Alcorn Mcbride Light Cue User manual

Light Cue
Hardware and Software Reference Manual

Page 2 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Every effort has been made to assure the accuracy of the information contained in this manual, and the
reliability of the Alcorn McBride Light Cue. Errors can sometimes go undetected, however. If you find
one, please bring it to our attention so that we can correct it for others. Alcorn McBride welcomes
comments and suggestions on the content and layout of its documentation.
Applications described herein are for illustrative purposes only. Alcorn McBride Inc. assumes no
responsibility or liability for the use of these products, and makes no representation or warranty that the
use of these products for specific applications will be suitable without further testing or modification.
Alcorn McBride products are not intended for use in applications where a malfunction can reasonably
be expected to result in personal injury. Customers using or selling Alcorn McBride products for use in
such applications do so at their own risk, and agree to fully indemnify Alcorn McBride for any
damages resulting from such improper use or sale.
This publication was created using Doc-To-Help 2.0 and Microsoft Word for Windows 95, Version
7.0. Camera-ready art and illustrations were produced using Corel DRAW!, Version 6.0.
Light Cue™ is a trademark of Alcorn McBride Inc., all rights reserved.
Copyright 1996 Alcorn McBride, Inc. All rights reserved.
Hardware Design: Jim Carstensen and Steve Alcorn
Firmware Design: Jim Carstensen and Jim Janninck
Mechanical Design: Martin Chaney
Documentation: Jim Carstensen and Jeremy Scheinberg
Document Number 110-100355
Alcorn McBride Inc.
3300 S. Hiawassee, Suite 105
Orlando, Florida 32835
[phone]
FAX: [phone]
Internet: http://www.alcorn.com
e-mail: [email protected]

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 3
Table of Contents
Welcome 5
Features 5
Getting Started 6
Connecting the Unit 6
Storage Media 6
Recording 7
Playback 8
Show Controller Connection 8
Front Panel Controls and Indicators 9
< > Buttons
Record Button
Play Button 10
Stop Button 10
Cue 1, Cue 2, Cue 3 Buttons 10
LED Indicators 10
LCD Display 11
Rear Panel Controls and Connectors 12
Voltage / Contact Closure Select Switch 12
Power 12
RS-232C Controller Input 13
DMX Input 14
DMX Output 14
SMPTE Input 14
Parallel Control 15
Parallel Inputs 15
Parallel Outputs 17
File Management 18
Editing Cues 18
Formatting Media 1
DOS Compatibility 1
File Management Hints 1
Cue Management Software 20
Simple Serial Control 21
Select Cue 22
Play 22
Loop Play 23
Still 23
Chase Play 24
Record 24
Pile-On Cue 25
Pile-On Cue and Loop at end 25
Clear Cue 26
Feedthrough 26
Force Value 27
SMPTE Status 27
Cue Number Query 27
Reset 28
Media Types & Capacities 28
Specifications 29
DMX 2
Control Interface 2
Front Panel: 2
Physical 30
Index 31

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 5
Welcome
Thanks for purchasing The Alcorn McBride Light Cue™. The
Light Cue is intended to replace SMPTE-controlled lighting
consoles in permanent show installations, eliminating the need to
use an expensive lighting console to run your lighting. The Light
Cue records and plays back DMX-512 data. Either one stream (or
cue as it is called in this manual) synchronized to SMPTE
timecode can be played back, or up to six cues not synchronized
with SMPTE can be simultaneously “piled-on”. The Lightcue
comes standard with 20 minutes of storage, but larger capacities
are available from the factory.
The Light Cue can be controlled serially or with parallel inputs to
output the DMX data beginning at any SMPTE timecode. From
this absolute timecode, the DMX data can be "jam-synched" to the
incoming timecode and will pause or skip forward or backward
frames as necessary in order to maintain perfect synchronization.
The unit will also record and output DMX in the absence of
SMPTE for non-synchronized applications.
The Light Cue can also 'crossfade' between two 'looks' over a period
of time from one frame to 24 hours. After the crossfade is complete,
the DMX cue can continue from the look that was faded to.
Using serial control, up to 6 simultaneous cues can be “piled-on” to
one another whereby only the highest values of the 512 channels of
each cue is output.
Front panel pushbuttons are provided for manual control.
Features
The Light Cue offers a wide range of features including:
• Records 512 DMX Channels in Real Time.
• Records the Output of Any DMX-512 Lighting Board.
• Stores hours of Continuous DMX Data
• Stand-Alone or PC-Driven Operation.
• Stores Preset "Looks" for Use as Overrides.
• Parallel Input or RS-232 Serial Control.
• Can “Pile-On” up to 6 simultaneous cues (not SMPTE synced)
• Switchable between “live” DMX input and recorded material
• Cue management software included

Page 6 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Getting Started
This section will teach you how to begin using your Light Cue.
More detailed information is contained in the rest of this manual.
Connecting the Unit
1. Connect the DMX Out from your Lighting Console to the DMX
In on the rear of the Light Cue.
2. Connect the DMX Out from the Light Cue to the DMX Input of
your Dimmer Rack.
Note: SMPTE is only
required if it is
necessary to
synchronize lighting
cues to other SMPTE
equipment.
3. Optionally, connect the SMPTE Out from your SMPTE
generator (e.g. Alcorn McBride SMPTE Machine) to the
SMPTE In on the rear of the Light Cue.
Storage Media
Note: Be sure to use the
lower PC Card socket
only. The upper socket
is not used
The Lightcue uses FAT16-formatted PC Card media to store
DMX data. The media
is included with the unit, and is removable
for backup to a laptop or desktop PC equipped with a PCMCIA
socket. The PC Card media in the Lightcue is located behind the
front panel plate which is fastened with two screws. To remove
the media, remove the screws holding the cover plate and press
the eject button located at the right side of the socket. When
reinstalling the media, be sure that it is fully seated.
For Compact Flash, an adaptor is used to convert it to the
PCMCIA socket.
.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 7
Recording
Not:e The Lightcue can
only playback one cue
at a time which has
been recorded with
SMPTE. The Pile-on
feature is useable only
with cues which are not
locked to SMPTE.
The Lightcue is capable of recording DMX data with or without
being locked to SMPTE timecode. If you want to have your
DMX playback jam-synced to SMPTE so that it will pause or
skip forward or backward frames as necessary in order to
maintain perfect synchronization with incoming timecode, be sure
to have SMPTE connected and active while recording. The
recording will be time-stamped with the SMPTE timecode
corresponding to the first frame of recorded DMX.
Note: Before recording
to media which has not
previously been used, it
is a good idea to format
it. (See section on
Formatting Media)
1. Select the cue to be recorded to by using the <and >keys.
Note: The LED
indicator will blink red
while waiting for a
change in DMX data.
Note: If SMPTE is
present, the recorded
file will be “time
-
stamped” with the
timecode that occurred
on the first frame of the
recording..
2. Press and hold the Record button and then press the Play
button. The unit will display a crossfade time on the LCD
display. Use the <and >keys on the unit to decrement or
increment the crossfade time to be used during playback of
this recording. Leave the time at zero if no crossfade is
desired. When finished selecting the crossfade time, press the
Record button once again to arm the recording.
3. At this point the Light Cue will detect any change in the DMX
data and begin recording. If the first “look” of the recording is
supposed to remain for a per
iod of time at the beginning of the
recording, a DMX channel which is not allocated in your show
can be “bumped” to begin recording ahead of any channels
which are not due to begin changing at the very start of the
cue. Pressing Stop will abort the recording.
Note: Data contained
in serial play commands
will override crossfade
and SMPTE start times
selected during
recording.
4. Begin your lighting design or bump an unused channel to
begin the recording as described above. The LED indicator
will turn steady red once the recording begins.
5. When you are finished, press the Stop button. Allow the unit
up to 10 seconds to write the directory to the media.
6. If you want to edit the cue you just created (for example, to
edit the start offset time), refer to the
“Editing Cues” section in
the “File Management” chapter later in this manual.
Note: It is a good idea to regularly backup your data in a laptop or desktop computer. Just
remove the two screws from the media cover on the front panel of the Lightcue and press the
eject button on the right side of the socket to remove the media. Insert the media into your
laptop or desktop computer equipped with a PC Card slot and simply copy the files to your
local hard drive using Windows Explorer or a DOS shell.

Page 8 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Playback
1. Select the cue to be played by pressing the < and >keys.
2. Begin playback of SMPTE if synchronization is required.
3. Press the Play button to begin playback.
4. Press the Stop button to end playback.
Show Controller Connection
1. Connect the output port on your Show Controller (e.g. Alcorn
McBride V16, V4) to the Controller Input on the rear of the
Light Cue.
2. Use the Controller Software (e.g. WinScript) to configure and
operate the Light Cue. Refer to the Serial Protocol Section in
this manual.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 9
Front Panel Controls and Indicators
The Light Cue provides controls that can accommodate a wide variety of installations. The
front panel incorporates a row of eight pushbuttons that control the operation of the unit, two
indicator lights, an LCD display, and a PCMCIA slot.
< > Buttons
The <and >buttons select the cue number to be played, recorded
to, or deleted. Pressing the >button increments the cue number,
while pressing the <button decrements the current cue number.
The currently selected cue number is displayed on the LCD
readout.
Record Button
A small asterisk will
appear in the upper
right hand corner of the
LCD display when the
unit is in feedthrough
mode.
Pressing the Record button causes the DMX data appearing on
the DMX input connector to be passed through to the DMX output
connector. This is the power-up default mode of the unit.
The feedthrough mode can also be commaded serially.
Recording of DMX data begins when the Record button is held
down while pressing the Play button. Although recording can be
done without SMPTE, accurate frame synchronization of shows
longer than about 10 minutes requires that the Light Cue be locked
to SMPTE during recording.
Parallel control inputs should be left disconnected during
recording.

Page 10 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Play Button
The Play button outputs DMX-512 data when pressed. Data is
output starting from the first DMX packet of the currently-selected
cue. For unsynchronized playback, no active SMPTE timecode
input is required.
Stop Button
Note: After recording, it may take
up to 10 seconds after Stop is
pressed for the Light Cue to write
the directory to the media. This is
normal and the LCD readout
indicates when this operation is
complete.
During playback, the Stop button stops the output of
consecutive DMX-512 data and holds the last "look"
present when the button was pressed.
During recording of DMX data, the Stop
button stops the
recording.
Used in conjunction with the Record button, the Stop
button allows you to edit cues. Refer to the Editing Cues
section for more details.
Cue 1, Cue 2, Cue 3 Buttons
These buttons are "Hot" keys which immediately play Cue 1, 2, or 3
respectively. They can be used for maintenance lighting or other
"static look" DMX data configurations.
LED Indicators
Two LED indicators are provided in the front panel:
S (green or red)
LED Behavior LED Meaning
Steady Green Media is being accessed and DMX data is
being played back.
Flashing Green Unit is powering-up.
Steady Red Light Cue is recording.
Flashing Red Recording is armed, waiting for DMX data
changes to begin.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 11
L (red)
Note: When SMPTE is
lost, the unit self-
generates SMPTE for 5
seconds and then stops.
DMX data will continue
to be output, however it
will no longer be locked
to SMPTE. If SMPTE is
restored, it will take one
second for the unit to
lock up to SMPTE
again.
This LED is red whenever the Light Cue is locked to incoming
SMPTE.
LCD Display
The LCD Display will indicate which cue is playing. It will also
provide status updates on the operation of the Light Cue.
Read 00:01:23:21
Locked 30 FPS
Now Playing *
*
Cue Number 1
2
SMPTE Time/Mode
Current Operation
Feedthrough
Indicator
SMPTE Status
Frame Rate
Selected Cue

Page 12 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Rear Panel Controls and
Connectors
The rear panel provides the DMX input and output connectors, a
SMPTE In connector, an RS-232 control port, a Parallel
input/output port, a selector switch for input options, and the power
connector.
Voltage / Contact Closure Select Switch
This switch, located on the rear of the unit next to the DB-37
Control Connector selects between voltage inputs or contact
closures for the discrete controls. More information on these inputs
may be found in the section entitled Rear Panel Connectors.
Power
The power input is a barrel connector with center pin (+) and the
outer rim (-). The Light Cue requires 9.0 VDC at 1 Amp. DO NOT
EXCEED THE SPECIFIED INPUT VOLTAGE RANGE. An
external 115 or 230 VAC power supply is provided with the unit.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 13
RS-232C Controller Input
This input is a standard DB-9 male RS-232C connector, intended
to be connected to an Alcorn McBride V16/V4 or other controller
using a straight-through (not null-modem) 9-pin cable. The pinout
appears below.
Pin
No
.
Function
1 not used
2 TXD (data from Light Cue)
3 RXD (data to Light Cue)
4 not used
5 GND
6 not used
7 not used
8 not used
9 not used

Page 14 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
DMX Input
The DMX input is a standard 5-pin XLR male connector. The
pinout appears below:
Pin
No.
Function
1 Shield
2 - (low)
3 + (high)
4 not used
5 not used
DMX Output
The DMX output is a standard 5-pin XLR female connector. The
pinout appears below.
Pin
No
.
Function
1 Shield
2 - (low)
3 + (high)
4 not used
5 not used
SMPTE Input
The SMPTE input is a standard 3-pin XLR female connector. Input
signal level range is -10 dbu to +4 dbu. Impedance is 600 ohms.
The pinout appears below.
Pin
No
.
Function
1 Shield
2 + (high)
3 - (low)

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 15
Parallel Control
Parallel Inputs
Be sure to configure the
slide switch before
connecting any wires.
The Light Cue can be controlled using either contact closures or
voltage inputs on the female DB-37 Control Connector. Up to 16
individual cues can be selected and played, looped, paused, or
stopped. A switch located on the side of the unit next to the
connector selects between the two input types (Voltage Inputs,
Contact Closures). Voltage inputs are rated for 24 VDC. Consult
factory for other voltage options. The table below describes the
function of each input.
Function Voltage Input
Pin No’s.
Contact Closure
Pin No’s.
Description
Play 11(+), 1(-) 1, 20 Plays the cue selected by the
binary code on Cue Select 0
through 3.
Stop 12(+), 2(-) 2, 21 Stops the cue currently playing.
Pause 13(+), 3(-) 3, 22 Pauses the cue currently playing.
Play resumes by activating Play.
Loop 14(+), 4(-) 4, 23 Activating the Play input with
Loop active causes the selected
cue to loop indefinitely from
beginning to end.
Cue Select 0 15(+), 5(-) 5, 24 Binary-encoded input selects cue
(See below).
Cue Select 1 16(+), 6(-) 6, 25 Binary-encoded input selects cue
(See below).
Cue Select 2 17(+), 7(-) 7, 26 Binary-encoded input selects cue
(See below).
Cue Select 3 18(+), 8(-) 8, 27 Binary-encoded input selects cue
(See below).
The binary file select inputs are used to select the first 16 cues.
These inputs may be contact closures or voltages, depending upon
the input select slide switch described in the previous section. The
Play input will begin playback of the selected cue.
The table below shows the binary combinations possible, and what
cue they select:

Page 16 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Cue
Select
3
Cue
Select
2
Cue
Selec
t 1
Cue
Select
0
Cue
Off Off Off Off 1
Off Off Off On 2
Off Off On Off 3
Off Off On On 4
Off On Off Off 5
Off On Off On 6
Off On On Off 7
Off On On On 8
On Off Off Off 9
On Off Off On 10
On Off On Off 11
On Off On On 12
On On Off Off 13
On On Off On 14
On On On Off 15
On On On On 16
For example, connecting pins 5 and 24 together with the slide switch
set in the contact closure position will cause cue 2 to run.
The loop input is read
when playback begins,
not at the end of the
cue.
The cue will be looped if the loop input is asserted when the cue is
triggered.
Parallel inputs should be left disconnected during recording.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 17
Parallel Outputs
Two status outputs are provided. They are dry contact closures rated
at 24 VDC and 1 amp max. Their function is described below.
Function Pin No’s. Description
Playing 9,28 Closed when the unit is outputting DMX
data.
Fault 10,29 Closed when the unit detects a PCMCIA
media error or CPU failure.

Page 18 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
File Management
The Light Cue is able to record up to 511 separate DMX sequences.
These sequences, or cues, are stored in DOS files in the PCMCIA
media. The files can be backed up on any IBM or compatible PC
equipped with a PCMCIA socket. Some editing operations,
described below, are available by using the Light Cue alone.
(Please refer to DOS Compatibility section on next page for more
information)
Editing Cues
1. Select the cue to be edited by pressing the < and >keys.
Note: Menu choices are
selected sequentially by
pressing the < or >
keys. Pressing the >
key causes the menu
choice to be selected,
while pressing the < key
causes the next
sequential choice to be
displayed.
Note: A recorded cue
can be end-trimmed,
which is useful for
adjusting the length of a
looping sequence when
designing chase-light
cues.
2. Press and hold the Record button and then press the Stop
button. The display will ask if you wish to Edit the cue. If
you press the < key the command will be cancelled. Pressing
the >key causes you to enter the menu tree described below.
In those cases where a Yes or No answer is expected for a
question being displayed on the LCD, the <key is used for
“No” and the >key is used for “Yes.” The < and >keys are
also used to decrement and increment time code values. Once
a cue has been edited, pressing the Record button once again
will compete the edit. Pressing Stop during the editing
process will cancel the edit. All edits except Delete are non-
destructive, and there is no limitation on how many times you
can edit the same cue.
3. The first menu choice is End Trim. This a
llows you to shorten
the length of the cue if your original recording was too long.
The End Trim time represents the hours, minutes, seconds, and
frames which will be subracted off the end of the cue.The End
Trim edit is non-destructive, and the file can be re-lengthened
back to its original size after the edit if desired simply by re-
entering the End Trim menu and dialing down the time.
Note: Data contained
in serial play commands
will override crossfade
and SMPTE start times
selected during
recording.
4. The second menu choice allows you to edit the Crossfade
time. This is the time which was entered on the original
recording.
5. The third menu choice allows you to edit the SMPTE Start
(Offset) time which was captured during the first packet of
recording. This menu choice will not be available if the
recording was not made while SMPTE was present.
6. The last menu choice allows you to Delete a cue entirely.

Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007 Page 19
Formatting Media
1. Before you begin recording to media which has previously not
been used it is a good idea to format it.
Note: The LED
indicator will illuminate
Green during the
formatting process.
Warning: Once the
formatting operation
has started, it cannot be
interrupted.
2. Press and hold the Record button and then press the Stop
button. The unit will display a message asking you if you
want to edit a cue (see Editing Cues) . Press and hold down
the Play buttton for at least 2 seconds. The unit will begin
formating the media.
DOS Compatibility
Files on the PCMCIA media are stored using the DOS File System
and can be read and backed-up using any PC-compatible computer
equipped with a PCMCIA socket.
File Naming Conventions
A file naming convention is used so that the Light Cue can identify
the cue number. Cue numbers are indicated by the first part of the
file name. The file type is indicated by the extension.
Cue numbers are simply a seven character string beginning with
“CUE.” For example, cue number one is “CUE00001.DMH”, cue
number two is “CUE00002.DMH,”and so on following the
convention "CUEnnnnn.DMH," where nnnnn represents the cue
number.
File Management Hints
WARNING: Never record to media on which cues have been
deleted using a PC. The media used in the Lightcue must
remain defragmented or else data will become corrupt.
Note: Fragmented
media contains files
whose data has been
“chopped” into more
than one continuous
block each.
1. One way to delete cues and avoid fragmentation is to copy the
“good” cues from the PC card to your PC hard drive using a
DOS shell, delete ALL cues on the media, and then copy the
“good”cues back to the media. This way the media will
remain unfragmented.
2. Always back up cues to a PC as you record them. That way
all file manipulation, renaming, and archiving can be done on
the PC’s hard drive where it is easiest.

Page 20 Alcorn McBride Light Cue User’s Manual • November 26, 2007
Cue Management Software
A simple DOS program, CUETOOL.EXE is included on a floppy disk with your
Lightcue. This program allows you to convert files recorded on the LightCue to
files which can be loaded into a spreadsheet program. The DMX data can then
easily be examined, graphed, and edited. CUETOOL.EXE can also convert the
spreadsheet-formatted data back into a LightCue-compatible file format so you can
playback the edited cue in the LightCue. Refer to the README.TXT file included
on the floppy for release notes.
Running the program is easy. Just follow these steps:
1) After recording your DMX cues power down the LightCue and remove the
PC Card media from the unit by unscrewing the two front panel access door
screws and pushing the eject button.
2) Plug the PC Card into a laptop or desktop computer equipped with a PC
Card socket.
3) Copy ALL of the files from the PC Card to you local hard drive. Copy the
files into a separate directory containing the CUETOOL.EXE program.
4) Copy ALL of the files from the PC Card to your local hard drive AGAIN.
This time, use a different directory called “BACKUP” (or something like
that). This is your backup directory.
5) Open up a DOS shell, or exit to DOS from Windows.
6) At the DOS prompt in the directory used in Step 3, type the following:
Cuetool /E cue00001.dmh cue00001.csv
This assumes that you want to convert Cue Number 1 for reading into a
spreadsheet. If you want to convert a different cue number, just replace the
“00001” part of the filename with the cue number (i.e. “cue00002.dmh” for
Cue Number 2, etc.)
7) Now the cue00001.csv file can be read into Microsoft Excel directly as an
ASCII comma-delimited file. The .CSV extension is recognized by Excel
as this particular file type and automatically reads it in with no other
prompting.
8) You can now examine, graph, or edit the DMX data. Be sure not to insert
or delete any columns or rows in the spreadsheet or else CUETOOL.EXE
won’t be able to convert the file back into a LightCue file correctly. You
can, however, edit the DMX data values all you want.
9) If you’ve edited the DMX data and you want to convert the file back to a
LightCue file, type the following at the DOS prompt:
Cuetool /L cue00001.csv cue00001.dmh
(Same as before – substitute a different cue number if necessary) Note: Be
sure that the extension of the LightCue file is .dmh. (See file naming
conventions earlier in this section)
10) Format the original PC Card in the LightCue to erase all the files (refer to
the “File Management Hints” earlier in this section).
11) Now copy all of the files, including the one(s) that you have edited back to
the PC Card from your local hard drive. Insert the PC card back into the
LightCue and you’re ready to playback the edited DMX data.