Explore the features in workflow order. The application's Help also provides categorized instructions. Menu labels here describe their corresponding functions.
Use File → New Project to start an empty project. This clears the current workspace, programs, media and settings. Save your work first if you need to keep it.
The bottom toolbar offers Cue Sequence Show and Vis Live Mixing. Cue mode organizes a show as programs and timelines; Vis mode uses layered media cells for live triggering. The active mode is green. Right-click a mode button to rename it in place: Enter or leaving the field saves, Esc cancels, and an empty title restores the default. Custom titles are saved with the project and do not change how a mode works.
Import audio, video or images from the left toolbar, or drag files into a timeline or media cell. Waveforms and thumbnails are read in the background. Main playback, output monitoring, external output and muted preview are separate functions.
When updating the software, the installer prefers the existing path for that license edition and asks before overwriting. Projects, user configuration and authorization data are retained. You can choose whether to run the application after installation.
2. Cue programs and show management
Click + above the program list to create a program. Right-click + to import a program file, add audio or video as programs, or manage the current list.
Programs appear as thumbnail tiles. The upper image area selects or plays a program; the compact lower title area starts a muted preview. Long titles are truncated. Hover hints identify the action without displaying a long file path. Preview is shown in the monitor and does not switch the live output. Click a blank area or perform another operation to dismiss it.
Hold and drag a program between other programs to reorder it; dragging near the edge scrolls the view. Use Ctrl for individual selection, Shift for a range, a selection rectangle, or Select All. Click a blank area to clear selection.
The program context menu supports renaming, duplication, deletion, locking and custom colors. Duplicates receive sequential Copy 1, Copy 2 names. Click Program to Play controls whether selecting a program starts it. Loop and After Playback settings can continue with the next, previous, random, first, last or a specified program.
3. The timeline and media editing
Use the ruler and playhead to seek. The scrollbar changes the visible area; dragging the playhead to an edge scrolls automatically. The zoom slider changes the time scale. Over a visible marker or momentary-control track, the mouse wheel zooms around the pointer without changing marker times or the playback position.
While music is playing, clicking the audio track selects media and dragging its waveform creates a selection. This does not pause playback, move media or seek. Use the ruler when you intend to seek. When playback is stopped, drag media or its edges to move or trim it. Ctrl/Shift selection, rectangle selection, Select All and standard copy/cut/paste/delete shortcuts support batch editing.
Separate Audio and Video creates an independent audio item for a video. Copies can reuse an existing waveform. Replace Media uses the replacement duration and moves following media directly after its new end. The context menu can also open the source folder. An image can extend from its current position to the last audio/video end, or match a specified media item.
During playback, hold and drag the horizontal scrollbar to inspect earlier or later waveforms. Releasing it returns the view to the playhead without pausing, seeking or moving media. When stopped, the manually scrolled position is retained.
Audio waveforms show left and right channels in two rows whose combined default height matches the previous single row. Mono audio repeats the same waveform in both rows. Played audio to the left of the playhead is brighter; upcoming audio is darker. Drag the bottom waveform border vertically to change track display height without altering timing. The height is saved with the project and supports undo.
The wheel scrolls vertically over empty timeline space; Shift+wheel scrolls horizontally. If there is no vertical scroll range, the wheel scrolls horizontally. Browsing the viewport during playback does not seek; following resumes after scrolling.
4. Playback, speed, volume and BPM
Use the bottom triangle to play or pause, the square to stop, and the start/end buttons to seek to the beginning or end. Resuming after pause continues from the paused position.
Speed 1 is normal. + and − change it by 0.1 per step; holding repeats the adjustment and the slider provides fine control. Speed 0 pauses. Right-click +, − or the speed slider to restore 1.
The left master audio and video faders independently control sound and image brightness. Reset returns each to 100%. The mixer and track cards provide volume, mute and solo. Each track has its own fade switch and duration. Stop and pause can fade out; when enabled, video and image programs start from black and fade in. Image program fades are off by default unless explicitly saved otherwise.
The top BPM display reads audio metadata or analyzes rhythm. Cue mode follows the current audio; Vis mode follows a single playing source or the selected audio/video. Multiple mixed sources or an unreliable result show a dash.
5. The independent audio playlist
In Cue mode, click Independent Audio Player at the lower right to expand or collapse its compact panel. Playback time is beside the button. The panel stays above that button, within the lower-right area, and its right edge aligns with neighboring content. Vis mode hides the entry and panel without stopping independent music already playing.
Right-click the entry button to rename it in place. Enter or leaving the field saves; Esc cancels. Its title and width are saved in the project. The panel opens and closes with a 0.2-second animation. Drag its left edge to change width. Collapsing the panel keeps music playing and turns the entry text red while playback continues.
Drag music into the list or use Add Independent Audio in its context menu. Ctrl toggles individual items, Shift selects a range, rectangle selection and Ctrl+A select multiple items, and Delete removes them.
The small transport buttons sit in the bottom space to the left of the entry, leaving the upper panel for the playlist. Double-click a song to stop the previous song first and play the new one. Playback, pause and stop respond only to the mouse, not Space, Enter or media keys; list editing shortcuts still work. The triangle/pause icon toggles playback and pause, and the square stops. Resume continues at the paused position.
Play Next changes songs immediately. Playlist Loop repeats the list in order and returns to the first song after the last. With playlist loop off, playback stops at the end. Single-track Loop applies to selected music; playlist loop takes priority. Independent audio responds only to master audio and does not follow the main program fade. The list and loop settings are saved with the project.
6. Markers, CueMark and MA2
Choose a marker track and use the configured CueMark shortcut to mark the current playback position. The top colored CueMark buttons are hidden, but their shortcuts remain configurable in Options. Filter, search, edit, sort, import or export markers in the Cue list.
In MA2 Connection Settings, choose the local network adapter, console IP, Telnet port, username and optional password. Connection settings are shared across the project. Enable Telnet Login on the console, ensure network connectivity, and verify the login feedback before synchronizing.
Assign a Timecode and Exec route per marker track and select a synchronization method. Preview commands before synchronizing all tracks. Cue colors follow marker colors. Cue Time synchronizes label spacing. Program markers, ranges and routes are stored separately in the project.
The top track buttons are Marker Track Manager, New Marker Track and New Momentary Track. Creating a momentary track opens its settings first. Enter a valid Page.Exec, such as 11.105; choose Flash, Temp or Swop, a shortcut, visibility, locking and synchronization. Save creates the track; Cancel does not. Choose track colors with the color picker.
Click the shortcut field and type a single letter or digit; lowercase letters become uppercase. Backspace/Delete clears it. A conflicting or reserved shortcut is shown immediately and must be resolved before saving. The track row uses context-menu editing rather than a mode dropdown. Its context menu provides edit, new track, duplicate, rename and delete. Duplicating retains ranges and modes and assigns a free executor and shortcut.
Hold the momentary button or shortcut, with music playing or stopped, and release to record the held interval. Timeline labels show sequence numbers only; the right Cue list retains full names. Regular cues can receive individual colors from either context menu. Momentary segments default to yellow. Their menu offers Temp/Flash/Swop, duration, Off Time and delete. Each segment stores its own mode. Temp uses the executor Off Time; Flash and Swop follow MA2 rules. Resynchronize after changes.
Drag segment ends to change start and end independently, drag the middle to move the entire range, or double-click to enter times and mode. Changing the track default affects future recordings only. Playback controls, seeking and program changes release held controls.
With automatic MA2 sending enabled, recorded presses and releases follow the music. In synchronized Timecode, normal marker tracks come first and momentary tracks below. An empty executor receives an unused Sequence with a single empty Cue 1 shared by all momentary segments. Existing programmed content is retained. An empty cue contains no fixture values: program the lighting content on the console. Each segment writes its own Flash/Temp/Swop press and release events; mixing modes is supported.
Each synchronized executor receives a Master subtrack with Event=100 at the timecode start. Segment count does not create additional lighting cues. Backups and readback verification remain in place. A verification error includes expected and actual values or cue paths; a failed result must not be treated as a successful sync.
The Edit and Tools menus are hidden, while Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Shift+Z still undo and redo. Track → Clear Waveform Cache rereads waveforms without changing the original files.
7. Timecode, shortcuts and MIDI
Timecode Settings in the top toolbar configures MTC MIDI, LTC, frame rate, offset and playback source. Enable MTC and choose its output port: playback sends Quarter Frame; stop and seek send Full Frame.
Use separate MIDI input and output routes to avoid timecode feedback. Apply the selected devices and check their status.
Keyboard & MIDI Control follows Timecode Settings in the toolbar. Assign keyboard or MIDI triggers for playback, stop, seeking, markers and other actions. WeChat/QQ and system screenshot shortcuts should not trigger playback. When editing text, the keyboard operates the text field first.
8. Vis Live Mixing media and layers
Five layers are available by default. Drag audio, images, video or a video signal source into a cell. The upper thumbnail plays it; the lower title previews it silently. The upper area shows a normal pointer and Click to Play; the preview area uses a hand and Click to Preview. Hints disappear on mouse leave and do not reveal long file paths.
Triggering another item in the same layer replaces its current item; an empty cell stops that layer. Different layers play simultaneously, with upper layers covering lower ones. Areas outside a scaled-down image remain transparent.
R/G/B independently enable source color channels; A controls source alpha. These channel controls do not apply to audio or locked media and are separate from layer parameters. A layer X stops that layer; the top X stops all layers. Each layer has separate audio/video faders and fade settings. Its playing monitor has a red border during playback and is empty when stopped.
Playing media cells have red borders. Previously played items become yellow when stopped. Reset Colors clears yellow borders without stopping playback. Hold and drag cells to move, swap or insert; unrelated thumbnails are not rebuilt.
Use Ctrl to toggle selection, Shift for a range, Ctrl+C/X/V to copy/cut/paste and Delete to remove. Right-click an empty cell to paste the same number of items in sequence.
Static images remain displayed without advancing an image playback timeline, looping or automatically moving to the next item. Their panel hides waveform, progress and time, and the bottom clocks show dashes. Stop, close the layer or replace the image to end it. Layer fades, size, position and effects remain adjustable. Cue-mode image timelines are unchanged.
9. Vis pages and playback modes
New Page adds a media page. Previous/Next or a page tab changes pages; pages share the layers and switching pages keeps playing media running. A page context menu renames, moves or deletes it. Deleting a page stops its items; deleting the final page leaves an empty page.
Click a column header to trigger all its layers together. Empty cells stop their layers using the configured fades.
Loop, Play Once and Hold Last Frame are mutually exclusive. Loop repeats the selected range; Play Once stops and releases its image; Hold Last Frame retains the last valid image and stops sound. Apply a mode to multiple selected items at once.
Click Again to Stop controls repeated clicks on the same item. After Playback can choose the next, previous, random, first, last or a specified item. Context-menu actions also include fit mode, locking, renaming, replacement, locating the source folder and capturing the current frame as a thumbnail. Thumbnail capture also works during muted preview and does not move live playback.
Remove Audio / Remove Video beneath thumbnail capture toggles playback channels for selected unlocked items. Uncheck to restore the channel. Original files, dimensions, effects and playback ranges are retained. Capture sources are excluded.
10. Media parameters, layer parameters and effects
The left Media and Layer tabs show settings for the selected media or layer and switch automatically when you select one. Fit modes establish the initial framing. Width, height and position remain independently adjustable afterwards; edits do not relock the aspect ratio or change the selected fit mode.
Media controls include speed, volume, opacity, scale, dimensions, position, rotation and blend mode. Dimensions default to the source resolution. Type in numeric fields; hold and drag +/− horizontally to adjust continuously, right-click +/− to reset, or use a slider.
Drag an effect onto one media item or a layer. Layer effects are adjusted independently in the Layer tab. Source effects are processed before layer effects. Parameters can also be edited while previewing.
Background Removal keys black, white, red, green, blue or a custom color. Threshold and edge softness control the transparency boundary. Use the color selector or eyedropper to pick a key color.
Color Adjustment provides hue scale, hue rotation, saturation and effect strength. Picking a color changes hue while preserving white and grayscale. Reset Defaults in the effect heading restores all color settings but keeps the effect enabled. The color button no longer resets on right-click.
11. Video signal sources
The left Video Signal Sources entry and the Vis signal-source panel share capture cards, USB cameras and OBS Virtual Camera devices. Opening the panel searches automatically; Refresh searches again.
Select a device, image size and frame rate, then preview it. Add it to a timeline or drag it into a Vis cell. Preview alone does not enter the live output.
Start Virtual Camera in OBS before using it. Capture cards require a valid connected input and an installed driver. Device refresh retains the current selection and active capture connection. If there is no picture, check whether another application is using the device, the incoming signal, format and driver.
12. PPT projection
Open PPT Projection to import a presentation or other media. Cue mode can create a matching program; Vis mode uses a separate projection panel.
Previous/Next, a presentation remote or auto-advance changes slides. Seconds Per Page controls auto-advance; the next-slide preview shows what follows.
Only checking Project adds the presentation to output. In Cue mode, selecting a different program unchecks projection, so you must enable it again next time. Close, resize and reopen the PPT window as needed.
Install PowerPoint or a compatible WPS version before importing. Embedded audio/video playback depends on the source presentation and import result.
13. Advanced inputs, outputs and slices
Open Advanced Input & Output from the left toolbar. Choose an output screen and create slices. A new program copies the preceding program’s advanced layout; the first uses a default screen and Slice 1. Each copy is saved independently. Copying or pasting a layout transfers screen/slice geometry and parameters, not the original input source. Inputs use the target program’s own main timeline; an empty program follows its later imported main media. A PPT program defaults to its PPT player.
Use Copy Advanced Settings on one program and Paste Advanced Settings on the target to replace the complete screen, input-crop and output-slice layout without replacing media or markers. Unlock a locked program first. Existing programs, duplicated programs and imported projects retain their own layouts. Stretch to Fill is the default. Width, height, corners and position remain independent after selecting a fit mode.
Output Slices edits position, size, rotation, corners, masks and stacking. Input Selection chooses sources and crop areas. Upper slices cover lower slices. Rectangle selection, Ctrl-click or Select All applies parameter changes to every selected slice. Click empty space to deselect, wheel-zoom around the pointer, and middle-drag to pan.
Hold and drag a selected slice to move it; Ctrl-drag duplicates with sequential naming. Copy all slices from a program and paste them into another. The two show modes maintain separate advanced settings, presets and sources; Vis can use its full composition or individual layers.
Presets save, save as, load, rename or delete a full layout or a single slice. The test card checks borders and grids; uncheck it to restore media. The external window carries live output and the output monitor follows its proportions and style. Drag major dividers to resize adjacent areas. Dividers turn green on hover or drag in both modes.
14. Show-sheet images and notes
Click the bottom-right Show Sheet button to expand or collapse the docked right panel. Each transition takes 0.2 seconds and repeated toggles continue from the current size. Right-click the button to rename in place: Enter or leaving the field saves; Esc cancels. Its top, bottom and right sides remain within the application.
Only the left edge resizes the dock width. Width, title and canvas dimensions are saved with the project. The canvas starts at 3:4 but can resize freely with the panel or main window. Images and text preserve their proportions.
Upload Show Sheet accepts multiple images on the current page. Right-click the upload button to put each image on a new page. New Show Sheet adds a blank page; Previous/Next and Delete Page manage pages.
Drag images or notes to move them and use corner handles to resize. Objects snap to canvas edges; selected groups snap by their combined bounds. Hold Alt to temporarily disable snapping. Ctrl-click selects multiple objects; move or delete them together. Click empty space to deselect.
Add Note defaults to size 20. Enter confirms and saves; Shift+Enter inserts a line break. Double-click a note to edit again. The font-size field and +/− change size; the text context menu chooses a preset or custom color.
Delete removes selected objects, Ctrl+Z undoes, and Ctrl+Shift+Z redoes. Each page stores its own notes, positions, sizes and colors. The show sheet is for reference and notes only: it does not enter video output or stop the live program.
15. Projects, templates and backups
First Save and Save As default to an Untitled .cwproj name that you can change. Save As writes a project file directly; Save overwrites the current project. Neither collects media.
Installed .cwproj files use the VisCue icon and open on double-click. Installation or normal startup registers the current version and migrates old VisCue associations. If Windows is using another application, right-click the project, choose Open With, select VisCue and make it the default.
Projects retain programs, paths, markers, MA2 settings, PPT, slices, both mode layouts, Vis pages, independent music and the show sheet. To move an ordinary project, also move its source media and preserve or relink paths.
Project Templates → Save as Template collects local media into a named folder categorized as video, audio, images, ppt and similar groups. Reused media is collected once; different content with the same filename is numbered. A renamed PPT can be matched against a content-verified copy already in the project. Unreferenced old PPT caches are not collected.
Missing media does not prevent saving a template. All programs, markers, positions, durations, slices and parameters are retained; available files are collected and missing references remain for later Replace Media. missing-assets.json lists unavailable files and is empty if none are missing. Move the entire template folder. Template collection does not change the current project save path.
CSV imports and exports marker data. The Cue list Import CSV button follows Export CSV. Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Shift+Z undo and redo; text fields use text editing undo first.
16. Appearance and troubleshooting
Options → Interface Theme offers Industrial Dark, Cyber Technology, Black Technology, Midnight Rose and Mechanical Armor. Playback panels, parameters and labels adjust contrast with the theme; media images are unchanged. The language menu switches Chinese and English.
For missing video, check the file path, decoding, layer video fader, enabled slices and selected input. For missing audio, check master audio, track volume, mute/solo and the output device.
Preview is for inspection and does not mean content is on an external screen. Check output monitoring first, then the external window and screen configuration. High resolution, many layers and complex codecs increase load. Check hardware drivers, media decoding and simultaneous outputs. Resizing a window or panel does not require importing media again.
Help can be browsed by category or searched by keywords; its explanation text can be copied.
17. Authorization and the free trial
View trial and authorization information in Options → Device Authorization Center. The online edition starts its 48-hour trial when it first successfully connects and claims the trial. Save https://license.viscue.cn as the server address and choose Start 48-hour Free Trial.
Normal uninstall/reinstall or repeated claims on the same device do not extend the trial. Keep the system date and time correct. After trial expiry, activate with a formal code without reinstalling.
When the trial expires, new playback, output and console writes are disabled. Playback already started is not forcibly interrupted, and an open project can still be saved.
18. Online updates
Open Help → Check for Updates, verify the HTTPS root address and check. The provider must first publish an update feed. If checking fails, inspect the network and server address; a connection failure is not reported as already up to date.
Enable Check After Startup and click Check for Updates to save the option. About 30 seconds after the next startup, VisCue checks and notifies only: it does not download or install automatically and does not interrupt playback.
Download Update selects the installer matching the current license edition, then verifies its signed release metadata, length and SHA-256. Failed verification prevents installation. Closing the window cancels an active download.
Save and Install follows normal project saving and shutdown confirmation. Canceling shutdown prevents installer launch. The installer defaults to the existing path and asks before overwriting; projects, settings and authorization data are retained. You may run the app after installation. Equal or older versions are not offered for online installation.