NovaStar VX16S: black screen, scaling and LED mapping

In Display Control, check whether Normal, Freeze, FTB or Test Pattern is selected. FTB blacks the screen; Freeze holds a frame even while the source keeps playing. Check layer status and Screen Brightness too. FN is configurable, so do not assume it always performs the same action.

Then inspect the input used by that layer. A flashing orange input LED means the layer uses that source but the controller does not detect it. Compare the player’s connection, output resolution and frame rate with the selected input. If an internal pattern displays correctly across the screen, focus the next check on the source and layer; if the pattern also fails, investigate the output, power and LED data chain.

Run the pattern only with the event operator’s agreement, then restore Normal. Do not begin by loading a receiving-card file or running Factory Reset: either can disturb a working configuration. If only one area fails, identify its port and first cabinet before changing global settings.

In this version, HDMI and DVI Mosaic can only be used by MAIN. For PIP 1 and PIP 2, check an input supported by the layer menu; detecting a signal does not mean every layer can use it. In Layer Settings, check Status and Input Source before changing size.

Compare Scaling Mode —Full Screen, Pixel to Pixel or Custom— with H Width, V Height, Initial X and Initial Y. Check Input Crop too: an active crop can discard part of the source and then fill the layer with the remaining image. If another layer covers it, check Priority; 3 is at the front and 1 at the back.

Use an image with known borders and proportions to check the result. If the fault affects a whole layer, correct the layer or crop; if it repeats at cabinet boundaries, check the LED map. Do not modify receiving-card mapping to compensate for an input crop.

Quick Configuration is intended for regular screens with equal-resolution cabinets and physical wiring compatible with the manual’s patterns. Ethernet port 1 must start the complete connection. Compare Cabinet Row Qty, Cabinet Column Qty and Port 1 Cabinet Qty with the physical build; input-video dimensions do not replace those values.

Interpret Data Flow (Front View) from the front of the screen. Trace the cable from each port’s first cabinet and compare the pattern in that view, even when working behind the wall. A numbered or grid pattern helps reveal repetitions and overlaps. Confirm only once the complete layout is correct.

For per-port rows, columns and offsets, review Screen Settings → Advanced Configuration. Do not force Quick Configuration onto a geometry that fails its prerequisites. Keep the previous map and verify the complete path before saving the configuration to receiving cards.

These are different operations. Preset Settings saves and recalls layer layouts; VX16S supports ten presets. Save writes to the chosen destination, Load recalls its layout, and Copy To overwrites a destination that already contains data. A preset does not replace a system-configuration backup.

Screen Settings → Save to RV Card sends and stores screen configuration in receiving cards so it survives controller power-off. By contrast, the NovaLCT Tools → Controller Cabinet Configuration File Import and Save the Change to HW workflow copies configuration files into VX16S. A file being present in the controller does not prove it is correct, applied or saved to every receiving card.

Use only files compatible with the specific cabinet and receiving card, retaining a verified copy. The loading procedure in this manual does not support irregular-cabinet files. After saving, schedule a persistence check outside the event and verify mapping and layers separately; do not power-cycle the system during the show to test it.