Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

1. I'll try the modeling lamp switch this evening, and post the result.
2. i usually don't do OPEN STUDIO, but i did do it for few of my testing. i don't normally
switch back & forth with different receivers, only did it for the test purpose.
3. I do get the white dash under the vertical bar. all other channels show very thin gray
lines.
4. but regardless of the STANDBY mode, shouldn't the DUMP light change back to green?
i haven't checked, but if the light is on STANDBY mode, does the DUMP light come on?

Just to be sure, you get the white bar after you "open from studio", and before you specify the lights? Once you specify the light, the gray or white dash is forced into the channel, regardless of whether or not the CC found it, and therefore can indicate a false positive. This is also why I suggest using only that reciver (as in, the battery recievers need to be off or, better yet, the battery pulled) since two recievers on the same channel will show as one dash. Or a reciever in a closet that is on will appear on the CC, and the user may not realize it.


In standby mode, the dump light does come on.

If you're connecting other brand lights, you're using the stereo mini plug. This doesn't use an opamp control circuit AFAIK...only the RJ11 connector does.
It wasn't just me that experienced this and I remember a case w/ the CSR+ as well (that user on FM went to the CSRB+ to work around it).

I hope I'm wrong, but it does sound suspiciously like this issue...

Frank: if you power up the AB400 w/ the CSR+ connected w/o touching the CC, does it immediately go into that red dump light mode? Does the dump light flicker? Does dump mode stay on if you press the test button on the CSR+? Does the flash tube flicker when you press the test button?
Most of those were symptoms of that latchup thing I had on VB power...though on powerup, the dump light would be green, then after a test pop, the dump light would flicker and stay stuck...

yes. i get the green light when the AB400 is powered up without the CSR+. but as soon
as CSR+ is plugged in, it goes to solid red immediately. at this point, nothing works &
CC is irrelevant. can't even control the modeling lamps in this state.

correction on my #3 response:
1. i have 3 lights set up in my CC saved as SD1
2. since i only have 3 lights, i just keep my SD1 setting, and it always comes up on my CC
3. i usually hit "refresh" first when i start my sessions
4. all others lights packed, and all batteries out from my CSRB+'s, working with one AB400
and CSR+, the AB400 goes immediately to solid RED light when powered up.
5. turn on my CC, and hit refresh --> i get thick white dashes for all channels
6. the white dashes stay on, regardless of the channel selection

Ok. Since you did not go into the "OPEN MEMORY">"OPEN ALL FROM STUDIO", you will not see anything different. The white dashes appear on the open function and stay until you delete them manually (or possibly when change set ups). Or they appear when you define a light unit, regardless if the CyberCommander has communication with the reciever. So a white dash staying where it was will not tell you anything.

With only that reciever active, scroll to the right with the right joystick to the SETUP screen. Use the UP/DOWN function of the right joystick to highlight OPEN MEMORY, then press in with the right joystick. In this screen, use the LEFT/RIGHT directions with the LEFT joystick to select STUDIO. Press in with the RIGHT joystick. Your vertical bars will dissappear, and you should get one and only one white or dark gray dash (look carefully for the dark gray. It can be hard to see if you dont know what you are looking for), and it should be on the channel column you selected. If it is under a different channel, or does not appear at all, then the reciever is on the wrong channel or frequency, respectively.

Even though the bars dissappear, they are still stored under SD1 if you save that set up previously.

still doesn't work.

thanks for your help, David. but i think i'll just get the CSRB+ and get it over with.
it really shouldn't be this hard to switch between CSR+ and CSRB+, as they have the
exact same function (just the different power source). if my set up for CSRB+ works,
it should work, without any adjustment, for CSR+ as well.

again, thanks for your help.

No problem. I hope the CSRB+ works out for you.

This same thing is happening to me as well...i'm so pisssed...i spent three hours trying to get it to work...it fired twice out of 25 clicks...CSR+ is worthless...the CSRB+ works PERFECT however...I have to keep buying batteries for so many light gets expensive...is there a fix for this issue...if not how can I get these returned intime for next wednesday...PCB should look into this as a recall the item...this is too frustrating to have a customer spend over $4,000 only for the equipment to be useless.

Without testing the reciever in question, we cannot know what the problem is, and therefore cannot comment on a "fix". However, the battery operated recievers can use rechargable batteries (though the Cyber Commander cannot).