Hello from New Zealand.

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Kelvin Gordon

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Jan 1, 2020
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This Christmas will be my first display and I will be starting from scratch. I am an engineer, so props should not be an issue. Any help with controllers would be appreciated
 
Welcome along to ACL @Kelvin Gordon !
The Kiwi's are slowly taking over.

There is also the group xLights NZ on Facebook:

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Controller is a tough one... short answer is this covid causing chip shortages.
Falcon controllers may come in stock if a batch gets made, I wouldn't hold your breath on one though. (Falcon does have a Warehouse in AU that ships to NZ).

Next controller option that's cheaper and more radially avaliable is a Pi cape or BBB cape.
Hanson Electronics in AU sells his own controllers and capes.

There's also cheap ESP32's ($20 from Surplustronics) and load W-LED onto them. That would be a good starter to play around with pixels.
 
Mark_M said:
Welcome along to ACL @Kelvin Gordon !
The Kiwi's are slowly taking over.

There is also the group xLights NZ on Facebook:

Log in to Facebook

Log in to Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family and people you know.
www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
Controller is a tough one... short answer is this covid causing chip shortages.
Falcon controllers may come in stock if a batch gets made, I wouldn't hold your breath on one though. (Falcon does have a Warehouse in AU that ships to NZ).

Next controller option that's cheaper and more radially avaliable is a Pi cape or BBB cape.
Hanson Electronics in AU sells his own controllers and capes.

There's also cheap ESP32's ($20 from Surplustronics) and load W-LED onto them. That would be a good starter to play around with pixels.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the reply. I have been looking at Advateks, The PixLite 16 Mk2 Control Board. It looks like it costs a bit to ship electronics to New Zealand so I might as well get something to future proof my setup. They tell me they will have stock in around mid Feb but wanted to get some feed back on them first.
 
Kelvin Gordon said:
Thanks for the reply. I have been looking at Advateks, The PixLite 16 Mk2 Control Board. It looks like it costs a bit to ship electronics to New Zealand so I might as well get something to future proof my setup. They tell me they will have stock in around mid Feb but wanted to get some feed back on them first.
Click to expand...
Falcon and Kulp are the main players seen in this hobby. Mainly because Falcon/Kulp came in for cheaper controllers compared to commercial ones.
AdvaTek is also supported by xLights for automatic configuration.
AdvaTek is more of a commercial brand, and it works perfectly fine in a pixel display. Same level playing field as Falcon/Kulp in terms.


What ever you can afford/buy right now is my best answer. They all work fine.
 
I would avoid Advatek at the moment, their prices are extremely high NZ$483.01 including a surcharge due to chip shortages, not including postage for the Pixlite 16 Mk2. These boards this time last year were going for just over $300NZD
I still stand by the He123Mk2 from Hanson Electronics, Cost effective and can allow room for expansion in the future.
 
Agreed with NEL on this one. I sent out a query to Advatek, and their surcharge went up in the two days I was waiting for a response. Prices are inflated $70AUD/$50USD above their usual retail due to the surcharge.
HE123 will cost you $120AUD + $90AUD for the BBB, plus shipping.
 
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