BEYOND 5.8 raises limits for projector outputs, zones, distributed scanning, and timeline and media tracks, with changes varying by tier. It also introduces new creative and control tools, an updated PangoBeats experience, and bug fixes.
The release includes BEYOND Lite, a new free tier. For details about Lite, visit here.
Watch our full overview of 5.8 below.
Higher Capacity Across BEYOND Tiers
Higher Hardware Outputs
All paid tiers of BEYOND now support higher projector limits. These limits are standardized in multiples of eight laser outputs, plus one additional license or dummy output.
Essentials is increasing from 10 to 17 outputs, Advanced increases from 25 to 33, and Ultimate increases from 41 to 65.
Higher Zone Quantities
All tiers of BEYOND now have a multiple of eight zones for the number of projectors, excluding the additional license or dummy output. For example, Lite has 64 zones acr across its eight projector outputs, plus one additional hardware output.
With the new hardware limits, this means that Essentials gets 128 zones, Advanced gets 256, and Ultimate gets 1,024.
To support these higher zone limits, BEYOND 5.8 increases the number of visualization streams to match each tier’s zone count. However, it may take some time for visualization software to support quantities greater than 256.
Expanded Distributed Scanning
For each paid tier, the quantity of groups has been doubled. Essentials now supports two groups of two lasers, Advanced supports four groups of four lasers, and Ultimate supports eight groups of eight lasers. This allows Ultimate users to be fully saturated with distributed lasers.
Please note that this scale of distribution will require extremely high-performance networks and powerful PCs to achieve smooth performance.
More Room for Timelines and Media Tracks
Each paid tier also gains additional timeline tracks: Lite gets 50, Essentials gets 100, Advanced gets 200, and Ultimate gets 300.
To complement these increases, the number of multimedia tracks has also been expanded. Lite gets one media track, Essentials gets two media tracks, Advanced gets four media tracks, and Ultimate gets six media tracks.
Review the new full comparison chart here.
New Creative Tools and Updates Available with 5.8
Pangolin Media Tracer Tool
Meet the most powerful media tracer we've ever built. Pangolin Media Tracer (PMT) turns images, video, cameras, live feeds, logos, and vector files into laser graphics, directly in BEYOND for Advanced and Ultimate users.
This creative tool is designed to be agnostic, meaning it can accept media from any application or source, allowing artists to continue using their preferred workflows. It quickly converts that media into clean, efficient laser lines without tying the process to a single application. This flexibility supports different creative methods and helps the tool remain useful as creative software evolves.
Learn more here.
HTTP Server Communication Platform
Ultimate users also get access to our new HTTP server communication platform, allowing easier external coding of BEYOND’s internal commands.
Learn more here.
PangoBeats
Available to all BEYOND tiers, PangoBeats helps users synchronize laser shows with music. Included in the BEYOND 5.8 installer and accessible from the System BPM dropdown, it features improved beat detection and an updated interface. It detects tempo from computer audio, a microphone, or a line input and sends it to BEYOND, with status indicators and controls to help guide detection when needed.
Learn more here.
Updating to BEYOND 5.8
Download BEYOND 5.8 from the new Download Center.
A More Refined Experience; Additional Bug Fixes and UI Improvements
Alongside these additions, BEYOND 5.8 includes bug fixes and user interface refinements:
FB4 firmware updater is more reliable, supports optional updates with an update-available notification, and gives better diagnostics.
- FB4 Settings can set all controllers to Auto IP and now shows the subnet mask.
- Playlists can be sorted by timecode and now have Set number and Notes commands.
- Beam Attenuation Map supports ellipse shapes and solid, linear and radial gradient fills in Projection Zones and Scan Setup.
- Timeline snapping can target time markers or other events, and Ctrl+drag now copies every selected event, even across several tracks.
- Updated edition limits for projectors, zones, pages, timeline tracks, media tracks, distribution groups and DMX inputs.
- Fixes for ENTTEC COM port handling, SDK window handle exhaustion, terminal crashes and several timeline and editing issues.
View the full change log here.
Questions? We’re Here to Help.
Check out our new videos covering these topics, and read the full list of changes here.
If there are any questions on BEYOND 5.8 and Lite, please create a ticket with our support system, and one of our support team members will reach out to help.
