✅ FAQ

Hardware

Does Liberation run on Windows?

Yes - Liberation fully supports Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit), with the exact same features as the Mac version. Every release ships simultaneously for both platforms.

Does Liberation run on Mac

Yes - Liberation fully supports Mac (macOS 12 Monterey and later), with full feature parity to the Windows version. All updates are released together.

What is the minimum spec machine required?

It depends how many lasers you want to control. If you're only running a few lasers, you'll be fine with a low spec machine. Any Apple Silicon Mac runs really well, and should be able to control up to 100 lasers. If you're running complex shows with high stakes then we recommend the best machine you can afford.

How many lasers can I control with Liberation?

Liberation can run many lasers on one computer, it's been tested with over 100 laser controllers so the answer depends on :

  • your computer CPU
  • network speed
  • your licence tier

Which MIDI controllers can I use?

Liberation has been designed and optimised around the popular APC40 Mk2 MIDI controller. It also works with the APC40 Mk1. See Live Control With The Apc40

Liberation also supports APC Mini and MIDI Fighter Twister. The APC40 Mk2 is still the most complete reference controller.

There is also the MIDI Send/Receive system that offers additional MIDI control. See Midi Send Receive

See MIDI controlfor more information.

Can I use it with any MIDI controller?

For other controllers, use the MIDI Send/Receive system or a MIDI translator that can send Liberation's default MIDI messages. Search the forum for advice on this setup, but realistically the APC40 Mk2 is still the best option for most live shows.

Laser controllers

Which laser controllers are compatible with Liberation?

See Compatible Lasers And Controllers Dacs for more information

Why don't you support [other brand of] laser controller?

To encourage greater interoperability between software and hardware, Liberation will only support DACs that have a published communication protocol. I believe that this is the best way forward for the laser industry.

How can I tell if my laser can be used with Liberation?

If your laser has one of the following, you can use it with Liberation :

  • An external ILDA input – a 25-pin D connector, used with a compatible external controller.
  • An internally installed Ether Dream.
  • Any LaserCube (works with both USB and Wi-Fi LaserCube).
  • An X-Laser unit with a built-in Mercury system (In Ether Dream mode).
  • A LaserAnimation Sollinger projector with AVB built in (macOS only, requires AVB-compatible network devices, currently in testing).

See Compatible Lasers And Controllers Dacs for more information

Can I use Liberation with my LaserCube?

Yes, Liberation works directly with any LaserCube. See Lasercube

Licences

What is the price of a licence?

See the shop page for the current prices.

What are the limitations between the licensing tiers?

See the shop page for the current licence options.

Note that you can set up, preview and design shows with as many lasers as you want on every tier even the free one, and there are no other limitations at all apart from the number of lasers that you can arm. Every other Liberation feature is available to all.

Can I upgrade to a new tier?

You can upgrade to a higher tier at any time. You will get a partial refund for the remaining time in your current paid period, and your new licence tier will start immediately. See Upgrade Downgrade Your License

Can I downgrade my licence?

You can downgrade at any time but the change will take effect at the end of your current paid period. See Upgrade Downgrade Your License

How do I authorise my computer with my licence?

Once you have purchased a licence you can then authorise the computer within the Liberation software itself. You will see an Authorise button on the About screen that will prompt you to log in to the website. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the authorisation process. See Authorising And De Authorising

How often do I need to connect my computer to the internet?

Every time a paid licence refreshes after a payment, you will need to connect Liberation to the internet to update its internal licence. For a monthly auto-renewing licence, you will need to connect every month.

What happens if I can’t connect my computer to the internet after the next payment?

Liberation will give you a grace period of 7 days after your paid licence refreshes to connect to the internet and update its internal licence. After that period Liberation will go back into Free mode.

What happens if my credit card expires?

You will get an email notification from our payment provider, and you will need to update your card details. Log in to the website and use UPDATE CARD DETAILS on the licence page, or Update under Billing and payments.

How do I cancel auto-renew for my licence?

Log in to the website, open the Your licences page, select the licence you want to manage, then click CANCEL PAYMENTS. Your paid licence will stay active until the end of the current paid period. No further payments will be taken.

How many computers can I install Liberation on?

You can install Liberation on as many computers as you like. Licence authorisations are only required to enable laser / DMX output, and your licence tier determines how many computers can be authorised for output at once. See How Licensing Works

How do I move my licence from one computer to another?

  • Open Liberation on the computer you do not want to use any more
  • Make sure you are connected to the internet and click the De-authorise this computer button on the About screen
  • Now open Liberation on the new computer
  • Click Authorise this computer button on the About screen.
  • The website will open, log-in and follow the on-screen instructions to complete the authorisation

You can also remotely de-authorise a computer you no longer have access to (with some limitations). See Authorising And De Authorising

Can I deauthorise Liberation on a computer that has been lost or stolen?

You can deauthorise the computer via the website. If the Liberation installation has not been online since its last licence refresh, this can be done immediately.

If not, the deauthorisation will take effect when the licence next refreshes or when the computer connects to the internet, whichever comes first. If you urgently need to re-authorise a new computer get in touch with support.

Using Liberation

The default setup has 8 lasers - how do I change this?

See Setting Up Your Project and Adding Removing Lasers

Can I copy zone settings from one laser to the others?

Yes! See Copy Zones Between Lasers

Can I type a number instead of using a slider?

Yes. Cmd / Ctrl-click the slider and you can enter the value using the keyboard.

How do I sync Liberation to music?

It has an intelligent "tap tempo" system that works as you would expect, but you can also use an external MIDI clock or Ableton Link. See Tempo Synchronisation. The timeline can be synced to incoming LTC/SMPTE timecode coming in via any audio interface. See Timecode.

What settings do I need to adjust to get the best output from the laser?

The main setting is Colour Shift, which compensates for the slight delay between the mirrors moving and the lasers changing brightness. If your laser dots/beams have little 'tails' then you'll need to adjust this. (See the photos on the Laser Settings page for an example of 'tails')

You can also try changing the scanner speed, slower if your scanners are basic, or faster if they are good. But use with caution as you can damage your scanners if you drive them too hard.

There are also some preset scanner settings. The default option is conservative and fine for most laser beam requirements. But there are other presets for if you have better scanners, and there are presets that are tuned for graphics.

For more information see Laser Settings, and for information on how to create your own presets see Scanner Presets (advanced, in progress)

You can also correct the colour balance using the Colour calibration settings. See Colour Calibration(advanced technique)

What does the Latency(ms) setting do?

This is the frame latency, or maximum amount of time between a frame being generated and subsequently sent to a laser. You shouldn't need to adjust it, but if you are having network issues you could try increasing it. See Latency Setting for more details.

Clips

How do I adjust zones and settings for a clip without running it?

Alt / Option-click to make it the currently selected clip but without activating it. See also Starting Stopping Clips

How do I copy clips?

Click and drag while holding the Alt / Option key. See also Organising Your Clip Deck

How do I delete clips?

Click and drag them off the clip deck. See also Organising Your Clip Deck

How do I multi-select, delete, combine clip decks etc?

See Organising Your Clip Deck

What do the little microphone symbol and other icons on the clip denote?

They are there to show you that a clip takes sound or MIDI input, and the 3 dots show you that there is a zone delay. See What Are The Small Icons On The Clip Buttons