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Control of VCRs, DVD players
Hello,
I am a longtime Leightronix user who wants to put 90% of my videotape library on a server BUT will still need to play a few tapes (and maybe DVDs) every week.
While Leightronix has a product that would probably work fine for that, what interests me about Tightrope is that they claim to be able to play many file formats including Quicktime.
Because we edit in Final Cut Pro, the ability to output Quicktime files right to a video server sounds great to me.
But how would I still play those tapes if I had a Tightrope system? How do I control the VCRs?
Would Tightrope's Cablecast system control my Leightronix Pro 16 event controller?
Thanks for your input.
John Quirk
Community Television
Stevens Point, Wisconsin
I am a longtime Leightronix user who wants to put 90% of my videotape library on a server BUT will still need to play a few tapes (and maybe DVDs) every week.
While Leightronix has a product that would probably work fine for that, what interests me about Tightrope is that they claim to be able to play many file formats including Quicktime.
Because we edit in Final Cut Pro, the ability to output Quicktime files right to a video server sounds great to me.
But how would I still play those tapes if I had a Tightrope system? How do I control the VCRs?
Would Tightrope's Cablecast system control my Leightronix Pro 16 event controller?
Thanks for your input.
John Quirk
Community Television
Stevens Point, Wisconsin
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Inappropriate?I have a Pro16 LGX (the new net series is not supported by TRMS) and yes Cablecast controls the LGX to fire anything connected to the Pro16 using ProBus. The server you speak of that can play many file formats is the VSX. I installed a Cablecast and Carousel system last year and we are down to One single program that plays on VHS and it is a church service that comes in and plays and goes right back out to the next station. As for playing DVDs Tightrope has DVD import software that will rip DVDs to MPEG2 for playback on the server. Without a LGX you can still control VCRs with IR emmitters or Serial RS232/422 that you can get from Tightrope. You also get a show library that is better that the WinEM software.
I have also been a Leightronix User. I have decided that in the next budget I am getting a Knox router for a few reasons...
1. No 5 second delay between commands
2. More than 4 Outputs for routing to Previews and other locations
--I will also be able to run two station on one router. This can be difficult with Leightronix.
3. No Internal Memory or Clock (This should be fixed in the next TRMS release) -
Inappropriate?Buy a USB hub. Buy some USB to Serial adapters. Have your Cablecast control any of your RS-422 devices for next to nothing. Leightronix is no where near as rock solid as they'd like you to think, at least from my experiences. While its nice to have a device that might still work if your TRMS server locks up (pretty much never) but you should have other equiptment to auto-switch to a looping dvd if the rest of your equiptment goes down. You should be getting paged or emailed to your phone if TRMS stuff goes down anyway, so its not like a looping dvd playing over your air is going to happen for very long anyhow. Dedicate a phone line to a server reboot device in case Windows ever leaks enough memory between reboots...
Michael Dube
617-290-6453
trmsboards@mikedube.com -
Inappropriate?"Without a LGX you can still control VCRs with IR emmitters or Serial RS232/422 that you can get from Tightrope."
So, the Cablecast unit has video and audio inputs?
Maybe I should find a good diagram of it before asking any more questions. I think the manual is on their web site. -
Inappropriate?no, you still need a switch which Cablecast can control as well...
Michael Dube
617-290-6453
trmsboards@mikedube.com -
Inappropriate?Thanks, Mike.
Sean, can you describe the 5 second delay you are talking about, and how you deal with it? -
Inappropriate?When a ProBus sends a signal to a VCR using IR it sends it for a period of time(about 5 sec). If you try to tell two decks to fire at exactly the same time (for example two channels one deck to output 1 and one to output 2) only one of those commands will work. It is not the switching of the Leightronix it is talking to the ProBus IR controllers.
So You can send a play command to deck 1 at 9:00:00 and your next command can't be sent to play deck 2 until 9:00:05
This is a problem I have experienced in the past. Most of the time it was a rewind command on one deck conflicting with a play command on another.
Now I AM ASSUMING that the product that TRMS has with IR will handle this better. But in a year or two I will be down to only one VHS deck for two channels so I am not that concerned with it. Hopefully someone at TRMS support can tell us the restrictions on their IR product and how it is handelled in cablecast. -
Inappropriate?Thanks Sean. Sounds like an easy workaround. I don't think I've ever, in 13 years, had two commands within 5 seconds of each other. With 90% of my programs being on the server, chances of a conflict would be even less.
Seems like I can keep my Pro 16, use it as a router/switcher combined with cablecast, AND have it as a backup solution in case Cablecast ever went down.
Thanks for your help!
Having this forum and a really informative wed site is one of the reasons, besides multiple format video servers, that I'm leaning toward Tightrope instead of the Leightronix Nexus.
