Since I am all 12VDC rgb with the exception of my aethers... It raises a question. Could my aether IIs be modded (next year of course!) for 12VDC and pixelnet firmware be developed for the aether II. They need 35W and that is under the SS limit. (35W/12V=2.9A). It would be pretty slick and elegant to plug the aether into a hub port via cat 5... Obviously daisy chaining is out but that's OK with me.
The 35W power is not an issue wrt pixelnet. Power for the LED comes from the AC current.
The incoming DMX does not provide power -- and if you were successful in getting a pixelnet firmware change, it would not draw from the powered-Pixelnet.
I like the idea.
But there are multiple options available to you.
1) use the active hub to get your DMX signal
2) use the soon-to-be-available Pixelnet-to-DMX converter -- it can be located with the hub, or close to your chain of Aethers
But, the firmware change is certainly attractive!