Hello from Victoria Australia

[cwguinther]

I've been watching some amazing light shows on YouTube the past 2 years and decided this year to climb in and see how deep the rabbit hole goes. I'm off to what I feel is a reasonable start having ordered a Falcon F48 controller and 5 smart deferential receivers from the US and various pixel strips and stars from a Aussie vendor. This morning I ordered 4000 WS2811 pixels, pigtails and wire from Ray WU. I've been playing with Xlights and have started designing a show that I feel is an achievable goal for my first year. I have still to decide on my enclosures and power supplies. All that said, anyone have any advise on what I should work on first (Enclosures, prop construction, sequencing)? Maybe even something else I haven't thought of?

 

[LawrenceDriveLights]

Sounds like you have made some great progress already sourcing bits and pieces and now the fun part of bringing it all together.

Not sure of your layout design as such, you may want to post a picture of your proposed layout.

Personally I would start with one or two simple props like Arches, they can be quick to make, and give you the confidence to move onto other types of props elements like house outlines, mini trees or any other display elements you like etc.

There is heaps of different options for various props like complete DIY, or semi - DIY using purchased coro props like stars, wreaths etc and it all depends on the final design you like.

Then once you determine your actual display layout I would then consider the enclosure builds to suit your layout (you can always make a simply mock up board to mount your F48, PSU's to etc for configuration and testing purposes etc).

You will discover there is lots of different ways to achieve the same outcome you want in this hobby, ie 5v vs 12v, Falcon F48 vs Falcon F16 or another type of pixel controller etc, and it all can be a little confusing at first. Ask for some advice if you want via this forum, ACL chat room and the Friday night zoom sessions are popular with the Aussie members as there is some very experienced people in ACL who will kindly provide you heaps of advice and tips.

There is also a ACL mini soon in Victoria which would be a great way to get some advise also

My last little bit of advice, take your time, test each prop etc as you go and enjoy the journey of designing and building a light display and you don't have to have everything in your first year doing a display and you can add a few new elements each year if you want.

 

[Mark_M]

having ordered a Falcon F48 controller and 5 smart deferential receivers from the US

@darylc has a group buy open now. Daryl supplies this side of the globe with Falcon boards.
David Pitts (Falcon board maker) doesn't ship to AU/NZ usually.
If you decide to ship from the US you'd need to use a re-shipper which can be expensive.

anyone have any advise on what I should work on first (Enclosures, prop construction, sequencing)? Maybe even something else I haven't thought of?

Roof & house outline and something on the lawn. From all this information you've gathered you sound capable to have large props and a complex layout on your first year.
Reach high! That above [^], arches, mega tree and mini trees!

I would definitely look about enclosures for smart diff boards and power supplies. CG-1500's? Depending on your setup.
I don't have an enclosure on my F48 because it's inside.

You might also want to look at Ethernet cable. Maybe a spool and crimp connectors, or buy premade?

For layout, possibly consider what other people have done to make it easier to import shared sequences.



I'm sure you'll work it all out. It's part of the fun!
Welcome to ACL @cwguinther !

 

[cwguinther]

I saw the information on the group buy for the falcon controllers however I had already ordered mine. Being originally from Texas, I just purchased it directly and had it shipped to family there along with a FM transmitter and then will have it all shipped by them to me. My only regret is that I only purchased 5 receivers but I believe that I should be able to make due with what I have already on the way.

As for ethernet cable, I was just planning on ordering a spool off ebay along with some connectors.

I have watched the Canispater Christmas videos on YouTube, which I found to be a great source of information and ideas, which helped me decide on which items to purchase.

 

[djgra79]

Officially welcome to ACL.
If you haven't done so already please take time to read the 101 manual, it covers a lot of the topics that are involved with animated lighting:

AusChristmasLighting 101 Manual

The AusChristmasLighting 101 manual is released for download for all registered site members. This manual provides guidence to the introduction and setup of different types of computer controlled Christmas displays that many of the members here have used. It is by no means a complete list of...

auschristmaslighting.com

And yes if you can make it down to Melbourne in June, I highly recommend you attend the mini. RSVP is at the top of this page:

Melbourne/Vic - Melbourne Mini 2020 - June 13-14 - CANCELLED

April 2020 update: Please note due to current restrictions on gatherings and the interest of public health & safety, the Melbourne mini will not be held in June as originally planned. However should circumstances change we may look to host a new event later in the year where possible. Stay tuned...

auschristmaslighting.com

 

[AAH]

Welcome to ACL.
What part of Vic are you in? Always good to see more Victorians lighting up even if they are originally from U.S.
If you plan on making up your own cat5 cables then there's some 2 part rj45 connectors that make the job probably 5 times easier. I'm having a mental blank on what they call them on Aliexpress and Feebay currently.

 

[Katekate]

the name for 2 part rj45 is garbage