DiyLightAnimation
Hardware => Lynx Smart String => Topic started by: aERonAUtical96 on December 23, 2013,
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Could we get a thread going here where everyone documents the specs on their pixel megatrees? I'm ready to make the jump next year but would like to see what has worked for others.
Answer questions like:
Height of tree
Base diameter/radius
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc)
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips)
Number of support strands
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc)
Number of pixels / strand
Number of pixels / ss controller
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub)
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS)
Any other information that might help someone out.
Links to build/description threads/videos/etc.
I'm hoping that this could be a centralized info thread (maybe eventually sticky) and this information could go into the wiki.
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Height of tree - 7ft
Base diameter/radius 3.5 ft dia
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) 180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) TM 1809 flex from wiki
Number of support strands what does this mean
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) zip tied to 1/2 emt
Number of pixels / strand - 1/2 flexstrip
Number of pixels / one ssc controller per one complete flex strip cut in half and connected together
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) SSC
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle ETD 2013 and USB 2012
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) vixen 2.1 w/ NC
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Height of tree 12'
Base diameter/radius 7'
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) 180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) ss wiki nodes
Number of support strands 16
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) 3/4 PVC
Number of pixels / strand 50
Number of pixels / ss controller 100
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) SSC V4/Active Hub
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle Etherdongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) Vixen 2.1/Nutcracker
I spaced them at 2.75". Pipes touch at the top and are spaced around 8" at the bottom. Looks amazing with pictures and words.
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Height of tree: 15 1/2 ft.
Base diameter/radius: 10 ft.
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) : 180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips): flex strip from wiki
Number of support strands: 16
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc): Galvanized Rigid conduit for center pole, 1/2" EMT supports
Number of pixels / strand: 120
Number of pixels / ss controller 120
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub): SSC off of Active and Passive hubs
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle: Etherdongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS): xLights/Nutcracker
The base of my center pole is based off of Walter Monkhouse's design for the Portable Hole II, the topper and pixels supports are based off of Sean Meighan's tree setup. Used cut sections of T-post secure the center pole and to create anchors for the 1/2" EMT with bungee cord.
(http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0109.jpg)
http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0109.jpg (http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0109.JPG)
(http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0110.jpg)
http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0110.jpg (http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0110.JPG)
(http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0111.jpg)
http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0111.jpg (http://www.familydomain.net/pictures/Christmas/IMG_0111.JPG)
For wet area's like I am in, I will be switching to waterproof connectors on everything, the CAT5 pigtails did not survive. Most of them all got wet and corroded.
Steve
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Great thread topic.
I would like to add into the spec request is the spacing on the pixels vertically, although a little math on the spreadsheet will figure a lot of that out.
And a rating on ability to show an animated gif or words too would be great. That way we could learn if a 10' tree with 32 strings in 180 with 2" spacing will show a smiling santa or say merry christmas or what you might need to do ..
Thanks for the thread fellows.
Alan
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Height of tree 10'
Base diameter/radius 6'
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) 180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) Nodes
Number of support strands 12
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) Nylon Strapping
Number of pixels / strand 40 @ 3" spacing
Number of pixels / ss controller 40
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) SSC and Active Hub
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle Etherdongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) Nutcracker and Vixen for sequencing. xLights for scheduling and running the show
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Height of tree - 10'
Base diameter/radius -10'
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) -180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) - flex
Number of support strands -0
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) -abs base and PVC for strips
Number of pixels / strand -95(ish) per strand, 12 strands
Number of pixels / ss controller
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) - was on active hub but moved to f16 so I could repurpose active hub for longer runs
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle - etherdongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) - xlights to sequence, Pi to schedule and play
....and some pics of in progress build
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Height of tree 10'
Base diameter 6'
View in degrees 180
Type of pixels SSNodes
Number of support strands 8 (but planning to go to 12)
Material for support pvc conduit
Number of pixels / strand 36 pixels
Number of pixels / ss controller 72
Controller type 4 SSCs off of Active Hub plus one ssc for star
Pixelnet Dongle but switching to ether dongle next year
Software used xLights & Vixen2
Any other information that might help someone out.
3" PVC center pole
Cut bottom at about 8" and built into a concrete base inside a plastic container about 1' x 2' x 6" deep
Put female threaded coupler on base and male thread coupler on pole so can dismantle for moving and storage
Cap with screw hooks on top to hold the strand supports
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Height of tree: 14 ft
Base diameter/radius: 8 ft diameter
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc): 190
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips): flex strips
Number of support strands: 24
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc): 3/4" metal EMT
Number of pixels / strand: 120
Number of pixels / ss controller: 120
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub): 2 active + 1 passive hub & SSC V4
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle: Etherdongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS): Nutcracker
Any other information that might help someone out.
- Based on Sean Meighan's design (http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=10714.0) except the center pole is 1 3/4" EMT placed in slightly larger pipe that has been cemented in the ground.
- All CAT5 connections are inside marine battery boxes
Links to build/description threads/videos/etc.
- Here's what it looks like...
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Height of tree 30ft
Base diameter/radius 10ft
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) 180
Type of pixels (i.e SS Nodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) SS Nodes
Number of support strands 16
Material for support (i.e. PVC, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) Poly Rope
Number of pixels / strand 75
Number of pixels / SS controller 75nodes / 16 ssc
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) ssc off active hub
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle Pixelnet Dongle
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) Lightshow Pro
My setup has a custom star top with supports pulley to the top - I pull the star to the top of a 3 sections 2inch dia galv pole - then have 4 more pulleys mounted to the star hardware to pull up 4 smart strings for a total of 16 strings - if a string fault out only have to lower 4 strings and not the full star/string setup. the base is made from PVC 6inch dia under side has large holes drilled in to store the ssc and the base stands about 4 feet off the ground. It has been a monster in the making and looks awesome when it is going - but have learned a few thing on the way .....
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Height of tree: 25 ft
Base diameter/radius: 14 ft diameter
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc): 180
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips): SS nodes
Number of support strands: 16
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc): packing strap - probably attach those to EMT next year
Number of pixels / strand: 84
Number of pixels / ss controller: 84
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub): 1 active + 1 passive hub & SSC V1 & 3
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle: Etherdongle/Conductor
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS): Vixen 2.1 with Nutcracker
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Height of tree 16' on 1' leveled "D" base
Base diameter/radius: 8'10" diameter, 4'5" radius
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc) 180 half megatree
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips) SS Nodes
Number of support strands 48
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc) 1/2" PVC conduit with 3" node spacing ripped and drilled with custom jig; Frame is made of welded steel structure d rings on a heavy duty single piece pole with rebar structural supports. Tree is "tilt up" design where lights can be loaded horizontally then tree is tilted back up with two persons. Structure has ladder support at top for easy access and built in attachments for four aircraft cable guy wires. Tree is stable without any guy wires. Tree can be completely assembled or disassembled in about an hour using only a single socket wrench. Welded keys on mast ensure d rings can only be installed with correct orientation.
Number of pixels / strand 64. (24 strings of 128 nodes each)
Number of pixels / ss controller 9 strings/Z16#1, 9 strings/z16#2, 6 strings/Z16#3
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub) (3) zeus16 each with own ATX power supply
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle etherdongle#2
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS) LOR converted to xlights with pixel tree rgb added with nutcracker
Notes: a major goal was to attain consistent spacing/density in both horizontal and vertical planes. A custom jig was used to drill the SS node holes and a double pass on the table obtained a groove down the middle of the PVC conduit which allows easy insertion of the nodes and wires. No hardware is used to insert the nodes other than a large screwdriver to temporarily increase the gap when inserting each SS node into the conduit. The top of each conduit is about a 8" "finger" made of wire which allows for a great density of nodes at the top and every other conduit staggers the location of the last 3 nodes to avoid collisions. The graphics on this pixel tree are fairly decent, especially when scaled down ahead of time. Design changed for 2014 will include add "clips" like used my house RGB to the outer frame which will eliminate the need to use zip ties or wire when securing the conduit to the frame.
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Taybrynn,
What was your rationale for running 3 zeus' vs 2? Did you have to power inject? Any issues with running the full 128 nodes on a zeus channel?
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No injection needed, just wanted to use cheaper smaller atx power supplies so cheaper to do 3 Zeus vs 2 when you add up ps costs, plus gives added capacity if needed
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I can just copy this, picture almost looks exactly like my tree.
quote author=plaberge link=topic=13323.msg169970#msg169970 date=1388218590]
Height of tree: 14 ft
Base diameter/radius: 8 ft diameter
View in degrees (i.e. 180,220,360,etc): 190
Type of pixels (i.e SSNodes, 50/50 square, 50/50 rectangle, rigid strips, flex strips): (120) 1809 flex strips
Number of support strands: 20
Material for support (i.e. pvc, galvanized wire, packing strap, poly rope, etc): 3/4" metal EMT
Number of pixels / strand: 120
Number of pixels / ss controller: 120
Controller type (i.e. Zeus 16, Zues 8, SSC off of Active Hub): 2 falcon-16's
Etherdongle or Pixelnet Dongle: fpd
Software used (xLights. Vixen2/3, HLS): Nutcracker
Any other information that might help someone out.
- Based on Sean Meighan's design (http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=10714.0) except the center pole is 1 3/4" EMT placed in slightly larger pipe that has been cemented in the ground.
- All CAT5 connections are inside marine battery boxes
Links to build/description threads/videos/etc.
- Here's what it looks like...
[/quote]
thanks. you didnt ask but the bottom of the tree is 2' off the ground. this makes overall tree 16' tall.
also, 60 rectangular node coro star is driven with one ssc
sean
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I can just copy this, picture almost looks exactly like my tree.
It's a great design!
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I know this is an old thread. However I am putting up either a pixel strip mega tree or a pixel node mega tree this year. Would love to see some videos of everyone's mega trees in action!
Robert
Fayetteville, GA
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Here is mine I recently finished building. I'm using pixel nodes in PVC. 12 legs of 30 nodes high.
http://youtu.be/WhGjTJXkEUQ
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Todd how tall is that and what kind of pixel nodes are those?
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Todd how tall is that and what kind of pixel nodes are those?
It's about 8 feet tall, 10 when I put the star on top. It's using the tm1804 nodes listed in the wiki.
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Is there an advantage on that chip over others???
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Is there an advantage on that chip over others???
Not really besides they are the official nodes that RJ made sure worked with the SSC
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Here's a video from last Christmas.
http://vimeo.com/82612008
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plaberge - That is awesome!!!!!
What chip set is that you used in your strips. Do you have any other pictures of your setup?
That is my fear of doing a shorter tree. I would be afraid the graphics would not be as clear as it is on a taller tree like yours. Really nice.
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Thanks! I used flex strips from Ray Wu with TM1809 chips --> http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/4m-waterproof-LED-digital-strip-by-tube-DC12V-input-without-controller-10pcs-TM1809IC-m-30pcs-5050/701799_425556741.html I've included a close-up of the base that shows a bit more detail.
As noted above, I take no credit for the design: I followed the one posted by Sean Meighan --> http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=10714.0 with a few small changes. Since I used 1 3/4" EMT for the center pole, for the topper, I was able to use standard EMT connectors that mounted inside of rabbetted pieces of plywood sandwiched as shown in the pictures below.
While I also built the star from scratch, the design is from holidaycoro --> http://www.holidaycoro.com/product-p/124.htm See photo of star during construction.
Hope that helps!
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Paul thanks so much for the pictures. That does help. I looked through Sean's videos on his as well. Probably will end up using that type of construction on mine. I like the idea of being able to "hook up" the strip or leg. I don't think my 8ft ladder would reach ;-)
Over on the PC forum a fellow shared another video with me;
http://www.boydchristmasinlights.com/2013-videos.html
He said that this fellow used rectangle modules. I may end up having to go with that or the W2811 strips. The TM1809's are twice the price of the other strips. I hate it because I love the definition yours was able to crank out with those strips.
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Be carefull of WS2811 strips as there are 3 leds lighting for every channel. Greatly reduces your effect capability. WS2811 strips are great for eaves, windows, etc, but not fpr pixel trees or matrices.
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Jim,
What about W2811 nodes? I know the spacing is a littler further apart than those on the strips. Or maybe not if you get the 30 per meter strips. I seem to see more people using the nodes than strips. Even though folks doing the nodes are typically doing a more traditional tree.
Never heard back from you about getting together over here in PTC.
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Nodes are nodes, regardless of the chip being used. Each node is a separate item and are controlled individually. The only issue with the different chips is compatibility with the controller being used. With strips, it's a very different issue. Not only do you still have the compatibility issue, now you have layout issues as well. The standard layout in a strip is one chip per 3 LED's. The TM1809 has 9 outputs so it can seperately control each of the 3 RGB LEDs between it and the next TM1809. Since the W2811 only has 3 outputs, all three LED's are connected in parallel and must do the same thing. The primary advantage to nodes over strips os their flexability. You can control the spacing and they can be postioned any way you desire. Flex strips can only flex in one direction which while a positive in some ways, is a limit in others and depending on what you want to do ........
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tbone321 - ....and that is what I am seeing now as well. The flexibility issue. Leaning more toward nodes with the info I now have. Thanks.
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here is a quick video of my mega tree. It is 16 strands, 10',180 deg. At the end it shows some text.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kobfEL_UWEk&list=UUNsqmSnjasD_8fWzSO1l8PA
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Rick what kind of strips????
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They are the ones in the wiki TM1804 smart string nodes.
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:( Ok. Those are the strings I might not be able to get. REALLY don't want to go fewer than 12 and honestly want between 16 to 20 so it will be a fuller 180 deg. Just too rich for my blood right now. Will probably order some WS2811 nodes tomorrow :(
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Thanks! I used flex strips from Ray Wu with TM1809 chips --> http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/4m-waterproof-LED-digital-strip-by-tube-DC12V-input-without-controller-10pcs-TM1809IC-m-30pcs-5050/701799_425556741.html I've included a close-up of the base that shows a bit more detail.
As noted above, I take no credit for the design: I followed the one posted by Sean Meighan --> http://diylightanimation.com/index.php?topic=10714.0 with a few small changes. Since I used 1 3/4" EMT for the center pole, for the topper, I was able to use standard EMT connectors that mounted inside of rabbetted pieces of plywood sandwiched as shown in the pictures below.
While I also built the star from scratch, the design is from holidaycoro --> http://www.holidaycoro.com/product-p/124.htm See photo of star during construction.
Hope that helps!
Paul (and others!) - Thanks so much for your help. Finally made a decision and placed my order.
I am going to use yours and Sean's design. However I am going to use the WS2811 nodes. Going to go with 24 legs with 50 nodes (12v) each at 3" spacing. I am hoping to use sch 40 pvc (for cost) or conduit for the legs. Going to do one of Holidaycoro's stars with 10 2811 modules in it.
Now....I have to go buy another power supply. Looks like I am going to use 4 power supplies for this many nodes :-)
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Height of tree 10'
Base diameter 6'
View in degrees 180
Type of pixels SSNodes
Number of support strands 8 (but planning to go to 12)
Material for support pvc conduit
Number of pixels / strand 36 pixels
Number of pixels / ss controller 72
Controller type 4 SSCs off of Active Hub plus one ssc for star
Pixelnet Dongle but switching to ether dongle next year
Software used xLights & Vixen2
Any other information that might help someone out.
3" PVC center pole
Cut bottom at about 8" and built into a concrete base inside a plastic container about 1' x 2' x 6" deep
Put female threaded coupler on base and male thread coupler on pole so can dismantle for moving and storage
Cap with screw hooks on top to hold the strand supports
Can you show any pics of how you hang your strings?