Spot Duos do Not Work with Generator

[in.entertainment]

Lighting rig currently consists of 8 ColorRail IRCs, 2 Barrel 300 Scanners, and 4 Spot Duos.

Tried messing around this evening with the Spot Duos in Generator, and think I discovered a MASSIVE disappointment: all that cool Generator capability (of curve tracing, etc...) seems to be available to only to the first head of the two on each Spot Duo fixture. The second head on each fixture has to be programmed differently, meaning... if you have four fixtures (8 heads) as I do, it's not like you have 8 independent heads from a Generator point of view. Means you have two sets of four, each set programmed basically independently. One set of four can use the curve tracing (combines head #1 pan/tilt/upan/utilt into one Generator "channel"), and the other set of four head#2's have to use separate pan and tilt channels.

I'm not seeing how all 8 heads can be programmed as one group to create synchronized, 8-head scenes, e.g. synchronized wave across all 8 heads.

I have them set up in 20-ch DMX personality. Tomorrow I will try 17 and 10 channel to see if that makes a difference. (At best, guessing in these less-capable personalities, each pair of heads will operate as one.)

This is a HUGE and UNEXPECTED bummer, if this is in fact a limitation of ShowXpress and Intimidator Spot Duos.

If there's a way to fix, please respond quickly... before I return the Spot Duos back to the store.

Thank you kindly

[support]

If the channels could be isolated (pan1, tilt1, color1, ... / pan2, tilt2, color2, ...), we could simply declare 2 same fixtures at different dmx addresses.
But the channels are mixed (pan1, tilt1, pan2, tilt2, color1, color2, ...), and Generator is not able to manage 2 fixtures with mixed channels.

If you declare 2 fixtures with only pan/tilt channels, you could manage the movement via Generator, but not the other channels (color, gobo, ...).

FYI: we do not know another lighting software able to "generate movements" for such fixture.

[in.entertainment]

Thanks for the reply.

So when I'm in Generator, I have the option of selecting from a list on the left side of the window those "Generator Channels" I wish to control. For head #1, "DMX Channels" pan/tilt/upan/utilt are all combined into ONE channel in Generator (what I'm referring to a "Generator Channel"). And when selected, Generator handles that head (all head #1's in the group, in my case, 4 of them) as expected.

But for head #2, pan, tilt, upan, and utilt DMX Channels are retained as individual Generator Channels. And accordingly, this group of 4 (in my case) head #2's have to be programmed differently, and separetely from the head #1 group.

So I'm unable, as I used in my illustration above, to create a synchronized 8-head wave (or any other shape).

So EITHER: 1) I need a Generator Channel that combines head #2 DMX channels for pan, tilt, upan, and utilt ... (so that it's like head #1), OR; 2) I need a way to access the individual DMX channels for head #1 in Generator.

But even then, I'm not certain it would do what I expected. I expected to be able use Generator to control the 4 Spot Duos as if I had 8 independent single head fixtures.

Would another personality solve the problem ...one with a couple more channels to make the heads totally independent from one another? In 20-chan personality, each head has its own channel for everything EXCEPT Control Functions, Auto Programs, and Built-in Speed.

Thanks in advance for your response. I really do need to make a decision quickly to either keep the Spot Duos, or find some other fixtures.

[support]

If you declare in Setup two 4 channels fixtures (pan, tilt, upan, utilt), at dmx address 1 and 5, you could make pan/tilt scenes with Generator.

addr channel
1 pan fixture#1
2 upan fixture#1
3 tilt fixture#1
4 utilt fixture#1
5 pan fixture#2
6 upan fixture#2
7 tilt fixture#2
8 utilt fixture#2