Understanding moving heads...

[RGBlite]

Still a fairly newbie here. I got my first moving head, a Blizzard Flurry Q. I'm having some difficulty getting it to do what I want, and could use some help from anyone. (I'm sure this is a newbie operator problem, not a software problem.) Let's assume I am using the fixture sitting upright on it's base, or mounted on top of a totem. I assume you consider the side with the LED readout the "front" of the fixture, and I see people seem to usually mount moving heads with the LED readout side facing the audience or dance floor, and the cables on the backside. In DMX mode, with pan and tilt at "0", the head points straight out at audience, which is good. I want to program the light to sweep to the left about 45 degrees, then return through "center" and sweep to the right 45 degrees, then return to center. But when you program those steps, going from Pan = 25 to Pan = 140, it goes around the other direction.

OK, so I try a different approach, sweeping right first, I make the first step Pan = 140, the second step Pan = 25. Now the fixture does what I want in Editor (except it doesn't stop at "0"), but in Live connected to a button, when you hit the button, the fixture head does a complete 360, then goes to the left (Pan = 25), and then to the right, and then pans the way I want. But when I stop it, it does almost a 360 again to go back to the "0" Pan position.

I just want the light to start at "0", pan left (or right) 45 degrees, pan right back through "0" and go the other way 45 degrees, etc. But when I start it and stop it, I don't want the light sweeping all around the room with those 360's. What am I missing or doing wrong? (I'm not using Generator, as I'm disabling the Y axis, and I've had no luck doing any better with Generator.) I'm assuming that I would have the same issue with any MH and not just the Flurry Q.

I would think that I would like MH's to "idle" at the "0" position, facing the audience, and always start a routine from that orientation, and go back to that when complete. This brings up another question. Is there a way to have the MH go to a certain orientation, and then turn on the lamp, so you don't see the lamp sweeping to get to that first position (in a repeating scene)? I can't think of how to do that, because you don't want the lamp to turn off every time you go back to the first step in the repeating scene. It seems like you would need a "startup" and "shutdown" sequence that doesn't repeat. Does any of this make sense?

Thanks for any assistance!

[marco]

I always have a home button aktive, this is a button that contains the value x=128,y=128
This usefull to prevent the head from spinning complete back.

Depending on the type of moving head it can swivel 720 degrees (x as)
So dmx value 0, 128, 255 can al be front facing positions

programm a chase that contains 2 steps: step 1 x=80 y= 60, step2 x=176 y =60 and make a button of this
then the head goes more or less 45deg to left and y faces forward, then moves to 45deg right y still face forward and back
The value are more or less guested by me ,these can be different for u

An easyer way to do wath u want is open editor, underneath the square push home( head goes to center position)
Now drad with mouse the marker left till desired angle, push next step, drag marker to right, scene finished

[RGBlite]

Thanks Marco! A HOME button solved my problem. Thanks so much for responding.