Expert faders send out flickering DMX values
Posted: 01 Aug 2013, 21:35
I've got an Expert console running Titan 6.1, and 2 of its playback faders have recently started sending out DMX values that cause the lights to flicker. Fortunately, they're only controlling intensity and not gobo selection or P/T, but it's still a serious problem.
What I'm seeing:
It's clear in the USB Expert panel that there are values coming from the fader panel that aren't related to where the fader is in its track. This ONLY happens when the fader is at FULL. Sometimes it'll even keep sending out varied values for a few seconds after you take your hand off it.
I've tested all the other faders by tapping my finger against the bottom of the handle when they're at full, and they don't flicker at all. The bad ones do -- sometimes sending out a value as low as 119 -- and they also flicker if you wiggle them side to side a bit (which the good ones don't). That suggests to me that they've become hyper-sensitive for some reason.
When attempting to repair USB drivers, it says there's an error opening "/system32/wdapi1100.dll" for writing. The file must be skipped to complete the repair.
HealthCheck comes up all green.
Previous experience:
We've had this issue twice before. The first time, we sent the console in and had the entire fader panel replaced. It came back in working order. The second time, I somehow managed to fix it myself. I don't remember what I did, though. It may have involved updating software, but like a fool, I didn't write anything down.
One thing I do know is that we've only had this problem since updating from Titan 5 to Titan 6.
Also, the problem is eventually contagious. In the past, it has started out on 1 or 2 faders, then slowly spread to others. I think the most we've had was 4 or 5 before we managed to get it fixed.
Things I've tested:
It's nothing to do with the cue loaded on the fader -- the issue sticks with that fader even if all cues are removed from it.
Dirt is not likely to be the problem. I opened up the fader panel and vacuumed out each fader track individually, but it didn't help.
Creating a new show with a DMX setting wipe doesn't fix it.
Repairing USB drivers doesn't fix it.
Conclusion (so far):
This seems like it might be a firmware problem, or perhaps a bug buried in the OS.
Has anyone else ever seen this problem? Do you have any solutions?
What I'm seeing:
It's clear in the USB Expert panel that there are values coming from the fader panel that aren't related to where the fader is in its track. This ONLY happens when the fader is at FULL. Sometimes it'll even keep sending out varied values for a few seconds after you take your hand off it.
I've tested all the other faders by tapping my finger against the bottom of the handle when they're at full, and they don't flicker at all. The bad ones do -- sometimes sending out a value as low as 119 -- and they also flicker if you wiggle them side to side a bit (which the good ones don't). That suggests to me that they've become hyper-sensitive for some reason.
When attempting to repair USB drivers, it says there's an error opening "/system32/wdapi1100.dll" for writing. The file must be skipped to complete the repair.
HealthCheck comes up all green.
Previous experience:
We've had this issue twice before. The first time, we sent the console in and had the entire fader panel replaced. It came back in working order. The second time, I somehow managed to fix it myself. I don't remember what I did, though. It may have involved updating software, but like a fool, I didn't write anything down.
One thing I do know is that we've only had this problem since updating from Titan 5 to Titan 6.
Also, the problem is eventually contagious. In the past, it has started out on 1 or 2 faders, then slowly spread to others. I think the most we've had was 4 or 5 before we managed to get it fixed.
Things I've tested:
It's nothing to do with the cue loaded on the fader -- the issue sticks with that fader even if all cues are removed from it.
Dirt is not likely to be the problem. I opened up the fader panel and vacuumed out each fader track individually, but it didn't help.
Creating a new show with a DMX setting wipe doesn't fix it.
Repairing USB drivers doesn't fix it.
Conclusion (so far):
This seems like it might be a firmware problem, or perhaps a bug buried in the OS.
Has anyone else ever seen this problem? Do you have any solutions?