Run a show from a controller
Once the keys are assigned, the controller becomes your main interface and the screen only shows status. Connect the controller and assign the keys first. See Connect a controller.
Fire hot buttons
Pushing a key bound to Hot button or Hot button at page position does the same as clicking that hot button: it plays to the same buses and canvases. Push the key again while the hot button is playing, and it stops and rewinds.
You can fire several hot buttons at once, and each plays independently through its own destinations.
On a Launchpad, each key bound to a hot button lights in that hot button's colour and stays lit while it plays, so the pad shows what is active without you looking at the screen.
On a Stream Deck, the key of a playing hot button shows a coloured frame and counts down the time remaining. The key of a hot button with actions shows a bolt in its top-left corner.
Change pages
Keys bound to Go to page, Next page or Previous page change the grid's page immediately.
On a Launchpad with its pads reset to The visible hot button page, the top row changes pages and shows which page is on screen. As soon as you change the page, the pads fire the new page's hot buttons. A Stream Deck with its keys reset to The visible hot button page changes its keys in the same way. See Assign the keys to hot buttons.
With Hot buttons 1–64, keys bound to Hot button fire the same hot button on every page. If Firing shows the hot button's page is on, the screen then shows the page of that hot button.
Drive sequences
Sequence bindings come in two families, and you need to pick one.
Bindings by name (Start sequence, Stop sequence, Next step of sequence, Pause sequence and Previous step of sequence) carry their sequence with them, so the right sequence responds whatever page or view is on screen. Use them when one sequence gets its own key.
Bindings by selection (Select next sequence, Select previous sequence, Start selected sequence, Stop selected sequence and Next step of selected sequence) work on whichever sequence is selected in the Sequences view. Use them when a few keys have to control every sequence.
A panel with many keys suits bindings by name. A four-key remote suits bindings by selection.
Drive overlays
You can bind values, timers and overlay visibility to keys. See Drive an overlay live.
A key only works on the active match. A key bound to an overlay or team from a different match does nothing. See Run several matches.
Global actions
Fade out all, Pause all, Stop all and Blackout all act on everything at once.
Bind Stop all and Blackout all to keys you can find under stage lighting and that are hard to push by accident.
If a key does nothing
Work through these checks in order.
- Is the controller connected? Open Configuration → Venue → External control and select the controller. The header shows its status. If it shows Disconnected, unplug the USB cable and plug it in again.
- Is it enabled? Check the Enabled toggle in the header. A disabled controller accepts no input.
- Is the key assigned? Click the key in the Keys card. The Actions card lists its steps.
- Does the on-screen control work? If clicking the hot button works but the key does not, the problem is the binding or the connection. If neither works, the hot button itself is configured wrong.
- Is the overlay or the team in the active match? A key for an overlay or team from a different match does nothing. Switch to that match. See Run several matches.
- Does your plan include hardware controllers? On Free, a hardware controller shows Audio required. The Keyboard controller works on all plans.
For other problems, see Troubleshooting.