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Little_b

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For the past 13 years I've used all Incan lights.  In the past 2-3 years I've started adding some LED Dumb Strip Lights and Pixel Nodes to the mix.  This year I'm thinking of adding more pixels around the yard and not just the roof.  I can't afford to totally switch over to LED string lights, but I have been buying a few each year after Christmas.  My concern is what will the entire display look like with all types of lights (Incan, LED string, pixel node, strip lights) mixed together on different props.  Does anyone have any photos or videos they are willing to share that shows all types of lights being used together in your display?  Thanks.

Edited by Little_b
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Myself personally don't see a problem with mixing all types of lighting so long as the sequencing is good.  I have a mixture of LED lights, pixel strips and nodes and like it.  Where as a house totally decorated in pixel strips and nodes has a different look which isn't bad either.  These do tend to feel a little bit like a Vegas light show so to speak.  I feel whatever floats your boat works best as you are the one who's doing the work and paying for it.

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I think Light Balance is more important. You might need to run one type at less than full intensity.

Another is response to power. LEDS tend to 'snap' on.

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12 minutes ago, TheDucks said:

I think Light Balance is more important. You might need to run one type at less than full intensity.

Another is response to power. LEDS tend to 'snap' on.

Those are both good things to consider also as I do turn down the intensity on my pixels to not overpower the other elements.

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No surprise here - I agree completely that THE single most important element of your display is the sequencing.  By far.  No other single factor is even close.  The better your sequencing, the better your lights will look.  The type of lights you use, for the most part, make no difference whatsoever to the typical viewer.

Having said that, we'll be more than 98% LED this season (smart/dumb RGB and single color strings) and I'd NEVER go back to incans for any reason I can imagine today.

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12 minutes ago, George Simmons said:

Having said that, we'll be more than 98% LED this season (smart/dumb RGB and single color strings) and I'd NEVER go back to incans for any reason I can imagine today.

100% LED here and I completely agree.  Except for six multi-color strings of 200 each, everything is RGB - a mixture of dumb and smart.

 

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As long as you can set everything up to get the "Wow" factor. I am in a low traffic area, suburbs and lots of property around the houses at my end of our sub division yet we still get a good deal of onlookers.

I am all LED with exception of my Halloween singing faces (pumpkins) and adding RGB this year starting July 4, if I can learn this stuff.

Any and all help appreciated.

Edited by dibblejr
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I personally am of a belief that color consistency is of high importance. I think that goes hand in hand with sequencing. There are for example certain props in my display that interact with each other quite often during certain phrases of a song, and having those 2 be different shades of white for example would make the display look disjointed. I have even gone so far as to spend hours tinkering with all of my RGB flood light sequencing so that every time they're programmed to be white they appear a shade of warm white that perfectly matches that of my LEDs (and that takes a long time after you've already color faded in to the standard white lol). It all depends on how your props are laid out and sequenced. The other thing to note is that LEDs dim in a non-linear fashion, and if they are side-by-side with incandescents, they will look much different during fades. There is another level of depth and richness that is achieved when all the strings and colors perfectly match. Just my two cents. 

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There are many really nice displays with a mix of bulb types.  I also agree that the quality of sequences, trumps what lights you use.   While smartg pixels are the craze..I'm doing more myself, a display doesn't hav e to be 100 percent multi-colored and flashy.  There's still places in disaply for static elements.

 

For white colors, I think you do need to be careful in mixing warm white, natural white and cool white bulbs.   

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We have all three styles in our display and it looks fine as long as you don't try to put incadesant with leds on the same prop.

Sent from my SCH-S968C using Tapatalk

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