To coordinate a show with neighbor or do separate shows

[Kapkirk]

The question is would you recommend first year newbie to coordinate first show with neighbor across street or do separate shows. We live across the street on the end of a cul-de-sak.

 

My first thought was combined, we are great friends and help each other out all the time, and for Christmas we usually put up 6 of our neighbors christmas lights for them, we have some older, some widows, some handicapped and it is a lot of fun for the neighbors to get out together and work on christmas decorations. Ed and I do most of the high work and electrical doings and our neighbors help as much as they can physically. We even had a solo cup light ball how to evening or two that most of our neighbors attended and we had a great time, and the decorations looked great around the neighborhood.

 

And now we are both purchasing LOR systems and the HolidayCoro singing christmas trees for our own decorations, and we both like the idea of coordinating our shows. And to be honest I think we are a little competitive but that is not the point of the question. The point or question is will our show or shows be better the first year separate or combined. I know we will work together and share whatever is needed, we just want to put on good shows that entertain the kids and adults too.

 

I have been getting great advice on my newbie sequencing thread and was thinking that as I get more into the show and sequencing I better make a decision on do we sequence for one or two homes/yards.

 

Thanks for your ideas, Keith

[rainyoregonchristmas]

Coordinate.  Develop a mutual layout.  Then BOTH of you sequence.  Decide who does which song that person then does both houses for that song.  Then the other person does both houses for the next song etc.  But, make sure you include Dueling Banjos, then you sequence one side, have him sequence the other.  Have fun. 

 

-Rainyoregonchristmas

[k6ccc]

I agree with that one.  Run a single show with both houses.  It would be very confusing to have two separate shows.

 

And as Rainy said - gotta do Dueling Banjos.

[dgrant]

I'd love to do that here, get the neighbors involved together. I'd use ELL's to communicate to each other but it would have to be one person's system running everything.

[robongar]

I personly run the lights to 4 separate houses, my neighbor plus two on the other side of the road. I have speakers for the walkers, plus an FM transmitter for the car audience.

Edited January 31, 2015 by robongar

[snookb]

Dueling Jingle Bells by the United States Navy Band is a must!

[gmac]

IMO, looking at lights in neighborhoods that have multiple houses synced up together is really impressive and looks cool.................I tried to get that done in my area but the bah humbugs around here weren't interested..........Their maxed out with their 3 sets of lights and 2 extension cords and call their decorating done. (LOL)

[dgrant]

The one neighborhood in S. Calif. who did it, must have had 14 or 15 homes altogether. It was really impressive from the video. Only one immediate neighbor of mine offered me to expand into his yard but hasn't offered any lights or efforts for his home yet. I suppose I'll ask him the next time I see him outside about it and get serious. He's a doctor so his time here is limited.

[George Simmons]

Looks like it's been pretty unanimous so far.  I also say coordinate.  I do the sequencing and stringing the lights for my neighbor's house and can only imagine the visual gibberish that would result from the both of us doing our own thing.  Don't even consider it.  All it would do is cheapen both displays and drive people away.

[Kapkirk]

I say unanimous has it too George, Thanks for all the response , My friend and I are going to get the ELL and sync them together, now we just have to divide up the sequences and get going, Ed's wife has already took some panoramic pictures to put into the visualizer and I worked on my two PC's with the one monitor until I had enough. Grrrrrrrrr. Dang computers LOL.

 

Keith

[Rickster]

I realize that this may be a dumb question, but, what is ELL?  I have 2 sections of my property that I want to setup together and it sounds like the ELL system could make that easier.

[k6ccc]

ELL is Easy Light Linker.   ELLs let you replace a Cat-5 cable with a radio signal.  Very handy when you need to get a signal where it is difficult to run a cable - across the street would be a very good example.  More info from the LOR website:

 

http://www1.lightorama.com/wireless-data/

 

Personally I don't use any ELLs since I have conduit almost everywhere so getting cable runs is really easy (and in most cases the cable is always there).

[dgrant]

I use several ELL's and they work very nice for me

[PaulXmas]

Coordinate!!!!

[Tim Benson]

I run a 6 house show.  It is alot of fun working with the neighbors on setup. I do all the sequencing, but have offered to let others do it too.

 

Tim

[Steven]

I had 7 houses in my show last year. 4 were on the other side of the street, connected with ELL's. 2 of my 6 light neighbors are really into the lights, and not only set up their own houses, but help me with 2 of the houses that have elderly residents. 2 of the others are not as fanatical, but do string their own lights to their own controllers.

[Kapkirk]

Tim and Steve

 

I assume you transmit just one FM signal, how do you pick the music and do more than one of you do the sequencing? Right now I think I am going to be doing much of the sequencing, or at least the beginning of it. And i am wondering how to sequence for my neighbors lights, we plan on ELL's, but I think I will have one more controller than my neighbor will have the first year. We are both putting up the Holiday coro singing xmas trees but i will have an additional controller for my house and a bunch of mini trees. Haven't thought out how to do different houses and light combinations yet. Any advice for the different lights with same music?

 

Keith

[Tim Benson]

Yes. One FM transmitter.  I usually pick the music, but if one of the neighbors really wants a song, then I will sequence it for them.

I offer to let them sequence, but when they find out how much time it really takes to produce a full sequence they loose interest

in that part of it. It takes years to really become good at sequencing.  And a multi house show is much more than just running

the same effects on each house.  Each house and yard can be different (and should be) and so the challenge is making it

all look unique, but seamless. So for example, all the houses might have a element like a wreath that flashes with the beat,

but major color changes on each house happen at different times to show that each one is independent. I typically  sequence

all the houses first, then go back and add in the props in the yards, mega Tree and other items.  Another challenging thing I am

running into now is that 2 of the houses have RGB pixels, and 4 are standard AC controllers.  So the 2 RGB houses can display effects that the others can't. If each house has a theme (like we do) then you can feature that house in a song using the elements in that theme.

 

Right now, you need to figure out how many houses and controllers you will have, how you will use your channels on the houses and props, and lock down your configuration. Then get you channel configuration in the sequence editor and get busy !  Sequencing this will

take way more time than you ever thought it could.

 

Tim

[Grinch]

I agree a coordinated show is far more impressive when done correctly.

[lightingnewb]

Coordinate over compete, hands down. The last thing you need to do is create a feud between families that were once happy. Isn't that what Christmas is about? LOVE and care for one another? Once you realize it has turned away from "how can 'our' collective lights make 'those' prospective viewers happy" to "I want to beat that guy with my lights," you ought to stop. Once it becomes more about the two people involved than the audience, you lose sight of the purpose of why, IMHO, we often celebrate this glorious season. Take away the audience from Grinch's show, and what does he have? 65000 lights blinking and flashing to music. Take away the lights and the music, and you get straight to the essence of your magical project. We work all 11.5 months of the year to make December happen. Just remember that.

 

And Grinch, thanks for letting me use you as an example. You definitely are no grinch at all.

 

Thanks for letting us share our rather unanimous decision with you, and good luck in a few months.