The 6803 or 2811 dilemma

[anon]

So I'm getting into the mode of purchasing kit. Phase 1 of my build involves ~45m of RGB strip and was heading down the 6803 route for controller supportability, 3 LEDs per node (for me any more nodes on a strip would be overkill) and 12V (trying to standardise on this and to minimise transmission losses). I already have 3 strips, the first I bought had 2 nodes failed (3m is still good) so negotiated a better price on 2 more strips.


So I was set to order some 6803 strip from ebay at $46 5m delivered (never seen it this cheap before). [SIZE=78%]http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/5M-5050-SMD-Flash-RGB-Dreamcolor-132-Change-6803-IC-150-LED-Strip-Light-Colorful-/320924688194?pt=AU_Car_Parts_Accessories&hash=item4ab89a1f42[/SIZE]


However now seeing that there is 2811 strip at ~$36 5m (+say $5 shipped combining multiple reels) from Ray Wu ([SIZE=78%]http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/5m-led-digital-strip-DC12V-input-WS2811IC-256-scale-10pcs-IC-and-30pcs-5050-SMD-RGB/701799_568458133.html[/SIZE])


It's just put doubt on my 6803 purchase. I'm not really a fan of the 15bit color depth, I find it's not a huge deal at high output but in the low ranges, 1 bit on for a 6803 is still quite bright so would much rather 24 bit.


My sequencer is using LSP, and most likely was going to use an ECG-DR4 w/ the mini protocol decoders at the strip. My architecture I intended to be more distributed controllers w/ centralised power as strip ends are ~10m away from each other so can't run SPI from say a PIXAD8. This would need to change for the 2811 given the lack of small cheap 2811 decoders/drivers.


So, what would ya'll do? 2811 or 6803?

 

[fasteddy]

I went from 6803 to 2811

 

[anon]

How are you controlling your strips/pixels?

 

[fasteddy]

How are you controlling your strips/pixels?

I only just got these recently and have tested them on an ECG-P12R controller using the 1804 code, I get some flickering still but I will just have to wait until Ed from J1SYS releases the 2811 code. As far as the quality, i got 12 strips and did not have one bad section, the quality appears to be great.

 

[vvolf27]

Eddy,

I bought 2 6803 strips as a test before I make a larger purchase. You really recommend the 2811 strips over them? I am doing the 12 strip Superstar tree, using LSP and a E681 controller.

 

[joelrose]

There is new firmware out for the E68x controllers to make the 6803 a lot smoother.
Apparently the same thing they did to the CCRs
Joel

 

[Kaden]

This is my first year and I am standardizing on 2811. It seems to me that 6803 will lose popularity to 2811 over the next few years.

The firmware update for e68x is a great thing for people with an investment in 6803, but 2811 is technically superior and price competitive.

 

[vvolf27]

Thanks for the information. Since I am not invested in anything particular I will go 2811.