31 9 3 CHASE PLAYBACK_________________ 33 9 4 EDITING A CHASE _________________ 36 9 5 COPYING A CHASE ________________ 37 9 6 REMOVING...

Page 8: ...e varying numbers of dedicated blue playbacks They do not have a Grab Master but instead have a Master for their blue playbacks At any point in this manual where the model affects the specification the text will describe the maXim S followed by the other models in brackets For example The Yellow bank has faders for channels 1 to 12 24 36 48 60 Any reference in this manual to the blue bank blue pag...

Page 9: ...lue memory N A N A 9 9 9 Grab Master 1 1 N A N A N A Maximum number of Scenes 108 216 378 594 810 Maximum Fade times 16min 16min 16min 16min 16min Maximum number of Chases 108 216 378 594 810 Steps per chase 250 250 250 250 250 Chase speed Beats Per Minute 0 999 0 999 0 999 0 999 0 999 Maximum number of Stacks 13 25 36 48 60 Steps per Stack 500 500 500 500 500 SVGA Colour Video output Optional Opt...

Page 10: ...ton Flash assign buttons are often abbreviated to F A If the button to be pressed is a Flash Assign button of which there are many then it will be identified by naming it as follows Flash assign Name or the shortened version F A Name Any information that appears on the LED display is printed in quotes SECONDARY FUNCTIONS Some F A buttons have secondary functions that are activated by holding down ...

Page 11: ...2 4 SWITCHING ON At this point with the mains power and DMX connected the maXim is ready to be operated Simply switch on the POWER switch located near the mains input connector The maXim will commence its start up procedures After briefly displaying the opening message the maXim will commence operating in exactly the same state that it was in when it was last switched off All the scenes stacks cha...

Page 12: ...ghting Systems Aust Pty Ltd Page 6 of 66 3 0 FRONT PANEL LAYOUT There are 5 maXim models S M L XL XXL with 2 similar panel layouts S M and L XL XXL maXim M maXim L 1 3 4 8 8 8 8 4 1 3 5 5 7 9 10 11 2 2 8 6 12 12 13 14 14 13 15 16 15 7 17 ...

Page 13: ... or it may be empty does nothing There are 9 pages of memory for the red playbacks and the function of each playback depends upon the contents of the currently selected red page You determine what each red page contains when you record or copy scenes chases or stacks into them Although stacks can be recorded on the red bank they can only be played back on the stack master 5 Red Master In PRESET mo...

Page 14: ...e level of their particular channel in the Scene Grab or Step of a Chase or Stack that is being edited R VALID ENTRY BUTTON INDICATORS When you are required to make a numeric entry or Secondary Function selection only valid buttons will be active and their LED indicators will light to indicate to you that an entry is required R FADE IN PROGRESS INDICATORS The indicator for each Playback flashes sl...

Page 15: ... required blue page 1 to 9 for the scene stack or chase Repeated presses of the Page button will step through the pages To directly select a page Hold page blue bank then quickly tap F A blue 1 to 9 The displays shows the blue page number as selected by the page blue bank button Hint The maXim can show the types of object recorded in each page If you press and hold either page red bank or page blu...

Page 16: ...omplete the recording of a stack when all the desired steps have been added 27 Assign Copy Button Used to Assign a stack to the stack master Copy scenes chases or stacks from one memory location to other Copy scenes chases or stacks to or from the Grab master S M models Copy a Snapshot from the Grab master to a memory S M models 28 Select button Used to take control of a playback The recorded memo...

Page 17: ... etc as indicated below the yellow and red bank F A buttons To perform secondary functions press and hold FUNCTION then tap F A secondary function 33 Edit Wheel Continuously rotatable in either direction and can be used to Set fade and link times and chase rate and crossfade when recording or editing Adjust the level of channels when editing Adjust Sound To Light parameters Select DMX address numb...

Page 18: ...ecomes a duplicate of the yellow bank These two identical banks Yellow and Red provide duplicate faders for channels The output of each bank is controlled by its own master RED ADD SOLO YELLOW BANK RED BANK MASTERS YELLOW 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 CHANNELS 1 12 CHANNELS 1 12 OUTPUT Simplified block diagram of a maXim S in PRESET mode You create a lighting look by fading...

Page 19: ... course you may use the In and OUT time faders to set the fade times ADVANTAGE You have access to all of the channels that are available on the maXim This is most useful when you are RECORDING scenes as you can utilise all channels to create your scenes See Scene Mode below DISADVANTAGE You do not have a second bank on which to create the next look You can perform crossfades to another look by uti...

Page 20: ...t are always available irrespective of the mode of the red bank To simplify the playback of a show you can record all of your looks into a stack A stack is a recorded list of steps that are to be replayed in order Each step in a stack consists of either a scene a chase or a snapshot Stepping from one step to the next is a Dipless Crossfade and is usually executed manually but can be automatic Up t...

Page 21: ...fades up on stage Fade up channel 3 on the Yellow bank and the fixture s connected to dimmer output 3 come on You can balance the look that you are creating by adjusting the intensities of the individual channels This is done by setting the positions of the individual channel faders of the yellow bank The brightness of the red indicator in each channels F A button also gives you a visual indicatio...

Page 22: ...y shows its setting Set the IN time fader to 3 seconds and the OUT time fader to 5 seconds Hint To check the current time settings of the Time faders press the FUNCTION button When pressed during normal operations it causes the display to momentarily show the current time IN or OUT settings of the time faders whilst it is held down Subsequent presses will toggle between the two time settings Quick...

Page 23: ... the RECORD button is pressed all Playback flash assign buttons flash twice then Playbacks containing Scenes remain lit Playbacks containing Chases flash quickly Playbacks containing Stacks flash slowly and empty Playbacks are not lit If you change pages the contents of each page is shown 5 4 REPLAYING A SCENE The scenes that you recorded were on the red bank so to play them back you must select S...

Page 24: ...described below 5 6 REPLAYING A CHASE The red bank must be in Scene mode to replay chases When you select scene mode or change red pages in Scene mode the chases and or scenes in the selected red page are assigned in order to their respective red Playbacks When you change blue pages the chases and or scenes in the selected blue page are assigned in order to their respective blue Playbacks To repla...

Page 25: ... press function to set the fade IN time fade OUT time and LINK time automatically links to next step after link time expires Pressing function again shows the current step number and allows you to record the next step Continue to record steps as above When all steps have been recorded complete the stack by pressing record stack 5 8 REPLAYING A STACK Stacks can only be played back on the stack mast...

Page 26: ...h slowly and empty playbacks are not lit When you press edit or assign copy or any record button all Playback flash assign buttons flash twice then show their contents as above If you change pages whilst in edit assign copy or record modes the contents of each page is shown When the red bank is selected to scene mode or when a red bank page is changed whilst in scene mode the contents scenes and c...

Page 27: ... copied to the stack master When the select button is pressed the parameters in a playback can be varied without affecting the memory When select is deselected the changes are retained in the playback and can be copied to the memory if required Blue Page Key Blue PAGE 2 1 2 3 4 5 6 Blue PAGE 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 Blue PAGE 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 Blue PAGE 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 Blue PAGE 6 1 2 3 4 5 6 Blue PAGE 7 1 2 3 4 5...

Page 28: ...e contents of a live fader from being changed if its level is above 5 when a mode or page is changed The current contents of any live fader is held until such time as that fader is faded down below 5 when it will be automatically updated with its pending assignment for the new mode or page This prevents scenes chases or channels crashing in on stage if their fader is contributing to the output whe...

Page 29: ... fader movement If the master was only faded to the half way position then the fade would take 1 5 seconds to reach that point and then stop If the master was then moved to the end of its travel the fade would take another 1 5 seconds to complete MANUAL FADES A fully manual fade is achieved by setting the fade times to 0 seconds The fade will then instantly follow the position of the fader as you ...

Page 30: ...es from the scene will be used for the step in the stack If the scene is edited the changed times will be used by the stack The transition from one step to the next is in the form of a DIPLESS CROSSFADE The incoming step will fade up in the IN time for that step and the outgoing step will fade down in the OUT time for that step LINK TIMES If a step contains a LINK time then when that step is playe...

Page 31: ...rate IN and OUT fade times As you record a scene you may select and set each parameter Bank Page IN time and OUT time for the scene You complete the recording by giving the scene a number via the Red or Blue F A buttons You can complete the recording at any time in the process regardless of whether you have set each parameter or not If a parameter has not been set it will be recorded with its defa...

Page 32: ...bove takes several buttonstrokes to complete and would be time consuming when time is short such as in a fast moving rehearsal where you need to quickly create a look record it as a scene and immediately create the next look If this is the case you may use the rapid recording method described above and then when time permits edit the scenes to set the desired fade times Hint If you connect a SVGA ...

Page 33: ...selected using the blue page button Press red page or blue page to increment to the next page or to switch directly to a page press and hold red page or blue page tap F A Page number Note Mode Page freeze rules apply See the MEMORY STRUCTURE chapter for more details CONTROLLING A SCENE To reveal a scene on the output If the scene was recorded on the red bank press mode red bank until its scene LED...

Page 34: ... Grab master To edit a scene in a different page press edit red page or blue page repeated presses until desired page is shown or hold page tap F A page number As each page is selected all Playbacks containing scenes in that page will light Playbacks containing chases flash quickly stacks flash slowly and empty playbacks are not lit To edit a scene in the selected page press F A Scene number The F...

Page 35: ...ages use the red or blue page buttons to select the source bank page number When the source scene number F A button is pressed the display will briefly scroll Pick location to copy to Use the red or blue page buttons and the scene F A buttons to select the destination page and scene number Memories containing scenes are lit Memories containing chases flash rapidly Memories containing stacks flash ...

Page 36: ...ng Systems Aust Pty Ltd Page 30 of 66 If required repeatedly press red page or blue page until the required page number is displayed then press F A Scene number of the scene to be removed The display asks you to confirm your action Press yes ...

Page 37: ... page are loaded into the red playbacks When a blue bank page is changed the contents scenes and chases of the indicated blue page are loaded into the blue playbacks Chase rate and crossfade times are recorded in memory as part of each chase Up to 91 simultaneous chases may be running at the one time XXL model Chases may be run in any of the following modes FORWARD REVERSE BOUNCE Auto reverse at e...

Page 38: ...number any red or blue F A button or press F A Grab to record the chase on the Grab master S M models Note Recording over an existing chase stack or scene number will erase the previous contents The display will scroll Record Snap or select Memory The record scene and the function buttons flash Each step of a Chase consists of either a snapshot of the output or an existing scene RECORDING SNAPSHOT...

Page 39: ...automatically deleted or the existing name is shown and the blinking cursor on the display is ready for you to enter characters Either rotate the edit wheel or press the yellow bank F A buttons for the desired characters as labelled below the buttons On the S M models where several characters are printed below each button multiple presses select the next character in a similar fashion to mobile te...

Page 40: ...nd direction on the selected Playback When you have finished controlling the chase and you exit Select press select again the maXim asks Save Changes To Memory If you answer no the original memory is not affected but the changes that you have made are retained in the Playback until such time as the Chase is replaced on that Playback by changing pages or mode If you answer yes the changes are also ...

Page 41: ...PTIONS NORMAL A conventional chase that steps from one step to the next and when it reaches the last step it loops around to the beginning and repeats the steps in the same order BOUNCE The chase runs but automatically changes direction when it reaches the last or first step In this manner it continuously bounces from end to end The indicators in the forward button and the reverse button indicate ...

Page 42: ...s show the channels of the running chase Their intensity reflects the levels of the channels in each step To control the RATE rotate the edit wheel The display indicates the rate in BPM Beat Per Minute To change the CROSSFADE between steps press function until in out LEDs light then rotate the edit wheel The display indicates the percentage of time between beats to be used for the crossfade See CR...

Page 43: ...ting function All changes are automatically saved EDITING A CHASE NAME Names are edited in the same way as they are recorded not from edit mode See NAMING A CHASE above for details 9 5 COPYING A CHASE Any chase may be copied to any other bank page F A number To copy a chase press assign copy The display reads Pick memory to copy from If the source is not in the current red or blue pages use the re...

Page 44: ...nel faders or Playbacks To enable the next look to be created take a Grab of the output fade up the Grab master to full and then fade down the Bank masters The look is maintained by the Grab master Preset the next look using any of the channel faders or Playbacks To crossfade to the next look simply fade up the Bank masters and fade down the Grab master In order to create the next look Grab the cu...

Page 45: ...trolled and edited in exactly the same manner as a chase in a Playback Refer to the CHASE chapter for details 10 5 GRAB AS A MEMORY COPYING A STACK TO THE GRAB MASTER Any existing stack from any Page may be copied to the Grab master The Grab master cannot replay the stack but does provide a handy storage location for a stack To copy a stack from any page of memory to the Grab master press assign c...

Page 46: ...tep may also be named Stacks may only be replayed on the Stack Master which provides comprehensive facilities to control the replay of the Stack Crossfade times for each step are recorded into memory or can be under control of the time faders Each step can be given a link time causing it to automatically step after an elapsed link time A stack may be edited The contents of any step may be changed ...

Page 47: ...he output then to record it as a step press record scene RECORDING ADDING SCENES AS STEPS To record an existing scene as step press the F A button of the scene If the required scene is in a different page to the current page select the required red or blue page then press the F A button of the scene RECORDING ADDING CHASES AS STEPS To record an existing chase as step press the F A buttons of the c...

Page 48: ... On the S M models where several characters are printed below each button multiple presses select the next character in a similar fashion to mobile telephone buttonpad Press or to move the cursor and press remove or add to remove or add characters or spaces Names may be up to 15 characters long When finished press ok NAMING EACH STEP IN A STACK See EDITING A STACK below 11 3 STACK PLAYBACK Stacks ...

Page 49: ...STEPPING A STACK If a stack is stationary idle between steps you may step instant change no times executed through the stack in either direction To instantly step snap a stack in the forward direction hold step stop tap forward To instantly step snap a stack in the reverse direction hold step stop tap reverse CLEARING THE STACK MASTER To clear the stack master press remove stack flash yes FADE TIM...

Page 50: ...ns show the channel levels in each step The function remove and add buttons also flash to show that they are active There uses are described below When finished editing press edit Changes are automatically saved ADD A STEP To add a step to a stack first edit the stack above then step through the stack using the or buttons below the edit wheel Select the step after which the new step is to be inser...

Page 51: ...he F A button is released the display shows the level of that channel in the step To edit the level of the selected channel rotate the EDIT wheel If the level is varied above its recorded value it is prefixed by a sign When a parameter is varied below its recorded value it is prefixed by a sign If the level is restored to its original value no sign is shown Press and release further channel F A bu...

Page 52: ...r F A button is pressed the display will briefly confirm the source and destination of the copy Note When you make a copy of a stack any stack or chase or scene that is currently in the destination number will be overwritten by the copy The copy process may be abandoned at any time prior to entering the destination scene number by pressing assign copy a second time That is deselecting it Hint If y...

Page 53: ... pressing any FLASH button will add the flashed channels to the output at the FLASH control level and at the same time it will KILL black out all other output of the maXim The flashed object is now the solo output from the maXim 12 3 FLASH LEVEL The FLASH level control sets the percentage level at the output of the FLASH section for all channels when they are flashed For individual channels the Fl...

Page 54: ... is available to speed the patching process 13 2 ACTIVATE THE PATCH To activate the patch Hold function tap patch a yellow bank function button The display asks Activate Patch Press yes The screen confirms your action If the maXim has had a total reset or if all patches have been removed no patches will exist and there will be no output from the maXim You will need to Edit the Patch below 12 3 BYP...

Page 55: ... DMX address to a different channel by pressing that channel s F A key then the display will ask DMX patched to channel replace If you press no the patch remains If you press yes the patch is deleted and the new patch made When all patches have been made end the editing by pressing edit The patch is automatically saved SET A PROPORTIONAL PATCH LEVEL When patching above select the DMX address with ...

Page 56: ...maXim Operator Manual Pat Pad LSC Lighting Systems Aust Pty Ltd Page 50 of 66 14 0 PATPAD This feature is yet to be implemented ...

Page 57: ...maXim Operator Manual STL LSC Lighting Systems Aust Pty Ltd Page 51 of 66 15 0 SOUND TO LIGHT STL This feature is yet to be implemented ...

Page 58: ...nes Chases Stacks and the Patch WARNING Once a load from disk is initiated the current contents of the maXim s memory will be erased and cannot be recovered To load a show from disk place the disk in the disk drive then press and hold function tap F A disk release function The display asks Save show to disk Press no The display asks Load show from disk Press yes The display shows a show number Rot...

Page 59: ...stacks in out and link and chases speed and crossfade Press and hold function tap F A setup The display asks Set Preferences Press yes The display asks Set default times and speeds Press yes Follow the prompts and set the times with the EDIT wheel You can set default times for the following Scenes o In time o Out time Chases o Rate o Crossfade Stacks o In time o Out time o Link time Stack default ...

Page 60: ...et Language default Press no The display asks Set FILE NAME Default Press no The display asks Set Yellow Inversion Press yes If the Yellow master is not inverted the display asks Yellow Master is not inverted Invert Press yes If the Yellow master is inverted the display asks Yellow Master is inverted Set Normal Press yes 16 4 VIDEO VIDEO MONITOR Your maXim is fitted with a VIDEO output connector o...

Page 61: ...t further divides the left side into 4 areas and allows you to select any 4 Playbacks or the stack master and pin a status display for that Playback or stack into any of the 4 positions as shown above VIDEO 1 TO 4 To turn on one of the 4 video pages on the left of the screen Press and hold function tap F A video 1 to 4 Video 1 is Channel View Video 2 is DMX Output Video 3 is Stack Cue List Video 4...

Page 62: ...tage It should lie between 5 8 and 6 4 volts approximately Press ok The display will show the state of the battery charging or charged To exit press ok MEMORY TEST Press red F A 12 The display will show the percentage of memory used Press ok The display will show the percentage of heap used Maintenance use only Press ok The display will show the memory capacity To exit press ok To exit diagnostics...

Page 63: ...Type mLinkZip without the quotes followed by the enter button This will extract several files into the mLINK directory These are mlink56 exe The upgrade utility program ms bat Default batch file for the maXim S control desk mm bat Default batch file for the maXim M control desk ml bat Default batch file for the maXim L control desk mxl bat Default batch file for the maXim XL control desk mxxl bat ...

Page 64: ...orrect command for that port For any maXim that has an options card installed Includes maXim L XL and XXL or S and M if they have a disk or video the mLINK connection depends on pin 1 of the 5 Pin Cannon Male being connected to mains ground If you are using a PC to update the maXim then this should happen naturally However if you are using a laptop to update the software then please ensure that pi...

Page 65: ...ng mLINK without the quotes This will display the following on your computer s screen LSC Lighting Systems Aust Pty Ltd http www lsclighting com au mLINK version 1 0 Usage mlink COM port command filename s19 v The command options are U upload file B boot version O original code version N new code version H H W version mLINK Cable Details The cable requires 3 conductors Tx Rx and common One end is ...

Page 66: ...he RCA audio input connector is used for the Sound To Light feature It accepts an audio level of 1 volt RMS line level For operational details refer to the SOUND TO LIGHT chapter 5 DMX512 1990 This 5 pin DMX connector has 2 functions It provides the DMX512 output for DMX Universe 1 channels 1 to 512 It connects the maXim to a computer serial port for software updates 6 VIDEO The VIDEO output optio...

Page 67: ...nt To enable this each piece of DMX512 receiving equipment is fitted with an address switch This switch is set to the channel number to which the equipment is to respond If the equipment is a rack of 12 dimmers then the address switch is set to the channel number to which the first dimmer in the rack is to respond The other 11 dimmers will follow on from the channel number on the address switch in...

Page 68: ...ON SCROLLER ADDRESS ADDRESS 38 ADDRESS 39 D E M U X ADDRESS 25 T O A N A L O G U E D IMMERS D IMMER 25 D IMMER 36 D M X IN D M X O U T D M X splitter T E R M INATION T E R M INATION In this setup the DMX is first fed to a splitter which isolates the input from the outputs In the event of a fault on one of the output loops the other loops will not be affected One output from the splitter loops thro...

Page 69: ...hilst the second preset is faded up The next lighting look is now prepared on the first preset These alternate crossfades from preset to preset form the standard operation of a manual preset lighting board PRESET MASTER A Preset master controls the overall level of all the channels in a preset above The maXim provides a Red and a Yellow Bank Master to control the overall level of the red and yello...

Page 70: ... both the OUT fading scene and the IN fading scene will fade directly from its outgoing level to its incoming level and will not dip below a level equal to the current sum of the two scenes DMX 512 1990 DMX512 1990 is the industry standard for the transmission of digital control signals between lighting equipment See APPENDIX A for more details DMX UNIVERSES If more than 512 DMX channels are requi...

Page 71: ...PS 31 CONTROLLING LIGHTS 15 COPY CHASE 36 SCENE 29 STACK 45 TO AND FROM GRAB MASTER 37 CROSSFADES DIPLESS 24 42 63 MANUAL 15 23 TIMED 23 D DELETE CHASE 36 PATCH 48 SCENE 29 STACK 45 DESK LAMP 59 DIAGNOSTICS 54 DIPLESS CROSSFADE 24 42 63 DISK 51 59 LOADING A SHOW 51 SAVING A SHOW 51 DMX CONNECTOR 59 DMX512 5 59 60 TYPICAL APPLICATIONS 60 UNIVERSE 2 59 UNIVERSES 60 E EDIT WHEEL 11 F FADE DEFAULT TIM...

Page 72: ...6 FADE TIMES 26 NAME 26 REPLAYING 17 27 CONTROLLING LEVEL 27 FADE TIMES 26 SECONDARY FUNCTIONS 4 SELECT CHASE 33 MASTER 23 PLAYBACK 21 SCENE 27 SOFTWARE UPGRADING 55 VERSION 4 SOLO LEVEL MASTER 8 SOLO ASSIGN 7 SPECIFICATIONS 3 STACKS ASSIGNING A STACK TO THE STACKMASTER 41 CLEARING THE STACKMASTER 42 COPYING 45 DELETING 45 EDITING 43 CHANNEL LEVELS 44 FADE AND LINK TIMES 43 INSERTING A STEP 43 REM...

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