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planning next year's display. what's your strategy?


Ebuechner

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I would like people to chime in and explain how they organize and plan for the next year. Such as what sort of timing goals do they have in what order do they do things. I guess I'm trying to figure out what has worked for people and what has been a flop. My goals have gotten much bigger for next year and I would like to have a good strategy and how to accomplish these tasks

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do you dare start sequencing for equipment and displays that you don't yet have? do you do trial runs of setting up a mega tree if it's new for the next year?

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do you dare start sequencing for equipment and displays that you don't yet have? do you do trial runs of setting up a mega tree if it's new for the next year?
yes and yes lol, I've been sequencing my pixel tree since January and I haven't received my pixels from the presale yet. When they come in I will build it and test run it in my backyard during the summer
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do you sequence your pixel tree separately then copy and paste into a master?

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won't that kind of lead to all the elements in your display look like they're off doing their own thing? or do you have a way of handling that

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Yes & yes to all of the above.

I start with an idea of what I want to add to the home/property. then pick some songs. Then create my channel config( add to last years config). Start sequencing.

In between all that other stuff, build props. Etc. if it's something new to you. Try to get that done first to set it up and see how it works/functions with how it looks on the visualizer vs real life( like my new pixel tree) Don't stress it all works out in the end. We are own worst enemies.

Edited by Cdanna77
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Here were my steps for 2015.

When I went live with the 2014 show, I watch the display the first couple of nights, decide on the elements to keep and ones to re-purpose. Once that decision is made, I start drawing out my new Visualizer, yes in December. Once that's complete, I inventory what is to be re-purposed and what I need for new props I am going to use. An Excel spreadsheet is a great tool for this. 

 

I then start sequencing for next years show, just a bit here and there. While it's cold out, I head to the basement and start building props that I have lights and materials for.

 

In January, I start looking for the Pre-sales from my favorite vendors. I already have my shopping list. When the sales hit, I order. I've already been sequencing for these un-made props for a month or so.

 

When the pre-sale items come in, I try to finish up the props before September, I test the props as soon as they are built. After vacation, usually in June, I go into full blown finish up mode.

 

I'll take breaks in sequencing, sometimes a month at a time. I always come back to them. I try to work on one sequence at a time and get it finished and then, on to the next one.

 

When Halloween is over, I start setup, get everything wired to the controllers and test the whole sequence with all props. Trouble shoot as necessary. My display has been dormant for 2 weeks in November and I have finished it the day before I go live.

 

It's a year long deal for me. The wife says she's a single mother for about 2 months a year.

 

I think after this year, I may have my display where I can re-use all current sequences, add sequencing to the new upcoming props and then just add songs to the list.

Edited by Ron Boyd
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2014 was my first LOR display, with singing faces only.  This year, I'm adding rgb roof line strips, single color/rgb light bar boxes for columns and rgb floods.

While building the displays will take some time, I knew that expaning the sequences was going to be the real time committment so I have been hitting the sequences part over the winter and will continue to do  so, guessing right up to the halloween season.

I took advantage of the pre-sales this winter/spring to get the hardward stockpiled. By end of May, it should all be shippign and I can start working on the display construction.


Man...so far, this hobby has been a year round adventure. For 2016, I plan on adding some smart pixel/strip elements so the the above process just repeats itself.
 

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I started sequencing for a 16 ccr tree in January, I have a mini Ferris Wheel 1/2 done...... but I put all that aside except sequencing to Reno the inside of the house & to enjoy the weather because after 5.5 months of winter it gets hard to enjoy getting ready for Christmas.  I still want to make a mini carousel , & I would like to add a train to the display. Come mid August I will be ready to get building again. Plus other stuff. However what ever I get done for this coming season is what will be in the display. 

 

My main concern for me is to get that ccr or pixel string tree sequenced.

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I may have gone over bored myself. my new display won't resemble my old display in any way shape or form. I'm doing a lot more RGB lights with the singing Christmas trees from holiday Coro. I decided to build and use a Renard plus 32 controller for the singing trees because it's more economical and one device to control everything. I have a bunch of mini strobes on their way and I'm not even sure what to do with them yet. my mega tree is going to over double in size. my arches have converted to RGB with 50 pixles each X4. I ordered and built 2 pixel coro canes and a pixel coro snowflake. my roof line is going to be converted to rgb . Plus I have a lot of extra rgb pixels and I'm not even sure what I'm doing with yet. so I'm asking these questions because I'm feeling a little overwhelmed and disorganized. I'm going to have to get some sort of plan together to get this all accomplished. Plus living in Wisconsin I have to have everything ready early to take advantage of the weather.

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2014 was my first year. I did all at the same time... sprial mega tree, two archs but ran as 4 8 mini trees and misc things.. 48 channels total.. This year I am adding 4 singing faces. 

 

Changing my archs to 7 channel so I can start things centered on it if I want to.. adding 4 * channel faces, still keeping the mega tree and 8 mini trees .

doing some changes adding red, white and blue wrapped columns and tree trunks to coordinate with red white and blue eve outlines. I am doing my faces seperate as 332 channel on 2 controllers and then copy pasting them onto the main seq. That way I can see better what I am doing on my 4 face visualizer and not be distracted with other things going on.

 

I am still using mostly multi color and blue lights except for the eves, poles and misc things.  Maybe someday when I get rich and famous I will move up to spending more money but for now I just do what I can afford to do with mostly mini lights.

 

My mega tree is a PVC frame one for now so I can check the lights anytime and will be able to test it with no problem as it just takes me about 2 hrs to assembly it and set it up. My arch's are all made with 3/4 pvc wrapped in approx 14 inch lengths with lights which I can slide over 1/2 inch PVC for set up.

 

This is just My second year using LOR and I got into it just barely in time for Halloween last year which was a simple grave yard with mostly white, lights red green abd blue spot and flood lights.  This year I will be expanding on that and adding in 4 singing faces. Haven't decided yet on monster faces, pumpkin or a combination of them. Maybe monster, skeleton, pumpkin, and singing Ghost... I will make them myself with Coroplast from Home depot. Can get 10 full size sheets from Home depot for about $110.00

 

My last years haloloween and christmas can be seen at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6rQS92LcPWUXsSF1WR3hkw

 

All my sequences I share at   share.northjerseylights.com/for_chuck/

 

North Jersey lights was kind enough to let me share on their site.

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