PixLite DMX output

[TANSA]

If anybody is using a PixLIte 16MkII I found a little bug while I was testing today.
I use the DMX to control a DMX PWM decoder.
Last year is worked without a hiccup.
Just finished getting everything out and testing to see if it all works. ( plus doubled the pixels on the tree with new pixel strip and Gnome, thank you Troy ELD)
So I found out that I had to add a dummy 3 channels and have them on in a sequence before the rest of the channel would work normally.
I could not even get them to work in TEST without the first 1 or 3 channel turn on first, then the rest would behave normally.
I hope this helps anybody that has a similar setup or found that the DMX is not working just right.

 

[AAH]

Are you sure that it's a Pixlite bug and not a xlights bug/quirk?
I'm actually puzzled as to what channel assignments are what on the 2 screenshots.
If I'm reading it right
the dummy channels are assigned to 81601-81603 and mapped to universe 1, channels 1-3. no idea what the ws2811:1 indicates. WS2811 protocol on port 1?
left tree is on 81604-81606 and mapped to universe 1 channel 1-3? dmx output 1, channel 1.
right tree is on 81607-81609 and mapped to universe 1 channels 4-6? dmx output 1, channel 4.
What has me puzzled is that the dummy and the left tree look to me to both be assigned to universe 1 channels 1-3.

 

[TANSA]

Yep it worked last year but in saying that it was 2019.64
And no they are not mapped to universe 1 DMX-1 but 161. (Changed to DMX-2 and DMX-1 over in the card.
Tested and tested and tested and added dummy and tested and all worked, removed dummy and tested and put the dummy back in.
Check the channel count and it works out at the start of universe 161 channel 81601
The DMX part is on a Multicast for universe 161. same controller but the only way it will work in xLights.
I see what you are looking at, I have each prop starting at the end of the one before so the left tree starts at the end of the dummy.

 

[AAH]

The xlights config makes sense to me but I still can't work out the Pixlite mapping. All 3 props look like DMX-1 to me. I'm nothing like a Pixlite expert though.

 

[TANSA]

They are.
They all come off the 30ch DMX decoder. It converts all to channel and %, it is quick enough I don’t have to be concerned about a translation delay.
if you look close, the second time I put the dummy back in it is ws2811 (mistake) but it still works (all 3 channels turn on on the DMX Decoder). As I went through and added the dummy on in all my shows last night and tested. All lights working Channels 1-3 I will leave disconnected.
I did not mention that the test from the Pi with FPP 4.2 did not require the dummy channels (in test output mode) only from xLights output to lights for testing and play the sequence, so I thought it would be better to have it as the Pi would not care if it was there or not. But it would keep my sanity.
xLight bug or not it is a workaround for my setup.
PixLite boards are great I just wished they talked to xLights better but I do like the old manual universe/channel setup as it is better to understand how things work.

 

[TANSA]

DMX-? Are the DMX outputs from the PixLite board, the Falcon serial port but only dedicated DMX 512 channels each.

 

[AAH]

They are.
They all come off the 30ch DMX decoder. It converts all to channel and %, it is quick enough I don’t have to be concerned about a translation delay.
if you look close, the second time I put the dummy back in it is ws2811 (mistake) but it still works (all 3 channels turn on on the DMX Decoder). As I went through and added the dummy on in all my shows last night and tested. All lights working Channels 1-3 I will leave disconnected.
I did not mention that the test from the Pi with FPP 4.2 did not require the dummy channels (in test output mode) only from xLights output to lights for testing and play the sequence, so I thought it would be better to have it as the Pi would not care if it was there or not. But it would keep my sanity.
xLight bug or not it is a workaround for my setup.
PixLite boards are great I just wished they talked to xLights better but I do like the old manual universe/channel setup as it is better to understand how things work.

What you have sounds more like an xlights bug than a Pixlite bug to me. If you remove your dummy 3 channels does the Pixlite show incoming packets of data?

 

[TANSA]

Tested again.
In xLights test mode if I turn on channel 1 the rest will turn on and off if I have all channels on and turn channel 1 off the rest turn off even they are supposed to be on.
Bug # 2262 submitted.
Just order 3 x WS2811 strips from you, just in case, but I do not plan to update now until it is fixed or next year.