Luminair with SetList Maker

[Ruckman65]

Hello folks. I want to run Luminair to control my simple (6 led cans) stage lighting. Luminair will run on the same iPad as SetList Maker and will wirelessly output to a DMXKing interface connected to the lights. What midi commands would I need to enter into the MSB/LSB fields to run Luminair? For example, if I have created a scene in Luminair, what midi commands would need to be entered into the appropriate fields in SetList Maker? 

[Mykimus]

I can't tell you what messages need to be sent to Luminair - you'd need to check with the manufacturer for that information - but once you know what messages need to be sent we should be able to help you configure Set List Maker to send those messages.

Mykimus
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Set List Maker Technical Support
http://www.arlomedia.com/apps/setlistmaker

[Ruckman65]

Hello Mykimus
Thank you for the response. I will look into it a bit further and see what I can find. There is nothing in the Luminair instruction manual that really says what commands it will accept, at least, not in a language I understand!.

[Ruckman65]

In the Hex Code field in Midi Presets, for one preset, I entered 00. For a second preset, I added 00 1c and for a third preset, 00 1d. These commands changed the lighting scene appropriately. I am not really sure what I have done. I assume 00 is the bank change command and the following two characters the actual preset. But, I am guessing. Can you offer any clarification? 

[arlo]

A MIDI message starting with 00 isn't any kind of defined message, so either you were also sending other messages without being aware of it, or the Luminaire is completely "off the map" in terms of following the MIDI spec. Whether it follows the spec or not, its MIDI support should be documented in its user manual or you should be able to ask its tech support for help.

[Ruckman65]

Luminair has a Midi Learn feature. When I press midi learn and then play the Setlist Maker song with the non-defined midi preset, I suspect it is only responding to the midi message it received, regardless of whether it is defined or not. The Luminair manual doesn't offer much information and, while their email responses have been quick, they, too, have not offered much information. I am aware that it is probably me that can't understand the information but, as long as it works, I am happy, even if I have no idea of what I'm doing!

[arlo]

Okay. If you do want to learn how MIDI works, here are some resources:

http://forum.arlomedia.com/index.php/topic,656.0.html

[Ruckman65]

Hello Arlo. Thank you for the links. I have checked all of these previously but, now that I can do things hands on with the lights, SetList Maker and Luminair, it may make a bit more sense.

[Ruckman65]

When entering midi preset information, in the Program field of the Bank MSB Bank LSB area, I have just been adding a number, anything from 1 to 400. In Luminair, I hit midi learn then start the song in Setlist Maker and it seems to work. Strangely, it will not work where the numbers I am entering are are between something like 124 to 180 or above 386. Other numbers seem to work. When I close Setlist Maker and Luminair down and come back to it later, many of scenes I set up with midi learn are no longer attached to the song but many are. I suspect my numbering system is only randomly working because it is probably not the right way to do it. I'm at a loss. Any suggestions?   

[arlo]

Program change numbers only go from 0-127, so I would expect only numbers in that range to work. If you need more than 128 program changes, you can increment the bank number and then start the program numbering over at 0.

This could explain why Luminair doesn't save your numbers -- if you send 128 and then 129, it might convert them both to the maximum value of 127 and one replaces the other. But that's just a guess.

[Ruckman65]

Hello Arlo. That makes perfect sense. I've tried just adding a number from 0-127 in the program field but that only seems to work intermittently. I've tried using hex commands such as b0 00 for a program change and, similarly, it works sometimes. I have contacted Luminair to see what commands the program will accept. Hopefully, that will demystify the process.

[Ruckman65]

From the Luminair supporr team - By default, Luminair only "listens" to a single MIDI channel. If you would like to spread your MIDI messages across multiple channels (therefore giving you a larger amount of messages that are available for use) you can in Luminair's Settings turn the "Listen" channel to "All". You should also set the "Match Saved Channel" option to ON in order to distinguish between commands spread across multiple channels.

In SetList Maker, I have added two midi devices - Luminair on Channel 1 and Luminair on Channel 2. In midi preset 1, I have set the device to Luminair on Channel 1 and added the number 1 in the program field. All seems to work as advertised - the first lighting scene is displayed. In midi preset 2, I have set the device to Luminair on Channel 2 and have added the number 1 in the appropriate program field. When I do a midi learn in Luminair, it defaults to Channel 1 while it should show as Channel 2.

Any clues for this issue that is driving me around the bend?   

[arlo]

Why are you trying to use two channels? That seems needlessly complicated.

[Ruckman65]

Using one channel allows me to have 128 midi presets. As Luminair does not use banks, I can think of no other way to add more midi presets. I have tried different variations in the MSB/LSB fields but with no success. I thought perhaps using two channels might be a solution. Obviously, not!

[arlo]

Luminair doesn't support banks? Most products support that if they support program changes. But if that's not the case, then I guess you would need to use multiple channels. When you send a program change on channel 2 versus 1, you can look at the MIDI Status window in Set List Maker to verify that it is sending different messages. If it is, then you would need to ask Luminair why it isn't selecting the channel correctly.