Jump to content

BradLyons

Member
  • Posts

    12
  • Joined

  • Last visited

Posts posted by BradLyons

  1. I design AVL systems exclusively for churches, many of which still have pews or are installing pews in their worship spaces.  The seating tool is GREAT for chairs, and it would be wonderful if there were a way to program this tool to integrate pews into the design rather than chairs.  Attached is a rendering of a project I am currently working on.  I find that it is easier to build the PEW's in Sketchup Pro, modify the sides I need, and then import each file one by one into my VW project.  This takes a bit of time, but even more cumbersome is dealing with an elevated floor plan having to manually adjust the heights. If there were a way to do all of this in the seating arrangement tool, that would be a lifesaver! 

     

    Thank you

    Brad Lyons

    HBC 2.jpg

  2. I finally accepted the fact that there's NO way that WYSIWYG PERFORM -or- VW SPOTLIGHT can do everything I need to do.  So I just submitted the purchase for CAPTURE QUARTET (visualizer) and will move from the lease option to a full purchase of VW SPOTLIGHT soon.  I was going to purchase CONNECT CAD today, but it won't be compatible with Spotlight 2020 until sometime later in November.  I love WYSIWYG PERFORM, if it's CAD engine was a real CAD engine I would stick with it.  Although my workflow will change a little moving to VW w/CAPTURE that's okay....change isn't always bad. Frankly I wasn't too into Capture at first because I use A LOT of strip lights, and it was bogging it down.  But after some tweaks and adjustments it's pretty killer now.  Since I program from home---having a visualizer is a huge part of what I do. But now that I'm doing more and more consultation, design, and sub-contracting designs for other integration firms....  I need VW.  I'm going to be happy, until the bill comes! LOL

  3. In WYSIWyG it will display 2D and 3D anything and everything you enter properly in either of those modes.  I just think that if the claim is VECTORWORKS SPOTLIGHT is supposed to be the end-all.....  it's SERIOUSLY lacking in the lighting department.  A major overhaul is needed, and hopefully will come.  While I think VISION ranks the worst quality of the (3) main visualizers (WYSIWYG and CAPTURE) there's so much more reason for promise it can be improved, and implemented within the VW environment. 

  4. Thank you, the problem is that I need this truss to be angled as that is how it looks in real life, the 3D design needs to match how it will be installed.  So therefore the software should be smart enough to deal with both (WYG is).  I know and get these are two completely different applications, that's the problem. There are things that VW does great that WYG can't do, and there are things that WYG does VW can't do.  The problem for someone like me is I'm doing design AND I'm doing weekly production.  My budget can't handle both.  VISION doesn't look anywhere near as good as WYG, yet I can't justify the cost of WYG PERFORM just for a visualizer if I need VW to do my CAD and ENGINEERING design.  This is why I'm frustrated.  FYI here are the drawings as I have them done so far. 

    TOPCI snip 2.PNG

    TOPCI snip 1.PNG

  5. I'm a long-time WYSIWYG PERFORM user, where whatever I want to do is quick and simple!  I'm continually frustrated by the constant issues and head-scratchers I'm running into with VW, but as an AVL designer it's become a requirement although I'm kicking and screaming doing it!  My latest ticking me off scenario is I have a large square truss I have configured and installed above a stage that I wanted the rear of it to be lower and the front higher.  In WYG all I do is grab the rotate tool, manually adjust the angle or type in the amount and BOOM---done!  It took me a great deal of time to figure out I have to go into the 3D edit view and do it there, which was simple at that point---but again, it required extra steps.  After doing so, now my fixtures attached all stayed "flat" to the original position, none of them rotated with them.  Additionally when I'm in overhead plan view, it disappears.  But the moment I use the flyover tool to change the view, it shows up just fine.  I deleted the truss and created a new one, SAME PROBLEM! 

     

    The creative team programming VW really needs to go use WYG and learn from them!  VW is SO not intuitive!  And you can only display (8) lights at a time in OPEN GL mode???? 

     

    Another issue is I used the EDGE-BLENDED screen option and it's incredibly distorted depending on the viewing angle!  When I created my own custom image, there doesn't seem to be FILL SCREEN option like there is in WYG.  

     

     

     

     

    • Like 1
  6. Thank you, to be clear I'm not asking for high-res rendering.  Again the image above was the working shaded view of WYSIWYG, not a high-resolution render.  This is real-time, being able to see everything real time. I would at least expect VW to be able to show me lights.  I don't need the beams, I don't need high-res, I just want to know "do I have visual coverage".  I can't even get the DRAGGABLE beams to work, they are greyed out.  I'm finding very little useable information on Vision.....  Is it a VISUALIZER only, or can I build a full production in it?  I mean, I would obviously build the core model of the room, walls, stage, etc in VW and then in Vision can I insert the trusses, lighting fixtures, install acoustical panels on the walls, drop in speakers, etc?  This is what I'm able to do in WYSIWYG all in one environment SIMPLY.  I don't expect VW to do what WYG does just like I don't expect WYG to do what VW does, but only (8) lights at a time is ridiculous!  There's ZERO reasons why they can't make this unlimited. Especially when someone like me has an 8-core i7 4.2Ghz and an 8GB RTX2080 graphics card.  Either they don't want to do it, or they don't know how to do it.  But the fact is, it's not tasking anything to just have lights turn on with beams off.  I'd love to give Vision a FULL test-drive, but their demo only supports (5) fixtures at a time.  I went through this process with CAPTURE, I had to just buy the software to try it...and turns out that because it's based on a DirectX engine, it chokes quickly when using strip lights.  I'm starting to think more and more that for what I do and need, I'll need to have BOTH options....VW SPOTLIGHT and WYSIWYG PERFORM.  😞  

     

  7. Neil, Thank you for your response.  This would be a limitation of VW, certainly not one of OPEN GL (which is now Vulcan). I'm a heavy user of CAST WYSIWYG PERFORM (and heavy not just because I eat too many donuts! haha) , the attached file is a screen shot picture of the real-time lighting I'm using.  There are (54) house light fixtures and a huge amount of stage lights.  This is real time, zero lag, no offline rendering required.  And this is all Open GL. Man, VW is a great program!  But this is a HUGE flaw and buzzkill 😞  

    YOUTH_CONCEPT4.PNG

  8. So I have installed (9) Ellipsoidals on a front truss and (12) color fixtures on a rear truss.  When in the OPEN GL mode only 8-9 or so actually will turn on at a time.  If I try to turn more on, go off.  When I do a FINAL RENDER they show up just fine, but in OPEN GL only a handful will actually turn on.  Is there a setting that limits how can be turned on at a time?  If so, where is that and how do I turn it off? 

  9. Hey everyone, first post.  I am a CAST WYSIWYG PERFORM user, have been for close to three years.  I had hoped to have ONE single program/environment that I can use for design, programming, visualization, pre-visualization, and reporting.  Where WYG lacks greatly is in CAD importing and exporting, and CAD in general.  I really like VW, it's powerful--and from an "integrator's" point of view where I need to write AV prints it's awesome!  However where I'm really struggling (and ANNOYED!) with VW is that there are often multiple steps to do ONE task, as compared to WYG.  For example in WYG I insert a truss and drag it to the position, then attach a fixture.  Not only is the trussing hung, fixture attached, etc...but the light immediately turns on and I can position the beam, both in wireframe and lit on the stage, immediately.  We're talking SECONDS....  on top of that I can have multiple views open, one in my wireframe and one in my shaded view to see the haze---without having to do any kind of rendering, it's all REAL TIME and REALLY INSTANT!  This is absolutely NOT the case in VW.  I just want to DRAW BEAM or DRAW BEAM AS SOLID, and they are all grayed out.  I am reading about assigning classes, etc.  WHY can't I just insert the truss, connect the fixture, and BOOM it all just comes up?   Why won't VW draw beams w/haze in Open GL mode?  WYG will do things that VW can't come close to doing, likewise VW does things WYG just can't do. For this reason, I have to go with BOTH programs (sucks!) but VW just annoys me because everything is multiple steps.  I'm a smart guy, I can figure stuff out---but this drawing beams from fixtures, I'm lost! 😞

     

    Thank you in advance!

    Brad Lyons

×
×
  • Create New...