xLights with Falcon F48 and Renard TR24

[munu]

I have a Facon F48 and want to control a Renard TR24 through the Falcon (I believe this is the best way to keep things synchronized). But how to I configure the TR24 in xLights? According to the documentation I add a "USB controller" but it seems that assumes I directly connect the TR24 to the PC with a USB-to-serial connection. How do I configure AND control the TR24 through the Falcon F48? Or is this not how it is done?

[Gilrock]

When it comes to the controller page I could easily say something wrong but I believe if you are running a board from the Falcon then to xlights it just looks like you are talking to a Falcon board so it would be an E1.31 interface.  Falcon would take care of routing the E1.31 data to the board.

[munu]

It wouldn't really be E1.31, though. I think... It would be the Renard protocol communicated over one of the 3 DMX1/2/3 Ethernet/serial connections.

So what I ended up TRYING "Create New DMX" in Layout. See attachment DMXInXLights.png. Then I went to the F48 controller visualise tab. See attachment F48SerialPort.png. I am not sure if I am doing this right.

Then the next challange is how I am actually using this in Sequencer. I see my DmxDeer1 but then what affect do I add? There is a DMX effect but I don't quite understand how to use it and I didn't find anything helpful in the documentation (maybe I am looking at the wrong section).

[Gilrock]

If it goes to the Falcon first its E1.31.  xlights doesn't care what protocol the Falcon will switch it to.

[munu]

I am sorry but I still don't quite get it. So it makes sense to me that xLights just sends commands to the Falcon F48 using E1.31. The Falcon translates this so the Renard board connected to the Falcon F48 gets the command in the Renard format.

But if that is the case, why does xLights see that there are serial ports on the F48 (see attachment SerialOnFalcon.png).

[Gilrock]

Technically all xLights does is produce an FSEQ file which is a block of data with a header.  That block of data contains all the values for each channels to cover all your channels for every frame.  That data file does not know or care what type of controller it will run on nor does it have any idea what universes and channels will be involved.  The controller tab's main purpose is to help you configure your controllers.  Its showing a serial port because if you upload the inputs and outputs to the controller its going to try to setup your controller settings for you.  Its basically going to "teach" your controller what universes to grab to get the data.  Its going to program the controller to receive data from universe/channel xyz and send it out serial port 1.  Then xlights or FPP or xscheduler is going to pull data from the FSEQ file and send it out in the universe/channel settings you desire.  In fact you have to "teach" the show player what chunk of data from the FSEQ file should get mapped into each universe.  xLights can do most of that work for you cause it will upload your settings in xLights to FPP or xScheduler so it knows how to grab the data and route it.