Mega Lite LUMEN8 Owner's manual

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Lumen8
Lighting Console
2
Product Overview
The Lumen8 Station is an all-in-one fanless lighting console with a built-in quad core processor. It
requires an external monitor of your choice, though a touch screen monitor is recommended. The
Lumen8 Station is a mega compact lighting console, measuring only 15” x 11 x 3” making it perfect
for on-the-go small productions, school stages, and houses of worship. The Station features an
industrial-grade built-in quad-core and fanless processor. It has eight playback faders for cuelist
intensity control, eight encoders that give you direct fixture attribute control as well as cuelist playback
speed adjustment. The Lumen8 Station has one grand master fader, eight go buttons, and a master
fade-time fader. The Station can be paired with a touch screen monitor of your choice via the HDMI
output, providing a compact and powerful lighting console solution. The Station also has one on-
board DMX512 output, and eight additional Universes that can be achieved using an external Mega
Node 8 Art-net node. Using our unique visual cuelist and graphical approach, the Lumen8 Station
gives you the power of a professional lighting in a small package console with a quick learning curve.
If at any point you are unsure about a term or have a question about why something may not be
working, refer to the “FAQ” and “Terms” sections at the end of the manual
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Vertical Task Bar
The vertical task bar is the bar on the right side of your external monitor that is always visible. This
bar is where some of the most important functions of the Lumen8 Station live. The
task bar includes:
Page 1/View 1:
This first box changes based on what mode users are in and tells users what
page or view they are in
Next Page/Previous Page:
Helps users navigate though pages and views based on what mode users are in.
Users can cycle through pages utilizing these buttons on the vertical task bar or
by using the ‘Page >’ and ‘Page <‘ buttons in the center of the Lumen8 Station
hardware
Program Mode:
Where users control all the fixtures and attributes to create and edit cues for
playback mode
Playback Mode:
Where users will play back all created cues within the programming mode. Both
program mode and playback mode can be accessed on the right vertical menu on
the Lumen8 Station screen
Patch:
With the ‘Patch’ button, users will be able to patch a fixture, edit a fixture, create a
new fixture, or create a virtual matrix. These topics will be discussed in length in
the following chapters
3D:
This button opens up the 3D visualizer. The 3D visualizer shows a 3D rendering
of the created stage plot with fixtures once they are patched
Backup:
Here is where users can backup created shows. For more information on backing
up a show, proceed to the ‘Backup and Restore’ section of the manual
Tools:
Clicking this button opens a horizontal menu with four options:
DMX Output Window: Shows all the available DMX channels and their real-time
out values
Channel Configuration: Shows the patched fixtures and available universes for
the current show
Patch List: A list of all patched fixtures, their start channels, and whether their
pan and tilt channels are inverted
Time Code: This window allows for the realtime recording to interval time code.
Time Code also allows for the ability to recall and save the time code list for
later playback
Settings:
Clicking the ‘Settings’ button brings up a pop-up window with five different
options. For more in-depth information on the ‘Settings’ window, proceed to the ‘Settings’ section of
the manual
4
Show:
Clicking the ‘Show’ button allows users to create a new show, load an existing show, save show as,
and close Lumen8. Continue to the next section of the manual to begin making your first show on
the Lumen8 Station
Lumen8 Button:
The Lumen8 buttons displays the name of the current show. Clicking the ‘Lumen8’ button brings up
a window with all previously created shows. To load a previously created show, click on the folder
with the show name you want to open, and click the ‘Load Selected Show’ button at the bottom of
the window
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Creating A Show & Patching Fixtures
To create a new show:
Press the ‘Show’ button on the bottom of the task bar on the right side of the screen.
This will make a horizontal menu appear with show options. From there, name the
show using the top 32 keys on the Lumen8 Surface console. After naming it, click the
'Create New Show' button to the right of the box containing the new show name
Click the 'enter' key and the Lumen8 Station will automatically create a new show
Patching fixtures:
To patch fixtures, click the 'Patch' button on the vertical task bar
A horizontal sub-menu will open across your screen. Click on the ‘Patch’ button to access the
fixture library
Use the keyboard to quick search the first letter of the manufacturer who makes the light you are
trying to patch
Use the select wheel to scroll through the different fixture models within the manufacturer list.
Utilizing the same wheel, press down to select the fixture
Use your 10-key number pad to enter the number of fixtures you want to patch
Use the enter key on the 10-key number pad to confirm the patch
Once patched, press the ‘Patch’ hard key on the Lumen8 Surface to close the fixture library
Laying out fixtures:
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To rearrange the fixtures, click on the fixture and drag it with a mouse to the desired position (it is
recommended laying out fixtures in a way that resembles their location on stage). Users can move
multiple fixtures by clicking and dragging a rectangle over the desired fixtures, and then moving the
fixtures to their new location
Addressing fixtures:
Addressing fixtures can be done in two ways:
1. Double-click the fixture you want to address, or
2. Click on the edit button that is in the middle of the fixture view. This will cause the edit button
to turn green indicating the fixture view is in edit mode
Click on the fixture you wish to address. A horizontal menu will appear; click on the 'View/Edit Start
Channel' button
The 'Fixture Properties' window will appear showing name, channels used, start channel, and
universe. The same menu will also show dip switch configuration to address a fixture via dip switch
Once addressing information has been gathered, users can physically put their start channel
addresses and channel modes on their fixtures
To rename a fixture, open the fixture properties window via one of the two ways previously
explained (refer to the first bullet in the beginning of the ‘Addressing Fixtures’ section). Then type
the desired name using a keyboard
7
Edit Fixture View
In order to edit fixtures, users will need to click on the ‘Edit’ button that is in the middle of the fixture
view. This button will then turn green indicating edit mode is on. Once in edit mode, click on the fixture
that you wish to edit, and a horizontal fixture edit menu will pop up with these options:
Solo mode:
This mode will turn a fixture into a 'spotlight.' In solo mode, users will not have any additional control
of the light — this is equivalent to ‘parking' a fixture
Copy fixture sequence:
Copies whatever the sequence is so it can be pasted onto a different fixture
Paste fixture sequence:
Pastes the sequence that was copied into memory
View/Edit start channel:
Previously explained; brings up the fixture properties window
Edit fixture definition:
A menu where users can change the fixture's attributes or create a fixture profile
Change view:
Here is where users can create multiple views for their fixtures. To add a new view, click on the
'View One' button on the top of the right vertical menu to bring up the fixture view menu. With this
menu, users can add a fixture view, delete the current fixture view, rename the current fixture view
and reset the current fixture view.
To add a second fixture view, click the 'Add Fixture View' button, and a second view will
automatically be created.
To place fixtures in the newly created view, click on the edit button in the fixture view (make sure the
button is green), click on the fixture you wish to send to the second view. A horizontal menu will
appear, then click on the change view button.
Users will then be able to choose if they want the fixture in view one or view two. Users can cycle
through views using the view one and view two buttons on the right vertical menu or with the view
one and view two hard keys on the Lumen8 console
Change text background:
Changes the background color of all the fixtures
Remove fixture(s):
Removes selected fixtures from the show
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Palette Overview
Color palette:
Color palette has a color grid that allows users to choose an exact color for your fixtures. Color
options include: normal, RGB, C-temp, Rosco and Lee. Note: Color grid only works for color mixing
fixtures. You can scroll through the colors with the pan and tilt wheels on the color palette
Gobo palette:
Will show different gobos within the fixture users have selected. Note: only applicable with fixtures
that have gobos
Shutter palette:
Will show the different lens effects — i.e. strobe, close shutter, open shutter, etc.
Beam palette:
Will give users control over beam functionality — i.e. dimmer, focus, prism, etc.
Function palette:
Can be used for fixture reset or fixture function modes
Rotation palette:
Sets rotation for gobos, prism, etc. Can go clockwise or counter-clockwise
Speed palette:
Controls the motor speed of the fixture
Position palette:
Where users will store all the position presets for their fixtures. There are default positions
automatically created for moving fixtures
Groups palette:
Where users can create grouping for different fixtures. This helps with ease of fixture selection
RFX (real-time effects generator) palette:
When multiple rFX are running, users can go to the rFX palette option and save the combination of
active rFX into an rFX preset for recall
RGB-FX (RGB effects) palette:
Different color effect presets that can be applied to color mixing fixtures. RGBFX automatically
creates complex color chases
Faders palette:
Where users have complete control of the attributes of their fixtures
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Joystick palette:
The area where users can control the position of the fixtures, create custom movements with
different offsets, and control pan and tilt fanning
Matrix palette:
Brings up matrix shortcuts that contain either pictures, videos, or animated GIFs that can be applied
to a virtual matrix. Those pictures, videos, and GIFs can be transposed to a virtual matrix which is a
grid of fixtures
3D visualizer palette:
Gives users a 3D rendering of the fixtures housed within the palette window
Patch palette:
Brings up the fixture editing window for fixture patching
Encoder wheels:
There are 8 encoder wheels above corresponding playback faders. These wheels give the user
control, within each palette, of different attributes like focus, pan, tilt, color, etc. The traits for the 8
encoders vary based on what palette you're in
How to fine tune using the encoder wheels within the palettes:
Controlling faders:
Users can control the values within the faders in two ways:
1. Via the touchscreen; simply drag up and down the fader to increase or decrease the channel’s
value;
2. Clicking on the DMX value above the fader to manually input a numeric value via the 10-key
number pad
In the faders palette, if you have more than 15 channels the additional channels will be displayed on
the next page
To toggle between the multiple pages, simply click the 'Previous' and 'Next' buttons under the
faders displayed on the fader palette on your screen
The speed at which you turn the select wheel matches the speed at which the values on your faders
increase or decrease
Palette preset edit mode
Gives users control of deleting, creating, updating, or regenerating a preset. This gives users more
direct control of the presets to make the presets more customized
Joystick shapes and fanning
Using the 8 encoder wheels, users can control the pan, tilt, size, shape, focus, zoom, offset, and
fans for the pan and tilt for your fixtures
Keep in mind that multiple pages for palettes are shown by pressing the palette button twice. The
palette page number will be displayed on the preset edit button
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Playback and Programming Mode
Programming mode:
Where users control all the fixtures and attributes to create and edit cues for playback mode
Playback mode:
Where users will play back all created cues within the programming mode. Both program mode
and playback mode can be accessed on the right vertical menu on the screen
If users are in program mode, they can click the ‘Page >' or ‘Page <' buttons on the Lumen8 Station
hardware to jump to playback mode
If users are in playback mode, they can click on one of the palettes on the touchscreen to jump to
program mode (color, gobo, etc.)
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Creating A Static Look
Select the fixtures from the fixture view that you wish to gain control of by either utilizing the
touchscreen, through groups, or via the 'Next' and 'Previous' fixture buttons on the Lumen8 Station
hardware if your fixture group is selected
Once the desired fixture or fixtures are selected, click on the 'INIT' button ocated on the bottom left
corner of the sequence editor
Once the fixture is initialized, select the desired color, gobo, etc. presets to add to the look
Users can dial in any additional changes to the look by utilizing the fader palette or by creating
custom presets within the palettes
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When the desired changes have been made and you are
satisfied with the look, it can be saved as a cue by
pressing the 'Save' button located in the bottom right
corner of the sequence editor
Once you have pressed 'Save,' the sequence properties
window will appear. Here, users can add a crossfade in
and out with custom time intervals, save button as either
default, pan/tilt only, or color/gobo only button. Within this
window, users can also enable or disable use of fade
scene settings or use of fade cue time. Users can also
name their cue from this window. Once all of the
information is entered, click the 'Save Cue Button' at the
top of the window. After the cue has been saved, the
window will close and users will automatically be brought
to the playback mode where they can select the desired
cue group or quick assign fader.
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Creating A Moving Look
Select the fixtures from the fixture view that you wish to gain control of by either using the mouse,
through groups, or via the 'Next' and 'Previous' fixture buttons on the Lumen8 Station hardware
Once the desired fixtures are selected, click on the 'INIT' button located in the bottom left corner of
the sequence editor
Once the fixture is initialized, go to the joystick palette to create a shape or movement for the light.
Users can even record their own one-of-a-kind movement using the joystick palette and the record
button. Users can also increase or decrease the size of the shape or movement, change the pan/tilt
fanning, increase or decrease the fixture offset and step, plus other customizations. Finally, select the
desired color, gobo, etc. presets to add to the look. To speed up or slow down the movement, use the
large slider located in your step editor called “Playback fade time/fade speed.” Note that fade up and
fade down time will change accordingly. Users can dial in any additional changes to the look by
utilizing the fader palette
When the desired changes have been made and you are satisfied with the look, it can be saved as a
cue by pressing the 'Save' button located in the bottom right corner of the sequence editor
Once users have pressed 'Save,' the sequence properties window will appear. Here, users can add a
cross-fade in and out with custom time intervals, save button as either default, pan/tilt only, or color/
gobo only button. Within this window, users can also enable or disable use of fade scene settings or
use of fade cue time. Users can also name their cue in this window. Once all of the information is
inputted, click the 'Save Cue’ button at the top of the window. After the cue has been saved, the
window will close and users will automatically be brought to the playback mode where they can select
the desired cue group or quick assign fader
In order to assign cues, press the bump buttons at the bottom of the faders
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Playback Mode Editor
The playback mode editor allows users to edit cues by either moving, copying, renaming, or deleting
cues. To access the playback mode editor and begin editing:
Go to the edit button in the top left corner of the screen in Playback Mode (which can be accessed
through the vertical sidebar on the right of your screen)
Click on the ‘Edit’ button. When the ‘Edit’ button turns green, users are then in edit mode
Click on the cue you wish to edit, and a horizontal menu will appear
Options within the Playback Mode Editor:
Move Cue Button:
Enables users to move a cue to a different page if there are multiple pages of cues. The Move Cue
Button also allows users to move the cue within the same page but to a different cue bank
Copy Cue Button:
Allows users to copy a cue onto the current page or new page. Note that the newly copied cue will
say “copy” at the end of the cue name
Rename Cue Button:
Allows users to rename a pre-existing cue
Delete Cue Button:
This allows users to delete a pre-existing cue
Edit Current Cue Button:
Enables users to edit a sequence to a pre-existing cue. For more in-depth information on editing
cues, see the next section of the manual
Adjust Fade-In/Out Times:
Click on this button to adjust fade-in and fade-out times. Clicking this button will bring up a pop-up
window where users can adjust the time for fade-ins and fade-outs on the fixtures utilizing the 10-
key number pad on the Lumen8 Surface hardware or clicking the arrows on the pop-up screen
Insert Mark Cue:
Inserts a blackout between cue buttons that allows the fixture to get into position for the upcoming
cue
Insert Fade Cue:
Allows users to fade out a fixture without moving the fixture to a different position
Show Cue Preset Data:
Shows all embedded preset data for your cues. This opens up a pop up window displaying all of
the data
Cancel:
Closes the horizontal menu
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Playback Mode Overview
In playback mode, users have eight total cue groups with sixteen total assignable banks for cues
within each cue group. There are also eight intensity faders below the cue banks.
Above the intensity faders is a ‘Go’ button that will jump users to the next cue. Above the ‘Go’ button
are the left and right arrow keys that allow users to pre-select a cue to jump to after clicking the ‘Go’
button. The fader below the ‘Go’ button is the Fader Catch-up.
Fader Catch-up is a way that the Lumen8 Surface automatically adjusts fader levels across different
pages. For example, if on page one a fader is up 100% and on page 2 a fader is up 50%, users will
have to bring the fader to the matching position (in this case, to 50%) before the user gains control of
the fader. This helps safeguard against unwanted lights being initiated when switching cue pages
Naming/Color Coding Cue Groups:
In order to color code cues, click on the bar to the top right of the right arrow key next to the
intensity fader
A window will pop up with color options. Click on the color you wish to assign to your cue button,
and then click the ‘OK’ button
Another window will pop up that will prompt users to name their cue group. Enter a name using
your keyboard
Users will then see the color and name they assigned to the intensity fader appear after clicking the
‘Enter’ button
Above the intensity faders, there are left and right arrow buttons to either side of a number. The
number represents the page number for the cue banks. Users can have up to ten different pages of
cue banks
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At the top of the Playback Mode screen, there are a total of 8 assignable short keys. These short
keys enable users to assign cues to them and correspond with the top 8 keys on the Lumen8 Station
hardware. These 8 assignable short keys can be saved as ‘Latch’ or ‘Bump’ buttons. When a cue is
first saved, it defaults to Latch. Latch means that when the button is turned on, it stays on until users
turn the cue off. Bump is a temporary activation of a cue. Once the actual hotkey is released, the cue
will turn off. To turn Bump on,
Click the ‘Edit’ button, turning it green
Click on the cue within the top 8 assignable short keys (note that Bump cannot be activated for
cues within the cue bank, only on the 8 assignable short keys)
Click the ‘Turn Bump ON’ button
Your cue will now be in Bump mode. In order to Bump your cue, click on the corresponding button in
the top 8 keys on the Lumen8 Surface hardware that corresponds with where the cue is within the 8
assignable short keys
To the right of the Edit button, there are eight quick assign faders that correspond with eight sliders on
the Lumen8 Surface Hardware. Users can assign a cue to these faders for direct fader control of the
presets for dimmer, speed, and proportional/size
Dimmer: This gives users control over the dimmer on a cue
Speed: This gives users control over the speed of the movement, chase, etc. of a cue
Proportional/size: This proportionally alters the DMX values from a center point on active
channels within your cue
Directly under the intensity sliders are eight corresponding bump buttons. The bump buttons will
activate a cue at full intensity, as if the intensity slider was all the way up. If users press the ‘Shift’
button and then a bump button, it will bring up a ‘Enter Cue Number’ pop-up window. Users can use
this window to directly jump to whatever number cue is inputted. Users can input numbers using the
10-key number pad followed by the ‘Enter’ button
Above the ‘Go’ buttons are eight playback speed encoders. These knobs give variable speed control
of saved cues within a cue group.
To the left of the playback speed encoders are the ‘Tempo,’ ‘Master GO,’ and ‘BO (blackout)’ buttons.
Below these buttons are the Grand Master fader along with the Fade Time fader.
Tempo:
Users can utilize this button when wishing to sync light changes with the tempo of a song. Users
can change the rate of any playback by manually tapping the Tempo button to the beat of the song
Master Go:
This takes every active cue within a cue group and automatically jumps to the next one. This is like
a single ‘Go’ button for all active cues
BO (blackout):
Blacks out all active cues
Grand Master slider:
This is an intensity control slider for all cues
Fade Time slider:
Users can utilize this slider for manual global intensity control of fade-ins and fade-outs
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Edit Button Cues
In order to edit cues after they have already been made, go to playback mode and ensure that the
cue that you want edited is active. A green bar at the top of the cue indicates it is active. Now users
should click on programming mode. This is where all of the changes for your cue will be made. Note
that fixtures within the cue will be highlighted in the fixture layout.
Once changes have been made, click on the ‘Update’ button in the step editor. If multiple cues are
active, a horizontal active cue menu will appear when you click on programming mode from playback
mode.
Here, users will select the cue they wish to edit. Changes should be saved using the ‘Update’ button
18
Step Editor
The step editor is the menu on the bottom of the screen in programming mode. Using the step editor,
users will be able to initialize (INIT) and release fixtures as well as edit individual steps within a
sequence. Users will also be able to save changes and update cues using the step editor menu.
These are the options within the step editor:
INIT (initialize):
Turns on the selected fixture or fixtures
Play:
Click this to play or run your sequence
Pause:
Click this to pause your sequence
Stop:
Turns off or stops running the sequence
:
Used to backtrack through steps
:
Used to move forward through steps
Save Cue Changes:
Click this to save all cues and cue changes
Update:
Saves active cue changes
Clear Live & Clear All:
Used to clear out any initialized sequences from your playback. Switches between 'Clear Live' and
'Clear All' when saved cues are initialized. There are 3 modes:
1. When a playback(s) is active and changes are made to those playbacks, the ‘Clear’ button will
indicate ‘Clear Live.’ If the clear button is pressed at that time, any changes made will be reverted
back to their previous settings
2. Once ‘Clear Live’ has been reset and the user interface indicates clear all, then the clear
button will clear any active programmers
3. To clear all active playback and programmers, hold shift down while pressing the clear all
button
Delete:
Used to delete any individual steps within the step editor
REC (record):
Used to record an individual step within the step editor
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Create Virtual Matrix
A virtual matrix is when a grid is created with a series of pixel controlled fixtures with
the goal of using multiple fixtures to create one main image, picture, or GIF. There are
presets within the virtual matrix palette that you can use, including pre-loaded pictures
as well as GIFs
To create a virtual matrix:
Patch your pixel controllable fixtures to create a grid with the desired width and height in mind (ex:
an 8 x 8 grid would be 64 fixtures to patch)
Click on the 'Patch' button on the vertical menu on the right side of the screen
Click on the 'Create New Virtual Matrix' button
The Create Matrix window will pop up. Here, fill in the desired width and height for your grid. By
default, it is set to 10 x 10. Users can also set the name of the matrix in this same window. What the
matrix is named will become the name of the view that the matrix is in. After all this information is
filled in, click the 'Create Matrix' button
Once the matrix is made, click on the Edit button in the fixture view in the center of the screen (the
button will turn green). Then click on the newly created virtual matrix which will make the Virtual
Matrix Addressing window pop up
On this screen, select the pixel controlled fixtures that have been
patched - users will see them in a window toward the center of the side
bar on the left side of the pop-up window
Users can either place each fixture individually into the grid, or your
Lumen8 software will do it for you automatically if users click the left
button above the trackball and use the trackball to scroll over the
fixtures. The slots will turn blue indicating that users have placed a
fixture in the slot
If you place a fixture in a window and wish to delete it,
simply right click and drag the mouse over that slot
Once all of the fixtures are placed, close the window
To assign an effect to your matrix, simply click on any of
the presets within the virtual matrix palette. Users can
also assign an RGB effect to the grid - do this through the
RGB FX palette
To speed up or slow down the matrix, a large slider is
located below the virtual matrix presets. Move the slider
left and right to increase or decrease the speed of the
effect. Users can also utilize the global speed fader
located on the left side of the Lumen8 console
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To import your own pictures or GIFs to a virtual matrix, click on the small grey button located directly
under your presets. From there, locate the images you wish to import from your computer (under
60K resolution)
Once the content is selected, click the 'Open' button. It will automatically be added as a preset to the
virtual matrix palette
When you are ready to save your content, click the 'Save' button. A window will pop up where users
can name the matrix. Once named, click 'Save Cue’ button. From that screen, users can assign the
newly saved matrix to a button if desired
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