LOR Tips needed

Hey guys,
This year is my first year doing lor light
I have 2 x 26channel controllers and looking at another
Can someone point me in the right direction as to where I can purchase lights from please to use with lor
Thanks

 

Are they 16, 24 or 26 channel? If 16 then I'm guessing that they are 240V controllers and lights that are truly 240V in Aus will be an issue. If the controllers are 24 channels then it a DC controller and you can get dumb (Chinglish spelling is dump) RGB lights from Ray Wu or similar. The fairy lights now available from Big W, Bunnings etc can't be used on a standard DC controller. It the controllers are 26 channel then I have no knowledge of what they are.
To use 2 wire/2 channel fairy lights from Big W etc you either live with only every other led working on it with a standard DC or my DMX2-18 is designed specifically for these lights.

 

If you have the AC controller then you will have issues as they are designed for 240 volt lights.
Basically they're not available in Oz and most of the Chinese imports do not meet OZ standards.
You cannot control the fairy lights that use transformers or the control boxes.
The AC controller can only be used to turn the lights on or off.
Using it for dimming and fast switching will cause the release of blue smoke - that's bad
The DC type controllers can control led lights and RGB dumb pixels from sellers such as Ray Wu.
The older type lights from the chain stores have three wires going to the LEDs. These can be used to full capacity with the dc controller.
The newer type lights have two wires and the control box circuitry flip flops the power between the strings of lights.
The dc controllers - with the exception of Hansen Electronics DMX2-18 controller, do not flip flop the power between the strings.
This means that every second LED will illuminate instead of all.

Post the model number of the controller (printed on the circuit board) and so we may further help you.

 

Sorry it should be 2 x 16 channel LOR Controllers
Model CTB16PC V2

So with this I'm able to use normal led lights from Kmart or Bunnings etc?

I'd really like to do something nice with this display lol

 

If they are 240V rope light ornaments with no plugpack then you may be able to get away with using them. If they are prehistoric incandescent ropelights then you are definitely in luck. The issues are that you can't dim anything that has a plugpack on it and the additional problem is that with AC controllers they like to have a reasonable load on them in order to turn off at zero crossings. 240V led ropelights can have a tendency to latch on.
Kmart, Bunnings, Big W etc have changed to 2 wire 2 channel light strings which are cheaper for them to supply as they use less wire but they are a PITA for people who want to automate them. As far as I know my DMX2-18 is the only option to control these new style fairy lights.

 

Thanks for the quick reply.

Is there anywhere in oz that I can buy the propper light strings to use that are dimmable.
For my first light show i will probably just buy a few light sequences and adapt the light to suit.

The CCR lights that are from Aliexpress and sites like that - are they any good?

I would prefer to buy these from Aussie suppliers but i don't know of any.

All the older lights I have here have plug packs

 

Check your older lights. If they have three wires going from the controller / plug pack to the led, you should be in luck.
There are LED fairy lights around that are Constant on. That is no controller - no effect and every LED is on at the same time. You can use these.
You need a power supply that will drive these lights and your controller - Generally between 27 and 36 volts. Check the power pack,
I have quite a number of them that I use myself. I put two sets together by placing the leds between each other.
One string goes to channel 1 and the other goes to channel two. Channel one goes on and off and channel 2 goes off and on
That way you can get the twinkle effect like that of the chain store lights.
If you have just one strand of lights they will only blink on and off .

Most of us here use Ray Wu for our lights. Tell him what you want to do and he will suggests lights for you. Rays lights are of a good quality.
You can check back here and ask questions about the lights. When you know how many and what type of light, ask Ray for a price.
Depending on the quantity, Ray may give you a better price, but he will always do better with the freight as Aliexpress always charge more.

 

Thanks for the reply guys.

I'll check all the lights I have and see how I go.
I looked up the ray Wu lights and They are not cheap lol
Do you have any links for decsent priced lights?

 

Rays lights are different to the fairy lights we use out of the retail stores. They are a commercial grade unit.
His are a good quality and for me are value for money.
I purchased Some dumb RGB strip lights from him and the are way so better than the ones I purchased from elsewhere for around the same price.
The killer is generally the freight.