Running Lights and Music from one laptop

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jokerswild

jokerswild

Chief Bottle Washer
Feb 11, 2007
18,776
1,288
Elkhart, IN
www.totalimpactdjs.com
I'm seriously considering a PC based light show and what I'd like to do is use my Asus laptop, either running Vista 64 or Windows 7, VDJ, and Freestlyer (or similar program) with two monitors. One monitor, likely the laptops, will be for the music and controller, and the second monitor for the lighting software.... using a mouse to navigate between monitors.... I should have plenty of computing power to do this.

Good or Bad idea? Why?
 
jokerswild said:
I'm seriously considering a PC based light show and what I'd like to do is use my Asus laptop, either running Vista 64 or Windows 7, VDJ, and Freestlyer (or similar program) with two monitors. One monitor, likely the laptops, will be for the music and controller, and the second monitor for the lighting software.... using a mouse to navigate between monitors.... I should have plenty of computing power to do this.

Good or Bad idea? Why?
Click to expand...

They still have to utilize the same Operating System so the chances for quirks increase. Get a cheap laptop and do the lights from that, you can also install a back up Music program on that too.
 
I do it all the time, never had problems.
 
Other than having to swap between the DJ software and the Lighting software it was pretty easy.... now I can make it even easier but running in dual monitor mode and just drag the lighting software to another screen if I want too.... I saw absolutely no glitches running both simultaneously.
 
I use 2 machines, mainly because the gigs I do, I have a lighting guy for... I know it works, I actually know of DJ Software that has DMX software built in, but My worry is if one goes they both go... Freestyler is a great program, but it does have the odd glich here and there, now I have never seen it mess up the entire system, I do know that you do have to restart the program though, which can take a bit of effort.... Again, if it was me, I would spend the $400 or so on a netbook and run my lights on that, but thats me...

Thanks
 
It only makes sense to run the lighting software on a separate pc. As a "pro" one "glitch" at a wedding is one too many.....Dedicate a machine to what is most important at a wedding; the music...

With a second laptop, you also have that critical back up everyone should have...
 
I agree having a separate PC is probably the best option.... but, I did run both VDJ and Freestlyer from the same laptop at the Sunday before last's show and other than me goofin' trying to get my wifi card installed (which BTW took out not only the light doggle but also my Total Control)... I won't try that again..... I found out later that the wifi card wasn't compatible with Windows 7 so when I'm not doing karaoke I'll be in Vista 64 where it is compatible....

Bottom line is it worked for me just fine once I stopped dick'n around with other sh_t.
 
djclint said:
save your hd from sourcing the os, lighting program, lighting scheme files, music program, and music files...

move the music files to an external to save the bulk of the sourcing. the usb bus can handle the in/out.
Click to expand...

My buddy did it.... and then he dropped the hard drive...:sqerr:.
 
:sqwink:
 

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I could not resist...:sqbiggrin:
 

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:sqerr:

Keep it separate, unless you're absolutely sure you'll only work alone. I can't tell you how often one of us is running lights and the other running the music -- hard to do with a single mouse!
 
awdj said:
:sqerr:

Keep it separate, unless you're absolutely sure you'll only work alone. I can't tell you how often one of us is running lights and the other running the music -- hard to do with a single mouse!
Click to expand...

I'm not doing any huge light shows..... just programing scenes then just randomly playing them back and changing them every so often.... no on the fly programing...
 
Still though, do you really want to limit yourself like that? Even in the pic up there that anzyxx posted I count at least 3 hands...

Keep it with one if you'd like - processing power shouldn't be a problem - but it's not something I'd do. Then again I've got literally around 40 laptops here :sqerr: haha lots of them dead or being parted out though.. that's the day job.
 
awdj said:
Still though, do you really want to limit yourself like that? Even in the pic up there that anzyxx posted I count at least 3 hands...

Keep it with one if you'd like - processing power shouldn't be a problem - but it's not something I'd do. Then again I've got literally around 40 laptops here :sqerr: haha lots of them dead or being parted out though.. that's the day job.
Click to expand...

Holly cow, that sounds exactly like my day job!
 
jokerswild said:
I agree having a separate PC is probably the best option.... but, I did run both VDJ and Freestlyer from the same laptop at the Sunday before last's show and other than me goofin' trying to get my wifi card installed (which BTW took out not only the light doggle but also my Total Control)...
Bottom line is it worked for me just fine once I stopped dick'n around with other sh_t.
Click to expand...

Having a separate pc IS the only option.....Yes Rob, you had no issues in the brief time you played around...

How are you going to explain it to the bride the 1 time some does happen and your laptop crashes during the first song.

You've got 6 grand worth of Bose and you're debating 3 or 400 bucks for a Net Book (or even a laptop) that will not only give you the security of running the music on a dedicated machine, but also the security of have back up....

there should be no debate.....
 
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