Avolites Azure 2000 User manual

Azure 2000
Operator’s Manual

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Useful Avolites phone numbers:-
Avolites England
Sales and service* (+44) (0) 181 965 8522
Service out of hours*(+44) (0) 831 17 8888
Fax (+44) (0) 181 965 0290
Email [email protected]
Website http://www.avolites.com
Distribution of Avolites products in USA:-
Avolites America
Sales and service* ([phone]
Fax [phone]
*Before contacting Avolites for service enquiry please ensure that you have the
product serial number and the Software version. The serial number can be found
on the back of the desk and the software version is shown on the bottom line of
the VGA display.
The latest version of this manual (in Microsoft Word 97) and Azure
Software can be downloaded by modem from the Internet.
The small print :
No Liability for Consequential Damages
Avolites has a policy of continuous product and documentation improvement. As such the
detail within this manual may not match the operation of the Azure 2000.
In no event shall Avolites be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, or
consequential damages or loss whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of
profits, business interruption, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use or inability to
use the Azure 2000 even if Avolites Ltd. has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
Because some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for
consequential or incidental damages, the above limitation may not apply to you.
Reprint and revision history:
First produced December 1998
Issued with corrections Feb 99
A few minor amendments March 99

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This manual was written by Tim Mitchell, Sabre Technology Ltd Tel: [phone]

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TUTORIAL CONTENTS
1. WELCOME TO THE AZURE 2000 1
2. PATCHING 5
3. CONTROLLING DIMMERS AND FIXTURES 11
4. USING SHAPES 15
5. RECORDING AND PLAYING BACK MEMORIES 19
6. RECORDING AND PLAYING BACK CHASES 27
7. ENVIRONMENTS AND THE SCHEDULER 31
8. THE GRAPHICS TABLET 33
9. ADVANCED FEATURES 35
10. INTRODUCTION TO INTELLIGENT LIGHTING 37
REFERENCE MANUAL CONTENTS
1. SETTING UP THE CONSOLE 105
2. PATCHING 109
3. CONTROLLING DIMMERS AND FIXTURES 113
4. USING SHAPES 121
5. RECORDING AND PLAYING BACK MEMORIES 125
6. RECORDING AND PLAYING BACK CHASES 133
7. ENVIRONMENTS, THE SCHEDULER, SCRIPT FILES 139
8. USING THE GRAPHICS TABLET 145
9. ADVANCED FEATURES 149
10. THE PERSONALITY FILE SYSTEM 155
11. CONTACTS FOR FIXTURE MANUFACTURERS 166
12. GLOSSARY OF TERMS168
13. BUTTON INDEX 174
14. INDEX 176
Pages in the Tutorial section have numbers below 100. Pages in the
Reference manual have numbers above 100.

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INTRODUCTION
1. Welcome to the Azure 2000
This manual is designed to help you get the most out of your Azure 2000
console. We have divided it into two sections.
?? This first section is a tutorial which gives you a step by step guide of
how to carry out the most common functions of the Azure 2000. This
section is printed on coloured paper.
?? The second section is a reference manual which tells you everything
there is to know about the Azure 2000.
To help you move between the two sections, we have made the chapter
numbering the same, so if you are using the tutorial and you want more
information, just look for the same chapter number in the reference
manual.
At the back of the reference manual there is a Glossary, explaining some
of the technical terms used in the manual, and an Index which can be
used to find what you need in either section of the manual. There’s also a
“button index” which you can use if you want to know what a particular
button does.
1.1 Setting up the Azure 2000
Before you can use the Azure, you need to make a few connections to it.
Ensure the power is off while making these connections.
Connect the mains inlet to an AC power supply. This can be any voltage
between 90-250V and any frequency between 50-60Hz, which should be
OK for most civilisations in the world.
Note: If your mains is in any way suspect, a power conditioner is a good
idea. A noisy or unreliable mains supply could possibly crash the
console.
Power up the VGA display from another mains socket. Connect the VGA
data lead to the VGA output on the back of the console. The Azure will
work without a display but, needless to say, you won’t be able to see what
it is doing.
Connect the DMX output(s) to your lighting fixtures or dimmers. The Azure
has four DMX lines, two on each socket. If you need to use all four lines,
chapter 1 in the reference manual tells you how to wire up the connectors.
If you are using one or two lines, just use a standard DMX cable.
Plug in the desk light if you have one.
Plug the graphics tablet, if you are using one, into the serial port on the
console.
Turn on the power. The VGA screen should display the default menu.
If this is the first time you have used the Azure, you might need to set the
real time clock. Chapter 9 of the reference manual tells you how to do this.

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1.2 Finding your way about on the Azure 2000
The controls on the Azure are grouped together so that all the controls you
need to carry out each function are near to each other.
?? The System and menu buttons are used when you are setting up the
console, and to enter numeric values.
?? The menu softkeys are used to select one of the options from the
menus shown on the VGA display.
?? The fixture selection buttons allow you to select which fixtures or
dimmer channels you want to control, and also lets you set up the
fixtures and select preset positions, colours, gobos and shapes.
?? The desk mode buttons set the operational mode of the console.
?? The playback buttons control memories and are ideal for strobe or
shutter chases; 40 buttons are available on each page.
?? The playback faders allow intensity control of a further 10 memories.
To the right of the playback buttons are 10 playback page buttons,
giving a total of 500 playbacks.
?? The fixture control buttons and wheels allow you to control the
fixtures you have selected.
?? The environment and sequence control area is used for control of
chases, timed shows, and environments.
Playback faders
System and
menu buttons Fixture selection Desk mode
Fixture control
Playback buttons
Environment and
sequence control
Menu softkeys

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The VGA display shows everything which is going on. There are various
different screens you can display, by pressing the On Screen button in the
area you want to look at. Each control area on the Azure has its own On
Screen button. The picture below shows you a typical VGA display.
The bottom half of the display usually remains the same whatever the
display mode. The softkey options are shown on the bottom left. The chase
information is shown on the right. The current function of the two wheels
is shown on the bottom right.
If the Azure has anything to tell you, it will display the message on the
bottom line of the screen (where the software version number is on the
above screen).
When you are selecting items from a list (such as shapes or colour values),
the list appears in the bottom right hand corner of the screen.
The top part of the display varies depending on the display mode, which
you can choose by pressing the various On Screen buttons on the Azure.
The possible modes are System, Channel Output, Shape Output,
Environment, Chase Times, and Memories.
Today’s date and time
Current operation
(this is the Dimmer output page)
Name of menu
Azure software
version &
message
window
Menu options
(select these
using the A-G
menu softkeys)
Information
about the desk
Function of
left wheel
Function of
right wheel
Current chase
information
Current page
of dimmers,
groups etc.

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1.3 The What Am I button
The Azure has an on-line help system, which can be very useful if you
want to know what a specific button does. To use it, just press the What
Am I button (just to the left of the Avolites logo at the top of the console),
followed by the button you want to know about. The VGA display will show
you the help topic on that button. To go back to normal, press Exit or
What Am I again.
1.4 What next?
The rest of this part of the manual is a tutorial. If you have never used an
Avolites console before, by working through the rest of the tutorial section
you should be able to get the Azure up and running, and be well on the
way to programming and running a show with it.
The tutorial is organised in the order you’ll need to do things to get the
console set up and working, so try to work through it in sequence.
If you are a seasoned Avolites user, you’ll find the Azure works much like
its bigger brothers. You might find the tutorials useful, and if there is
anything specific you need to know, just look in the appropriate part of the
Reference Manual. The Reference section is in the same order as the
Tutorial section, to make it easier to move between the two.
If you are new to intelligent lighting, or even new to lighting altogether,
you might like to read chapter 10, “Introduction to intelligent lighting”.
This explains the concepts behind digital control of lighting and will help
you to understand what we are going on about in the rest of the manual.
There is also a Glossary at the end of the Reference Manual which explains
some of the obscure lighting words we have used in the manual.

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CHAPTER TWO
2. Patching
In this chapter: how to set up the Azure to control dimmers and fixtures.
?? clearing the Azure
?? patching dimmers
?? patching moving light fixtures
?? setting addresses on the fixtures
?? backing up the Azure to disk
So, you have your fixtures and dimmers all connected up with DMX cables
and the Azure connected to the end of it. Now you need to allocate each
fixture and dimmer channel to a fixture select button on the Azure, so that
you can tell it which of the fixtures or dimmers you want to control at any
time. The fixture select button is sometimes called a handle, because you
use it to take control of the fixture.
You also need to tell the Azure what type of fixtures you are using. When
you have entered this information, the Azure can tell you what addresses
to set on your fixtures and dimmers to match the settings it is using.
This setup process is called Patching.
You can patch up to 200 fixtures and 200 dimmer channels on the Azure.
There are 10 “pages” of 20 fixtures or dimmers.
The Azure controls dimmers and fixtures slightly differently, so we will look
at each in turn. But first…
2.1 Clearing the Azure
Unless the Azure is brand new, it’s a good idea to clear the memory before
you start a new setup. This ensures that you won’t get confused by any
peculiar settings left by the previous user.
2.1.1 Clearing the Azure
??Press the Supervisor button
??Enter the PIN code if necessary
??Select option F “Wipeall”.
??Press F again to confirm.
The Azure is now pristine and new, and ready for you to
start patching.
When you turn the Azure on, it always starts in Operate
mode. All you can do in this mode is play back memories.
To change anything, you need to be in Program mode.
The rest of this manual assumes you are in Program
mode.
2.1.2 Setting program mode
??Press the Program button
??Enter the PIN code if necessary
Desk mode buttons

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2.2 Patching dimmers
Each dimmer channel you want to use is allocated to one of the fixture
select buttons. Then, when you want to control the dimmer channel, you
simply use the button to select it.
The simplest way to patch is to have some
pages just for dimmer channels and other
pages just for fixtures, so that’s the way we
will start off.
Note: If your total number of dimmer
channels and fixtures is more than 200,
you can mix them on the same page as
well. This is called “overlay patching”
and is described in the reference
manual.
2.2.1 Patching dimmer channels
??Press Patch
??Press Dimmer
??Select Dimmer/Fixture page 1
??The Azure will start at DMX address 001 (shown on the bottom line of
the display). You can change this using the numeric keypad.
??Press one of the fixture select buttons. The button you press will then
be used to control the dimmer at the DMX address shown.
??The Azure will update the DMX address to the next channel, so you
can press another button to patch the next dimmer.
If you have lots of dimmers to patch, there are some quicker ways. If you
just want to patch dimmers 1-20 on to buttons 1-20, you can do it this
way.
2.2.2 Patching a range of dimmers to buttons
??Enter Dimmer Patch mode and select the page you want to use
??Enter the DMX channel you want the range to start at, if it’s different
to the one the Azure is displaying
??Hold down the first button to be patched
??Press the last button
??Each button will be allocated sequentially to a dimmer channel
You can also patch more than one dimmer channel on the same button.
This can be useful when you have several lights on different dimmer
channels, but you always want to control them together. For example, if
you have lit an area with several spots and you just want to use one
button to control all the lights on that area, this is a good way to do that.
Fixture select buttons

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2.2.3 Patching several dimmers to the same button
??Enter Dimmer Patch mode and select the page you want to use
??Using the numeric keypad, enter the DMX address of the first dimmer
channel to be patched
??Press the button you want to use to patch the first dimmer
??Using the numeric keypad, enter the DMX address of the next dimmer
channel to be patched
??Press the button again
You can repeat this procedure to patch as many dimmers as you like on to
one control button.
The display shows you which channels you have patched so far.
2.3 Patching moving light fixtures
Moving light fixtures are slightly different to dimmers because they have
more attributes to control, such as pan, tilt, colour etc., where a dimmer
channel just has intensity. When you patch a fixture, you will see on the
display that it occupies a block of DMX channels rather than just one.
However, the principle is still the same.
The Azure has personality files for most lighting fixtures in the known
universe. If your console has 1999 software, they should be pre-loaded
into the console. If not, you can use the personality disk which came with
the console.
Note: To use the internal personality files, make sure there is no disk in
the disk drive.
2.3.1 Patching a fixture
??Make sure there is no disk in the disk drive
??Press Patch
??Press Fixture
??The display will show “Please wait … reading files” on the bottom line.
??A list of known manufacturers will appear after a pause. If not, insert
the personality disk and start again.
??Use the cursor arrows to select the manufacturer of your fixture.
??Press Enter. The display will show all available
fixtures for that manufacturer.
??Use the cursor arrows to select the correct
fixture.
??Press Enter.
??The Azure will ask “Automatically create
palettes?”.
??Press Softkey A for Yes. (This is explained later)
Cursor arrows
Numeric keypad

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??The Azure will offer you the first free DMX address. You can change
this using the numeric keypad if you want your first fixture at a
different address.
??Select Dimmer/Fixture page 2 (or another unused page)
??Press Fixture Select button 1 to patch the fixture you have selected.
??The display will show the block of channels occupied by the fixture.
You can continue to patch this type of fixture at the next free DMX address
by pressing the next fixture select button you want to use. You can also
patch a range of fixtures by holding down the first button in the range and
pressing the last button, as with dimmers.
If you have several different types of fixtures, you can change the type of
fixture to be patched very easily.
2.3.2 To change the fixture type
??Press softkey A (“Select another fixture”)
??Choose a manufacturer
??Choose a fixture
??Patch as before
Note: The automatic palettes you can load contain a selection of position,
colour and gobo settings. You can call back settings from the
palettes when programming rather than having to set up your own,
allowing you to select, for example, “Yellow” or “Blue” instead of
setting up the value using the wheels. You can’t load the automatic
palettes later (though you can define your own).
2.4 Addressing your fixtures to match the Azure
Once you have told the Azure where to allocate all your dimmers and
fixtures, you need to go round the actual lights and set the DMX address
to match the Azure.
The Azure can tell you the DMX address it is using for each fixture, and in
some cases can show you how to set the dip switches on the fixture. It’s
usually easiest to write down the addresses for all the fixtures, then go
and set them.
2.4.1 Displaying the DMX address for fixtures
??Press the On Screen button below the cursor arrows
??Select the page of fixtures you want to look at
??Press a fixture select button
??The screen will show the fixture type and DMX line and address (e.g.
A24 is address 24 on DMX line A).
??The dip switch settings may also be shown if the fixture personality
includes this information. Otherwise you will have to work it out.
??You can also select Softkey B, “Patch by Fixture” to display a list of the
fixtures and DMX addresses allocated to them.

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2.5 Changing what you have done
If you need to change the patching you have done, you can re-patch a
fixture to a different DMX address. You can also patch a fixture onto a
different select button, but this loses any programming for the fixture.
How to change the patching is described in the reference manual.
2.6 Completing the patch
When you have patched all your dimmers and fixtures, press the Exit
button on the numeric keypad to go back to normal mode. You have now
completed the setting up of the lighting system, and it’s time to get to
work on programming a show. But there’s one important thing to do first…
2.7 Backing up the Azure to disk
The Azure has a built in disk drive which allows you to save everything you
have done. You should get into the habit of saving your show regularly to
guard against that unexpected moment when the worst happens.
It only takes a minute or so to save the contents of the Azure to disk. You
can then reload it if you mess up the show by accidentally changing
something, or if some local hoodlum steals the console you can load the
show into a replacement Azure or Pearl 2000.
2.7.1 Backing up the Azure to disk
??Press the Disk button in the top left hand corner of the Azure
??Insert a blank formatted 1.44M disk into the disk drive.
??Select softkey B, “Save show to disk”.
??The Azure will save your current show onto the disk. The VGA display
will tell you when the Azure has finished.
??If you need to reload the show, use softkey A, “Load show from disk”.

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Attribute buttons
CHAPTER THREE
3. Controlling dimmers and fixtures
In this chapter: how to control dimmers and fixtures manually.
?? selecting fixtures and dimmers
?? changing attributes
?? entering dimmer levels numerically
?? using and creating palettes
?? using and creating groups
Having patched all the dimmers and fixtures you want to use, you are
ready to start operating them. This chapter explains how you do this.
3.1 Selecting what you want to control
The first thing you have to do is to select the fixtures or dimmer channels
that you want to control. You can select fixtures or dimmers individually,
or several at once.
3.1.1 Selecting fixtures or dimmers
??Press the Page button for the page of fixtures you want to use
??If there are both dimmers and fixtures on the page, press the Fixture
or Dimmer button to select which type you want.
??Press the buttons for the fixtures/dimmers you want to control.
??Fixtures/dimmers which are selected (you have control of) are shown
in dark blue on the VGA display.
??If you select a fixture/dimmer you don't want, press the button again
to deselect it.
??You can press “Locate Fixture” to position the selected fixtures at a
“home” position with the light on, so you can see where they are.
Dimmer channels are set to 50%.
??You can select a range of fixtures by holding down the button for the
first fixture in the range, then pressing the button for the last fixture.
Note: When you press the page button, the fixture buttons will light up to
show you which buttons on that page are patched to fixtures or
dimmers.
If you select a range of fixtures, or a group, the Last Fixture and Next
Fixture buttons allow you to go through the fixtures in the range selecting
them one at a time. The Highlight button will turn on the dimmer of the
fixture that is currently selected. The Select All button selects the whole
range of fixtures again.
3.2 Changing attributes of fixtures
Having selected the fixtures you want to control,
you then need to select the attributes of that fixture
that you want to change.
The attributes are selected using the buttons on the
lower right of the Azure just above the wheels. The
attributes you can control will vary depending on

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the type of fixture you are using. For dimmer channels, you can only
change the intensity. For scans, you can control the pan, tilt, colour, gobo
and other functions.
3.2.1 Controlling intensity
??Select some dimmer channels or fixtures
??Press the Dimmer attribute button
??Control the dimmer intensity using the left hand wheel
??The intensity value is shown on the VGA display
Note: Some fixtures don’t have an intensity function so this operation will
not have any effect. Lamp on/off is usually controlled by the Gobo
function on these units.
Any other attribute can be controlled by pressing the appropriate button.
The VGA display will show which functions the left and right wheels are
going to control.
3.2.2 Controlling pan and tilt of a fixture
??Select some fixtures to control
??Press the Pan and Tilt attribute button.
??Control the pan using the left hand wheel and the tilt using the right
hand wheel.
??The pan and tilt values are shown on the bottom right hand of the VGA
display
Note: Once you have changed any attributes, all the fixtures will be
automatically deselected the next time you press a fixture select
button.
3.3 Entering dimmer levels numerically
You can control dimmers using the numeric keypad as you would on a
theatrical lighting desk. This method of setting dimmer levels can be faster
when plotting a scene than using the select buttons and the wheels. You
enter the dimmer number, then the “@” (at) key, then the level.
3.3.1 Entering dimmer levels
??On the numeric keypad, enter the dimmer channel number
??Press the @ button
??Enter the value to be set as 0 –9. You can enter a decimal point and
another number if you want more accurate level control.
??Press @ again instead of a number (or Softkey D) for 100%
??The channel you entered will be set to the level you entered.
The softkeys offer you a few more options such as set to 100%, up by 5%,
down by 5%. These options are shown on the VGA display.
You can also set multiple channels to the same level using the “thru”

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button. Enter first channel, “thru”, last channel, “@”, level.
3.3.2 Entering multiple dimmer levels
??On the numeric keypad, enter the first dimmer channel number of the
range
??Press the Thru button
??Enter the last dimmer channel number of the range
??Enter the value to be set as 0 –10. You can enter a decimal point if
you want more accurate level control.
??The channels you entered will all be set to the level you entered.
You can also directly enter attribute values for fixtures. The reference
manual tells you how.
3.4 Using palettes
When you are controlling attributes which are
continuously variable such as pan, tilt, and
colour, it can speed things up if you can
instantly call back a position such as centre
stage, or a particular colour like red, blue etc.
If you’ve got different types of fixtures, to get
the same colour on each fixture might mean
setting different values for each type of fixture.
The Azure has pages of preset values, called
“palettes”, which you can use to store attribute
settings which you use a lot. The Azure loads 10
pre-programmed positions, 10 colours and 10
gobos each on a separate page when you patch
a fixture (unless you tell it not to).
This means that if for example you want all your fixtures to go Red, you
just have to select “Red” from the colour page of the palette. The Azure
knows the values to send to each fixture to get red light out of it.
3.4.1 Using palettes
??Select the fixtures you want to control
??Press the Palette button
??Select the page of palettes you want to use. The VGA display will show
the contents of each page.
??Press one of the fixture select buttons to use one of the palette values.
The value will be set to all the fixtures which are selected.
You can also store your own palette values of positions, colours and so on
that you use regularly. The reference manual gives more information on
how to do this.
When you use a palette value, the Azure remembers the palette entry you
used rather than the actual values you used. This can be very handy when
you are touring a show, if you use palette entries to program the show.
When the venue is a different shape, you only need to redefine a few
standard palette positions rather than having to reprogram the whole
Palette pagesPalette values

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show. All the memories which used the palette positions will then use the
new positions.
Note: The Azure may sometimes call palettes “focuses” or “preset
focuses”. This is the term used for a palette on other Avolites
consoles. The meaning is the same.
3.5 Using groups
The Azure allows you to put fixtures or dimmer channels into groups. This
can speed up the process of selecting fixtures or dimmers. If you have
several different types of fixture, for example, you can make a group for
each type of fixture. You can then select all the fixtures just by pressing
one button.
3.5.1 Making a group
??Select the fixtures or dimmer channels you want to put into the group
??Press the Record button
??Press the Group button
??Select the page of groups you want to use. The VGA display will show
the contents of each page.
??Press one of the fixture select buttons to store the group on that
button.
Once you have created a group, you can then instantly select all the
fixtures in the group simply by pressing Group, then a group button.
3.5.2 Selecting a group of fixtures
??Press the Group button
??Select the page of groups you want to use. The VGA display will show
the contents of each page.
??Press one of the fixture select buttons to select the group on that
button.
You can enter a name for groups you have created to help you remember
which fixtures are in the group. The reference manual tells you how to do
this.