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How To

Cue Types: Control

These cues change the state of the show or other cues rather than playing content.

#Start

Starts (fires) a target cue, then completes so its own list keeps running. A Start cue does NOT move the playhead, does NOT switch the active cue list, and does NOT stop anything already playing: it simply triggers the target, exactly like pressing GO on that one cue. Use it to launch a cue on another list, kick off a parallel sequence, or branch on an event while the current list carries on.

  • Target field: the cue (or group) to start. In a multi-list show the target menu is grouped by cue list: a Start cue can point at a cue on any list. The target is pinned to the chosen list, so duplicate cue numbers across lists resolve correctly.
  • Because the playhead stays put, when the Start cue's target finishes, the Start cue's own list continues its follow / timeline chain from where the Start cue sits. (To actually move the playhead to a cue, use the GOTO keypad or a Load cue instead.)
  • Right-click a Start cue and choose Show Target to jump to the cue it points at.

#LOAD

Arms a specific cue without firing it: sets it as the next cue GO will fire, and moves the playhead there. Like Start, the target can be on any cue list; unlike Start, Load switches to the target's list so the next GO fires it.

#Reset

A chainable version of PANIC. When fired:

  • Stops all playing audio, video, camera, and mic cues.
  • Sends a DMX blackout across all universes. Unlike PANIC, Reset can be placed in an auto-follow chain so an emergency stop becomes part of a sequence.

#Arm / Disarm

Enables or disables a target cue.

  • Target: the cue number to affect.
  • Action: Toggle (flip the current state), Arm (enable it), or Disarm (disable it). Disabled cues are skipped in follow chains. Use Arm/Disarm to turn sections of a show on or off at runtime.

#MIDI Send

Sends a MIDI message on fire.

  • Message types: Note On / Off, Control Change, Program Change, and MSC variants (Go, Stop, Resume, Load, Set).
  • Channel: 1–16.
  • Data bytes: note/CC number, velocity/value.
  • MSC: cue number string and device ID (0x7F = broadcast to all devices).
  • Raw SysEx: enter hex bytes (e.g. F0 7F 7F 02 7F 01 F7).

#Timecode

Generates a timecode stream on fire.

  • Kind: LTC (audio, out a dedicated LTC output channel), MTC (MIDI, out a MIDI port), or Art-Net (network timecode — ArtTimeCode packets on the lighting network).
  • Frame rate: 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97 DF, 29.97 NDF, or 30.
  • Start time: where the stream begins (HH:MM:SS:FF).
  • Duration: how long it runs (0 = run until stopped).
  • Match group duration: if this cue is inside a Group, the stream's duration automatically matches the group's total duration.
  • Route LTC through the LTC Timecode output channel in the Audio Outputs window.
  • Art-Net timecode goes to the Art-Net destination IP set in Show Settings ▸ DMX, over the lighting network interface — consoles and media servers (grandMA, Hog, disguise, Resolume) chase it directly. It works even when DMX output is disabled.
  • For MTC over the network, create a Network MIDI session in macOS Audio MIDI Setup (Window ▸ Show MIDI Studio ▸ Network); the session then appears as an ordinary MIDI destination in the MTC output picker.

#Network

Sends an OSC message or MIDI note/CC/program-change to another device.

  • OSC: enter the address (e.g. /cuestudio/go) and arguments.
  • MIDI: choose note, CC, or program change, plus channel and data.
  • Target address and port are set per-cue.

### OSC loopback, driving CueStudio from a cue Tick "Send to CueStudio (loopback)" on a Network cue and the OSC message runs against CueStudio itself instead of going out over the network. That lets a cue trigger any of CueStudio's own /cuestudio/… commands: see the OSC reference in Show Settings for the full list.

  • Nothing to configure: it needs no port, no OSC output host, and works with OSC input switched off and with Local Network access denied.
  • Without it, a Network cue always goes to the single OSC output host in Show Settings, so aiming one at CueStudio would mean repointing that host and breaking every cue that talks to real gear.
  • Example: address /cuestudio/panic with loopback ticked gives you a PANIC cue you can fire from a hot cue, a Stream Deck key, or a follow chain.

#HTTP

Sends a web request to a URL when fired.

  • Method: GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, or DELETE.
  • URL: the full address.
  • Headers: one Key: Value pair per line.
  • Body: raw request body (disabled for GET). Errors (network failures, HTTP 4xx/5xx) surface in the error banner at the top of the main window. The cue's follow chain continues regardless of the response.

#Serial

Writes bytes to a serial / USB-serial device (e.g. a GPIO board, relay controller, or custom microcontroller).

  • Device: pick from the list of /dev/tty.* and /dev/cu.* devices.
  • Baud rate: 1200 to 230400.
  • Payload: the bytes to send. Use escape sequences: \xNN for a hex byte, \n, \r, \t. Hardware flow control (RTS/CTS) is off by default: most show-control boards don't need it.

#Command (CMD)

Runs a script of show commands (one per line) when fired: fire a cue on another list, stop a list, change a cue's volume, send OSC. See "Command Cue Language" for the full syntax.

#Light

Sets lighting levels by instrument name instead of raw DMX channels. First patch your rig in the Light Patch window (Lighting ▸ Light Patch…): give each fixture a name (e.g. front-wash), a universe + DMX address, and a profile (Dimmer, RGB, RGBW, or a custom profile you define). Then a Light cue holds one command per line:

  • front-wash.intensity = 80; set one parameter (values are 0–100).
  • wash*.intensity = 50: globs match multiple instruments.
  • band.* = 0: set every parameter of one instrument.
  • Anything after # on a line is a comment. Values ramp over the cue's Fade In time (0 = snap). Each cue only touches the parameters it names, everything else holds its level (latest-takes-precedence merge). The commands are validated live in the inspector; the PATCHED INSTRUMENTS list inserts command lines for you. Raw DMX Scene cues keep working unchanged as the low-level escape hatch, and a Reset cue's blackout clears the light state too. You don't have to type commands by hand: build the look visually in the Light Designer (Lighting ▸ Light Designer…) and press Record (see Lighting section). A Light cue can also replay a raw DMX scene: pick it from the SCENE dropdown in the cue's inspector (with its own fade time). The scene sets the base frame first, then the cue's instrument commands overlay it, so one cue can do both. Scenes only play from Light cues; other cue types can't fire them.

#Script

Runs an AppleScript or shell script when fired.

  • Type: AppleScript or shell command.
  • Timeout: maximum run time in seconds.
  • Scripts are blocked in Show Mode by default for safety; enable "allow in show mode" per cue if needed.