2 wire strings?

S

strangesparks

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Just been around the stores, it looks like no one stocks the 3 wire strings anymore. And from what I understand the new 2 wire systems are a whole lot of trouble?
So... does anyone have a link to how these are wired, and how to adapt them to dmx controllers? Or should I flag the expansion/replacement scheme and focus on pixels for next year?
 
There's no simple solution to drive 2-wire strings at present.

I and at least one other person are working on adapter boards. I was also considering doing a 16 channel DMX controller for next year.
 
K-Mart and Target still have 3 wire icicles but I suspect that'll change next year at this rate. I think Masters had 3 wire strings but they're socketed so you might want to seal them up with silicone (a big job) to stop corrosion.

You still have the option of ordering custom strings such as from MySolarLED. I've never tried them but I've heard they're good. Just don't get the clear wire ones because the wires turn brown.

Also keep in mind that low voltage light sets without an 8 function controller will work.

Yes pixels are really the ultimate way to go in my opinion. I would have much more of a pixel setup if I had started from scratch instead of converting my existing static display.
 
Thanks for confirming my hunch that I won't be expanding this year. Probably a good thing in light of the investment of dmx board, PSU, dc-dc booster because I got the wrong PSU and the cheapest dmx dongle I could find (another faux pas). Only to discover pixels after I ordered all this. Better luck next year!
 
David_AVD said:
There's no simple solution to drive 2-wire strings at present.

I and at least one other person are working on adapter boards. I was also considering doing a 16 channel DMX controller for next year.
Click to expand...


Hi David_AVD. Are you going to produce an adapter board this year? That sounds like a good solution given that all of the lights I have found (so far) this year are 2 string...


Thanks heaps.
 
I did design a 2-wire board that has WS2801 input, but it's not something I'm offering for sale.

Alan (Hanson Electronics) has a DMX input 2-wire board (I've tried them) for a reasonable price.
 
Hi All,

New to this forum, so hello to everyone from a new member in England!

Just hoping to revive this thread as I’ve moved over to a Vixen/Falcon based control setup this year and although invested quite heavily in a couple of thousand pixels to get started, still want to be able to use the several thousand traditional gold led fairy lights I put in my garlands etc.

They are of course the 2 wire multifunction type LED strings, which from what I’ve read seem a royal pain in the behind to control, so just wondering if a couple of years on from this initial conversation if any better solutions have arisen?

My backup plan essentially is to put a DMX controlled relay board between the multifunction plug in psu and the light string, this would give basic switch control of each string for sequencing, but no dimming.

Is the Hanson board still the best option for these lights, and does it enable you to dim the led strings? Would be a much neater solution than my backup plan, if for no other reason that using a common power supply rather than all the individual plug in psu’s.

If so does anyone know of a way to buy these in the UK?

Many Thanks, Steve.
 
Hi Steve
Currently the only way to get them to UK is just to buy them from my site. I have been talking to someone in UK who may stock them in the future but that's a bit late for this year. The DMX2-18 allows you 255 levels of dimming independently for the 2 halves of the string (every 2nd led). You can also flick a switch on the board that allows you to run the entire string as if it were 1 channel rather than 2.
 
Ive been working on a design that uses E1.31 (ethernet), only 4 channels, but I seem to have it working pretty stable now. If they're successful, I might share my code and a schematic for it. I do electronics as a hobby, so the design may be a bit under-engineered. Also, they're cheap to make, less then $15 a board with the parts from Aliexpress and boards made by PCBWay.
IMG_20181126_221727~2.jpg
 
strangesparks said:
Just been around the stores, it looks like no one stocks the 3 wire strings anymore. And from what I understand the new 2 wire systems are a whole lot of trouble?
Click to expand...

depending on what you want to do they are not that different, what I've been struggling with is to find anything that can double the line frequency, if you can send down the 24v A/C signal at 120hz and have the ability of controlling the outbound wave form you'll be golden... I've yet to figure out the cabling diagram to see if I can just add a third wire myself
 
Controlling 2-wire strings with an Arduino and H-bridge is not very hard to do. You can choose your own frequency and dimming method. There's possibly Arduino code out there for 2-wire strings now.
 
Pesle said:
Ive been working on a design that uses E1.31 (ethernet), only 4 channels, but I seem to have it working pretty stable now. If they're successful, I might share my code and a schematic for it. I do electronics as a hobby, so the design may be a bit under-engineered. Also, they're cheap to make, less then $15 a board with the parts from Aliexpress and boards made by PCBWay.
View attachment 13129
Click to expand...

did you end up making these ?
 
David_AVD said:
Controlling 2-wire strings with an Arduino and H-bridge is not very hard to do. You can choose your own frequency and dimming method. There's possibly Arduino code out there for 2-wire strings now.
Click to expand...
Thankyou for this BTW, this is how I'm running all my A/C stuff now
 
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