Grinch still available?

C

chathorne

New member
Hey guys,

I have been reading through this forum over the past couple years. i think it is time to take the plunge.
i have 2 kids, 8&4. my daughter (8) is staring to get into electronics and wants to build a light show.
i will be helping her, but this is HER show. i am just there for labor and funding!

so since she will be soldering and sequencing, i thought we should keep it simple and go with the Grinch.
we already have a ton of 100ct inca strings in various colors, icicle lights for the roof line, and some C7 Leds to line the roof line also.

i know that most of you guys are way past what i am trying to put together, but we are on a tight budget and trying to use what we already have.

i figured we would make some arches, mini trees, a few candy canes, a couple spot lights on some wreaths, maybe border the windows.


so i guess my first question is, are the boards for the Grinch still available?

Thanks,
Carl
 
The member (wjohn) that used to supply the boards has not been to the site in over two years, so it is unlikely. You might be able to pick up one used, but that might not be a good idea. Very few modern PCs have a parallel port that the Grinch needs to run. The most common AC controllers are the Renard SS series. They have great documentation and there are thousands of them in use.
WayneJ still sells the kits here http://doityourselfchristmas.com/fo...ilable-(current-12-20-16)&p=228121#post228121
 
Hi Carl,

I have a whole box of Grinch boards and converters that I don't use anymore since I started to use some pixels. If your interested in some I will give you a good deal on some used stuff. Finding bare Grinch boards will be an issue for you as they have become extremely rare the past couple of years. I also have the converter boards to allow an RS485 interface to your computer. Most who still have Grinch controllers want to hang on to them.

If you are interested let me know and I will get with you regarding cost. I am currently in Florida but traveling home tomorrow, so there might me a slight delay in any response.
 
You may want to change up your thinking. I started with a Grinch and within a year switch to a Ren64. You will need to still build the SSRs for either, they both handle 64 channels. The Grinch is only on off control. The Ren64 will also give you the ability to fade. Might be a better starting point.
 
I think building up a couple of Renard 8 or 16 channel boards would be the way to go. That would be a fun soldering project to do along with your daughter.

This is my first year and I have involved my two teens in the project. My daughter loves sequencing and is good at soldering. My son loves to build the props and frames etc. Together we have build a nice smaller show, however it was still a lot of work. One thing I underestimated was just the sure amount of money I would spend on cable, extension cords etc to get power, data, etc to where I needed it.

I have spent the last 3 years working with kids and mentoring in electronics, programming, 3D design and printing, soldering etc. I find that most of them really love this stuff and are naturals at it. Good luck and I applaud you for involving your kids. The skills they will learn doing this project will take them far.

Regards,

Kevin


My only advice to you from my experience is to start soon. There is a lot to learn and understand.

Kevin
 
I bought a box full of grinch stuff a few years ago and never got around to getting it setup. I can check on what I have when I get home tonight as well if you are interested. Its been quite some time since i opened that box so i dont know what i have.
 
Hi Carl,

I have 3 fully assembled and functional Grinch boards. I also have 1 fully assembled and functional Ren-C board that will add the ability to dim all 64 channels of one Grinch controller board. These were not assembled by me, I bought them from another forum member.

Let me know if there is interest.
 
I have been using my own hand made breadboard circuits to run 3 printer ports and one 8 channel PCI board. This gave me 44 channels that have been running for many years on my Christmas display. I want to go up to at least 64 channels now. I started to build my own Grinch breadboard a few years ago, but there does not seem to be anyone building them any more. I need to know what the traces on the original Grinch look like so I can wire up my breadboard. If anyone still has a working Grinch that they would not mind parting with I would be interested. Thank You.
 
The Grinch was old technology when I got here, and I've been here for many years now. The natural evolution to that product seems to have been the renard products. As Mike said, it takes it to the next step and does dimming. There's many variations to the renard boards, but they all run similar firmware and pic chips. You've got the Renard SS, and also the Renard Plus versions. I prefer the Renard plus as it uses more modern parts with a lower overall parts count. Plus it seems that it's easier to get the Renard Plus boards these days as the SS group buys aren't nearly as common as they used to be. But it's personal preference which you like better. Another good option is looking at Dave's digwdf store, which will be closing at the end of the season. He's got a bunch of less common renard board configurations and they're all on closeout now or soon.
 
I'd also recommend a Renard controller for traditional AC lighting but would advise you consider doing pixels instead. Mains voltage isn't kid friendly and there's a lot of it exposed on those boards. You could get an ESPixelStick ($20 or less) or Renard Plus ESP Stick $13, a power supply and one or more strings of pixels. With that you can make some props and play around with sequencing. You can also start with indoor props so you don't have to weatherproof anything. There's not much time left this year either. Your total cost could be around $50 - $75 and your kids have less risk of being electrocuted. If you still want an outdoor show, put out your AC lights and just add some sequenced pixel props.
 
I this how I would PM you? I am new to forums like this and am not familiar with the gargon. I am a A+ certified computer so I can build and repair computers.
 
I did buy 4 Renard 32 Plus controllers but I cannot get them to work, the green led does not come on. I am not sure how comfortable I am using these types of boards that have to programmed. In my Christmas display I wrote my own Visual Basic version that I call Rudolf. The reason I wrote it was 2 fold. ! I did not have the money to but software, and 2 this works on computer as slow as 166 Mega hertz and Windows 98. I made all this back in 2007 and it has been working reliable for all these years.
 
Ricki Baron said:
I did buy 4 Renard 32 Plus controllers but I cannot get them to work, the green led does not come on. I am not sure how comfortable I am using these types of boards that have to programmed.
Click to expand...

I'm sure someone can help you troubleshoot those controllers. Start a new thread and we'll see if we can get you going. Make sure you describe the exact controller you're using and whether or not you've programmed it. Pictures would help too. If you're not getting a green light then you probably have an assembly issue. With regards to programming, you only have to do it once if you chain the controllers. We can help you figure it out or someone might be willing to program the IC's for you.
 
That would be great. I will work on getting pictures and a full explanation about where I am at. Last year I was running 18,000 lights through 44 channels, but this year Ia m wanting 64 channels so that I can run lighted arches across my driveway.
 
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