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External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Wed Mar 16, 2022 4:30 pm
by mrmellen
I have been using this program for several years and really like it. I recently introduced it at the community theater where I volunteer (mostly running sound, but occasionally lighting) and the other lighting operators liked it. However, our artistic director - who sometimes helps out with lighting design - prefers the feel of "real" sliders. I hooked a Behringer LC2412 to the system. I see how the board can be used to control sliders and buttons in Virtual Console mode. Is there a way to map the board controls so they could control sliders in simple desk or function/scene editing mode? If that were possible, I would have a solution that would make everybody happy. Right now, the director wants to purchase a "real" control system, but we don't have the funds for anything beyond a simple board, and most of us would rather see any money we do have spent on upgrading other elements of our lighting system. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer.

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2022 7:56 am
by GGGss
mrmellen wrote: Wed Mar 16, 2022 4:30 pm Could control sliders in simple desk or function/scene editing mode?
The simple desk is not ment to be used like that, so it's not possible.
Use your LC and map the controls to functions in VC.
When real faders are necessary, you could opt to find a 24 or 48 channel DMX board and use it as a DMX input?

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Thu Mar 17, 2022 2:03 pm
by mrmellen
Thanks for the response. That's what I expected, but we can always hope. To follow up on your question/suggestion - if I fed the DMX output from the LC2412 board into the DMX input on my Enttec DMX Pro adapter, would QLC see that and interpret the DMX signals to move the simple desk sliders? (I would have just tried it out without asking, but the DMX adapter is at the theater 45 minutes away and I won't be going there for a few days).
Thanks again for your help.

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2022 8:07 am
by GGGss
mrmellen wrote: Thu Mar 17, 2022 2:03 pm would QLC see that and interpret the DMX signals to move the simple desk sliders
No, not the simple desk sliders. You really will have to 'construct' an environment on the Virtual Console.

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2022 10:27 am
by edogawa
And yes, once you have made that "environment", the simple desk faders will follow whatever channel values you generate in VC, just you cannot remote control the simple desk sliders themselves, except via web interface and touchscreen device (tablet/smartphone).

Think of simple desk as lowest layer in the program, most suitable for testing and emergency cases/overriding what comes from other layers like function editors, VC or show editor.

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Fri Mar 18, 2022 2:26 pm
by mrmellen
Thank you everyone for your responses. It is pretty much how I thought the program worked; now I can tell our director officially. It's actually how most/many theatrical lighting programs work, but I guess he was hoping for more. Anyway, I really like QLC, and plan to continue using it for any shows I design.

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2024 6:01 am
by terrorpigeon
Hi Mrmellen! I recently needed a simple desk I could map a midi controller to so I made this VC with 512 knobs, each one is mapped to their respective DMX channel in universe 1!
Image

If you still need something like this you can download the file here! Google drive doesn't seem to be loading a preview of it but the upper right hand download icon works!
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Cz_0u6 ... sp=sharing

Re: External controller map to simple desk?

Posted: Thu Feb 01, 2024 2:50 pm
by GGGss
... but why?
I never saw a midi interface with 512 sliders (yet).
Isn't the use of QLC+ to admitly omit this need?
Anyway: thanks for the effort.