Some great thoughts Sean .. and nice posts from others. I am curious if all the sites have fallen off or if it's just a sign of the times. Sites like DoItYourselfChristmas.com and FalconChristmas.com might be the benefactors of the shift in technologies.
I joined DLA in 2009 but at the time I was very involved with LOR after getting a lot of attention for being the first in my town with a sync lights and music display. I liked watching the progression of offerings here, but I didn't see a good blend with LOR. But now that I am leaving LOR and moving to Falcon Pi Players, I want to move my entire display to DMX, instead of the mix of LOR and DMX I've had for several years. It's quite exciting to be able to run multiple computers sync'd wirelessly, all running the same sequence !
So many displays have moved entirely to pixels and that's just too much downtown Las Vegas for me. I don't want my display to lose all of its classical edge. So I plan to keep at least a few hundred channels of AC lights. Therefore I see a very good fit for the incredibly stable Lynx Express AC controllers to replace my LOR. Of course I could keep LOR and just run them as DMX controllers, but there is just too much baggage with having to translate the LOR Unit/Channel to DMX, and creating adapter cables. Also if any new flash is required, I would still have to fire up my LOR software just to flash them. YUK. The only reason I would consider doing this is if I decide to run some higher power light strings. Rectified Warm White LEDs have all but erased that need, and with much higher long term reliability.
For 2016 I plan to make DLA my ongoing home for AC DMX controllers, and I'll probably stick with Sandevices controllers for pixels since I know them and already own a handful of them. For anyone trying to grow their display on a tight budget, Lynx and Sandevices are a solid choice for anyone !