Questions about Mega Tree and house outline

H

Hi-Proof

New member
First let me say hello as I?m a new member here. I?m also green to this entire RGB thing but willing to tinker and learn and I?m good with electronics. Fact is I designed and build controllers in conjunction with electric heating of boilers used in distillery equipment and send them all over the world. Forgive me if my questions have been already asked.

To start I am planning a house outline and a Mega Tree in the near future. I?m aware that this time of the year, being close to Christmas supplies are short but I have lots of time before next December. The tree wants to be 360 degrees and roughly 12 feet high. Can anyone recommend a kit to me that I might research before buying?

Do these types of controllers come set up to run software that is easy to run and program? Where does one get custom scripts? IE I saw a YouTube video of a tree running God bless the USA and it was awesome, that alone hooked me. And because my wife runs a day-care facility with over 70 children I figure to make a great show for them.

I would like to have controllers inside the house and since our home is a raised ranch there?s plenty of room downstairs for the hardware. To accomplish this feat will a F-Amp work on each of the outputs from the controllers or should I run a extension before adding a F-Amp? Distance from the house to the tree will be roughly 100 feet. I would like to use 12v RGBs.

As far as the house outline what is my best option for a permanent rigid track to mount to the eaves for supporting RGB pixels? I am speaking of something compared to PermaTrack or the like.

Where is the best place to source RGB pixels, and which 12v type is recommended? I am very familiar with AliExpress BTW

I know, I know lots of questions! Thanks to all that respond.
 
Lots to unpack in this post but love the enthusiasm for getting this rolling.

For a tree "kit", I wouldn't even look at them, especially since it sounds like you are pretty handy and could source the right parts. The first thing I would do is go and design the specs in this website...
https://www.lightshowhub.com/tools/mega-tree-calculator

You can play around with the size, pixels, etc. so see what you need. Number of strips, pixels, power, etc. Then pull it all together. You wouldn't need a separate controller just for the tree, but this will help you get started.

All the controllers inside the house would be a hard, especially with the tree in one spot, then the house, and likely future expansion. The builds people do with outdoor rated boxes are impressive, so being outside shouldn't be a concern, but if you can try it and it works, that's something I am not an expert on at all.

Permanent mounting, or really "semi-permanent" mounting is something I've been researching. There will still be maintenance as pixels will go out over time, my thing is to plan it so when you do need a repair, it is easy to pull down and work on, or easy to do in the field.

Also, do a search for pixel vendors, there is a post somewhere with a good list. Some examples are Wallys, WiredWatts, even the Coro vendors and Mattos sell them now. They all come from a couple places in China so do a real long search before you decide where to get them. There should be sales in January from a lot of the vendors, you may have a little wait to get them, but you get a good price early in the year. I have been leaning towards Minleon 12V. They are on the high end of expensive, but for a long term application, is something I might invest in.

They "type" of 12V is another debate, regulated, resistor, that is something I won't start the flames here, but do a lot of searching and you will land on the one that works best for you.
 
For starters, even though you are well ahead of the game with your background, I'd take the Sgt. Schultz stance of "I know Nothing". Sign up on the Australian Site (https://auschristmaslighting.com) and download their 101 manual. It is written for those that actually might "know nothing", but it is packed with good information. Check out their Wiki as it starts out with "NEW to animated Christmas Lights". The link to the 101 manual is in the 3rd paragraph on this page.

There are quite a few videos out there to help you get started. I tend to recommend Keith Wesley's vids as he is one of the primary programmers for xLights (one of several) and really knows. I also recommend watching Canispater Christmas' tutorials.

Download both xLights and Vixen and see which one fits your style better. xLights has the greater following, but Vixen feels better to others in they way they do what they do. You choose.

Welcome to the madness. :thup:
 
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