Selecting and Programming
Applies to SuperStage 26H2.6 and later ｜ Read first: Console Overview
This document covers selecting fixtures, changing values, and storing the result into groups and presets.
1. Selecting Fixtures
Three routes:
| Route | Description |
|---|---|
| Fixture Sheet | Click in the fixture table |
| Layout panel | Click on the fixture layout |
| Command line | Fixture 1 Thru 20, Group 3 |
Selection itself is undoable.
2. The Programmer
Values you change go into the programmer first. The programmer is a holding layer: it sits above every playback until you clear it or store it into an object.
Ways to change a value:
- Turn an encoder wheel — the row of wheels on the encoder bar; one gesture is one undo step;
- Type an exact value — click a wheel to open a numeric entry box;
- The command line;
- Pick a colour in the Color Picker panel.
The Fixture Sheet is for selecting and reading, not for editing values: click,
Ctrl+clickto add,Shift+clickfor a range, select all, cancel.
Attributes are grouped by category, matching the preset categories: Dimmer, Position, Gobo, Color, Beam, Focus, Control, Shaper, Strobe, Prism, Frost, Effect, Other.
3. Groups
A group stores a set of fixtures, no values.
- Select fixtures → Store → Group → slot number;
- Command line:
Store Group 5; - Copy / move:
Copy Group 1 At 5,Move Group 1 At 5.
Group slots appear as tiles in the Groups panel; their appearance is customisable (section 5).
4. Presets
A preset stores a set of attribute values. Each entry records the attribute name, its category and a value (0–100).
Presets are filed by category, matching the attribute groups:
| Category | Typical content |
|---|---|
| All | Every attribute |
| Dimmer | Intensity |
| Position | Pan / Tilt |
| Gobo | Gobo wheels and rotation |
| Color | Mixing, colour wheel, colour temperature |
| Beam | Zoom, iris |
| Focus | Focus |
| Control | Control channels |
| Shaper | Framing |
| Strobe | Strobe |
| Prism | Prism |
| Frost | Frost |
| Effect | Effects |
Operations:
- Store → Preset → category + slot number;
- Command line:
Store Preset 2,Copy Preset 1 At 5,Move Preset 1 At 5,Delete Preset 3.
5. Slot Appearance
Group slots, preset slots and sidebar view slots share one named appearance, with four independently toggled layers:
| Layer | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Slot text |
| Background | Background / text / accent colour |
| Image | One texture, either Cover (fill, crop overflow) or Contain (fit, leave margins) |
| Doodle | Hand-drawn marking |
Key points:
- The combination of the four toggles is the "name mode" — image only, name only, image behind name, or a plain colour block are all the same data presented differently;
- Doodles are stored per stroke using normalised coordinates, so the same doodle lands identically on a small sidebar tile and a large preview;
- Images are stored by reference, not embedded. One image used by several slots does not take up show file size repeatedly.
6. Clearing the Programmer
Clearing the programmer hands output back to the playbacks. It does not affect groups, presets or cues already stored.
7. Common Questions
I changed a value and the fixture did not respond
- Confirm the fixture exists in the console Patch panel with the same universe and address as the scene;
- Confirm the attribute exists in the fixture definition bindings (see the Validation page in Fixture Editor);
- Confirm the scene fixture's
ControlModeisDMX, notProperty.
A preset only affects some of the fixtures
Presets record attribute names. When fixture models use different attribute names, only the ones whose names match respond.
I stored a group in the wrong slot
Move Group <old> At <new>, or simply store over it again. The whole operation is in the undo stack.