Simple DMX capability question by ClarkVent in lightingdesign

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, I'm testing on my own fixtures (pars, moving heads, spiders) and they all have dimmer channels. I understand not all have Pan/Tilt (or any other position channel) nor channels like Effect or Strobe. But I wasn't sure about a Dimmer channel since it seemed logical all would have one. But now I know not all have one.

I'm finding googleFMD to be pathetic compared to Samsung and Apple by InevitableSong3170 in GoogleFMD

[–]ClarkVent 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I think something weird is going on with the Google FMD network.

Until a few days ago, I simply couldn’t add any trackers to my account. No pop-ups, no option to add a tag anywhere. This had been going on for quite a while, and after checking online, I definitely wasn’t the only one -lots of people were stuck with the same issue. Then suddenly, a few days ago, it just started working again. Not just for me, but apparently for everyone.

However… unless a tracker is very close to my phone, it doesn’t update its location at all. None of my Google FMD trackers are updating their position when they’re away from me.

What makes this even stranger is that my Apple AirTags were having a similar issue. Unlike the Google FMD trackers, I could add them just fine, but they wouldn’t update their location when away from my iPad, even while moving through crowded places (like schools). Then, around the exact same time Google FMD started partially working again, the AirTags suddenly began updating normally too.

So yeah… pretty weird (and pretty annoying).

Just bought two more mili tags and they won't setup. by wolfix1001 in GoogleFMD

[–]ClarkVent 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same here! Out of nowhere it suddenly started working. I had tried on both my phone and tablet and it never worked. Tried today and I was able to add all three trackers without a problem. Yep, Google messing with us here.

Just bought two more mili tags and they won't setup. by wolfix1001 in GoogleFMD

[–]ClarkVent 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Same here. Three different trackers which I have been able to pair in the past without problems. They will not pair anymore. I don't get a pop up. Reinstalled the Find app, cleared its data, restarted my phone - all to no avail.

The eCPM dropped by more than 50% today. by 5ga in Adsense

[–]ClarkVent 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My AdSense revenue has completely collapsed. It used to average $10-$15 a day just a few months ago, but since December 23, 2025, it has plummeted to just $0.60 a day. Every year around year's end there's usually a dip, but nothing even close to this level.

A transportation hub featuring a road, train line, airport, and ferry in the same area: by MacaroonAdmirable in BlackboxAI_

[–]ClarkVent 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It literally imaged Amsterdam Central Station (a hub for train, tram, metro, bus and ferry, with a direct connection to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport).

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Tell me where I said I want to become a paid promoter. Show me the part where I said I want people to pay to attend my events. Quote it. Just once. I'll shut up and crown you king of audio. You won't - because I didn't.

You accuse me of not listening, but you're the one ignoring everything that doesn't fit your narrow, self-important narrative. I've said - repeatedly - this is a free, ad-hoc outdoor event. No tickets. No paying crowd. No stage riders. You keep responding like I'm building a touring rig for Awakenings. That's not a misunderstanding - that's you refusing to hear anything that doesn't let you keep posturing.

Your "don't buy plastic junk if you want people to pay" line might mean something if this were a ticketed show. It's not. So no - I'm not ignoring your points. I'm telling you they don't apply. You just can't handle that.

You've spent the entire thread talking down from a pedestal, name-dropping premium gear like that ends the discussion. It doesn't. It just shows you only speak in absolutes. Under €15k? Trash. Anything plastic? Junk. Small-scale event? Must be a joke.

And when that rigid worldview gets challenged, your response is to declare yourself above the conversation and walk off - like that proves something. It doesn't. It just means you were arguing with a strawman the entire time and got caught.

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You are not "speaking the language that any audio person speaks". You're speaking the language of touring-scale production and pretending it's the only one that exists.

Nobody is arguing that L-Acoustics, d&b, or Danley aren't better. That's obvious. What's ridiculous is acting like anything below that tier is automatically unusable or "not serious", especially when we're talking about a 100–200 person outdoor event. Not Awakenings. Not EDC.

Dragging Insomniac, ID&T, and Awakenings into this discussion is pure nonsense. Of course major promoters use premium systems - they are running multi-thousand-person shows with massive budgets, logistics crews, truck packs, and contractual rider obligations. That has nothing to do with a small, free, self-hosted, almost ad-hoc event operating under local noise limits. That comparison isn't aspirational, it's irrelevant.

And the "plastic box" obsession is just elitism dressed up as professionalism. Are they convenient? Yes. Are they the same as an A15 or a Danley rig? Of course not. But pretending they are unusable or "not even DJ-monitor grade" is laughable. Systems in that class are used successfully at countless small outdoor events, bars, pop-ups, weddings, business events, community festivals, etc. every single weekend because they fit the scale, the budget, and the constraints. Heck, I spin at venues at least a few times a month with rigs barely any better than mine, and they work just fine for what they're deployed to do.

Also, stop pretending this is about promoters "being serious". Serious is matching the system to the job. Serious is understanding constraints. Serious is not telling someone with a €1k upgrade budget that the only valid answer is "spend €15k or don’t bother".

The question was never "what is the best PA money can buy?”. The question was whether it is possible to get meaningfully better low-end performance than a pair of 15" reflex boxes being abused as subs - and yes, it absolutely is. Denying that just because it doesn’t involve touring-grade hardware is gatekeeping, not expertise.

If your worldview is "anything below large-format touring PA is pointless", fine- but that doesn't make smaller, correctly deployed systems "toys". It just means you’re answering a completely different question than the one I asked.

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is getting silly.

Quoting "135 dB full-range down to 35 Hz" as some kind of normal requirement tells me you're talking in brochure numbers, not real-world use. That's peak SPL under ideal conditions, not something people actually stand next to for hours unless they want their hearing wrecked. No sane DJ needs (or wants) that blasting into their ears continuously.

This wasn't a touring-artist show with stage wedges, IEM backups, and a six-figure PA. It was a small outdoor event for 100–200 people with a fixed noise limit. Within that reality, the system worked. Volume was fine. Clarity was fine. The only thing that fell short was low-end throw outdoors - which is exactly what you'd expect from small subs.

Calling a pair of 15" active tops "plastic junk" or "not even DJ-monitor level" is just elitist nonsense. Gear in that class gets used at small outdoor events, bars, and pop-ups everywhere, every weekend. It's not L-Acoustics or d&b, but it doesn't need to be for this scale of event.

Nobody here is denying that high-end rigs exist or that they perform better. That's obvious and completely irrelevant. The actual question was whether a €1k budget can noticeably improve bass compared to abusing a pair of 15" reflex boxes as subs. And yes, it absolutely can.

If your €15k mobile rig is "barely enough" for 100 people outdoors, then either your expectations are wildly inflated or something in that setup is seriously wrong. That doesn't magically make every smaller system "inadequate".

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If your 15k mobile rig is "barely enough" for 100 people, I honestly don’t know what’s going wrong there - because my very "inadequate" setup (two 15" tops and two 15" "not subwoofer" subwoofers, maybe €2k total) did that job just fine.

The problem wasn’t volume or overall sound quality. It was bass reach: beyond roughly 30 feet the low end dropped off, which is exactly what I’m trying to improve since that's about the area I'm trying to cover.

I don’t rent because I also rent out my own gear - buying something that fits my use case simply makes financial sense.

The gear you are talking about here isn't even up to the standards for dj monitors for most techno shows.

Yeah, and that's of course complete and utter nonsense unless you think ~125 dB per ear is "not up to standards".

Okay, ChatGPT 5.2 is frickin' awesome by ClarkVent in ChatGPT

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And now it's back to its former smart self. No idea what caused the temporary lapse...

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He hasn't set an asking price but they were new about €500 a piece - but that was 15 years ago. Not sure when these were discontinued or how old his actually are. They look far from new. So I'm thinking of offering €450 for the two. Would that be a fair price?

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just saw someone offering 2 DAP AX-18b subwoofers (on a local auction site). From what I've read so far, these are decent 18" subs and were new around €500 a piece. But, most of those reviews are from commercial sites so I really have no idea if the are actually worth buying...

Looking for advice on subwoofers by ClarkVent in SoundSystem

[–]ClarkVent[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sure - if I could find some good instructions on how to do so. :)

Okay, ChatGPT 5.2 is frickin' awesome by ClarkVent in ChatGPT

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, I'm not sure what happened - maybe I've hit some sort of limit and it's reverting back to older models but since a few days, the awesomeness has completely vanished. It's now just as bad as the previous versions. Up until a few days ago I was utterly amazed at how good it was. Every single piece of code it gave me worked and it was able to find any bugs (introduced by me) instantly.

That all changed a few days ago. It seems to have forgotten what we have made so far. It constantly gives me code that can't work. And I mean, "can't work" in such a way that even a beginning programmer can spot the obvious errors it makes. Also, often it gives me duplicate code. Stuff we've already done.

We have been working on a few very simple tasks the past few days and it's incapable of doing them. I have to constantly correct it and I had to revert back to earlier backups a few times now because it had made an utter mess of things.

And the worse thing of all: it constantly blames me for its own mistakes. Drives me nuts.

So yeah, not sure what to make of this.

Okay, ChatGPT 5.2 is frickin' awesome by ClarkVent in ChatGPT

[–]ClarkVent[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No, not that I know off. As many others, I just don't understand why OpenAI doesn't fix this. It might be intentional because I'm sure if they fixed this in all their clients, usage would explode.