A selection of the light sets I currently own, most of which will get the CHOP (into smaller, re-useable sections!)
So once again today my new ACL bestie came round armed with some DC power supplies and all the right connections (including a test strip of RGB - I think I want some in the display!!) so we could see how easy it was to use my existing light sets. As it turns out, many of the new sets I used last year are ALL exactly the same voltages, meaning that I can use them all, cut up into smaller sections and run off the one DC board & power supply!
What does that mean? A couple of things. Firstly it means the more sections I cut all the lights into, the greater number of channels they become and therefore the more control over the overall display I have. Instead of 3 sets of icicles flashing randomly, I could have 20ish sections able to be chased or "dance" from one side of the house to the oher. Secondly, with all those lights running from only 1 power supply, it will be much cheaper than having all the sets plugged into 240v AC.
We did run into a small problem, in that the computer could not talk to the controller properly via DMX protocol via the LightShow Pro software I am planning to use. This is apparently a bug with the older version I'm running, so hopefully with a quick upgrade and a re-test, all will be running smoothly.
In the meantime, I can now start to cut up my existing sets of lights and start making up the new string sections I want/need for the display. I'll also have to start thinking about buying some new gear: power supply, DC controller board(s), speaker wire or security wire to act as extension leads from controller to the lights, weatherproof plugs, heat-shrink for a professional, waterproof finish to soldering..... I never said this hobby was cheap, but it is fun to learn about it all :)
What does that mean? A couple of things. Firstly it means the more sections I cut all the lights into, the greater number of channels they become and therefore the more control over the overall display I have. Instead of 3 sets of icicles flashing randomly, I could have 20ish sections able to be chased or "dance" from one side of the house to the oher. Secondly, with all those lights running from only 1 power supply, it will be much cheaper than having all the sets plugged into 240v AC.
We did run into a small problem, in that the computer could not talk to the controller properly via DMX protocol via the LightShow Pro software I am planning to use. This is apparently a bug with the older version I'm running, so hopefully with a quick upgrade and a re-test, all will be running smoothly.
In the meantime, I can now start to cut up my existing sets of lights and start making up the new string sections I want/need for the display. I'll also have to start thinking about buying some new gear: power supply, DC controller board(s), speaker wire or security wire to act as extension leads from controller to the lights, weatherproof plugs, heat-shrink for a professional, waterproof finish to soldering..... I never said this hobby was cheap, but it is fun to learn about it all :)