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High End Systems HedgeHog 4 troubleshooting
The High End Systems HedgeHog 4 problems live-event techs bring to Ask Roadie most (also called Hedge Hog 4, HedgeHog, HH4). Pick your symptom, or describe your own in plain words, and get the likeliest fix first, with the manual page when there is one.
Common HedgeHog 4 errors & problems
What techs run into most, and what's usually behind it. The step-by-step fix for your exact unit is in Ask Roadie.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Color encoders (HS / CMY) do nothing or certain colors (e.g. red) are unreachable on a wash fixture
Likely cause: Hog controls color through the library personality; if the personality/mode does not match the fixture, HS/CMY parameters land on the wrong channels and produce no or partial color.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Console loses its output licensing on startup (unit built after 2020)
Likely cause: The post-2020 hardware revision changed a component that the older OS licensing check did not recognise; v3.21.1/v4.2 update the check so the output license is retained.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Console unresponsive during programming - touchscreen registers touches but nothing changes
Likely cause: A corrupted OS install or show file leaves the UI drawing but the control engine stalled; a clean full install plus restarts rebuilds the runtime.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Console will not boot past the "4" splash logo
Likely cause: A hang at the logo indicates a damaged OS/filesystem; the full ISO reflashes the system partition rather than just patching it.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Console will not start at all - no fans, no LCD, no boot
Likely cause: Total dead-start with no fans points to the internal PSU or power path, which is not a field-serviceable software issue.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Need to expand outputs, add DMX processing, or network multiple consoles/backup
Likely cause: The Hog show network (Hog Net) is what carries the processing and multi-console session; isolating it prevents Art-Net/house-network broadcast storms from disrupting playback.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
No DMX / Art-Net / sACN output reaching fixtures
Likely cause: Output only flows once a universe is patched to a physical DMX port or mapped to a network protocol AND the console NIC shares a subnet with the receiving node.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Only 2 universes available; need to run more fixtures
Likely cause: The console hardware only has 2 physical DMX ports; additional universes must leave over Ethernet to a node or processor that converts back to DMX.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Physical buttons / keys on the console are not responding
Likely cause: Software corruption can disable input handling globally; ruling it out with a clean install isolates a true hardware failure.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
System freezes or lags 1-4 seconds when firing scenes / command keys
Likely cause: The playback delay was an OS-level bug corrected in later releases; running current software removes it.
- Step-by-step fixGet the fix →
Touchscreen stays dark / will not come on (often out of the box or after shipping)
Likely cause: Transit vibration commonly unseats the internal display connector; reseating restores the signal path.
Not on the list? Describe it your way, or paste the error code off the display. Ask Roadie works the problem with you until it's fixed or you have a clear next move.
How Ask Roadie helps with the HedgeHog 4
- 1. Pick the High End Systems HedgeHog 4. It's already in the list.
- 2. Describe what you're seeing. In your own words, or the error code off the screen.
- 3. Get the likeliest fix first. Steps in order, the manual page when there is one, and a note when other techs have confirmed it.
- 4. Still broken? Tap 👎 and it keeps going from where you left off.