What Christmas Light Controller Should I Buy? (2022 Update)

Рет қаралды 17,467

Күн бұрын

Falcon vs. Kulp vs. HinksPix - Which controller is right for you?
0:00-Introduction
"cclcontrollers.com
www.beachinchristmas.com
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Пікірлер: 61

@DrRasputin2012 Жыл бұрын

I'm watching this early for Xmas 2023.

@LordHog 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks, David. I am going into my third year in this hobby. I started off with Falcon. My house isn’t that large so I haven’t done any power injection so far though I don’t go past 300 pixels per port. That also means I use more port this more controllers. I have three controllers. One for my mega three, another for front lawn props (mini tree, arches, etc), and one for reef and matrix on the side of the house. I have about 13 free ports. I will probably build one more controller for more props. So far it has worked out great. Again, thanks for the great info

@silvercityslightshow23 2 жыл бұрын

My second show this year. I have a Falcon with FPP on Pi, finally, thanks to fppv5. I have been looking at Kulps though, and have seen all youre talking about. Falcon will do for now, not a big setup so the Falcon and 3 receivers should do! I have been watching this channel along with many others, and I trully do thank you for taking time out of your days to educate folks on this stuff! Fun hobby, a bit pricey but well worth it! Again, Thank You David! My dad watches you too!

@acrixiacelestia7689 2 жыл бұрын

the problem of all this boards are "AVAILABILITY". Every boards are out of stock and the srp are increase a lot, due to chip shortages (sorry bad English)

@davidcase4600 2 жыл бұрын

Nice vid. Next time consider putting it in context of a whole show. Recommendations without context is lacking for newbies. Consider starting with 3 or 4 different layouts and what works well with each. (Personally I under use a k16 master with a k8 remote and 5 diffs and really like the k16.)

@rolandoduque7781 Жыл бұрын

Hi David, I have been working with standalone controllers, mostly m-8000 T-8000 and the like Looking to work with x-lights to ease the difficult windows only programming they require, looking at these controllers you showed like the Falcon and the Kulp, I can see fused outputs (every bank of 8 outs limited to 30 amp?) Running 12 mm bullets on a mega tree at 0.3watt per node if I run 800 pixels per output each output will require 20 amps at 12v. I understand that we can inject power at different points along the string, but by doing so the onboard fuse led will have no meaning since it will not be aware of a failure on the other PSs connected in parallel to it. I have two questions is there a fused panel we can use to monitor power per Power supply instead of this limited onboard distribution? in your experience, can these distribution lines be reinforced to run at 20 amps or more per output? thank you

@drummer12980 2 жыл бұрын

Can you run Kulp without fpp and also do I need to get a beagle bone if I am using e1.31?

@gdavid3583 2 жыл бұрын

2021 was first year. Went with holiday coro for my mega tree this year just due to availability when I purchased late in the season. Everyone else was out of stock. No issues. Ran show on FPP with Rasberry PI and had a falcon cap for some candy canes. Thinking of expanding with Falcon for next year

@_UniCorn_AI 2 жыл бұрын

What about diy cheap WLED Controller? With an ESP32 you can drive up to 10 Strings of LEDs.

@rwhiteb13 2 жыл бұрын

I like they HolidayCoro stuff. I have 5 controllers and they all work perfectly. They also ship extremely fast. I haven't used any other controllers though so I maybe I am just used to it.

@nocturne9466 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for your video. I am looking to get into this this season. The controllers listed here look like alot more than I initially need. I am looking to do something simpler (less than 1500 pixels). Im looking for a controller with WIFI, I dont care about music, or extended runs, but I do want to be able to control it from my phone or my PC. Im looking for simple programmable paterns and colors. I had seen something like the QuinnLed Dig Quad. Where does that rank in the scheme of things ? And do you have sort of an all in one beginner shopping list somewhere that you can link to?

@LearnChristmasLighting Жыл бұрын

That should work fine then, the issue with the Dig Quad's is that you are streaming ALL of the data they need over wifi (usually), and that can be unreliable/have dropouts depending on your setup. If you're just using the WLED built-in FX, you'll be fine. We don't have an all-in-one shopping list simply because it's very difficult to make a "one size fits all" type package as all shows are different. But it's something we're considering for the future.

@joestewart6027 2 жыл бұрын

I already have a set up that uses an Arduino and Vixen to run just regular lights off of outlets. I'm curious if I could combine what I have with Pixles and one of these controllers and run it all from the same laptop with Vixen?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Yep

@rcflyer87 2 жыл бұрын

David, I have a question about the K16A-B and the K32A-B. In the video it seems like they are ready to go options, but on the website there is an option when purchasing to have it mounted to a BeagleBone Black for an additional $70. What dose that mean? Does it not come with the BBB? is it not usable unless you have that? Thank you for all of the helpful information.

@davidfries63 2 жыл бұрын

I had the same confusion initially. It requires a BeagleBone to function. By making it an Add On, you can include it with the controller or if you already have one of the supported BeagleBone boards, you could order just the controller. On their product page "You WILL need" ... "BeagleBone Black, BeagleBone Black Wireless, or BeagleBone Green". I'm still deciding if I purchase a controller or continue with the Raspberry Pi solution I've used the last two years, I don't own a Kulp controller.

@thomasruck2264 2 жыл бұрын

HI David. I currently have a HInksPIx Pro receiver for my mega tree. I am going to expand and do a house outline and likely buy a falcon controller for this. Will I run into any issues using two different types of controllers in my light display? Should I keep the controllers the same brand and type as I expand?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

No, doesn't matter at all. You can mix and match brands all day long...I actually do it on purpose :)

@lightsonpeacock 2 жыл бұрын

Falcon makes the smart receivers for Kulp

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, but they are different now for the (2) types of controllers if you want to use smart mode.

@lightsonpeacock 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting The BBB Smart Receiver v2 is not able to handle the Falcon v4 smart protocol due to chip shortages. Is that what you are referring to? because the v2 are still a smart receiver but can be operated in dumb mode.

@TheTomar33 Жыл бұрын

Would be more helpful to first plan out your layout before selecting the controller?

@LearnChristmasLighting Жыл бұрын

Yes, I recommend it!

@royalcreations 2 жыл бұрын

Dav, Does a “F48V4” controller requires a n external player like Rpi or the player is built in?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

No, The player is built in and compatible with FPP

@ChloexLashay 11 ай бұрын

I wished the F16V4 was made with an ESP32 so I can use one board for WLED, XLights, Falcon Player, DMX & Home assistant. I’ve been researching and it seems like controllers with larger outputs for Christmas shows are not compatible with WLED and I currently don’t have the skill set to design a PCB. Any Suggestions?😅

@LearnChristmasLighting 10 ай бұрын

Take a look at this video, I think it answers it for you (?) - kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pp-GlJWfs87Ohok.html

@davidhaugh1620 Жыл бұрын

Could you connect the Ethernet cable to a wireless access point addressed to your router?

@LearnChristmasLighting Жыл бұрын

Yes

@andymercer8069 2 жыл бұрын

David I have a question 🙋‍♂️ what’s the difference between a player and a controller?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

To be honest, the line is blurring. The player plays back the show, and the controller takes that player information and converts it to a format the pixels can use. Most of today's controllers in this hobby can do both!

@nick4165 2 жыл бұрын

How about Australian HE123 MK2 16-48 OUTPUT PIXEL BOARD? Similarly to KULP, it is a BBB-based board and is still available. Have you tried it?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

I have not, I wonder if I can get it in the US

@nick4165 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting our Australian friends have great feedbacks about the controller on their forums. The board is integrated into xLights, technical parameters of the controller like number of pixels per port also look good. They do ship to the US and Canada so that’s why I was curious if you had any feedback about the board.

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

@@nick4165 Well, I'm going to check it out, then!

@charonnisis 2 жыл бұрын

Going to be setting up first show this year... does the show load onto the Kulp/BBB, or does the controller need to remain connected ro an ethernet?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Show loads onto Kulp's! It's great!

@charonnisis 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting For expansion in future seasons, can multiple Kulp16/bbb be used? Or would a cable and distro boards be necessary?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

@@charonnisis Both can work - we cover how to choose this and so much more inside of Learn Christmas Lighting Academy: academy.learnchristmaslighting.com/lcl-academy-sales-page

@esmeraldarodriguez7328 Жыл бұрын

What kind of controller would I need if I want to make a drive thru light show?

@LearnChristmasLighting Жыл бұрын

You typically have many controllers in a drive in, and which you choose is going to be dependent on what types/how many props and how you lay it out.

@melvinguzman5339 2 жыл бұрын

What control u recommend for 500 feet of pixels for permanent Christmas light on a house

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Depends on the layout and where you need ports (based on where the pixels run and the shape of your house) . That's a little too specific to answer here, we help people with stuff like this in Learn Christmas Lighting Academy: academy.learnchristmaslighting.com/lcl-academy-sales-page

@user-Jeremy_Edgar33 Жыл бұрын

I run the Digquad for my permanent Holliday lights, and I love it.

@krizzo 2 жыл бұрын

You say the klup controller has a better player (interface) than the Falcon. Aren't they both running FPP? Could you go into more detail on why you would say the kulp is better as a controller and player?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

They are not. The Falcon's are compatible with FPP, but the actual interface and configuration is more limited and harder to use. And I like Falcon's!

@krizzo 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting After doing some digging I think I get what you are saying. Kulps required FPP to manage and send signals to the correct channels. Where as the falcon controllers have firmware builtin that you do some initial configuration as seen in this video. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/aNypas6mzL7adIE.html Which then FPP, Xlights, or other software can then send signals to the controller and it will process and split the channels out.

@acrixiacelestia7689 2 жыл бұрын

Price to Performance Ratio... KULP BOARDS. Hands Down

@christopherbrink5040 11 ай бұрын

Thoughts on LOR ?

@LearnChristmasLighting 10 ай бұрын

Not a big fan, it's slow and outdated to program compared to xLights.

@failensouljah 2 жыл бұрын

Can you use these controllers with Resolume?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, they take regular Art-Net/sACN data

@failensouljah 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting Thanks for the response, David! You’ve got great content and very informative. I’ve sub to both of your channels a few days ago and glad I did. I’m planning to set up a home live vDJing set with some led matrixes/panels and also some led strips. Your two channels have helped me a lot with all the information. I have been binge watching your content for weeks now trying to learn what I need to get this project going without making any costly mistakes. Truly appreciate you and your work. On a side note…Could it be possible if you can make a video on how to set up led panels/matrixes and also led strips/pixels to a vDJing software like Resolume? Many thanks!

@smks5 2 жыл бұрын

What about SanDevices?

@LearnChristmasLighting 2 жыл бұрын

Outdated, tough to configure, and I just don't feel the need to cover them when we have WAY better options today.

@smks5 2 жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting I started last year and started with a SanDevices, found it pretty easy. As far as a budget option goes it's pretty good whereas your other options are more costly. Perhaps consider a budget friendly option in a future video?

@mewrongway Жыл бұрын

@@smks5 Agree 199%!! Its a better controller for less money! HinksPix lol

@tomevans1827 Жыл бұрын

I also use the SanDevices controller. Easy to set up and use. Inexpensive.

@darrellh3769 Жыл бұрын

@@LearnChristmasLighting Your a newby that dont know better if you really think that! lol SanDevices is the WAY better option!