DUMB STRING PROJECT

[kfxi]

I am in the process of building a display that uses 72 strings of dumb strings, I am currently building the 72 Dumb String Controllers V1 and I need to know how many active hubs I will need and how many passive hubs I will need.  What is the difference between active and passive hubs.   Am I correct in my understanding that Ether Dongles can do 512 channels of leds and the rest can be used for Pixels?  How many 12 volt power supplies will I need to power the 72 strands of Dumb Strings and can anyone tell me a good one to buy?  I hope the COOPS start soon I have the itch to build.

Ken

[rrowan]

Wow 72 controllers (starting out small huh)

Well I would guess you need 5 hubs (Active or Passive 16 ports) 72/16 = 4.5

Active Hub outputs both Pixelnet and DMX
Passive Hubs outputs Pixelnet

Etherdongle outputs 16384 channels of Pixelnet
The Active hub can mirrors chunks of 512 of dmx per your choosing.

I would do one power supply per Hub

Coops should start soon

Rick R.

[rdebolt]

It depends on how many lights that you are going to use as well. You can also use 4 port passive hubs depending on your set up. I will be using a lot of the 4 port hubs for my roof this year. You can break those off of your passive or active hub. The 4 port does need a power supply source to the hub itself. You just need to really watch your amperage and not exceed recommended.

[kfxi]

Thanks for the info,  Iwill be runing 70 Pixels per string.  I am considering buying Light Show Pro,  I have been running Vixen but now that I am moving up to pixels I thought I might need a program that handles pixels better.  Is Light Show Pro the best program for Pixels?

Ken

[jnealand]

I would not be so quick to write off Vixen.  I ran just under 7000 pixels last year using Vixen.  xlights/nutcracker helps a lot with programming them.  With LSP you will face another big learning curve, but once you get the concept of what it is trying to do then it is fine also.  Vixen 3 should also be out this year.  I own LSP, LOR, and use Vixen, but what do I know.  2013 will be the year for big software changes in my opinion.  YMMV

[drlucas]

+1 on the excitement for the coops starting soon. I've been holding off buying a board (active or passive) from the store because of what Zeus looks to bring. 

[zwiller]

It might be a little late, but you could save a ton of money and time running 8 of Ray's 27 channel controllers for 72 dumb strings (216 channels).  Each could be fitted with his power supply mounted in a CG1500 case and would be nice clean setup. 

I run LSP and I do think it is a great rgb solution but with 200-300 channels Vixen can do the job.