VMP questions: installation and versions, the interface, presets and backups, monitoring, and feature settings.
VMP can recognize the controller. However, a warning “The VMP version does not match the controller firmware version.” will appear in the VMP interface. The controller firmware version needs to be updated to match the VMP version for proper use.
VMP V1.4.0 does not support adaptive display across all screen resolutions, which may result in layout truncation or incomplete rendering. This issue has been resolved in VMP V1.5.0.
Upgrading between V1.4.0 and later versions will preserve all presets. However, downgrading to a version earlier than V1.4.0 will result in the loss of presets.
VMP allows users to export a project from Device A and apply it to Device B to mirror its layout, processing, screen settings, and presets.
To ensure successful deployment, both devices must share the same model, firmware version, and input/output card structure. Note that project files do not support forward or backward version compatibility, and projects exported in offline mode must be imported into online mode using the exact same VMP version.
Go to Tools > Maintenance in VMP to perform file updates. For cabinets supporting both NCP and rcfgx formats, updating both files is supported. However, for cabinets equipped with A10s Pro, CA50E, or XA50 Pro receiving cards—which only support NCP format—only NCP file updates are permitted.
In the Coefficient Management interface, coefficient adjustments at the cabinet or module level are not supported; users can only import or export coefficients. However, pixel-level adjustments remain available.
To adjust calibration coefficients at the cabinet or module level, use the Seam Correction or Multi-Batch Adjustment features in the Correction interface.
Yes, user can freely select the cabinet to enable/disable calibration and export its calibration coefficients.
Group Management functions across two levels: Screen Group and Screen. A Screen Group can comprise multiple screens and incorporate various device types, while a Screen can manage multiple controllers, as long as all controllers share the same model.
Users can export logs, but the logs shall then be analyzed by NovaStar R&D team to diagnose the root cause.
Scaling can be adjusted by dragging with the mouse or by selecting the scaling mode in the top-right corner of the layer.
The canvas size can be adjusted directly in the layout interface to match the source size.
The term "Indicator" can refer to the indicator on either the receiving card or the rear of the cabinet. In VMP, navigating to Layout > Cabinet Settings > Indicator allows users to toggle both the receiving card and cabinet indicators on or off. However, as indicator designs vary across cabinets and HUB boards, customization is often required to support this control feature. Without customization, the Indicator toggle will only control the receiving card indicator.
1. SDR Mode: Shadow Compensation
EOTF Shadow Compensation (SDR Sources):
When the input source is SDR, VMP allows users to adjust EOTF Shadow Compensation. This feature increases low-grayscale brightness to ensure the lowest grayscale levels light up correctly. On most LED displays, initial grayscale levels fail to illuminate properly without compensation.
2. HDR Mode: EOTF Parameters
EOTF Adjustment Options (HDR Sources):
When processing HDR content, VMP provides three EOTF adjustment controls:
1) Clip Level (Highlight Suppression):
Slightly reduces brightness near the PQ cut-off point to resolve overexposure and preserve detail in bright areas. In ST.2084 mode, if the display’s peak brightness is lower than the source’s maximum mastering brightness, highlights can blow out. Enabling highlight suppression applies a gradual knee curve (commonly known as "soft roll-off") near the clipping point. Setting this value to 0 applies hard clipping.
2) Ambient Light Compensation:
Brightens the overall image to offset visibility loss caused by ambient light reflecting off the screen surface. Adjusting this value recovers shadow detail lost to diffuse reflections, with higher values resulting in a brighter overall HDR display.
3) Shadow Compensation:
Addresses low-grayscale crush/merging issues caused by display bit-depth conversion, enhancing shadow detail performance. Higher values increase the brightness of low-grayscale areas.
Black level and EOTF are two different concepts. The black level ensures the display quality of dark areas, while EOTF ensures the accuracy of brightness mapping.
This function can be found in VMP via Tool-Maintain-Cabinet Page-Factory Reset.
This function is generated in VMP by adding the “Factory Reset” option in CabinetTool. The FAE who produces NCP can do it.
Collect Origin Data records the current configuration state of the project. Restore Origin Data reverts the project to the status captured during the last Collect Origin Data operation.
When comparing to origin data, VMP identifies differences between the current project state and the previously collected benchmark state. It scans for changes in controller configurations, cabinet counts and layout positions, receiving card parameters, and module information.
The total number of changes is summarized in the Data Change List, enabling users to quickly review configuration discrepancies and decide on appropriate next steps.
To clear the data, click “Start” to start diagnosis.
A10s Pro with V1.5.3.0 and above versions and XA50 Pro with V1.5.3.0 and above versions supports 7-color adjustment. They have an independent multi-batch adjustment switch. However, the 3-color adjustment receiving cards do not have an independent switch.
It is not supported in the mainline version, but can be available through customization.
VMP features a Cabinet Painter tool that can read configuration parameters from a properly functioning cabinet and apply them to a cabinet with display issues to resolve anomalies.
For NCP files, users can store them in either the VMP local library or the device memory, with full support for import and export operations. Once an NCP file is imported into either storage location, data persistence is ensured to prevent file loss. Alternatively, updating the correct NCP file directly to the affected cabinet will also resolve the display issue.
A 400 ms latency occurs when sending data; this is normal system behavior and does not indicate a screen or software freeze.
The step size is 32 units for quick adjustment and 8 units for fine adjustment.
We recommended running Adaptive Thermal Compensation in Automatic mode. If Manual mode is required, the recommended process is to make small, incremental adjustments while monitoring the display status to determine the optimal value.
Avoid making large step adjustments, as this can lead to display anomalies. Note that this behavior will be optimized in future VMP releases.
Switching the output bit depth triggers a Gamma mapping update, during which brief screen flickering may occur. This behavior will be optimized in future VMP releases.
For A10s Pro with firmware version V1.5.3.0 or above, coefficients cannot be saved to the module flash.
For A10s Pro with firmware version below V1.5.3.0, coefficients can be saved to the module flash.
This feature will be implemented in the custom version of VMP V1.6.0.
Graphics cards support a minimum EDID resolution of 800×600. Because VMP must synchronize EDID parameters with the graphics card, it cannot set a value lower than this minimum threshold.
The valid EDID range is 0 to 4095. Currently, NovaStar systems require EDID parameters to be multiples of 4. Therefore, the maximum allowable value rounded down to the nearest multiple of 4 is 4092.
1) Version Compatibility:
Each standard VMP release corresponds to a specific device firmware version. They must be used in matching pairs to ensure proper device recognition and functionality.
2) New Device Support:
Support for newly added devices in the COEX series is introduced in the latest VMP versions. For example, VMP V1.4.0 added support for the MX2000 Pro and MX6000 Pro controllers.
3) Functional Differences:
Different VMP releases introduce distinct features and optimizations. For instance, V1.5.1 introduced an updated monitoring interface for enhanced visualization, support for light sensors, 40-port mode for the MX40 Pro, scheduled operations, and significantly improved system transmission speeds.
This feature has been fully upgraded. VMP’s seam correction now supports real-time preview of adjustment effects. The mouse cursor is rendered on the LED display in real time; combining cursor positioning with mouse wheel scrolling enables both quick and fine adjustments.
Furthermore, multi-batch adjustment allows users to quickly select target cabinets or modules. Paired with a more intuitive visual interface and enhanced interactive experience, seam correction efficiency is significantly improved.
VMP’s rotation function is based on cabinets. It can rotate all cabinets of the entire screen or select specific cabinets for rotation, which is particularly suitable for some irregular LED screens, such as those used in concerts or exhibitions.
This function has requirements for the receiving card firmware version, some late versions of the firmware support this function.
The diagnosis report table format is csv. The table width is fixed and does not adjust automatically. This issue will be resolved in future VMP versions, where reports will be generated in xlsx format with automatic column width adjustment.
The Schedule module experiences performance degradation when managing a large number of schedule entries. Testing indicates that even on high-performance computers, opening the schedule interface exhibits slight latency with more than 20 schedules, and a loading delay of approximately 1 second with over 100 schedules. On lower-spec computers, this delay can reach up to 3 seconds. This performance bottleneck is caused by the rendering overhead of the month view.
This occurs because the device's LCD panel cannot retrieve the current brightness limitation settings configured in VMP. As a result, even if a brightness limit is applied in the software, the LCD panel may still allow adjustments, though they will have no actual effect on the display. This will be optimized in future VMP releases.
To verify brightness or brightness & chroma calibration coefficients, navigate to the coefficient management interface and use the Read function to retrieve and apply the coefficients to the screen. A noticeable visual difference confirms the presence of these coefficients.
To verify full grayscale calibration coefficients, check the state of the full grayscale calibration switch. If the switch is functional, full grayscale coefficients exist; if the switch is disabled or missing, no full grayscale coefficients are present on the device.
If the original NCP file is stored in the cabinet library, users can easily export it via VMP. NCP data also supports seamless synchronization across multiple controllers, or between controllers and the control PC.
Note that an NCP file comprises a set of configuration parameters bound to VMP adjustments; changing VMP settings will alter the NCP status in real time. Rather than being just a static file, an NCP functions as a parameter status snapshot, with the original "NCP file" explicitly preserving the factory default state.
Yes.
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