Music

QLab Pro 4.2 – Create media sequences for live shows.

March 23, 2018

QLab is a streamlined and intuitive Mac OS X application that provides the required tools and features to create complex designs that can bring your audio and video content to life.

Versatile and user-oriented show control

QLab’s user-oriented interface helps you design and handle your multimedia content from within a smooth-running and personalizeable workspace that allows you to manage audio, video, MIDI, OCS and more.

QLab comes with numerous building blocks, also known as “cues”, that can help you design your stunning multimedia performance with just a few mouse clicks. Once you dragged and dropped your files you can start adding commands to fade in and fade out the volume, animate videoclips and apply various video and audio effects.

User-definable scripts and numerous video and audio effects

After getting familiar with the basics, you can step up your game and become a power user by using complex features like scripting, multi-projector edge blending, video corner pinning and audio localization. What is more, you can build multi-computer designs and send commands to multiple QLab systems connected to the same local network.

When you are happy with your Cue List, you can give it a try and hit the “Go” button to preview your show. Thanks to the Warnings panel you can check your list and view all encountered issues.

Support for Blackmagic device input, as well as various types of video surfaces and a host of other similarly powerful tools

QLab comes with support for 48 output and 24 input audio channels, intuitive audio waveform editing, customizable playback rate with pitch adjustment, video and audio faders, animation tools, Matrix mixer, audio and video effects, Syphon integration, keystone correction and corner pinning.

You can also overlay titles, use live video input from various devices, including Blackmagic devices, handle multiple video surfaces, apply fade curves, slice files, use markers and use external video effects.

What’s New

Version 4.2:

Workflow Changes:

Added: Improvements to accessibility, via:
- Much-improved support for screen readers
- Support for high-contrast mode
- Support for differentiating UI elements without color
- Other improvements.
Added: A Triggers tab to the Workspace Status window, where you can review all cue triggers and workspace controls. You can also copy this information as text to export it to an external text editor or spreadsheet.
Added: You can now hold down the option key when dragging cues within a list or cart to duplicate them rather than move them.
Added: If you have chosen to show the Launcher window at launch, it will now also be shown if you close all open workspace windows.
Added: The playhead can now be unset via OSC by sending "none" to the Workspace or Group cue OSC commands "/playheadId" and "/playbackPositionId".
Added: You can now move the playhead on a Cue List with the OSC commands: /cue/{number}/playhead/next and /cue/{number}/playhead/previous
Added: Fade Cue OSC methods:
/rotation to get/set a single-axis rotation value, i.e. X rotation, Y rotation, or Z rotation.
/cue/{cue_number}/translation {number_x} {number_y}
/cue/{cue_number}/scale {number_x} {number_y}
Added: You can now set the messaging rate (in FPS) of custom OSC messages in the Network cue.
Added: Improvements to the 2D fade path of the Network cue:
You can now scale, drag, and delete individual points of a 2D fade path, as well as the path as a whole.
The mouse coordinates are displayed when editing the 2D fade path.
Changed: The "Stop Selected" commands in the MIDI Controls and OSC Controls workspace settings are now "Panic Selected" commands.
Changed: When creating new cue lists or cue carts, the new list or cart will be inserted under the current selection in the right panel.
Fixed: Independent cue list windows will now respect the small / medium / large cue row preference.
Fixed: Fade cues are no longer allowed to target Network cues (which have no externally-fadable parameters anyway).
Fixed: Fade cue OSC methods that update the 3D geometry (i.e. /rotateX, /rotateY, /rotateZ, and /resetRotation) now require the rotation type to be set to "3D orientation".
Fixed: The Fade cue inspector now displays the correct content in the "Video Effects" tab for cues that target Group cues.
Fixed: The inspector no longer shows audio-related tabs for certain cue configurations that do not support audio, i.e. Fade cues that target Text or Camera cues and Video cues that play a still image.
Fixed: Several other bugs, some of which prevent crashes.

Audio Changes:

Added: A new mode for Network cues to support integration with the new DS100 Soundscape processing engine from d&b audiotechnik. The DS100 is a 64x64 channel signal processing system, featuring flexible routing and DSP, spatial positioning of sound, and acoustic emulation. You can enable DS100 mode for Network cues in the network workspaces settings.
Added: You can now batch-edit audio levels and audio trim in the Audio and Video cue inspectors. (Not yet supported for Mic cues.)
Fixed: A very brief (~5ms) fade-in that could sometimes affect the beginning of audio playback even when a cue was pre-loaded.
Fixed: Cues that are in the ghostly tail-out state (when the file has finished playback but something like an audio reverb is still rendering) will now behave better.

Video Changes:

Added: Video surfaces can now be set to keep rendering a black background between cues, ensuring a smoother start for the next Video cue. Screens assigned to surfaces with this setting will continue rendering until a panic.
Added: OSC methods to set the live rotation around a specific axis:
- /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/Xaxis {number} or /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/x {number}
- /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/Yaxis {number} or /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/y {number}
- /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/Zaxis {number} or /cue/{cue_number}/liveRotation/z {number}
Added: OSC methods to set some video parameters as a 2-argument method, rather than just the previous 1-argument versions:
- /cue/{cue_number}/translation {number_x} {number_y}
- /cue/{cue_number}/liveTranslation {number_x} {number_y}
- /cue/{cue_number}/scale {number_x} {number_y}
- /cue/{cue_number}/liveScale {number_x} {number_y}
- /cue/{cue_number}/origin {number_x} {number_y}
Fixed: We’ve spent a lot of time under the hood working on improving video performance. Changes include:
- The video effects pipeline has been rewritten from the ground up, dramatically improving performance by utilizing GPU acceleration.
- Video effects no longer entail an undesired shift in color values or gamma response.
- Video effects like blurs are no longer cropped to the original cue dimensions.
- Animating the geometry of Video, Camera, or Text cues using a Fade cue is now smoother.
- Loading to (or past) the end of a Video cue has been optimized, significantly improving performance when "jumping" into the middle of a long sequence of Video cues.
- Video cues that contain an audio track will now play back more smoothly.
Fixed: A regression that prevented drop shadows in Text cues from working properly.
Fixed: If the mouse is located on a video surface when the video begins to play, it will now re-appear properly if it is moved to a screen that is not in use as a video surface.

Lighting Changes:

Added: New functions in the Light Dashboard:
- Update Selected Cue(s) - Records edited levels into the currently selected Light cue(s).
- Record All to Selected Cue(s) - Record all levels into the currently selected Light cue(s).
- Record All to Latest Cue - Record all levels into the most recently run Light cue.
- Clear All - Set all instruments to their home values. (aka "Go to blackout.")
Added: You can now undo/redo your edits in the Light Dashboard.
Added: Support for both universes of DMXKing ultraDMX2 PRO and eDMX2 PRO interfaces.
Added: Support for decimal values in Light cue commands which use percentage values, to allow higher precision.
Added: Light definitions for the following American DJ instruments: Focus Spot One, Focus Spot Two, Focus Spot Three Z, Inno Color Beam Z7, Inno Color Beam Z19, Inno Pocket Spot LZR, Inno Pocket Spot Twins, Inno Pocket Wash, Inno Pocket Z5, Inno Spot Pro, Stinger Spot, Vizi Beam 5RX, Vizi Beam RSONE, Vizi BSW 300, Vizi Hex Wash7, Vizi Hybrid 16RX, and Vizi Q Wash7.
Added: Light definitions for the following Chauvet instruments: COLORado M, COLORdash Par-H7 IP, COLORdash Par-H12 IP, Maverick MK Pyxis, Maverick MK1 Spot, Maverick MK2 Profile, Maverick MK3 Wash, Ovation E-260CW or E-260WW, Ovation E-260WW IP, Ovation E-930VW, Ovation F-55FC or F55WW, Ovation F-265WW, Ovation F-910FC, Ovation F-915FC, Ovation F-915VW, Rogue R1X Spot, Rogue R2X Spot, Rogue R3 Spot.
Added: Light definitions for the Clay Paky Axcor Beam 300, Axcor Spot 300, Axcor Wash 300, Axcor Profile 900, K-EYE HCR K10, K20, S10, and S20.
Added: Light definitions for the following Elation instruments: Artiste DaVinci, Chorus Line 8, Chorus Line 16, DARTZ 360, E Spot III, Fuze Wash 575, Fuze Wash Z120, Fuze Wash Z350, Emotion, KL Fresnel 4, KL Fresnel 6, KL Fresnel 8, Platinum Beam 5R Extreme, Platinum FLX, Platinum HFX, Platinum Seven, Platinum Spot III, Platinum Spot LED II, Proteus Beam, Proteus Hybrid, Protron 3K, Protron 3K Color, Rayzor 360Z, Satura Profile, TVL Cyc, TVL Panel DW, TVL Softlight DW, CW Profile HP IP, and WW Profile HP IP.
Added: Light definitions for the following ETC instruments: ColorSource CYC, ColorSource Linear, Selador Desire D40 series, Selador Vivid-11, Vivid-21, Vivid-42, and Vivid-63.
Added: Light definitions for the Martin MAC Encore Performance CLD and WRM, RUSH MH 4 Beam, RUSH MH 10 Beam FX, and RUSH MH 11 Beam.
Added: Light definitions for the following Robe instruments: BMFL Spot, BMFL Wash and Wash XF, BMFL WashBeam and WashBeam EV, BMFL Blade, Cyclone, DigitalSpot 3500 DT, DL4X Spot, DL4S Profile, DL4F Wash, DL7S Profile, DL7F Wash, Dominator 1200 XT, LEDBeam 100, LEDBeam 100 DayLight, LEDBeam 100 SmartWhite, LEDBeam 150, LEDBeam 1000, LEDWash 300, LEDWash 300+, LEDWash 300 SmartWhite, LEDWash 600, LEDWash 600+, LEDWash 800, LEDWash 800 DayLight, LEDWash 800 SmartWhite, LEDWash 1200, MiniMe and MiniMe DV, MMX Spot, MMX WashBeam, MMX Blade, Pointe, MiniPointe, MegaPointe, RoboSpot Motion Camera, Spiider, Spikie, Viva, and Viva CMY.
Added: Light definitions for the Rosco RevoPRO gobo rotator.
Added: Light definitions for the Vari*Lite VL1100 LED and VL1100 LED HP.
Added: 16-bit versions of generic RGB, RGBW, and RGBAW fixtures.
Fixed: QLab will now reset orphaned DMX values to 0 when unpatching instruments in the Light Patch.
Fixed: QLab will now now re-transmit Art-Net DMX packets every 0.8 seconds, per the recommendation in the latest Art-Net spec. This improves compatibility with some Art-Net receivers.
Fixed: A bug that prevented certain light commands (like "all = home") from working properly.
Fixed: A typo in the light definition for the Martin MAC Axiom Hybrid.
Changed: Built-in light definitions have been standardized around using the parameter name "intensity" instead of "dimmer." Instrument definitions that have been created or saved in existing workspaces will not be Changed.
Changed: The light definition called "COLORado Solo (1, 2, 3)" has been replaced with a new definition called "COLORado Solo (1, 2, 3, M)" to support the COLORago M. The definition has also been updated to use "intensity" in place of "dimmer" for consistency.
Changed: The light definition called "WW Profile" has been replaced with a new definition called "WW Profile or CW Profile HP" to support the CW Profile HP.
Changed: Several light definitions for Chauvet Ovation instruments had typo fixes and/or improvements for clarity.