( Dive deep into DMX here)Įach controllable “Channel” of DMX generally runs 1 function of a light – for pixels that is red, green, or blue.ĥ12 Channels make up a DMX universe. DMX is the type of signal that has been controlling stage lights since the late 1980’s, and is quite good for a lot of reasons. We get these terms from the technology for controlling lights called “DMX”.
SMART PIXEL CONTROLLERS COMPARE FULL
Pay attention to this closely when you buy your controller – it will greatly govern the number of lights you can control overall!Īlso, know that more is not always better – a bad pixel at the start of a 1000 pixel run hurts your show a lot more than a bad pixel at the start of a 340-pixel run! But, on the other hand, using the full output capability of your controller saves you money – so it’s a tough balance to debate with yourself!Įach string of pixels that you hook to an output of your pixel controller can also be configured as to what “Universe” and “Channels” it uses from your computer’s sequencing software. This will allow you to drive multiple strings of pixels from that pixel controller.Įach string of pixels will have a maximum pixel count, usually 170, 340, 680, or 1020+ pixels. Often, the pixel controller that you buy will have multiple ports. They can set a maximum intensity level for each string of pixels that are connected, and they can also do some fancy configuration to assign the exact data that you want to the exact lights that you want… especially if you didn’t wire everything the way that you intended when you first set up your software! Pixel controllers also can do a variety of other helpful things. Most controllers will work with these types of pixels, and they are the most popular type of pixels out there.
There’s nothing worse than buying a controller that’s not compatible with the pixels you bought!Īs I mentioned before, it’s generally a safe bet to go with WS2811, WS2812, WS2813 or similar pixels. The most important thing to understand when looking for a controller is that you need to match your controller to the type of pixels (the protocol) that you have bought or are planning to buy. This “format” may be a variety of different protocols that may use either three or four wires to communicate the signal to the pixels. What is a Pixel Controller and How Does it Work?Īt it’s simplest form, the pixel controller takes the data from the computer (usually running a sequencer program like xLights or Vixen, or a Rasberry Pi running FPP), and converts it into a format that pixels can use. In between the computer the Christmas lights themselves, we need a pixel controller. Pixels need the information simplified for their use. We can’t just plug them into the computer via USB! While our computer will put out a DMX, Art-Net, or e1.31 (sACN) type signal, our pixels are not able to understand that information directly.