Keep up to date with the latest firmware and software updates
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The COBRA Control Panel is an Android-based app that is available from the Google Play store. To install or upgrade to the latest Control Panel version, go to the COBRA Control Panel app on the Google Play store. For more information, see What is the COBRA Control Panel?
Control Panel Gen 2
The Control Panel Gen 2 is the next generation of the COBRA Control Panel that includes faster performance, improved UI, and a foundation for adding new features in the future. The Gen 2 version is the next generation that will replace the Control Panel Gen 1.
Control Panel Gen 2 12.8 - Released October 10th, 2024- COBRA has released an updated version of the Gen 2 Control Panel with UI / feature improvements and minor bug fixes.
UI / Feature Improvements-
Continuity "Not an issue" Feature - A new "Not an issue" checkbox exists in the continuity grid such that an operator can mark a continuity issue as being "Not an issue" such that the Missing/Unexpected Continuity filter does not include these items as issues. This allows for more efficient troubleshooting by reducing the list of continuity issues based on what are real issues vs. non-issues. To access this feature, simply tap on the continuity grid from within the Continuity tab on the Device List section of the Control Panel. The feature also supports remembering the "Not an issue" cues after closing the Control Panel or power cycling the 18R2. If you load a new script to the 18R2, this information is forgotten.
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Added Disable Functions to Quickfire Scripts - The disable module / cue groups feature is now available within the Quickfire scripts window. This allows you to disable modules or groups of cues without leaving the Quickfire script window.
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Color Blind Mode - A new color blind feature is available for picking different colors for the four different continuity statuses. To enable this feature, go to Settings and enable the color blind setting. You can then click a button to further configure the different color defaults. A convenient feature that shows the previous color and new color side by side is helpful to ensure the best color is selected. We are proud to announce the Control Panel is now color blind user friendly. If you have any further color suggestions, please email us at help@cobrafiringsystems.com.
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Position Column in Continuity Table - We have worked with both Finale 3D and the COBRA Show Creator team to include the position in the event description field. This is helpful in quick identification of the position for the specific channel / cue combination. This is included as "// Position Name" at the end of the description. Both Finale and CSC will force this value into the field and keep the total description to a maximum of 62 characters. In some cases for longer product names, this may truncate the description of the event. This feature is available on the latest Finale 3D version finale3d-installer-2024.09.21-17097dc75 and within the current COBRA Show Creator BETA. Make sure to have a column in CSC BETA named "position" and to have your script set to version 6.1 or higher.
- In some cases, certain tablets may go into Portrait mode. For a specific client, we have added some tablet setting values into the Settings section to assist with support in determining a root cause.
- The jump to event feature has been disabled for scripts with SMPTE enabled as the SMPTE time feed trumps any manual timing actions. Due to this, this is not a valid feature for SMPTE time code shows as has therefore been disabled.
- In some cases, channel 0 was not appearing in the Device List feature, this has been resolved.
- In some cases, the 6M would not show continuity in the Continuity and Device list tab despite having good continuity.
- The jump to time feature has been removed in favor of a jump to event feature being the sole jump to feature from the Show Controls event listing window.
- In some cases, the Expected Channels value was off by a few modules. This has been fixed.
- Minor UI, formatting and a small number of crashes were also fixed.
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Continuity "Not an issue" Feature - A new "Not an issue" checkbox exists in the continuity grid such that an operator can mark a continuity issue as being "Not an issue" such that the Missing/Unexpected Continuity filter does not include these items as issues. This allows for more efficient troubleshooting by reducing the list of continuity issues based on what are real issues vs. non-issues. To access this feature, simply tap on the continuity grid from within the Continuity tab on the Device List section of the Control Panel. The feature also supports remembering the "Not an issue" cues after closing the Control Panel or power cycling the 18R2. If you load a new script to the 18R2, this information is forgotten.
Control Panel Gen 2 11.8 - Released August 29th, 2024- COBRA has released an updated version of the Gen 2 Control Panel with UI / feature improvements and minor bug fixes.
UI / Feature Improvements- A continuity legend has been added to the Continuity header in the form of a ? button. If you click the button, a legend will appear explaining each color and associated continuity state.
- The voltage and firing mode are now displayed as buttons to better indicate you can tap the values to perform a change to the module's associated modes. This is easier to see now as a blue button.
- The button to reset the Control Panel's manual firing and script status back to green vs. red has been moved to independent buttons in both the Manual Firing and Quick Scripts menu. This button floats in the lower right corner of the UI for each section and no longer appears in the settings section.
- The 6M now only displays cues 1-6, 7-12, or 13-18 depending on the module's cue range. Only six total cues are displayed versus a total of 18.
- In some cases, after firing a Quickfire script, the user is required to go to the main script screen and stop the show vs. the show stopping normally on its own. This issue has been resolved.
- Minor UI and formatting issues.
- A 36M/72M may display the key in the TEST position vs. ARM position, when it's actually in the ARM position.
Control Panel Gen 2 11.6 - Released August 16th, 2024- COBRA has released an updated version of the Gen 2 Control Panel with UI / feature improvements and minor bug fixes.
UI / Feature Improvements- The Continuity tab now has a checkbox for displaying "Show missing/unexpected continuity." This previously only displayed missing channels / cues and now includes continuity in cues that are not included in the currently loaded scripts.
- The disable firing modules section now has the option to disable firing on all modules. Previously this only had the option to disable individual modules.
- The disable firing modules section now has the ability to filter by channel.
- You can now update the firing and voltage on modules. This can be performed by tapping the firing / voltage mode from the Power section of the Device List feature.
- You can now reset all manual firing and script firing buttons to their original color of green or gray by clicking the Reset Script Firing Status button in Menu Settings. For example, if you fire a few cues manually or fire a script and want to change the button colors back to green or gray, you can use this feature.
- You now have the option to have show control buttons locked by default when accessing the show controls section. This requires the user to unlock the buttons from show controls in order to start a script. This setting is available in Menu Settings.
- If you close the Control Panel while a script is running and the script has stopped on the 18R2, when restarting the Control Panel and 18R2, the user is prompted with the option to re-start the show at the exact time the Control Panel had closed. This is helpful if the user shut down the system for emergency reasons and they need to re-start at the exact time they had stopped the show.
- General UI improvements for smaller tablets including 7" versions. If you have any formatting or display issues, please email a screenshot to help@cobrafiringsystems.com.
- In some cases, the time to next event was not properly aligning with the countdown on the 18R2. The alignment is now accurate.
- In some cases, the tablet may not align to landscape mode and stay in portrait mode. The tablet will now always display in landscape mode.
- The continuity tab would display the total number of banks instead of the total number of modules. This has been resolved.
- A 36M/72M may display the key in the TEST position vs. ARM position, when it's actually in the ARM position.
Control Panel Gen 2 10.6 - Released June 27th, 2024- COBRA has released an updated version of the Gen 2 Control Panel with UI / feature improvements and minor bug fixes.
UI / Feature Improvements- The Device List, Show Controls, and Settings are now tabs with an improved hitbox area, size, and color to optimize usability.
- The show controls section now displays the recent script-fired cues in the middle of the vertical list instead of at the bottom. This allows a quick preview of previously fired and cues to fire, in a single glance.
- TESTING and ARMED now display as a label in the header for better recognition of the 18R2's mode.
- Moved the show clock to the left side of the screen towards the top along with a larger footprint size.
- Enhanced the checkbox filter within the devices section to include modules with missing and unexpected continuity and updated the label for consistency. This feature will soon be added to the Continuity section as the logic was a bit more complex and is coming soon.
- The module list within the Disable Firing feature is now sorted by channel.
- The Continuity section now displays channels for all scripts, not just the selected script within Show Controls.
- General UI improvements on smaller tablet screens. If you have any UI issues, even if minor, please email them to help@cobrafiringsystems.com.
- Minor UI improvements when viewing continuity for a specific module when no scripts or multiple scripts exist.
- When a STEP event is next while a show is running, the next event time displays as STEP.
- In some cases, if a script did not exist on the 18R2, buttons related to scripting functions were not disabled. This is now resolved as the script buttons are now always disabled if a script does not exist on the 18R2.
- DMX events no longer display as channels within the continuity tab in the Device List feature.
- The screen in some cases may lock in a certain orientation when rotating the tablet 180 degrees.
- The show will no longer stop in rare cases when switching between the Show Controls and the Device List tab.
- In some cases, a script mismatch error would display when loading the Control Panel. This issue has been resolved.
- The continuity tab will display the total number of banks instead of the total number of modules. We will update this in the next release to display Banks and not Modules in the column header.
Control Panel Gen 2 6.2 - Released May 31st, 2024- COBRA has released a new Gen 2 version of the COBRA Control Panel which has optimized performance and features including support for multiple quick scripts, disabling of modules and groups of cues, and more... Learn more about this update. Note that this version of the COBRA Control Panel requires firmware version 6.1 or higher.
Control Panel Gen 1
The Control Panel Gen 1 is the original generation of the COBRA Control Panel. The Control Panel Gen 2 is the new generation that will replace the Gen 1 version.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.5.4 - Released Sept 6th, 2023- Fixed UI issue that caused modules to incorrectly display as being on channel 0
- Implemented various crash fixes
Control Panel Gen 1 2.5.0 - Released Aug 28th, 2023- Updated app to target Android 13 (API level 33) to comply with Google Play policies
Control Panel Gen 1 2.4.7 - Released July 13th, 2023- Fixed UI issue on tablets with larger screens.
- Addressed a bug where having a module on address 255 prevented modules from appearing in the device list.
- Resolved a UI bug that caused module channels to appear incorrectly after arming.
- Implemented various crash fixes.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.4.5 - Released Dec 30th, 2022- The 2.4.6 updates resolved an issue where the Control Panel would show an incorrect number of 36/72M modules synced to the 18R2. Version 2.4.6 also brings various bug and crash fixes.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.4.4 - Released Nov 4th, 2022- The 2.4.4 update adds a 30s delay when opening the Control Panel after a tablet reboot or power-up. This delay enhances the stability of the Control Panel. 2.4.4 also brings various bug fixes and improvements.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.4.0 - Released June 22nd, 2022The 2.4.0 update is a minor patch to resolve currently known issues.
- Improved stability after reconnecting the 18R2 after it was previously powered off and the user pressed the Close button from the Control Panel dialogue.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.3.3 - Released April 18th, 2022The 2.3.3 update is a minor patch to resolve currently known issues.
- Fixed an issue where the Control Panel would say the remote is in Test Mode when the 18R2 is actually armed
- Improvements to script event loading
- Improvements to app disconnectivity and restart
- Disables to Jump to Event feature for scripts containing STEP events
Control Panel Gen 1 2.3.2 - Released January 19th, 2022The 2.3.2 is a minor patch to resolve currently known issues.
- Fixed an issue in the Free Mode of the Device List where modules were not correctly showing when a script was loaded.
- Updated several UI classifications to resolve issues with the Manual Fire clock being cut off.
- Various crash fixes and other minor improvements.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.3.1 - Released December 7th, 2021The 2.3.1 update focuses on usability improvements and bug fixes.
- Improved initial startup process to speed up usability when loading scripts and module information.
- Users no longer have to update the Control Panel version when changing between 18R2 firmware versions 5.0, 5.1, and 6.0
- Fixed issue on Manual Fire that required double-tapping cue one to fire.
- Script comments will now show correctly when using firmware 6.0.6.
- DMX and STEP combination scripts are now correctly supported when using firmware 6.0.6.
- Various crash fixes.
- Jumping to DMX events has been temporarily removed and will be added back in a later update.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.3.0 - Released May 2021The 2.3.0 update includes support for COBRA DMX.
- Improvements include displaying DMX events within Show Controls and also the DMX universe for 36M/72M modules on the Device List.
Control Panel Gen 1 2.2.1 - Released December 9th, 20202.2.1 is a patch release to 2.1.0 to address a few issues updated within the 5.1.2 firmware.
- Feature to select a script to make it the primary script as detailed within the 5.1.2 firmware update functionality has been removed. This will be added back in the future.
- Support for new phone and tablet resolutions including fixes to prevent crashes
- Improved reliability in having the 18R2 recognize a physical detachment and disconnection
- Fixed issue where Control Panel would get stuck trying to load scripts from the 18R2 when first starting the app
- Various minor bug fixes
Control Panel Gen 1 2.2.0 - Released November 16th, 2020Supports up to COBRA firmware 5.1.0.
- Local audio file support
- Continuous clock
- Unlimited channel/cue for selected script within the Show Controls section
- Edit script settings from the Show Controls section
- New script setting defaults
- New general feature settings
- Bug Fixes
Control Panel Gen 1 2.0.5 - Released January 16, 2018Supports up to COBRA firmware 5.0.5.
- Fixed a saving and searching issue within the Google Map field map functionality
- Fixed Sort By action for 9.7" devices
- Changed Field Map GPS pop-up to correctly indicate GPS turned off for 9.7" devices
- Corrected verbiage on Manual Fire Assign Caliber popup for 9.7" devices
- Optimized code to further prevent memory error crashes (Unfortunately, COBRA has stopped...)
- COBRA has released an updated version of the Gen 2 Control Panel with UI / feature improvements and minor bug fixes.
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To ensure that COBRA is providing the most stable version of the Show Creation software there are always two versions of COBRA Show Creator software available and easily accessible.
The first and most stable is our conveniently named Stable Release. This branch of Show Creator will be running a thoroughly internally and publicly tested version of the software. This version is accessed by going to www.cobrashowcreator.com.
Secondly is our BETA branch. This version of the COBRA Show Creator will have the newest features but may have a bug or two. This version is accessed by going to beta.cobrashowcreator.com.
While the BETA branch is internally tested before being made public not everything is caught by our team. That is where you come in. The BETA version of the software is designed to test the newest features and we rely on your feedback on how it's working. From within Show Creator, you can use the in-app chat or our various feedback and bug reporting tools found in the help section to let us know how your experience is. We can then take this feedback to make the software even better before pushing the update to the Stable Branch.
You can easily switch between the two branches of software by clicking the "move to BETA" or "move to production" in the top right section of your screen when using COBRA Show Creator.Â
Additional support is always available via email at help@cobrafiringsystems.com.
COBRA Show Creator Stable Releases
1.5.0 - Latest Update Released July 29th, 2024 (Current Build 2024.7.29.1)Version 1.5.0 initially released on November 2nd, 2023
New Features- Introduced an enhanced My Fireworks and My DMX Effects UI, offering improved usability with improved search capabilities, secondary column sorting, and reordering of secondary columns.
- My Fireworks can now be managed from the COBRA Portal, including the new ability to bulk update and import My Fireworks.
- My Firework Collections have been added to allow for the ability to organize your My Fireworks into different groups.
- The ability to drag and drop a My Firework and My DMX Effect from their respective UI sections onto the Event Table or Waveform to insert a new event has been added.
- Minor bug fixes.
Incremental Build Updates
Build 2024.7.29.1 - Released July 29th, 2024- Added a tag to prevent the browser's built-in Translate feature from translating text in the Events Table.
Build 2024.7.24.1 - Released July 24th, 2024- Fixed an issue where when using the browser's built-in Translate feature the icons on the page would break.
- Implemented a safeguard to prevent opening shows that were created in the COBRA Show Creator 1.5.1 BETA or contained STEP events that were converted to V2.
- Updated What's BETA new features section with COBRA Show Creator 1.5.1 BETA info.
Build 2024.7.10.1 - Released July 10th, 2024- Fixed an issue where Autoplay extensions would freeze the UI upon first load.
- Fixed an issue where the COBRA Support chat widget icon was covering the right edge of the volume slider.
- Improved the Find and Replace feature to allow for special characters.
- Fixed an issue where dragging and dropping a My Firework or My DMX Effect onto the waveform would result in that event not being highlighted during playback.
- Minor UI improvements when dragging and dropping My Firework or My DMX Effects.
- Fixed an issue where the My Firework and My DMX Effect drag and drop UI was not properly being removed from the UI.
Build 2024.5.23.1 - Released May 23rd, 2024- Implemented an experimental fix for an issue where a few users were unable to download the audio file of their shows from the Export Menu.
Build 2024.2.5.1 - Released February 5th, 2024- Added support for editing the hour place in the event time editor.
- Improved the Waveform Event Drawers Hovered Event UI to include the hour place when needed.
- Fixed an issue where after duplicating a show, and then editing its show date from show settings, it would update in show settings but not update in the My Shows UI.
1.4.0Version 1.4.0 initially released on August 18th, 2022
New Features- Introduced an all-new report designer. This allows users to fully customize their reports including the definition of columns, grouping, sorting, combining, filtering, and more. You can also share reports via PDF or an interactive URL that allows end users to view and manipulate the report on their own. The new reporting feature works with both PYRO and DMX shows events.
- Revision history is now saved locally for each save with the ability to be uploaded to the cloud by a support agent.
- Added the ability to change sort direction and sort criteria in MyShows.
- Improved importing of script .csv files by supporting "#@firmwareX.X.X" line.
- Included new event table empty state saying suggested by users.
- Improved show's custom column editor in Show Settings, including adding the ability to rearrange the order of custom columns.
Incremental Build Updates
Build 2023.5.10.1 - Released May 10th, 2023- Added the ability to choose how many events get inserted at a time. Learn more here.
Build 2023.5.8.1 - Released May 8th, 2023- Fixed an issue where feedback and bug reports would not be submitted if the report form was opened, closed, then reopened before submitting.
- My DMX Effects are now loaded at the same time as My Fireworks instead of around 60 seconds after the initial load.
- Improved the performance of inserting My DMX Effects into events.
- Fixed an issue where if a user used the insert above/below feature to insert an event, then edited or deleted the event that was used to insert above/below, the inserted event would move out of chronological order in the events table. This only affected editing, and the event was sorted correctly on script export.
Build 2023.4.13.1 - Released April 13th, 2023- Fixed an issue where not all custom fields of a firework will show in the Report Designer.
- Implemented support for COBRA Portal subscriptions, making the primary activation method for COBRA Show Creator subscriptions, resulting in license keys becoming a legacy activation method. All previously purchased license keys will still continue to work and can be used to activate accounts.
Build 2022.12.5.1 - Released December 5th, 2022- Fixed an issue importing a show with custom columns not removing new line characters until after the first save.
- For non-audio shows, the waveform will no longer reload each time after adding a new event unless the calculated show length has increased.
- Updated remaining help article links to new URLs.
Build 2022.9.20.1 - Released September 20th, 2022- Fixed issue with My Show's show date showing one day early in some time zones.
- Minor wording change for offline login modal.
1.3.1Version 1.3.1 initially released on February 8th, 2022
New Features
- Creating a new show without audio now prompts the user to enter an estimated show duration. This allows the waveform to better represent the needed length of your show. If you need more duration, it can be updated from the Show Settings. Also, the waveform will automatically increase in one-minute increments if an event’s duration runs longer than the end of your estimated show time. Previously, all shows defaulted to a 30-minute waveform that was not easily expandable.
- The Event Time Editor is reworked with new features and aesthetic updates. We combined two previous options to allow the user to select no delay, or add a delay after the previous event’s duration. Changing an event to STEP or Alternate is also faster by only requiring one action instead of two. Lastly, both the Current Time and New Time are shown for more visibility into the change that is being made.
- Added the ability to edit multiple event’s duration and event types. Selecting multiple events and right-clicking reveals a new action, Edit Selected. This new option allows the user to change more than one event to have the same duration, set a delay after each event, shift all events, or change all events to STEP, Alternate 1, or 2.
- If you wish to automatically assign event times to multiple events based on their firework duration, you can select multiple events and choose the "delay after the previous event ends" option. For example, by entering all events in your show as STEP events, you can use this feature to quickly assign the event times in order based on event duration.
- Added a Find & Replace feature. Users can access this feature by using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl/CMD + F while on the event list. This feature allows users to quickly find events, as well as individual or bulk, replace fireworks and DMX effects with items in your My Fireworks/DMX Effects.
Bug Fixes/Improvements
- Bulk Import Fireworks now accept a wider range of category names to make importing easier.
- The Pyro/DMX visual indicator and DMX universe columns now show in the SMPTE player.
- Fixed a bug that prevented SMPTE Player from showing on the left navigation bar in rare cases.
- Added a notification email when changing your email address.
- Various wording changes and spelling errors were fixed.
- Fixed a display issue with Comment rows not formatting correctly on DMX shows.
- Fixed the Custom Column formatting issue in My Shows.
- Fixed a bug where STEP event manual confirmation was being skipped during playback.
- Updated Keyboard Shortcuts window to include new shortcuts for editing events, exporting shows, and various shortcuts that can be used in the Event Time Editor.
1.3.0Version 1.3.0 initially released on July 20th, 2021
New Features
- 6.0 Firmware Support. Users can now choose 6.0 firmware when creating a new show or updating an existing show.
- Added DMX Support. Users can now script Pyro Only, Pyro & DMX, and DMX Only shows. The cue table columns have been improved to support DMX shows.
- Added custom fields in My Fireworks. We added the ability to add/edit an unlimited number of custom fields on My Fireworks.
- Added ability to drag and drop ALTERNATE events. We added the ability to drag and drop ALTERNATE events in the cue table just like STEP events.
- Added waveform cue drawer drag and drop support. Users can now drag and drop an event's duration indicator below the waveform to change the event's time.
- Expandable total events breakdown. There is now an expandable total events breakdown that lists how many Cues, DMX, ALTERNATE, STEP, and Unassigned events are in the show.
- Support for pasting event rows from CSC. Copying and pasting the whole event row(s) between windows or shows is now supported.
- Duplicating Multiple Events Support. Users can now select and duplicate multiple events.
- Improvements to Multiple Events Support. The event time editor got a small update to make changing an event's time easier, faster, and less confusing.
- Added default silence audio files to allow users to use them in their combined audio file creation.
- CSC will now format uploaded audio files in accordance with COBRA's recommended audio settings.
- Added Undo option to cue table context menu (right-click menu).
- Added new My Firework categories
Bug Fixes/Improvements
- Improved firework names in exported script (.CSV) files.
- Lift and Pre-Fire times can no longer be added to ALTERNATE events.
- Improvements to zooming in/out of the waveform.
- Fixed a few minor STEP issues.
- Fixed a minor even time rounding error on export.
- Fixed an issue where the tutorial was overriding the selected audio file for users shows.
- Fixed issue with My Shows section showing an incorrect show date due to timezones.
- Fixed an issue that prevented users from adjusting the column widths in the cue table.
- Improved error handling with Undo/Redo actions which prevent CSC from getting stuck loading changes.
- Fixed an issue where navigating the cue table cells using up and down arrow keys broke on COMMENT events.
- Fixed an issue where Time Since Last Cue was sometimes not the correct value.
- Fixed a cue table sorting issue that affected cues that were inserted above/below ALTERNATE cues.
1.2.1Version 1.2.1 initially released on December 28th, 2020
- Fixed the drag and drop import show feature as this was not functioning
- Fixed an issue whereby the last page cue labels were misaligned for large scripts
- Fixed an issue where pressing on an event line above a comment line would not progress to the next event or comment line if editing a firework name
- Fixed total cue count at the bottom of the event list to exclude comment events. Hovering over total cues displays a breakdown of a number of cues, alternates, and comments.
- Fixed SMPTE player event list issue where wrong cues were highlighted when moving the show backward to an earlier position
- Fixed Ctrl/Cmd + z hotkey undo feature not working properly when a script contained comment events
- Fixed Ctrl/Cmd+ Shift+ z hotkey redo feature not working properly in some cases
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1.2.0Version 1.2.0 initially released on November 16th, 2020
SMPTE SupportÂ
SMPTE Audio Player- Play/pause/stop/skip timecode audio in real-time
- Select audio output source
- View full cue list with color-coded indicators for firing and fired cues
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Disable timecode for quick testing of sound system
Add SMPTE Timecode to Audio Files
- Choose between None, Left, and Right audio channels
- Automatic conversion of the audio channel to mono, add timecode to the selected audio channel
- Cloud storage and processing, no high-end CPU required for audio processing
- Select multiple audio files into a list to create a single audio file, no Audacity is required
- Rearrange the order of audio files after they are created
- Combined audio files support adding SMPTE timecode
5.1.x Support
- Support for all 5.1 features including script comments
- Right-click on an event to convert it into a comment
1.1.0Version 1.1.0 initially released on October 20th, 2020
- New My Shows screen
- Enhanced STEP-based scripting features
- My Fireworks enhancements
- Various bug fixes and minor improvements
1.0.0Version 1.0.0 initially released on April 28th, 2020
- Initial public release of COBRA Show Creator
COBRA Show Creator BETA Release
The BETA COBRA Show creator is a partial re-write of the show design software with the following improvements noted below. You can access COBRA Show Creator BETA at https://beta.cobrashowcreator.com.
- Introduced a refreshed user interface that simplifies navigation and improves usability.
- Overhauled how STEP events are used in the application, integrating them seamlessly into the timeline workflow.
- Added integrated light inventory management in conjunction with COBRA portal.
- Added support for COBRA firmware version 7.0.
- The ability to add disable firing groups to shows and set each event's disable firing group was added.
Incremental Build Updates
Build 2024.10.25.1 - Released October 25th, 2024- Resolved an issue where warnings and errors in the Event Table were hidden behind the header row.
- The Event Table now automatically scrolls to the item you're searching for.
- The Find & Replace window now automatically focuses on the search field when opened.
- Fixed an error that occurred when pasting text into the Find & Replace input fields.
- All rows containing your search term are now highlighted in the Event Table.
- Matching search terms are highlighted in green when viewing search results.
- Fixed an issue where Find & Replace didn't work for custom columns.
- Show Details inventory costs now display exact amounts instead of rounding to the nearest dollar.
- Fixed a display issue where long firework details were not properly shortened to fit the available space, in the Show Details section.
- Corrected the maximum length for the Fireworks section description and ensured it truncates properly.
- Exported CSV file names now limit to 45 characters and exclude special characters when the Script Name is blank for shows on firmware version 5.1+.
- Resolved an issue that prevented updating comments in comment events.
- Improved performance in detecting inventory changes while editing show details.
- Fixed an issue where inventory changes were only synced the first save after opening the application.
Build 2024.10.4.1 - Released October 4th, 2024- Resolved an issue that prevented users from pasting content via the right-click context menu while editing event table cells.
- Made improvements to pasting single new events.
- Fixed a problem on certain devices where the "Save As" option in the right-click context menu for downloading audio files when exporting a show did not function properly.
Build 2024.9.30.1 - Released September 30th, 2024- When enabling the script event spell checker feature in preferences, the browser's spell checker is enabled automatically without requiring a page reload.
- Added support for firmware versions 6.1 and 7.1.
- Improved the firmware selectors to hide firmware versions 6.0 and 7.0 unless already selected.
- Fixed a layering issue where the events table header was on top of the What's New popup.
Build 2024.9.27.1 - Released September 27th, 2024- Enhanced snapping of STEP events to their parent after edits such as updating event times, deleting events, or modifying events before the parent.
- Resolved an issue where converting STEP or Timed events with children to ALTERNATE caused the children to disconnect from their parent.
- Corrected an issue where removing a position column value still added a position indicator to event descriptions upon export (Control Panel Gen 2 Position Feature, 6.1+).
- Fixed a bug causing CSV imports to fail when notifications attempted to play sounds on certain devices.
- Improved the CSV show import process to ensure the created show opens in the environment that initiated the import.
- Introduced the ability to disable the browser’s built-in spell check in the Events Table cells, following user feedback on interference from the spell check UI.
- Resolved an issue where truncated text was limited to a max width of 145px.
- Enhanced the color of the waveform scrollbar handle for better visibility.
- Added a 'What’s New' section to the top-right header for users to easily view recent changes and access release notes.
- Introduced a banner after major releases to notify users of new features and updates.
Build 2024.9.16.1 - Released September 16th, 2024- Introduced a new, read-only relative time column to the event table, which displays the time difference between an event and its parent STEP event when applicable. Added a setting to enable/disable this new column in the preferences under the events section.
- Fixed an issue where the browser translated user-entered data, such as duration in the event table, and the icons on the page.
- Reintroduced the ability to use the ESC key while editing a cell in the event table to cancel and revert any changes made.
- Fixed an issue where dragging a My Firework or My DMX Effect into the events table caused the placeholder row to get stuck.
- Fixed an issue where dragging and dropping multiple events in the waveform event drawer did not work if one of the events had a duration greater than 60 seconds.
- Added a feature where, when one or more events were selected in the event table, those same events were selected in the waveform event drawer to make dragging and dropping easier. This matched the previous functionality where selecting an event in the waveform event drawer also selected the event in the event table.
- Fixed an issue where, when playback reached the end of the waveform, the play/pause button did not reset to the play icon from its pause icon.
- Fixed an issue where the new undo/redo functionality did not work when using the insert above/below feature.
- Fixed an issue where the event info popup in the waveform event drawer was not always removed when the mouse exited the waveform event drawer.
- Updated the max audio box filename length for firmware version 6.0+ to 31 characters.
- Implemented a new feature where, upon export (for firmware version 6.1+), if there is a custom column in the show labeled "position," that custom column value is appended to the end of the event description to be used by the Control Panel Gen 2.
- Fixed an issue where, in some cases when zoomed in, dragging and dropping an event in the waveform event drawer resulted in the event jumping to a different location in the show.
- Fixed an issue where, while zoomed in during dragging and dropping events in the waveform event drawer, the vertical red line indicator did not line up with the beginning of the event pill.
- Updated the Show Details UI to allow non-inventory management upgrade users to view the available information with the upgrade.
- Built upon the STEP event overhaul introduced in version 1.5.1 by improving the following logic:
- STEP events snap to the previous event as they did in the current version of COBRA Show Creator.
- STEP events can no longer be dragged on the waveform, and any of their children's events cannot be dragged before the parent step event.
- When adding new events, if a STEP event was selected in the event table and the playhead was at an event time after the selected STEP event, the new event was added as a child to the selected STEP. This also caused all STEP events (and children) to be shifted to make room for the new event.
- When adjusting the event time of a child event under a STEP, and the new absolute event time was greater than the next STEP event's, all STEP events (and children) were shifted to make room for the event's new time.
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The COBRA firing system ecosystem consists of many devices including the 18R2, 18M, 36M, 72M, 6M, and Audio Box. Firmware is the embedded software in our hardware that gives life to the device. COBRA is continually striving to improve products, and as we add feature enhancements to each device, COBRA releases new firmware versions to support the newly added functionality. While some new features may not always be available for older hardware, all COBRA systems support the latest firmware versions within our universal system design where all systems work happily together as a single family of products.
When upgrading to a new firmware version, you gain access to all the features from previous versions. For example, updating to firmware version 6.1 will include all features from version 5.0, and updating to version 7.1 will include features from both 6.1 and 5.0.Â
7.1 Release
- Module and Event Group Disabling
- Multiple Script Support (PYRO and DMX)
- Enhanced Security Mode
6.1 Release
-
DMX Support
- 200 Channel / 3,600 Cue Support
-
Scripted Event Re-firing and Variable Pulse Times
- Manual Hold to Fire
5.1 Release
- Manual and Scripted MESH
- 1/100th Second Timing
- 2nd Alternate Firing ButtonÂ
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In addition to performing firmware updates to hardware firmware, COBRA also performs software upgrades to the COBRA Control Panel Android app available online from Google Play.
To determine compatible firmware versions across the COBRA Firing Systems equipment portfolio please see Firmware Figured Out.
To perform a firmware upgrade or downgrade please download the COBRA reprogramming software.
Below is a list of the current beta and stable firmware releases for your COBRA system. To learn more about our firmware release process, see What is our firmware release process?
Additional support is always available via email at help@cobrafiringsystems.com.
COBRA Firmware Stable Releases
Version 6.1.5 Patch - Oct 9th 2024- Within an optimization change to 6.1.4, an issue was introduced where a script may not fire specific cues due to logic error in our firmware code. This was reported by one customer on Oct. 7th and would only occur in some cases of specific module and cue timing.
Version 6.1.4 Patch - Sept 20th 2024- 18R2 - High-intensity firing cadences combined with SMPTE may cause for a module to skip a cue in rare cases
- 18R2 - No longer changes channel while a script is running allowing for manual firing during a show (no longer in current release, coming in next patch release)
- 18R2 - Bug fix for pressing multiple cue firing buttons at the same time on the 18R2
- Audio Box - Optimized and fix some issues for audio alignment during SMPTE run scripts
Version 6.1.3 Critical Patch - Aug 28th 2024- 36M/72M Hardware A only becomes inoperable in some cases due to flash memory configuration issue
Version 6.1.2 - Aug 13th 2024- 18R2 / Control Panel - Jump to re-enabled in Control Panel for timed and STEP events
- 18R2 / Control Panel - Elapsed time showing incorrectly when jumping is performed
- 18R2 / Control Panel - Changing firing mode now supported from Control Panel
- Audio Box - Audio skipping may occur if SMPTE is used with 18R2 together with the Audio Box
- Control Panel Gen 2 - The UI may display a 36M or 72M’s key state momentarily in the wrong position. This only affects the 36M and 72M modules.
- 18M Hardware B - When initiating a STEP command from the 18R2 from a scripted show, if a module does not receive the STEP command, it’s possible an event may fire late and eventually re-align once the heartbeat from the 18R2 is received.
Version 6.1.1 - June, 27th 2024 (CRITICAL RELEASE)- 18R2 - STEP event may cause script to not fire
Version 6.1.0 - May, 2024Minor New Improvements
- Total Events in COBRA Show Creator and Control Panel Consistency
- Audio Box Always Plays Single Audio File
- Audio Box Feature to Not Pause Audio with STEP Events
- Double Tapping TEST or ARM Displays Device Count
- Modules Indicating Communication Status
- Blank Lines in Script Now Ignored
- Script Loading Event Line Indicator on 18R2
- Jumping Forward and Backward in SMPTE Scripts Now Supported
Bug Fixes
- Audio Box Not Recognizing USB Drive
- 18M and 6M Not Firing Script if Power Cycled Mid-Show
- Module Powered On Mid-Script may Fire Previous STEP Event
- Script Error 16 Incorrectly Displayed as Error 54 on 18R2
- Control Panel Not Displaying Modules
- Events Between 0 and 1 second Not Appearing as Fired in Control Panel using SMPTE
- Quickplug 6-Cue Tester Now Works on 36M/72M for Showing Continuity
- Auto-Fire LEDs Displaying on 36M/72M in TEST Mode
- Modules Not Displaying in ARM Count on 18R2
- 18M May Not Turn Off Red Cue LED if Cue is Shorted and Fires
- Updating Firmware on 36M/72M May Change Voltage Mode
- Space Between Filename and .mp3 Extension Causing Playback Issues
- Module Not Firing Script
- Minor DMX Issues
- Manually Clearing Scripts Not Blinking SYNC LED or Displaying 00
- Changing Firing Mode (0.1s vs. 2.0s) While Module is Armed is Disabled on 36M/72M
- SMPTE Timecode Quality Displays 0 with Large DMX Scripts
- Last Event in SMPTE Driven Scripts May Not Fire
Version 3.0.3 - April, 2014Major New Improvements- Manually fire cues while the script is running
- Reinforced wireless security
- Fire multiple scripts without disarming
- Improvements to the ER3 stuck button error codes to allow full operation of the unit while only displaying which button was stuck, and disabling that button.Â
Minor New Improvements
- Synchronization process change
- Audio accuracy
- 320k MP3 audio quality
- Sleep mode efficiency improved by 25%
- Manual AUTO-FIRE works past 12 seconds
Bug Fixes
- Sleep mode no longer displays backlight
Version 2.1.1 - August, 2012Â
COBRA Firmware Stable Release Candidates
Version 5.1.4 - April 1st, 202318R2
- Addresses a rare situation (only reported once), whereby the 18R2 may pause while receiving a SMPTE feed and have no recovery other than re-starting the 18R2.
- Improved communication between the 18R2 and Control Panel, ensuring that all modules are displayed correctly as in some cases, a module may not appear.
- Improvements to the ER3 stuck button error codes to allow full operation of the unit while only displaying which button was stuck, and disabling that button.Â
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COBRA Firmware BETA Releases
Version 7.1.3 Patch - Oct 22nd 2024- Within the general 7.1 BETA release, we have discovered that in some cases when using the multi-script feature, an unintended cue may fire. This happens primarily when the ending cue in a script has a time that matches the first cue of the next script. This includes STEP scripts and timed event scripts. This was reported by on Oct. 20th by one customer in testing, and another customer on Oct. 21st during a live event. We treated this as a critical issue and have since resolved this in the 7.1.3 patch release.
Version 7.1.2 Patch - Oct 9th 2024- Within an optimization change to 7.1.1, an issue was introduced where a script may not fire specific cues due to logic error in our firmware code. This was reported by one customer on Oct. 7th and would only occur in some cases of specific module and cue timing.
Version 7.1.1 Patch - Sept 20th 2024- 18R2 - High-intensity firing cadences combined with SMPTE may cause for a module to skip a cue in rare cases
- 18R2 - No longer changes channel while a script is running allowing for manual firing during a show
- 18R2 - Bug fix for pressing multiple cue firing buttons at the same time on the 18R2
- Audio Box - Optimized and fix some issues for audio alignment during SMPTE run scripts
Version 7.1.0 - Aug, 13th 2024- All Modules - (Critical Issue Fix) A module, partial module, or bank may not fire.
- 18R2 / Control Panel - Jump to re-enabled in Control Panel for timed and STEP events
- 18R2 / Control Panel - Elapsed time showing incorrectly when jumping is performed
- 18R2 / Control Panel - Changing firing mode now supported from Control Panel
- Audio Box - Audio skipping may occur if SMPTE is used with 18R2 together with the Audio Box
- Control Panel Gen 2 - The UI may display a 36M or 72M’s key state momentarily in the wrong position. This only affects the 36M and 72M modules.
- 18M Hardware B - When initiating a STEP command from the 18R2 from a scripted show, if a module does not receive the STEP command, it’s possible an event may fire late and eventually re-align once the heartbeat from the 18R2 is received.
- 36M/72M - When firing a DMX script followed by a combined PYRO script, the DMX from the first script may fire in the subsequent PYRO script.Â
Version 7.0.2 - June, 27th 2024 (CRITICAL RELEASE)- 18R2 - STEP event may cause script to not fire
- 36M/72M - DMX script may fire during pyro only script inadvertently
Version 7.0.1 - May, 202418R2/36M/72M
- Module and Event Group Disabling
- Multiple Script Support (PYRO and DMX)
- Enhanced Security Mode
Version 6.0.8 - June 21st, 202318R2/36M/72M
- Resolves an issue where the 36/72M did not download new DMX events correctly after clearing a script manually on the 18R2 by holding TEST and SYNC for 10 seconds.
Version 6.0.7 - June 7th, 202318R2
- Script loading times dramatically improved
- Control Panel now loads DMX scripts greater than 200 events
- Modules no longer missing from Control Panel
- Stuck buttons on startup no longer disable operation and now display which button is stuck and disable the button operation
- 00:00.0s events firing after a STEP event now always fire
- Whitespace in the channel column no longer imports invalid event
- Incorrect event out-of-order error for DMX events now fixed
- Script import error 54 now corrected to error 16
- Scripts now support DMX events with descriptions greater than 52 characters
- Releasing COBRA Deadman or pausing script now stops DMX events with pulse times
- Last event in script now always fires if driven by SMPTE
- Jumping backward or performing large SMPTE time jumps while a script is running now fires all DMX events
- 18R support added
- Small groups of cues now always fire on scripted shows
- Clearing scripts from the 18R2 no longer causes the 36M or 72M to display "Downloading DMX"
- Screen brightness increased
- Voltage mode maintained when updating firmware
- DMX events in rare cases sometimes did not fire
Version 6.0.6 - December 6th, 202118R2
- Fixed an issue where two cues on the same channel and firing at the same time could cause the module to not display in the arm count and fire.
- Added scripting error code 57 to prevent the use of STEP events when using SMPTE Timecode.
- Fixed a rare issue where 18R2s would not allow syncing new modules.
- Fixed an issue that caused DMX STEP scripts to not show correctly on the Control Panel.
- Fixed a display bug that showed the incorrect channel/cue on the 18R2 as being the last to fire.
- Fixed a module acknowledgment issue that prevented modules from showing in the arm count.
- Fixed incorrect scripting error code that was shown when a script had a cue fire time error.Â
36M/72M
- DMX Events can now be disabled when using the Disable Firing feature on the 18R2.
- Fixed bug that prevented the 36/72M from showing on the Control Panel if you force refresh the module count while armed.
Version 6.0.5 - June, 202118R2
- Fixes partial lock-up issues that could occur when changing the channels while a script is actively firing or paused.
- Fixed issue with alternate events causing ER33 on certain 18R2 hardware versions.
- Fixed issue with alternate events firing channel zero instead of correctly assigned channel.
- Scripts are now saved correctly on the 18R2 when power-cycling the remote after changing the script attributes from the Control Panel.
36M/72M
- The modules will now send DMX zero values when in TEST or ARM if a DMX universe is set on the module. Previously the zero values were only sent while a script was running.
- Fixed minor display issues that caused text to overlap on the LCD while in program/sync mode.
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Version 6.0.4 - May, 202118R2
Major New Improvements
-
DMX Support
- 200 Channel / 3,600 Cue Support
-
Scripted Event Re-firing and Variable Pulse Times
- Manual Hold to Fire
Version 5.1.3 - September 23rd, 2022- 5.1.3 is a patch release to 5.1.2 to address a few issues in the 5.1.2 firmware.
- STEP events are no longer supported within SMPTE-enabled scripts to ensure continuous SMPTE firing and optimal synchronization.
- Improved device syncing eliminates intermittent sync issues between 18R2 units and COBRA devices.
- Command Centers now consistently load scripts from COBRA-certified USB drives without errors.
- Fine-tuned button press detection prevents accidental double-press registrations on 18R2s.
- Optimized Audio Synchronization: Audio Box timing (both Hardware A and B) has been refined for improved alignment with the 18R2.
Version 5.1.2 - December 9th, 2020- 5.1.2 is a patch release to 5.1.1 to address a few issues in the 5.1.1 firmware.
- 36M/72M in some cases displaying 18R2 signal strength vs. MESH signal strength
- Audio box hardware A may play audio slightly early by about 100-200ms Audio box in rare cases does not start the audio
Version 5.1.1 - November 18th, 2020Major New Improvements
Minor Improvements
- 2x increase in device connection time
- Improved device count display
- Script comments
- Script filename is no longer limited to cobra.csv
- Audio filename limit increased to 45 characters
- 6M Support
- Edit script attributes
- Local Audio File Support
- Continuous clock
- Improved General Settings
- Unfired Product Email Report
- SMPTE Audio Player
- Combined Audio Files
- Script Comments
- Filename Improvements
Bug Fixes
- Fixed an issue where 18M hardware A modules may sleep and not wake up forcing the user to power cycle the 18M firing module
- In rare cases, module scripted firing timing may be off slightly due to minor calculation errors
- In some cases, when multiple modules were on and in program mode, the 18M may skip multiple addresses when synced
- In some cases, the control panel would crash and fail to open on Android 9.0
Version 5.0.x - February 2017Major New Improvements
- Manual and Scripted MESH
- 1/100th Second Timing
- 2nd Alternate Firing Button
Control Panel
- Field Map
- Offline Mode
- Improved Device List UI
- Improved Show Controls UI
- New Manual Firing UI
- Minor Improvements
Bug Fixes
- 18R2 slow to load the final few modules in ARM mode
- 18M not waking up properly from sleep mode
- 18M becoming stuck in a state of toggling between ARM and TEST mode (test and arm LED blinking back and forth)
- 18M not properly receiving the downloaded script from the 18R2
- 18R not firing channel 00 manually
- 18R in some cases has continuity disappear and re-appear momentarily
- Audio box incorrectly aligned when pressing the + and - buttons on the 18R2
- Minor audio box distortion upon pausing and resuming script
- 18R2 displaying incorrect -99 signal for modules
- 36/72M not displaying continuity in direct sunlight
- 36/72M not displaying continuity in direct sunlight
- Deadman button on the 18R2 could cause the script to not resume after being paused.
- 18R2 critical safety fix (only affected units sold from July 5th to July 24th, 2019)
Version 4.0.0 - May 2015Major New Improvements
- Alternate Event Firing
- Deadman Functionality
Control Panel
- COBRA Control Panel Integration
- Device List
- Show Controls
- Disable Firing Functionality
Minor Improvements
- Multiple Audio Files
- 30% More Battery Life
- Low Signal Warning
- Improved Low Battery Warning
- 18R2 Default Channel Changed to 00
- Force Un-Sync Removed from 18M
- Force Un-Sync Time Extended on 18R2 to 30 Seconds
- Loading script requires USB to be inserted at the time of 18R2 power up
- Script header arguments changed
Bug Fixes
- Manually fire cues while the script is running
- Reinforced wireless security
- Fire multiple scripts without disarming
Version 4.0.0 - April 2013Major New Improvements
- Audio Box integration
- Unlimited channel firing
Bug Fixes
- Backlight stays on in sleep mode
- In some cases, testing continuity locally from the 18M will cause the 18M to re-start
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Equipment Repair User GuidesThe Equipment Repair User Guides section offers step-by-step instructions on repairing and maintaining your COBRA firing system.See all articles
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Product Notices and Known Firmware IssuesStay informed with the latest updates and announcements related to COBRA products. This section provides important information on product changes and enhancements to ensure you're always in the loop.See all articles
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Show TroubleshootingWhen the unexpected happens during a show, we've got your back. Navigate through common show-related issues and their solutions to ensure your pyrotechnic display goes off without a hitch.See all articles
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Equipment, Pre-Show, and Dry Run ChecklistsPreparation is key to a successful show. Utilize our comprehensive checklists to ensure your equipment is ready, pre-show setups are complete, and dry runs are executed flawlessly.See all articles
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General Education DocumentsWhether you're new to COBRA Firing Systems or looking to expand your knowledge, our general education resources offer insights into the world of fireworks, safety protocols, and industry best practices.See all articles
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User GuidesYour go-to hub for detailed documentation on all COBRA products. From basic setup to advanced features, these guides provide step-by-step instructions to help you make the most of your equipment.See all articles
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FAQsHave questions? We have answers. Browse through our frequently asked questions to find quick solutions and insights on common queries related to COBRA Firing Systems.See all articles