Some fixtures require a “Reset Fixture” effect to set certain DMX channels to initial values. If you see an effect called “Reset Fixture” in the effect library for a fixture, please add one of the effects to the fixture at the beginning of the show. Finale 3D will give you a warning when you export a show script if you are using a fixture that requires initialization and are missing the “Reset Fixture” effect. The fixtures requiring a “Reset Fixture” effect are listed in Table 1 of Supported light fixtures (and Standard Fixture IDs).
Explanation
It is most common for DMX channel values of 0 to correspond to natural default values, but that’s just not the case for some fixtures. For example, the 30W Tomshine moving head fixture’s “no gobo” pattern does not correspond to the DMX gobo channel value of 0; it corresponds to values between 16 and 23! The flash effects for this fixture do not themselves set the gobo channel, in order to allow “With Gobo” effects to apply the gobo as a modification. Thus if the gobo channel value of 0 corresponds to a gobo, the user is in for a surprise gobo unless the user adds a “Reset Fixture” effect that sets the gobo channel value to a number that nullifies the gobo pattern.