SSC V2 has an output problem (prev - code has a bug)

[keitha43]

Did you swap the string on the controllers and were both controllers set to the same addresses?

If you were asking me both controllers were set to the same address but I didn't swap strings as I had errands to run before my vacation. Last year my strings were soldered directly to the ssc v1. This year I am changing how my tree will assemble by taping all my nodes to 1/2 x 3/4 strips of wood. So I am cutting off the old ssc's and attaching the new ssc v2's as I go along. I am still waiting on 3 pin connectors from Ray to make them quick change. When Mr Christmas reported this I just twist tied one of the old ssc v1 units that had the same address as one of my new units to a spare strand I had but it wasn't the exact same length. I will do everything exact with total different parts on Tuesday to see if I get the same results if nobody else that had v1 last year tries it before then. This changeover is taking much longer than expected. I have gone through 7 rolls of super 88 electrical tape and am only halfway done as it takes about 4 hours per strand. It is kind of a hybrid RJ Academy tree (except with pixel nodes) and Mr. Monkhouse colormotions tree.

Sent from my Thunderbolt using Tapatalk 2.

[MrChristmas2000]

All the controllers were set to the same address.

Will test more today but family company may interfere with getting it done.

[tbone321]

The only way to validate this issue is to use the same string on the two different controllers.  Unlike icans, LED's actually generate the color of the light which is why many people see the light output from them as "cartoonish" when compared to icans.  Different manufacturers have slightly different colors.  Just because they may have all come from Ray doesn't mean that the LED's making up the nodes were all sourced from the same manufacturer.  One of the ways to keep the costs down is to buy from whoever is selling for less at the time and since color consistancy between strings is not all that critical for Christmas lights, you may be seeing the results of that and not an issue of the SSC.

[urthegman]

I agree tbone I have strips from Ray where white has more of a blueish tint and others that have more of a reddish tint to them.

[pk]

Another thing is the voltage available for the last node of a long sting is lower than the first node. This will result in lower LED current and a difference in intensity and perceived color. 

[keitha43]

Okay after catching up some sleep after my mini vacation, I started testing again. The differences in color is the nodes themselves. My best guess is when mine started failing last Christmas season Ray sent me some extras nodes to replace as they failed. They look similar to the ip68 he replaced mine with after the season. They were the same width/circumference as opposed the the skinnier with flat sides as my originals and were sealed almost to the end where the wires go in. But there is a distinct difference in color between those and the ip68 version. Most noticable in white and purple(red & blue on). One interesting thing I noticed during testing is sometimes when you turn each slider off, then on, then off ect. you may get a different color occasionally if 2 strands are set to the same address. It is easier to see if you grab one slider and drag it down slowly you will see the strands pulse occasionally. If you use the keyboard and decrease one step at a time you will see the color change. Both version ssc's did it and it was random and only occasional. Since I never saw it happen during last years shows I am not going to worry about it.

[MrChristmas2000]

OK, solved my problem. I converted some of my SSC2s back to SS1s and the problem went away. What can I say.

[tbone321]

What exactly does that mean???

[MrChristmas2000]

I just determined the differences between V1 and V2 and made some engineering changes.

It's fairly simple but I won't post them here because it might make someone a little unhappy.

[keitha43]

I think I am seeing Mr. Christmas problem. I have just finished converting my pixel node mega tree to being attached to wood strips. 880 feet of electrical tape and weeks later I began testing my strips today. I have 12 strands 84 nodes long. Of the 12 only one performs correctly with a v2 ssc. The other 11 behave like this- I run my strings in hybrid mode so I test with the first 3 channels of the string to turn on all nodes of the strand at the same time. First I turn all 3 channels on to create white. I then turn off green and notice node 1 stays white. The rest are yellow but all should be purple. Turn them all back on then turn red off and the string turns red and the first node stays white. You can turn on and off each channel and the first node will usually be a different color. I have even seen node 1 be blue with all 3 channels turned off. With a v1 ssc the same string acts normally. I saw these same symptoms on 11 different strands and 11 v2 ssc's. I wonder if node 1 is being driven too strongly? Now part of the problem could be these ip68 nodes Ray replaced my original nodes I ran last year with. Although testing my original v1 ssc's fixed the problems I was seeing on v2 ssc's, I had 4 strands that still did strange things. 2 would lock on all white and on the other 2 had the last node turned white instead of the correct color. Taking the groung wire from the end of the string and connecting it to the ground at the beginning of the strand seemed to help that. Those 2 symptoms were with the v1 ssc's. I didn't not have to use any extra grounding on my original nodes last year but they did terrible with rain last year. Hence the replacement.

[keitha43]

Tonight I will test the 1 v2 that was working with other strands to see if it works on those and some other ssc v2's on that particular strand to see what happens. Also I will try reflashing a pic just for grins.

Sent from my Thunderbolt using Tapatalk 2.

[mykroft]

if the v2 ssc is overdriving the 1st pixel - one solution if you have the extra pixel is to set it as a null node?

Myk

[keitha43]

Okay did more testing tonight, the problem is being caused by the ip68 nodes Ray replaced my original nodes with in January. I determined this by attaching and testing the other 11 v2 controllers to the 1 strand (out of 12) that worked with the 1 v2 controller. All v2 controllers worked with that single strand. For some reason the v1 controllers seem to be able to compensate for whatever the problem with the strands is better than the v2 ssc's. RJ will probably have to weigh in on this. The only exception is on 2 strands white would freeze or the last node (#84) of the strand would become the wrong color. I read somewhere where someone connected the ground wire from the end of the strand back to the beginning which seemed to help the v1 ssc's but not v2's. To test the symptom turn on all 3 channels in hybrid mode to get whole string white. Then turn off blue channel. First node turns blue(?) and the rest of the string turns baby blue(?). The whole string should be yellow. I tried replacing the 1st node with a known good one and the symptoms didn't change. Reflashing with 1 null node just moved the 1st node symptom to the 2nd node. I noticed even during the start channell white flashing the the 1st node color seemed off but I could be mistaken as it is white and rapid. As a last ditch effort I have flashed one of my ssc v1's to test firmware and will let it run overnight (on 1 string) to see if I get a clue as to a faulty node somewhere. After 30 minutes so far all nodes working normally with the test firmware so far. I wish I had a test firmware for the ssc v2 to try as v1 ssc's seem to compensate better for whatever is wrong with these 11 strands. I may have to give up and order flexstrips or something unless I can locate the problems. Any help appreciated as I spent 1000 on the original nodes and then 250 for shipping to send my old ones back and get the ip68's. I am sure the flexstrips will be even more expensive.

[MrChristmas2000]

Okay did more testing tonight, the problem is being caused by the ip68 nodes Ray replaced my original nodes with in January. I determined this by attaching and testing the other 11 v2 controllers to the 1 strand (out of 12) that worked with the 1 v2 controller. All v2 controllers worked with that single strand. For some reason the v1 controllers seem to be able to compensate for whatever the problem with the strands is better than the v2 ssc's. RJ will probably have to weigh in on this. The only exception is on 2 strands white would freeze or the last node (#84) of the strand would become the wrong color. I read somewhere where someone connected the ground wire from the end of the strand back to the beginning which seemed to help the v1 ssc's but not v2's. To test the symptom turn on all 3 channels in hybrid mode to get whole string white. Then turn off blue channel. First node turns blue(?) and the rest of the string turns baby blue(?). The whole string should be yellow. I tried replacing the 1st node with a known good one and the symptoms didn't change. Reflashing with 1 null node just moved the 1st node symptom to the 2nd node. I noticed even during the start channell white flashing the the 1st node color seemed off but I could be mistaken as it is white and rapid. As a last ditch effort I have flashed one of my ssc v1's to test firmware and will let it run overnight (on 1 string) to see if I get a clue as to a faulty node somewhere. After 30 minutes so far all nodes working normally with the test firmware so far. I wish I had a test firmware for the ssc v2 to try as v1 ssc's seem to compensate better for whatever is wrong with these 11 strands. I may have to give up and order flexstrips or something unless I can locate the problems. Any help appreciated as I spent 1000 on the original nodes and then 250 for shipping to send my old ones back and get the ip68's. I am sure the flexstrips will be even more expensive.

EXACTLY!

It happened to me exactly the same way, even down to the first node blinking differenlty (blue n green n white) when doing the programming.

It was an extrememly frustrating experience and I too have a lot of $$$$ invested in pixels that behave differently with the v2 vs v1.

[keitha43]

I think I found a fix (at least it worked on the 1st string). Last year I wired my ssc's directly to the nodes. And on the strands further from the hub I used longer runs of wire between the ssc and the first node but still under the 6 foot limit. Last night while trying to sleep I wondered if adding the 3 pin connectors could be knocking the signal down to the first node too much. So extremely early this morning I got up and noticed the length of wire between the 1st node and the connector and between the connector and the ssc were indeed the shortest of the 12. So I cut out the connector completely and shortened the wire length from ssc to 1st node and the problem disappeared. So I added back the 3 pin connector but kept the distance short between ssc and 1st node and it stayed gone. Right now I have 2 feet between the ssc and 1st node with the 3 pin connector included in the measurement and will use that as my standard length. Just will need longer ethernet cables. One thing I do different is my 3 pin connector was not soldered directly to the ssc so I have wire going from the ssc to the connector. This allows me to open the pvc housing and pull the ssc out far enough to access the entire board as the wire can fold up inside the housing. The 2 feet includes that length of wire also. If I don't post in this thread again it means it is working on the rest of my strands as I attempt repairs in the evenings.