Just keep in mind that with a LE or similar AC powered controller ... you turn on/off an ENTIRE STRING of whatever you have plugged into that channel, or fade it up or down. Thats it, there is no changing of colors or culb level control ... just string/item level control ... and usually one color per channel, because you usually plug a string (or strings) of same color into each channel ... and traditional AC power for each string/item plugged into that channel. So in that world, to change colors, you plug in a red string on channel 1 and a green string on channel 2 and a clear string on channel 3. Those controllers tend to be 16 channel per (most common) and a pretty high cost per channel.
When you start talking about smart strings, now your talking about being able to control "each bulb" and 3 channels (R,G,B) to control the color of each bulb, potentially. You can also treat them like a string if you want (either in software and/or using various string and/or hybrid modes by programming the SSC for such use). You can also buy a slightly cheaper "dumb string" and use a DSC (vs. a SSC) to control the string, but now the string can change colors, just not "per bulb" on a dumb string ... and a dumb string requires 3 channels to control the entire string.
So while a traditional 3 color megatree used to require 16 x 3 (for 3 colors, say red, green, clear) ... a smart string megatree would require just 16 strings ... and each string is capable of ANY color you want. You can also do a lot more than just spins around the tree and color changes.
The smart strings are using 12v power vs. traditional AC power ... and because of this, the ATX power supply that feeds the SS HUB, can then inject power for the attached smart strings over the cat5 between the SS HUB and the SSC (smart string controllers).
And when you consider a $100 Etherdongle can potentially control (up to) 16k pixelnet channels ... and each $10 SSC can potentially control (128 x 3), or 384 pixelnet channels ... you can quickly see its a different animal ... lots more channels, but more channels required to control also, esp. if your intersted in bulb level (vs. string level) control.
DSC allows a middle ground of using slightly cheaper "dumb strings" and a DSC (vs. a SSC) ... and then 3 channels controls the entire RGB string, but no 'bulb level' control is possible, but its still pretty awesome when compared to say using 3 AC channels to control three different colored strings of lights.
I forgot that your doing a battery powered show?? But if you are, check into the LiOn 12v battery packs available on ebay. They are rechargable, about $10 each ... and quite a bit of capacity on each pack. I've used some of those, but don't know exactly how long they'd last for a lot of smart strings. My use was for a portable display item that my kids could wear. I also did a different sized pack to power a Lynx Tx (in DMX recv mode) ... and it works fine using a 8v power pack, same source. MOst of the battery packs are 12v, but they also have them in other voltages, like the 8.4 volt I used for the Tx. I ran it by RJ and because the different between 8.4 and 7 is less, there isn't the problem you'd have trying to run a Tx using 12v pack.
