What Christmas Light Controller Should I Buy? (2023 Update)

Подписаться 14 тыс.

Просмотров 16 тыс.

50% 1

What Christmas Light Controller is the right one for you in 2023? Which one do we prefer, and why would we not suggest some of these controllers to be your main controller currently.
Kulp Controllers: kulplights.com/product-catego...
Mattos Designs Dragon Controllers: mattosdesigns.com
Falcon Controllers: pixelcontroller.com/store/
Beagle Bone Controllers: www.wiredwatts.com/controllers
If you are interested in any of the Gear used and Reviewed in our videos take a look at our website: store.learnchristmaslighting.com
Grab my FREE Guide "3 Things You Need to Know Before Creating Your First DIY Christmas Light Display": learnchristmaslighting.com/
Check out the Dominar Beam and other Waterproof DMX Lights for Christmas Light Shows: learnchristmaslighting.com/do...
Video Specs:
Video Shot on Sony ZV-E10: geni.us/lkqnAg
Microphones Spec:
Wireless Lapel Mic: Hollyland Lark150: amzn.to/43RjVF9
Voiceover Mic: Heil PR-40: geni.us/fcN0hAO
Backdrop/Ambient lighting:
Dominar Par S: www.learnstagelightinggear.co...
Gamma Penn Houselight: www.learnstagelightinggear.co...
Volux Spectra 300: www.learnstagelightinggear.co...
DVS Optic 2 LED Wall: www.learnstagelightinggear.co...
Disclaimer: This video and description contain affiliate links.
Comments Policy: Be nice, and treat others well. This channel has grown a lot, and if I want to keep up with helping folks in-depth, I can't reply to the comments personally.
Creating these videos takes a TON of time and effort, and I am not always available to answer questions here personally.
Here is how we can get your questions answered:
Join us in The Learn Stage Lighting Community and get premium support + over 16 hours of step-by-step video training: academy.learnchristmaslightin...
Thanks for understanding!
-David
00:00 Introduction
01:30 First things to look at when choosing a controller
02:30 Looking at different controllers
05:12 What we look for in a controller
05:33 BeagleBone controllers
07:29 Why we don’t suggest Falcon controllers as your main showplayer
07:50 Mattos Designs Dragon controller.
09:45 Experience Lights Genius controllers
11:00 Our current top pick controller
12:02 Closing

Опубликовано:

14 июл 2024

Ссылка:

Скачать:

Готовим ссылку...

Добавить в:

Мой плейлист

Посмотреть позже

Комментарии : 42

@GamingSinceGaming 9 месяцев назад

wish you had a christmas lights for dummies video, maybe even series. i just want to plug things in, connect to my computer, and create some shows. maybe a shopping list of things to buy. super helpful for someone without the time to research. ive pushed buying a setup for multiple years now because i am clueless and lack the time to learn it.

@dallas050 8 месяцев назад

Agreed! I just want to sync a Mega Tree and maybe two small trees that sing and talk. Simple. I don't want the whole house syncing. I'm new and would like a simple step by step video (start to finish) with a product list. Make that video please

@GamingSinceGaming 8 месяцев назад

an example would be, "buy this, plug it in here, open the app on your pc, do this, now go put it up outside" i'm more of a hands on learner, and hands on requires me buying things with the potential of not needing it down the line or realizing its not quite what i wanted.@@dallas050

@mcb0b1 9 месяцев назад

As someone brand new to the hobby and didn’t know a single thing, I have had zero issues with my k-8’s and k-16.

@graphguy 9 месяцев назад

Perfect timing, getting ready to rock and roll Christmas 2023!

@therickmarcus 9 месяцев назад

k8, k16 and k32. I own all 3 and love them.

@neospy1 7 месяцев назад

This is my first year getting into the hobby and the Kulp 16 board makes it so easy with the beagle bone. I don’t know anything about Raspberry Pi’s and with the beagle bone I don’t I have mess with another separate device. I’m sure that if you already have all the external devices that the Falcons are great, but as someone completely new, Kulp just makes it easier.

@bretthays2674 6 месяцев назад

I am currently running 7 K32A-B’s and plan to add four or five more for next season. I am 100% with you on the genius, pro controllers. If they had onboard FPP, they would be a dream. Come true but that’s a maker brake item for me as well. I’m hoping, the K 32 will get a refresh to add E fuses and spring loaded connectors, and some of that stuff.

@edkaempf906 5 месяцев назад

I used only AlphaPix controllers from HolidayCoro for my lights (five total controllers). Love them. Never had a single fail in any component. Great support on their website. And completely configurable either on the board and screen, or using a web browser.

@LearnChristmasLighting 5 месяцев назад

And that's fine, but do take a look at how the FPP-based controllers work....once you set the IP address, you NEVER have to open the web configuration again - you just press a button from xLights and let the software do the rest. It's a game-changer.

@viderethevaccinatorfromhol7536 8 месяцев назад

I use the Enttec Octo 2.0's. Small, connected to a nuc and wifi by vonets industrial lan- wifi adapters. All together in one medium sized din case including all power adapters. It's pricy but worth any penny.

@lauramcdougal3952 4 месяца назад

Hello David! How do I run my XLights in a wireless network?

@RobbyNeale 9 месяцев назад

Do any of these controllers work with SK6812 strips? I permanently added them to my house already because I liked having the white in the off-season and already had built some quin-dig unos for inside projects.

@Lights-On-130th 9 месяцев назад

How do you like the Wally WB48

@Mikie4EvrYoung 6 месяцев назад

So if you have a Kulp 16 or 8 controller w/BeagleBone - you can add the Dragon it would auto-recognize? To connect would you Need Lan cable or is it Wifi?

@djwillx974 6 месяцев назад

It's an interesting video...but you don't talk about the popular board : Quin Led Dig Octa... or other quinled boards...what do you think about Quinled boards controller please ?

@darrellkc48 4 месяца назад

I belong to a large non-profit model railroad club that has a permanent model train layout inside a building. We want to use RGB LED strip lighting for the lights above the layout as it weaves around the room. I think we will need both a RGB and a Daylight LED strip to provide enough light for the daytime scenes. What do I need to make a simple day/evening/night/morning/day transition with the lights? I have zero experience with specialty lighting, so do you have a video that shows how this is set up or what equipment I need? We have computers to control the lights, and have heard about Xlights app. Is it possible to control without stringing cable all over the layout? We have WiFi for the building. Any help would be appreciated.

@zippytechnologies 7 месяцев назад

Are there any controllers we can just slap a raspberry pi pico w on and sync several locally controlled into a wireless controlled synced system to a main ras pi 2 or 3+ or a server running inside the house? I am new to all this - help me out... ex Electronics Tech nerd really wanting to do something fun this year.

@LearnChristmasLighting 7 месяцев назад

This one will: pixelcontroller.com/store/pixel-controllers/47-falcon-picap.html

@scgoon2 9 месяцев назад

I can’t get the dmx to work on my moving head I have a kulp k8, any suggestions?

@snowwwmannnyt 6 месяцев назад

In FPP, change dmx mode to “DMX Open” not “DMX Pro” that’s what I had to do

@probeachbum 9 месяцев назад

Why no love for HinksPix Pro? I've used them exclusively for the past 4 years and haven't had any issues or complaints.

@LearnChristmasLighting 9 месяцев назад

That's fine, but the other brands like Kulp are night-and-day easier to get going with :)

@xOperator 8 месяцев назад

What about the controllers from HolidayCoro ?

@bkilian 8 месяцев назад

There's a heavy anti-holidaycoro sentiment in this hobby for the last few years. I run a HinksPix Pro (And a bunch of other controllers) and I've had zero issues with it, although it doesn't do DDP properly, which is annoying.

@xOperator 8 месяцев назад

@@bkilian oh, thanks for the info. Is it because of bad customer service or anything?

@bkilian 8 месяцев назад

@@xOperator Seems like general high drama to me. Some people claim HC banned them for complaining, or something. And there's a whole thread about HC pointing state tax authorities at other vendors for sales tax evasion, which caused Dan Kulp to consider removing support for HC controllers from XLights. Then there's the passive aggressive HC product videos like their "comparison between HPP and Falcon. I, personally, have had nothing but good experiences from HC. They ship fast, their products are high quality, and they are one of the few that make and ship fully built out controllers and kits. But I'm not wedded to them. I run HinksPix, QuinLED, and Genius Controllers in my show.

@thecrumeister365 2 месяца назад

@@xOperator I'm not a fan of HolidayCoro because I have been burned by him in the past (like a lot of others). He had controllers in the past that he sold for like 6-8 months and then discontinued them with no support (prior to HinksPix). Maybe he has changed since then, but I have some old controllers that are totally useless now that I've had to replace.

@robotbender8271 9 месяцев назад

How does the new Falcon v5 f16 compare...I'm new to pixels, but have done LOR for 14 years now. In process of converting over. I switched to XLights 3 years ago. Definitely going to check out kulp today and probably order one ...thanks!

@LearnChristmasLighting 8 месяцев назад

I still like the kulp better at this point

@thecrumeister365 2 месяца назад

Falcon is a rock solid company. When I switched from LOR to xlights I went with Falcon since they seemed to be the most reliable at the time. I had high hopes for Experience Lights but I purchased a Genius controller last year and had some issues with it working with some older pixels (not displaying the colors properly) as well as the controller totally lost it's config (basically it went back to default settings) one night for no reason. Seems like they have some bugs to work out especially since they have a lot firmware updates. I have friends who use Kulp and like them so I would say either Falcon or Kulp are your best bets.

@holyredskins 8 месяцев назад

So my daughter suggested we do a light show. I have standard icicle lights and blow ups. Looking to go full blown show. Budget of $2500 or so. What can I do? EXTREME NOOB

@TownshendChristmasLights 9 месяцев назад

Your lack of updated knowledge on using WIFI disturbs me - D. Vadar Seriously, WIFI is a lot better now if done correctly. I'm running over 20 D1 mini/esp32 on WIFI - no lag or stuttering.

@LearnChristmasLighting 9 месяцев назад

It's not that my knowledge it lacking, it's that we see and work with a lot of people, many of whom have very little networking knowledge. We've found it's BEST to not stream full pixel data over wifi as most people aren't going to have the knowledge or put in the effort to do a network that can handle this.

@thomascee 7 месяцев назад

So the stupidist of stupid questions I'm so sorry... So xLights talks to the Kulp controller, and that's how the lighting is controlled? Am I on the right track?

@billylovell1858 7 месяцев назад

pretty much with xlights you can use various controllers if i can help in any way just give me a holler i use a dig quad and esp8266 units and run small wifi display

@thomascee 7 месяцев назад

@@billylovell1858 Okay super interesting. And thank you for he help offer! I’m piecing info together little by little… Is there a community for this? @X group, FB group, Discord or something? Where is all the info shared around?