alt Hacker NewsThis is a huge space to get into. I’m on my fourth year doing an outdoor light show.
My personal preference is 12v ws2811 bullet-style voltage-regulated nodes. They’re extendable, individual nodes on a strand are replaceable if you’re willing to do some cutting and crimping.
I like the 12v because you can go for longer strands without losing colors from voltage drop. Regulated over a resistive voltage divider = less heat.
As has been mentioned, you can install WLED onto a microcontroller and have a web-page for a remote control.
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INTPenis • 12/08/2024
I know programming but only very rudimentary hardware, how difficult is this to do? Are there guides?
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I'm sure you know but for others reading, 12v ws2811 are grouped in threes, so not individually addressable. 5v is, and when you're working at scale power injection isn't a huge deal as you'll be doing it anyway.
Always standardise your connectors. I'm a fan of the Ray Wu ones.
ESP/WLED driven is my preference, but the Falcon controllers are popular amongst people who are more DIY/woodworking oriented as they're much simpler to set up and not _heaps_ more expensive. Falcon Player/xlights is the standard software for designing/playback of your show regardless of hardware.
Coro props (corrugated plastic, corflute) are a cheap and effective way to stand out from the crowd. Animatronics, smoke etc are also an option when going more advanced.
It's a lot of work. You rarely want to start after October or order your goods after July. You are running a live production and things will go wrong. Good luck to anyone entering the space, it's very fun and expensive!