3 ms·

Any pointers on where to start? I want to do something small for next year.

by yumraj 2y ago

paradox460 2y ago
Best place to start is probably some form of "permanent Christmas lights" You install them along the trim of your house, like you would with traditional lights. You can then use them for all sorts of things. Flag colors for patriotic holidays. Bright pastels for spring. Christmas can be any mix of red green and white, hanukkah can be blue and white, etc They let you start soft, with something that doesn't need xlights, just a simple controller and the lights, so you get the feel for the hardware side of things, and you canuse them all the time I wrote a blog post[1] about how I got mine set up. My show this winter isn't very big, consisting of only a spinner (big circular pattern of pixels), megatree (big cone shaped light "tree") and the house lights, but some of my friends in the area go all out with spotlights and moving components and even pyrotechnics [1]: https://pdx.su/blog/2024-08-10-diy-permanent-xmas-lights/ https://pdx.su/blog/2024-08-10-diy-permanent-xmas-lights/
- cmdrsammo 2y ago
  Enjoyed your blog post - some great insights, solid final results and at about the right level of DIY. Could you give a specification for the LED pucks though please? The Aliexpress link is dead.
  - paradox460 2y ago
    Ah yeah, sorry about that. I'll have to update the blog post. They are sold by a variety of vendors, but generally you're gonna look for the 3-pixel 30mm pucks. They come in either cold-white or warm-white varieties, and a slew of different voltages. You can buy a whole "kit" from the same vendor I bought my stuff from here[1], or the individual lights[2] and the tracks[3] You can also buy similar products from some US local stores, like WasatchLights[4], YourPixelStore[5], or from Gouley[6], who appear to be the original manufacturers of these. But I've had good luck with PaulZhang's store on AliExpress, so its the one I can attest to. [1]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806033455595.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806033455595.html [2]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807344866216.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807344866216.html [3]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804734568668.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804734568668.html [4]: https://wasatchlights.com/products/permanent-track-lights https://wasatchlights.com/products/permanent-track-lights [5]: https://yourpixelstore.com/product/pucks-set-of-5-30mm/ https://yourpixelstore.com/product/pucks-set-of-5-30mm/ [6]: https://goulyled.com/ https://goulyled.com/
    - cmdrsammo 2y ago
      Brilliant, thank you for the original blog post and this detailed response!
      - paradox460 2y ago
        Absolutely. Its a fun rabbit hole to go down, and the only constraining factors are time, money, and imagination.
jedberg 2y ago
First you'll need a controller. Falcon Christmas is sort of the gold standard. You can buy just the board and assemble it yourself, or you can get a prebuilt controller. I'd suggest a prebuilt for your first one. Then you'll need LEDs. My favorite vendor for LEDs is Wally's Lights[0], but there are others. The big choice you have to make is 12v vs 5v. Most people do 12v because you can make a much longer string of lights before you have to do what's called power injection, which is where you splice in a power boost. However 12v lights obviously use more power. Also, most of the pre-built things are 12v. I actually use primarily 5v, but at this point I'm about 1/3 12v because I got props from other people. You're actually starting at exactly the right time, all the vendors do big sales in January. Then you'll need something to put the pixels into. There are lots of options here. Strips, props, grids. After you watch some videos you'll have a better idea of what you want. Also after you figure out your layout. Then you need to get Xlights[1]. Xlights is actually a good place to start, because it gives you an idea of what kind of things you can make. You can actually start with putting a layout on Xlights to see what you want to buy. But, before all that, you'll want to learn. These are my favorite YouTube channels: https://www.youtube.com/@CanispaterChristmas https://www.youtube.com/@CanispaterChristmas https://www.youtube.com/@NiFamilyLights https://www.youtube.com/@NiFamilyLights Watch some of the starter videos to get an idea before you buy anything. :) [0] https://wallyslights.com/ https://wallyslights.com/ [1] https://xlights.org https://xlights.org
- wolrah 2y ago
  > However 12v lights obviously use more power. This is incorrect. The same number of lights at the same brightness will use give or take the same wattage. The increase in voltage leads to a decrease in amperage. Larger installs should actually use slightly less power because the higher voltage loses less to resistance in the wires, the same reason utility-scale power distribution is done at higher voltages than anyone actually uses. There are some individual "12v" LEDs that are just a lower voltage LED plus a big resistor to bring 12v down to a level the LED can survive which do obviously waste a lot of power but that would be a really silly design for a multi-LED assembly.
  - jedberg 2y ago

Any pointers on where to start? I want to do something small for next year.

by yumraj 2y ago

Any pointers on where to start? I want to do something small for next year.

Best place to start is probably some form of "permanent Christmas lights" You install them along the trim of your house, like you would with traditional lights. You can then use them for all sorts of things. Flag colors for patriotic holidays. Bright pastels for spring. Christmas can be any mix of red green and white, hanukkah can be blue and white, etc They let you start soft, with something that doesn't need xlights, just a simple controller and the lights, so you get the feel for the hardware side of things, and you canuse them all the time I wrote a blog post[1] about how I got mine set up. My show this winter isn't very big, consisting of only a spinner (big circular pattern of pixels), megatree (big cone shaped light "tree") and the house lights, but some of my friends in the area go all out with spotlights and moving components and even pyrotechnics [1]: https://pdx.su/blog/2024-08-10-diy-permanent-xmas-lights/ https://pdx.su/blog/2024-08-10-diy-permanent-xmas-lights/

cmdrsammo 2y ago
Enjoyed your blog post - some great insights, solid final results and at about the right level of DIY. Could you give a specification for the LED pucks though please? The Aliexpress link is dead.
- paradox460 2y ago
  Ah yeah, sorry about that. I'll have to update the blog post. They are sold by a variety of vendors, but generally you're gonna look for the 3-pixel 30mm pucks. They come in either cold-white or warm-white varieties, and a slew of different voltages. You can buy a whole "kit" from the same vendor I bought my stuff from here[1], or the individual lights[2] and the tracks[3] You can also buy similar products from some US local stores, like WasatchLights[4], YourPixelStore[5], or from Gouley[6], who appear to be the original manufacturers of these. But I've had good luck with PaulZhang's store on AliExpress, so its the one I can attest to. [1]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806033455595.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806033455595.html [2]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807344866216.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256807344866216.html [3]: https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804734568668.html https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804734568668.html [4]: https://wasatchlights.com/products/permanent-track-lights https://wasatchlights.com/products/permanent-track-lights [5]: https://yourpixelstore.com/product/pucks-set-of-5-30mm/ https://yourpixelstore.com/product/pucks-set-of-5-30mm/ [6]: https://goulyled.com/ https://goulyled.com/
  - cmdrsammo 2y ago
    Brilliant, thank you for the original blog post and this detailed response!
    - paradox460 2y ago
      Absolutely. Its a fun rabbit hole to go down, and the only constraining factors are time, money, and imagination.

jedberg 2y ago

First you'll need a controller. Falcon Christmas is sort of the gold standard. You can buy just the board and assemble it yourself, or you can get a prebuilt controller. I'd suggest a prebuilt for your first one. Then you'll need LEDs. My favorite vendor for LEDs is Wally's Lights[0], but there are others. The big choice you have to make is 12v vs 5v. Most people do 12v because you can make a much longer string of lights before you have to do what's called power injection, which is where you splice in a power boost. However 12v lights obviously use more power. Also, most of the pre-built things are 12v. I actually use primarily 5v, but at this point I'm about 1/3 12v because I got props from other people. You're actually starting at exactly the right time, all the vendors do big sales in January. Then you'll need something to put the pixels into. There are lots of options here. Strips, props, grids. After you watch some videos you'll have a better idea of what you want. Also after you figure out your layout. Then you need to get Xlights[1]. Xlights is actually a good place to start, because it gives you an idea of what kind of things you can make. You can actually start with putting a layout on Xlights to see what you want to buy. But, before all that, you'll want to learn. These are my favorite YouTube channels: https://www.youtube.com/@CanispaterChristmas https://www.youtube.com/@CanispaterChristmas https://www.youtube.com/@NiFamilyLights https://www.youtube.com/@NiFamilyLights Watch some of the starter videos to get an idea before you buy anything. :) [0] https://wallyslights.com/ https://wallyslights.com/ [1] https://xlights.org https://xlights.org

wolrah 2y ago
> However 12v lights obviously use more power. This is incorrect. The same number of lights at the same brightness will use give or take the same wattage. The increase in voltage leads to a decrease in amperage. Larger installs should actually use slightly less power because the higher voltage loses less to resistance in the wires, the same reason utility-scale power distribution is done at higher voltages than anyone actually uses. There are some individual "12v" LEDs that are just a lower voltage LED plus a big resistor to bring 12v down to a level the LED can survive which do obviously waste a lot of power but that would be a really silly design for a multi-LED assembly.
- jedberg 2y ago