(6) Focus Presets.
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The Focus Presets are actually button pools containing all the presets of (one of nine presets types: Pan/Tilt, Dimmer, Gobo, Color, Beam, Focus, Control, Shaper and Video) in the show. The window looks like this:
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A focus preset records all the focus attributes in your programmer, stores it in a button and makes it easy for you to recall the values. Presets can be stored in cues. And if you later changes the values stored in the preset it automatically uses the new values in the cue. Focus attributes are: Focus, Zoom, Frost and Lens.
The grandMA can store up to 999 different focus presets. You can assign any name to your preset (see below for information on how to assign a name).
Preset Window Options.
Right-clicking (or using the EDIT button followed by a press) on the Focus (6) headline gives you access to the Preset Window Options. That looks like this:
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The Left side of the options window allows you to change the color. You can select one of the 48 predefined colors or you can make one to fit your taste. At the right side you choose one of three things to change:
All Active: This color is used on preset buttons that can change values of the selected fixtures.
Some Active: This color is used on preset buttons that can only assign values to some of the selected fixtures.
Background: This is the preset windows background color.
The button DELETE WINDOW deletes the entire Focus Preset Window.
Next to that one there is a button that changes how icons are displayed on the individual preset buttons:
Icons Small: This is the default mode. It displays a small icon of the color or gobo stored in that preset.
Icons Big: This displays a big icon with the color or gobo stored in that preset and it removes the preset name.
Icons Off: This doesn’t display any icons.
To close the Preset Window Options you click/press on the blue cross in the upper right corner.
In the Setup pop-up under “Defaults” there is a button called Preset Colors. Here you can change the colors of all the ten different preset pools. There are three different color schemes: Green & Yellow, Rainbow and Black & White.
Preset button.
The button contains some information about the preset.
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If you have selected a fixture and you have a preset that can be used on this fixture the button(s) turns green (as a default – read about preset window options for how to change this). If you select multiple fixtures and some of the preset buttons turns yellow (as a default – read about preset window options for how to change this) that preset can only assign values to some of the fixtures you selected. If you haven’t selected any fixture(s) you can still press the preset button, but then it selects all the fixtures that can use that preset, but it doesn’t assign any values. If you press the button immediately afterwards then it assigns the values.
In the upper right corner you see the preset number. In the upper left corner there can be a small red triangle. If the triangle is there then the preset is a “Selective” preset (read about Store Options below). Also in the upper left corner there can be an icon displaying the color or gobo stored in that preset (read about the Preset Window Options above). If there is a color icon it can have three different frames. A thin frame indicates that the color only uses the CMY color wheels. A thick frame indicates that the color is both CMY and a regular wheel. If it has a frame that makes a round color it indicates that the color is only using a regular color wheel. In the top middle there might be a number. The number indicates how many fixtures that are currently assigned this preset.
In the middle you’ll see the name of the preset (read below for information on how to assign a name).
If your Store Options Allow Embedded preset they are marked with a white frame.
Also if the Store Options has Preset Filter ON you will see some white and black dots at the bottom of the button. Each dot represents each of the nine different preset types (Pan/Tilt, Dimmer, Gobo, Color, Beam, Focus, Control, Shaper and Video) respectively. If the dot is white it means that the button got values from that type of preset stored in it i.e. if the second dot is white there is dimmer values stored in the preset.
Creating a Preset.
Storing a preset is quite simple. Just select the fixtures and/or channels you want to use, and then assign the values to the attributes you want. When you are happy, press the STORE button followed by the preset button. Instead of pressing the button directly you can use this command: STORE PRESET 6 . NUMBER ENTER.
The “NUMBER” being the button you want to store your info on.
Assign a name to a preset:
If a preset button is the last touched object (has a blue frame around it) you can use the keyboard (and only the keyboard) to label it directly. It’s the most direct way to label immediately after storing...
Alternatively, if you want to name a preset later without selecting it first, do like this:
Press ASSIGN ASSIGN followed by the preset button. Then you get the “Enter New Label” pop-up:
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Now you can type a new name followed by the OK button or the ENTER (on desk or keyboard).
Instead of pressing the preset button directly you can use this command: ASSIGN ASSIGN PRESET 6 . NUMBER ENTER. This also brings up the “Enter New Label” pop-up.
Store Options.
How your presets are saved depend on your store options. You can access them by pressing and hold the STORE button.
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At the bottom right of the Store Options pop-up there is the Preset Options. There are four different buttons detecting how your preset is saved. If you want to keep your preferred setting you can press the button called “Save as default” in the upper right corner.
Each of the four buttons got different meaning. Read about them below.
Preset Filter ON / Preset Filter OFF:
This button got two different settings - “Preset Filter ON” and “Preset Filter OFF”.
If you turn preset filter on the preset can only store focus values.
If you turn preset filter off the preset can store values in all attributes.
Universal / Selective:
This button got two different settings - “Universal” and “Selective”.
A selective preset only assigns values to the fixtures that were selected when you stored the preset.
A universal preset assigns values to all the fixture types that were represented when you stored the preset.
Allow Embedded / Direct Only:
This button got two different settings - “Allow Embedded” and “Direct Only”.
If you allow embedded presets you can have a preset that contains other presets e.g. a Color Preset in a Focus Preset.
If you use direct only a preset stores all the values directly in that preset.
Clear Activation / Keep Activation:
This button got two different settings - “Clear Activation” and “Keep Activation”. This is about what happens with the values in your programmer after you stored the values in a preset. This only affects the values you store in a preset.
If you choose to clear activation the values is removed from the programmer.
If you choose to keep activation the values is still in the programmer after the store.
Moving a Preset:
If you want to move a preset you can press MOVE followed by the button and then its new location. You can also use a command like this MOVE PRESET 6 . NUMBER AT PRESET 6 . NEW NUMBER ENTER. This can be combined with many different commands (thru, +, - etc.).
If you use the MOVE command and press, hold and drag the button to its new position you are still in the “move” mode (the light above the button is on).
Moving, Inserting, copying presets doesn’t affect or change programmed presets. Deleting preset assigns the presets values to any cues where it might have been stored (There is a warning asking if you really want to delete a used preset).
Inserting a preset:
If you want to insert a preset you can press MOVE MOVE followed by the preset button and then its new inserted position. You can also use a command like this MOVE MOVE PRESET 6 . NUMBER AT PRESET 6 . NEW NUMBER ENTER. This can be combined with many different commands (thru, +, - etc.).
If you use the MOVE MOVE command and press, hold and drag the preset to its new inserted position you are still in the “insert” mode (the light above the move button is flashing).
Moving, Inserting, copying presets doesn’t affect or change programmed presets. Deleting preset assigns the presets values to any cues where it might have been stored (There is a warning asking if you really want to delete a used preset).
Copying a preset:
If you want to Copy a preset you can press COPY followed by the button and then its new location. You can also use a command like this COPY PRESET 6 . NUMBER AT PRESET 6 . NEW NUMBER ENTER. This can be combined with many different commands (THRU, +, - etc.).
Moving, Inserting, copying presets doesn’t affect or change programmed presets. Deleting preset assigns the presets values to any cues where it might have been stored (There is a warning asking if you really want to delete a used preset).
Deleting a preset:
You can delete a preset simply by pressing DELETE followed by pressing on the relevant button. Or you can use this command: DELETE PRESET 6 . NUMBER ENTER. This can of course be combined with a vast variety of commands (thru, +, - etc.).
Moving, Inserting, copying presets doesn’t affect or change programmed presets. Deleting preset assigns the presets values to any cues where it might have been stored (There is a warning asking if you really want to delete a used preset).