Magic Music Visuals

Hey fellow "magicians" , It's great to find the forum and have palace to learn and share with each other the things we have learned navigating our path into MAGIC. i have been using the program to rave reviews from my first shows using it, and after nearly a year feel i am still only scratching the surface of what this amazing program can do . I do "lightshow projections" for bands , music, arts and civic events as well as ambience creation and urban and natural setting and rock formation shoots , and like I said before have had nothing but amazed viewers... Now i have need to expand my capabilities and am researching a major equipment combination upgrade. My research has been exciting and enlightening and has revealed many options for producing and delivering on the fly live music visuals , but also has me at a loss as to which way to go . Given the expenditure required to build a great system ,I could really use some insight/consulting on possible ways to configure such a working display presentation system . I currently am working with a minimum of equipment ( a macbook pro and a projector or two) and want expand into a multi-sourced live video presenter set-up that would include live cameras and motion graphics as well... Can you help ? I am confident you can ,and I look forward to working with you in the future as well as using the forums to build my knowledge, new business and "Dream System "... "what would that look like ? What are some options Eric ? ... Fellow "Magicians" ? Please share what equipment, hardware and software you are using to get the MAGIC out there .
Thanks and have more fun , Mikey R

Thanks Mikey! Always good to hear from a satisfied customer .

I'll talk a little bit about computer hardware because I think that's the most relevant thing to your question, and because there's so much great software out there that it'd be an endless discussion. Maybe we can talk about software in a different thread? I know a lot of people probably want to talk about projection mapping software (which is something I don't use too much, but it is pretty popular these days).

Anyway, the basic ingredients for an excellent hardware setup should always start with the computer. Generally I run Magic off a desktop PC because it's by far the best bang-for-the-buck. It's essentially a gaming PC, but I added an M-Audio Delta 1010LT PCI audio card (http://www.m-audio.com/products/en_us/Delta1010LT.html) because it's an inexpensive way to get 8 analog inputs, so I can connect an entire band and keep all their instruments separate. It's especially nice when the drums have their own input(s) because the drums tend to be the most appealing thing to make visuals with.

Besides that you need a good processor and a good graphics card. If you're into building your own PC, Tom's Hardware has these "System Builder Marathon" articles (i.e., http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/bui ... ,3780.html) which describe how to build a great gaming machine for around $750-1000. That's what I do. Right now I think you'd want to get a quad-core processor and an NVidia GTX graphics card.

If you're a Mac person, unfortunately the equivalent system is a lot more expensive, though you have the option of doing a Hackintosh if you want to try to run OS X on a PC. I always bring my MacBook Pro to shows as a backup to my desktop PC though.

As far as cameras go I just have a few cheap USB webcams and I connect them to my PC with long USB cables. Since they're small, I mount them right on the stage in various places. (You probably don't want to rely on wireless cameras).

Personally I prefer to leave the PC just off stage to connect all the audio and video cables, and to have the minimum possible other cables (keyboard, mouse, MIDI controller) going to the sound board. You don't want to be running a bunch of long cables all over the place.

Most of the venues I go to already have their own projectors, but if you're gonna buy one you'll definitely want to buy one that has a low display lag. Here's one thread on the topic: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1068844/input ... ectors/180.

Anyway, those are some of my thoughts for now. But I'd love to hear what other people have to say! Post away!
Eric

Thankyou for your reply, I will begin to look , read , grok and learn . I probably won't be switching from mac anytime soon , but that info is excellent for additions or the computers of others. I liked your advice on cameras and wireless connections , are they really that bad ? Also... How do I install the shaders for the 2d scenes ? I'd like to do it right. Thanks again for your quick response.
mikey r

Personally I've just had too many stutters and dropouts with wireless cameras so that's why I don't use them.

When you say "install" the shaders, do you mean the expansion pack? For that, you can just unzip it anywhere. Then, all you have to do is choose a shader file by clicking on the File button in the 2DScenes module. Make sense?

Eric

Very well ... yes , I was referring to the expansion pack (of shaders ) and will unzip them . Can't wait to see what they do . Thanks also for giving me new ideas and days to look at things . I am amazed at how well I do with computers given my lack of basic skills...user friendly is a term I've come to count on . I generally find Magic quite Friendly that way and love to experiment . On with the projects, on with the experiment !!!