Xref: utzoo rec.audio:14682 comp.sys.amiga:38953 comp.music:57
Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!srcsip!tcnet!nis!quad!dts
From: dts@quad.uucp (David T. Sandberg)
Newsgroups: rec.audio,comp.sys.amiga,comp.music
Subject: Re: MIDI,LIGHTS,DISCO and COMPUTERS.
Message-ID: <240@quad.uucp>
Date: 23 Aug 89 04:55:34 GMT
References: <314@galadriel.bt.co.uk> <3510@wpi.wpi.edu>
Reply-To: dts@quad.uucp (David T. Sandberg)
Organization: Quadric Systems, Richfield MN
Lines: 64

In article <3510@wpi.wpi.edu> dutchman@wpi.wpi.edu (the flying) writes:
>In article <314@galadriel.bt.co.uk> stevep@galadriel.bt.co.uk (Steve Paine) writes:
>>I'm interested in using it as part of a mobile disco set-up, and i've got a few questions:
>>Whats this I hear about a MIDI lighting standard. Does anyone have any info/    contacts that might help me?

I'd ask my roommate to post some specifics on this kind of thing,
since he's very knowledgeable about this, but right now he's on
tour, doing lights for The Jets.  Maybe when he gets back for a
few days this next week I'll be able to convince him to post some
data.

>i don't know much about a MIDI lighting standard, but it seems that
>the boards use standard MIDI note on/note offs to control the lights.

And quite often they use velocity information to control the faders,
as well, I'm told.

>if anyone does have hard info, i'm interested as well.
>>Is there any soft/hardware produced specifically for Amiga/disco applications?
>i know of a couple sound programs that run on MIDI to control
>channels, levels, and equalization, but other than that i don't know.

I don't think that you need worry about Amiga-specific hardware for
your lighting application.  You've got the MIDI out already... any
decent Amiga sequencer will do (don't ask me which are decent, I
don't have an Amiga).  What you need is some kind of MIDI-compatible
lighting board.

>>Are there any BPM thingies out there? (Something that will measure the beats/   min of a piece of music.)
>
>yup.  most take the bass beat (simple tunable pickup) and translate
>that into a BPM signal that can be sent out a variety of ways to
>control the lights.

"Human clocks" are notorious for their inaccuracies, though.  Perhaps
a few years down the line the technology will be mastered, but not yet.
If you have the wherewithal to do so, you're better off using a multiple
track tape playback with MIDI or SMPTE time code laid down alongside the
music, and slave your lighting sequencer off of that.

>i'd suggest the magazine "Lighting Dimensions" to you to learn more
>about lighting.  they do a lot of coverage of disco and rock lighting,
>and have lots of advertisers you can get info from.

I second that suggestion... it's a good source of information.  Also,
it won't hurt to talk to companies which manufacture and sell lighting
equipment... most of them should be able to provide you with specifics
about any MIDI equipment they sell.

>on kind of the same note, it appears to me that most MIDI boards use
>the standard transmission protocol.  so it seems like any decent
>sequencing program could be used to control the lights, as well as the
>music, if the performer is using a sequencer.  can anyone tell me yea
>or nay on this?

Generally, yes.  If the lighting board is delivered MIDI-capable, it's
really a very simple manner, by everything I've seen about it.  The
main thing to consider is that your sequencer has the tracks available
to separate your lighting data in a sensible fashion.

-- 
                                  David Sandberg - Quadric Systems
  "Strike Hard, Strike Sure"      PSEUDO: dts@quad.uucp
    Bomber Command, R.A.F.        ACTUAL: ..uunet!rosevax!sialis!quad!dts