i've had a string of video converter deaths over the past few months. the first two that died were expensive blackmagic branded devices, which are supposed to be "industry grade." my fallback was a $5 cheapo hdmi to RCA converter, which i could get away with using because i was only using a black and white version of the input, so color depth wasn't a big concern. but then, yesterday, after using it for a few hours in practice and then power cycling it, that one died too! it was awkward timing because this time, i didn't have a backup converter, so i had to rethink my setup with the show coming up the next day. i decided to simplify my setup and remove the laptop from it completely (since that was the HDMI source i needed to convert), and instead do live camera feedback and use artificial life (andrei's video oscillator device), both going into my modular. despite the hiccup, i'm quite ok with the resulting output; i haven't done live camera feedback in a while, and i actually feel a bit safer to not be using my laptop for an outdoor show. it's also a similar setup to ones i used to use before i started incorporating the laptop, so i still have muscle memory for performing with it.
anyway, it's time to get ready to pack up. we are taking the van since we need to bring the PA and projector screen. hope it's a fun show and that we can get back at a reasonable hour because i have to be up ridiculously early tomorrow to start puppy sitting.
