RGB Pixie16 with lights from LOR - Testing

[CampbellHouse]

Currently using standard LOR controllers but wanted to expand show and add an RGB tree. Bought the kit during the sale so I have the Pixie16 controller ready to go and the 16/50 pixels strips. My question - Is there a way to just run some test patterns through the RGB pixels so I can see what they look like? Or do I have to go through the setup and add it to my network?

Thanks - 

[TheDucks]

The manual says, (a short) push the reset test button after it boots

[toddm1919]

On my Pixie4, if you press and hold the button on the board it will sequentially light the pixels on all strings simultaneously. First in red, then green, then blue.  I would assume it would be the same for the 8 and 16.

[dibblejr]

I made a sequence just to have the pixels run through a test. Nothing fancy just lots of different colors and patterns. I have not connected mine to my network since my matrix is not complete. The lights are just laying on the floor in my man cave.

JR

[CampbellHouse]

Ok so i think I'm going to try and set this controller up on my LOR network so I can create some test sequences. My question is this - I have some CTB16PC controllers running right now and bought some new ones recently. Now I have the  Pixie16. In reading the instructions it sounds like I need to set up different networks. How do I know if I need to? I know it has something to do with ELOR but how do I know if my controllers will run it?

[TheDucks]

36 minutes ago, CampbellHouse said:

Ok so i think I'm going to try and set this controller up on my LOR network so I can create some test sequences. My question is this - I have some CTB16PC controllers running right now and bought some new ones recently. Now I have the  Pixie16. In reading the instructions it sounds like I need to set up different networks. How do I know if I need to? I know it has something to do with ELOR but how do I know if my controllers will run it?

If all your CTB16PC's are Gen 3, they understand Enhanced. If you have older ones, then you either need:

to split off those  to  a basic LOR network (which is what your USB adapter is and run the new stuff on a HS adapter

or just run on the standard LOR network and see if it can keep up with your show

[George Simmons]

1 hour ago, TheDucks said:

... or just run on the standard LOR network and see if it can keep up with your show

Unless all you're doing is working with solid colors to test ribbons, the odds are staggering against your regular-speed USB being able to keep up with 16 ribbons.  Maybe even unheard of...

 

[default]

CampbellHouse,

One option you have is to get a USB485-HS adapter (http://store.lightorama.com/usbrs485hs.html) for you Pixie16. You would plug the USB into a free USB port on your PC (this will create an additional new network) and plug the lan cable into your Pixie16. In the LOR Network config, set the Comm Port, Speed and check the Enhanced LOR Network box. The price of  the USB485-HS adapter is $31.95 and well worth it by preventing headaches later on as your show grows.

This is a pic of how I have my networks setup in LOR Network Config. The highlighted AUX E network is how I have 1 of my Pixie16's setup. AUX F is the other.

I agree with George, you would be asking your current network (with the CTB16PC's) to do a lot. Keep in mind your Pixie16 with 16 strands of 50 LEDs is 2,400 channels. IMO, Ideally you want your Pixie16 to run on it's own network this will reduce the chance of lag to all your controllers (i.e. your entire show)

Also, when you add your Pixie16 to Sequence Editor it will use 16 Unit ID's (1 Unit ID per port) This will become important later if you add more controllers because you will have to remember how many Unit ID's you are currently using. As of right now this may not seem important. By keeping this info written down somewhere will help later on as you add more controllers. This is an example of how I keep track of my networks. This is just the info added into a spreadsheet and saved in my LOR directory for future reference. Just writing it down would work also. I added the latest Firmware column as a quick reference, so I don't need to drag out each controller and check it's current firmware version.

If you notice in the pic above the Pixie16 on Comm8 starts at Unit ID 15 and ends on Unit 24. This means my next controller (which is also a Pixie16) must start at Unit25. (it could start at 26, 27 etc.) just not below 25, I have found it wise to number the Unit ID's sequentially to avoid confusion. For those looking real close,  yes I have to update the Pixie16 on Comm9 with an ending Unit ID # - I forgot to do it when I updated this list last.

Alan...

Edited April 19, 2017 by default

[CampbellHouse]

Thanks everyone for your help! ? Now I have a much better understanding of how things should work. 

Will setup the Pixie on its own - with the USB485-HS adapter. 

Two final questions - 1) I checked all my controllers and 1 is a standard CTB16PC and the others are Gen 3 - Will it hurt anything to have them all on the same network or should I put them on their own also? All lights they will be driving are LED. 2) May add some RGB arches - would they require another adapter and network or could I add them to the Pixie16 network?

Thanks again for everyone's help!

[TheDucks]

50 minutes ago, CampbellHouse said:

Thanks everyone for your help! ? Now I have a much better understanding of how things should work. 

Will setup the Pixie on its own - with the USB485-HS adapter. 

Two final questions - 1) I checked all my controllers and 1 is a standard CTB16PC and the others are Gen 3 - Will it hurt anything to have them all on the same network or should I put them on their own also? All lights they will be driving are LED. 2) May add some RGB arches - would they require another adapter and network or could I add them to the Pixie16 network?

Thanks again for everyone's help!

 

The Gen3 will detect the mode (standard LOR) and run fine together.. The old one will not like (at all) the newer protocol.

There is a nice chart somewhere on the LOR site on which devices work with which adapters. (The adapter setting sets the mode)

[k6ccc]

18 minutes ago, TheDucks said:

The Gen3 will detect the mode (standard LOR) and run fine together.. The old one will not like (at all) the newer protocol.

There is a nice chart somewhere on the LOR site on which devices work with which adapters. (The adapter setting sets the mode)

http://www1.lightorama.com/network-speeds/

 

[k6ccc]

Also note that using an Enhanced network requires a Pro level LOR software license.

http://www1.lightorama.com/sequencing-suite-software/

 

Edited April 19, 2017 by k6ccc

[CampbellHouse]

Thanks everyone for your help! ? Now I have a much better understanding of how things should work. 

Will setup the Pixie on its own - with the USB485-HS adapter. 

Two final questions - 1) I checked all my controllers and 1 is a standard CTB16PC and the others are Gen 3 - Will it hurt anything to have them all on the same network or should I put them on their own also? All lights they will be driving are LED. 2) May add some RGB arches - would they require another adapter and network or could I add them to the Pixie16 network?

Thanks again for everyone's help!

[CampbellHouse]

Ok so now I don't feel so overwhelmed by everything - I appreciate all the feedback. 

Last question - Do I need to worry about power for this setup? On LOR website they said it was basically plug and play but other things I read about RGB say they sometimes need additional power. 

Thanks

[CampbellHouse]

18 hours ago, default said:

CampbellHouse,

One option you have is to get a USB485-HS adapter (http://store.lightorama.com/usbrs485hs.html) for you Pixie16. You would plug the USB into a free USB port on your PC (this will create an additional new network) and plug the lan cable into your Pixie16. In the LOR Network config, set the Comm Port, Speed and check the Enhanced LOR Network box. The price of  the USB485-HS adapter is $31.95 and well worth it by preventing headaches later on as your show grows.

This is a pic of how I have my networks setup in LOR Network Config. The highlighted AUX E network is how I have 1 of my Pixie16's setup. AUX F is the other.

I agree with George, you would be asking your current network (with the CTB16PC's) to do a lot. Keep in mind your Pixie16 with 16 strands of 50 LEDs is 2,400 channels. IMO, Ideally you want your Pixie16 to run on it's own network this will reduce the chance of lag to all your controllers (i.e. your entire show)

Also, when you add your Pixie16 to Sequence Editor it will use 16 Unit ID's (1 Unit ID per port) This will become important later if you add more controllers because you will have to remember how many Unit ID's you are currently using. As of right now this may not seem important. By keeping this info written down somewhere will help later on as you add more controllers. This is an example of how I keep track of my networks. This is just the info added into a spreadsheet and saved in my LOR directory for future reference. Just writing it down would work also. I added the latest Firmware column as a quick reference, so I don't need to drag out each controller and check it's current firmware version.

If you notice in the pic above the Pixie16 on Comm8 starts at Unit ID 15 and ends on Unit 24. This means my next controller (which is also a Pixie16) must start at Unit25. (it could start at 26, 27 etc.) just not below 25, I have found it wise to number the Unit ID's sequentially to avoid confusion. For those looking real close,  yes I have to update the Pixie16 on Comm9 with an ending Unit ID # - I forgot to do it when I updated this list last.

Alan...

Thanks Alan - this is good advise - I definitely will use Excel to keep track!

[default]

9 hours ago, k6ccc said:

Also note that using an Enhanced network requires a Pro level LOR software license.

http://www1.lightorama.com/sequencing-suite-software/

 

Thanks Jim for bringing this up. Unless someone asked about licenses, I tend to forget to mention this.

[k6ccc]

Having a Pro license, I do too. But I have both of the pages I linked above bookmarked because I reference them or link them so often.


Sent from my phone using Tapatalk, so blame any typos on Android!

[default]

2 hours ago, CampbellHouse said:

Two final questions -

1) I checked all my controllers and 1 is a standard CTB16PC and the others are Gen 3 - Will it hurt anything to have them all on the same network or should I put them on their own also? All lights they will be driving are LED.

2) May add some RGB arches - would they require another adapter and network or could I add them to the Pixie16 network?

1) 1 network running at 56K should be fine for your CTB16PC's. One way to look at it is that 1 - CTB16PC's  = 16 channels, 2 - CTB16PC's = 32 channels, etc.. In comparison the Pixie16 has 2,400 channels which is why it should have it's own network (you may get by with very simple color changes but it will choke when you start adding more complex sequences). So to sum up if you run 1 Regular network for all of your CTB16PC's  and 1 Hi Speed network with the USB485-HS adapter and your Pixie16, you should be fine.

2) This would depend on the Controller you would use for the arches. Again the thing to pay attention to is the channel count per network. Smart RGB's use more channels. In the case of your Pixie16, you have 16 strands of 50 LED's this equals 800 smart RGB LED's. Each smart RGB LED requires 3 channels, (1 for Red, 1 for Green, and 1 for Green - all other colors are a result of mixing these colors) So your 800 smart RGB pixels X 3 (channels) = the 2,400 channels. In my experience so far with the Pixie16's, I am running 1 Pixie16 per network and have not had a problem with lag. The cost of the USB485-HS adapter is cheap enough to easily add another network. The addition of the "Enhanced Network" and saving files as Intensity are also helpful. This requires the Pro License mentioned above.

Keep in mind also, if you plan to use Superstar for sequencing, you may have to upgrade it also to cover the channel count.

 

2 hours ago, CampbellHouse said:

Last question - Do I need to worry about power for this setup? On LOR website they said it was basically plug and play but other things I read about RGB say they sometimes need additional power.

I am unsure how many CTB16PC's you have, so it's kind of hard to answer the question. However if it's at all possible you could always put the Pixie16 on another circuit.

 

Alan...

 

 

[CampbellHouse]

11 hours ago, default said:

1) 1 network running at 56K should be fine for your CTB16PC's. One way to look at it is that 1 - CTB16PC's  = 16 channels, 2 - CTB16PC's = 32 channels, etc.. In comparison the Pixie16 has 2,400 channels which is why it should have it's own network (you may get by with very simple color changes but it will choke when you start adding more complex sequences). So to sum up if you run 1 Regular network for all of your CTB16PC's  and 1 Hi Speed network with the USB485-HS adapter and your Pixie16, you should be fine.

2) This would depend on the Controller you would use for the arches. Again the thing to pay attention to is the channel count per network. Smart RGB's use more channels. In the case of your Pixie16, you have 16 strands of 50 LED's this equals 800 smart RGB LED's. Each smart RGB LED requires 3 channels, (1 for Red, 1 for Green, and 1 for Green - all other colors are a result of mixing these colors) So your 800 smart RGB pixels X 3 (channels) = the 2,400 channels. In my experience so far with the Pixie16's, I am running 1 Pixie16 per network and have not had a problem with lag. The cost of the USB485-HS adapter is cheap enough to easily add another network. The addition of the "Enhanced Network" and saving files as Intensity are also helpful. This requires the Pro License mentioned above.

Keep in mind also, if you plan to use Superstar for sequencing, you may have to upgrade it also to cover the channel count.

 

I am unsure how many CTB16PC's you have, so it's kind of hard to answer the question. However if it's at all possible you could always put the Pixie16 on another circuit.

 

Alan...

 

 

 

11 hours ago, default said:

1) 1 network running at 56K should be fine for your CTB16PC's. One way to look at it is that 1 - CTB16PC's  = 16 channels, 2 - CTB16PC's = 32 channels, etc.. In comparison the Pixie16 has 2,400 channels which is why it should have it's own network (you may get by with very simple color changes but it will choke when you start adding more complex sequences). So to sum up if you run 1 Regular network for all of your CTB16PC's  and 1 Hi Speed network with the USB485-HS adapter and your Pixie16, you should be fine.

2) This would depend on the Controller you would use for the arches. Again the thing to pay attention to is the channel count per network. Smart RGB's use more channels. In the case of your Pixie16, you have 16 strands of 50 LED's this equals 800 smart RGB LED's. Each smart RGB LED requires 3 channels, (1 for Red, 1 for Green, and 1 for Green - all other colors are a result of mixing these colors) So your 800 smart RGB pixels X 3 (channels) = the 2,400 channels. In my experience so far with the Pixie16's, I am running 1 Pixie16 per network and have not had a problem with lag. The cost of the USB485-HS adapter is cheap enough to easily add another network. The addition of the "Enhanced Network" and saving files as Intensity are also helpful. This requires the Pro License mentioned above.

Keep in mind also, if you plan to use Superstar for sequencing, you may have to upgrade it also to cover the channel count.

 

I am unsure how many CTB16PC's you have, so it's kind of hard to answer the question. However if it's at all possible you could always put the Pixie16 on another circuit.

 

Alan...

 

 

Thanks Alan for the follow up. My fault my question wasn't clear. I was actually talking about adding power injection to the pixel strings. I would hope that the Pixel16 box was built to run the 16x50 strings without it or it would have said something about it right? I'm sure it's good - just me being over engineering as usual!

[default]

No need to add power injection to the pixie strings. Just plug them and go

Alan...