Members devon13713 Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 My band currently plays live with a click track and samples. We also have 12 flood lights, 2 par cans hooked up to a elation scene setter 8 with a 4 channel dimmer pack. Very soon we will be purchasing 2-4 American DJ spot 250 II, 2 American DJ HP panel UV, two mega strobes, etc... It will be around 68 channels. What is our best course of action in automating our light show along with our samples and clicks? We want to be able to start the click, samples, and lights all at the same start. I have done a lot of searching and there are many programs used to automate the light show but none clearly say whether it can be synced with samples. I have played around with MYDMX by American DJ and I like that program so far. Midi to DMX is looking like my best choice in that we have many kick drum patterns that I would like to sync with the lights. And we created our demos using Reason drums, therefore i would be able to copy the patterns out of Reason into the other program. And since we play to a click based off of the demos everything would match up the same when we play live. I have seen USB to DMX and Midi to DMX. All from the cpu out to a dongle and from the dongle out to the actual lights. Again what would our best and cheapest option be in order to sync lights with samples. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mastersonics Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 I will be using ENTTEC DMXIS software shortly I also use click track and backup tracks for my band liveI use Logic and it's been rock solid from day one.The other cool thing is that hopefully finally I'll have synced lights.all within the same session and all running out of a Macbook Pro! hope that helpsCharles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigjd Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 Take a look at Freestyler. Program is free and it supports alot of interfaces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gjb3 Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 FWIW, Freestyler was not stable enough for me to use...plus the learning curve was steep. Enttec's DMXIS would seem to be a good choice, but it's new and I don't know anyone who's tried it. It seems a little TOO simple, but if it's stable and does what it says, it may be all you need. -J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bigjd Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 FWIW, Freestyler was not stable enough for me to use...plus the learning curve was steep. Enttec's DMXIS would seem to be a good choice, but it's new and I don't know anyone who's tried it. It seems a little TOO simple, but if it's stable and does what it says, it may be all you need.-J I've read problems with the newer Freestyler. Im still using the older 2.96j program.The newer 3.00 seems to have some issues with it. I've been running Freestyler on every gig for over a year now and the only problem I had is when the power went out on my lap-top, and had to start all over.Granted though I'm using it in sound to light mode,it may not support the original posters needs as well as others. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mastersonics Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 I have tried Freestyler and it's not stable at all. Let's hope DMXIS is all that.....I think it will.... cheers,Charles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members soundlight Posted July 20, 2009 Members Share Posted July 20, 2009 If you're syncing to tracks, DMXIS seems to be the product of choice given its plugin capabilities. This will allow you to sync up your lights right in to the track, better than any other program from what I've seen. Also, I'd say take a second look at moving heads before jumping on those ADJ fixtures - the Chauvet Intimidator Spot 150 and 250 fixtures that came out recently are great moving heads as well, and I really like the gobo selection and features. Take a look at everything before the purchase. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ned911 Posted July 21, 2009 Members Share Posted July 21, 2009 Light Jockey is the way to go here. LJ has a built in media player that you can use to time your lighting cues/triggers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dbrown Posted July 21, 2009 Members Share Posted July 21, 2009 Light Jockey is the way to go here. LJ has a built in media player that you can use to time your lighting cues/triggers. OP is asking for the "best and cheapest option" - LJ is good, but far from cheap! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ned911 Posted July 21, 2009 Members Share Posted July 21, 2009 Well the low cost option is usually not the cheapest. Go cheap dollar wise and you will spend numerous hours with headaches and failures. Been there and done that with DMX software - just buy they best and suck up it once, you will be happier in the long run. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dbrown Posted July 21, 2009 Members Share Posted July 21, 2009 buy they best and suck up it once, you will be happier in the long run. That's one way to spend money. However, not everyone has your budget. Also, I don't personally believe that "expensive = best", or that "cheap = poor quality". It would be a horrible world if that were always true. Go cheap dollar wise and you will spend numerous hours with headaches and failures That's dangerous advice. It may have been true with your own personal search for a controller. But everyone's requirements are different. The controllers that didn't suit you might work perfectly for others. The great thing about software lighting controllers is that most can be downloaded for free. My advice to the OP is: listen to the comments here, but then download ALL the different software products you are interested in, and try each one with your own setup. Then you can make an informed purchase. ---(And in the interests of full disclosure : I'm the author of DMXIS) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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