Hi, North Tasmania!

G

Gooliez

New elf
Joined
Dec 31, 2025
Messages
15
Location
Spreyton, Tasmania
Hi guys,

So I'm looking into Xlights trying to set some things up before my electrical side of things arrived. I've ordered some 100 node strings from "Paul Zheng"

now i have a few questions if you have the time to answer.

1. Say i have a 50 node display and i have the 100 node cables, Can i just cut the wire where i need and seal the end or does the line have to be cut at specific spots?

2. I'm looking at the Falcon F16 controller, It's a top line controller from what i see, however I'm wondering if it's the right choice for me. for starters i want to just do one side of the house. In the picture below i've added where i'd like to start with the lights and distances. if i put the F16 in the middle somewhere i will have to run a lot of the extension cables to get to what i want to do and network them all back to my main Ubiquiti Network setup. Cat 6 cable seems a lot cheaper somehow than the 3 core flat ribbon.

other option is I use multiple smaller controllers say 2 x Baldrick 8 port Pixels and run them back to the switch or can you daisy chain them? looks like they only have 1 network port from what i can see.

3. If going down the multiple controller route, when i do a scan on the controllers section of Xlights, is it just as simple setup as using 1 controller? do you have any issues if you mixed brands later down the track?

4. Currently playing with Xlights, I'll be looking at arches. I've had a quick google and cant seem to find the answer. I'll be having about 6 Arches across the front near the box hedges. from what i can see, you can daisy chain them, say 100 nodes over say 4 arches or should i do individual runs?



I'm sure i will have tonnes more questions, but i'll pop them in an appropriate thread when I come across them

Thanks !
 

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Hi Gooliez and welcome,

1. If they are regular bullet pixels, they can be cut anywhere along the string. Some of the 12V and higher 'strip' style have 1 control chip per 3 or 6 LEDs, and need to be cut in specific locations, which are marked.
2. Multiple small controllers is a good way to go. You have more flexibility, and you only need power and ethernet. Don't use CAT cable for the lights themselves, it doesn't have the conductor diameter required for the currents involved at 5/12V.
3. Yep You just define multiple controllers. No issues mixing brands. I have 5 different brands in my show (I'm counting all the different FPP based controllers as as a single brand):
1767145776524.png
4. I create my arches as independent objects and put them in a group - that way they can be connected any way you like. It also fits in with the way most seqeuences are made.
 
Skymaster said:
Hi Gooliez and welcome,

1. If they are regular bullet pixels, they can be cut anywhere along the string. Some of the 12V and higher 'strip' style have 1 control chip per 3 or 6 LEDs, and need to be cut in specific locations, which are marked.
2. Multiple small controllers is a good way to go. You have more flexibility, and you only need power and ethernet. Don't use CAT cable for the lights themselves, it doesn't have the conductor diameter required for the currents involved at 5/12V.
3. Yep You just define multiple controllers. No issues mixing brands. I have 5 different brands in my show (I'm counting all the different FPP based controllers as as a single brand):
View attachment 30567
4. I create my arches as independent objects and put them in a group - that way they can be connected any way you like. It also fits in with the way most seqeuences are made.
Click to expand...
Thanks for that!

Yeah, regular Bullet pixels, 12V.

yeah wont be using Cat6 for lights, was more happy to do more runs of cat6 from multiple controllers to network, as it would work out cheaper than running multiple strands from one controller to lots of different strings.

guessing a couple of the Baldric 8 strings would be best for me then https://www.hansonelectronics.com.au/product/baldrick/
 
Gooliez said:
yeah wont be using Cat6 for lights, was more happy to do more runs of cat6 from multiple controllers to network, as it would work out cheaper than running multiple strands from one controller to lots of different strings.
Click to expand...
Yeah that's exactly the way to do it. Not to mention that for long runs on the DC/Pixel strands you will start to have data issues etc, whereas ethernet is good for 100 metres.

Gooliez said:
guessing a couple of the Baldric 8 strings would be best for me then https://www.hansonelectronics.com.au/product/baldrick/
Click to expand...
These are a fantastic starting controller, and I would recommend them to anyone getting into the hobby.
That's not to say the others aren't awesome as well - each have their use cases.
 
Welcome to the forum

From reading this thread so far, I think what needs to be explained is power injection. As you intend to use pixels, these can be connected directly to power supplies. Pixels are powered continuously and they are controlled by the controller sending data to them. This means that you only need to connect the data and usually the negative from the controller to the pixels. The WS2811 (or equivalent) signal that the controller sends to the pixels will go corrupt if the cable is too long but there are ways to make it travel long distances if needed.

Another option if you want multiple small controllers is to use a setup with differential receivers.

You can run your display items end-to-end. The advantages of doing this are:
- Fewer controller ports required
- Less wiring back to the controller

The main disadvantage is that when a single pixel fails, depending on the pixel type, this can cause all pixels daisy chained after it to stop working because the failed pixel isn't passing data to them. There are limits to the number of pixels that you can run end-to-end. My display has several outlines that are similar to yours. What I have done is found a length that conveniently fits into many places in my display. This happens to be 1.8 metres. I then made lots of 1.8-metre sections of pixels and I mount them end-to-end where longer runs are required. I also made spare sections. This means that if a pixel fails, the vast majority of the pixels in my outlines are in identical 1.8-metre sections and I can just swap out a section for repairs. This manages the problem where a failed pixel stops passing data on.
 
Thanks for the Reply i13, sorry about response delay!

was definitely thinking about end to end displays. i just havent learnt how to program it in Xlights yet. if you know of a video on how to do it, would greatly appreciate it. as it would save a lot of cables
 
Other than limiting the total number of pixels per port, you don't need to worry about setting up end to end displays in xlights. Just model the elements as you will physically construct them. For example, you have three windows. Likely you will want to construct the window frame as three distinct pieces. Just model it that way.

After you have the models created, go back to the controller tab and set up a controller with the vendor and model. Then use the visualize button and you can start to add the models to ports on the controller. Whatever your controller limit is or what your personal limit is (because you want to run high fps for example), the models can be moved around to match. This result then ends up with the physical connections required between props.
 
xLights does not need to know about how/where you power your pixels. It only sends data so that the pixels light up assuming that they are correctly powered.

Assuming that you have a controller that supports uploading your configuration from xLights, you would add this as an E1.31 controller in the Controllers tab. You can then draw your models. Each model has settings which allow you to define the controller port number. To daisy chain multiple models, assign them to the same controller and port. The Model Chain setting defines the order in which they are daisy chained.

Note that if you want to start sequencing or importing existing sequences, you can draw your models in xLights without defining the controller connection. This can be done later. Just be careful not to accidentally assign multiple models to overlapping channels as this will cause them to both display each other's effects and often incorrectly. Go to Tools -> Check Sequence to ensure that you haven't done this.
 
Hi , just curious where in Northern Tas are you situated ?
Im in Perth just out of Launceston . have been doing my display for a few years now.
 
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