I am creating a massive Lighting project to illuminate my LEGO minifigure display cases where I showcase my custom minifigures. I have a few questions as I have started and quickly realized I was going about it all wrong. Clearly I need some additional materials beyond the LEDs, wire, & solder. I am looking for help/info identifying the best components to use internally to connect strips and then connect multiple display cases. I completely understand this is a long list of questions and a massive project, please help, I am lost and need some direction. I am only dealing with the wiring stage at this point, am driving with an Arduino, but that programming is an issue for another day.
Setup is never the same, so need flexibility in these connections/setup.
Also I will have to have 2 connectors per case (Power & Data In; Power & Data Out) Or would it be better to completely separate Power & Data, thus 4 connectors? Parallel Power, but Serial Data? Or small serial clusters connected in parallel?
Need connector internally to allow power & data to connect the two rows of LED strips, thinking UR-3 Connectors, is there something better? Just need simple and to cut down on soldering time.
Wire Gauge, as mentioned I will be connecting 40+ of these cases together, worried about added resistance/voltage drop. Is 24 gauge enough? Braided or solid?
As you can see I am off in the deep end of the pool and am sinking fast. If you made it this far, thanks for reading, if you can help I am all about it.
Do you need individually settable LEDs in your display ? Or would just having all the LEDs be the same color and brightness be good enough ?
Does each display case (or bay in a case) need to be different (LED color or brightness) from the others ?
oh and …
How are the cases above to be stacked ? Ideally you want them to be “connectorized” in such a way that when physically stacked they also get electrically interconnected (as needed) as well.
Sticking (for the moment) with your plan in the OP - you definitely want separate power and ground wiring from your power supply to each case as 48 LEDs/case will draw some amps. Or have a separate power supply per case.
You’re limited, by available memory in your “controller”, to some number of LEDs in a single serially addressable string. Given your 40+ cases I’ll guess that means some arrangement of parallel sets of serial strings. It might even pay to put a simple cheap controller on each case to drive all it’s LEDs and then have the controllers all “netted” in some fashion. What kind of lighting schemes (and how many) were you thinking of for each case ? Or for each bay in a case ??
I want individual control. I have about thousand custom figures in these cases. Ultimately I want an interface where people can type in a name that triggers a light show that ends illuminating the bay that contains that figure. When this isn’t occurring a standard white light would be used unless a bay needed something odd or funny for the lighting.
Yes, each bay. This is an advanced feature I want to add. Know I need to walk before I run. See comment above. I have roughly wired one case to this point: http://youtu.be/RawCT9sZZxA I am going to have to rewire this case, it is a mess inside. It was wired with 24 guage Cat5 cable.
This is whole reason I bought such expensive LEDs; I have 30 Meters of these strips, which is enough for 36 cases with some small strips leftover. These leftovers would be great for the smaller cases, which are 2x4 (8 Bay cases), yes I have several of these as well.
This is one of the points in my post, I am not sure what is best. I have been debating a Phone jack, Cat6 jack, or even a headphone jack. I really need 3 wires, power, ground, & data. Only data is directional. To wire in series I would need an in and out, so two connections per box, if I wire all in parallel I need a TON of cables to go back and forth to power and control. The main issue with parallel is length isn’t easily predictable at some of these events that I attend.
I have debated adding these connectors in the stud portion on the top and stud acceptor region on the bottom of each case to conceal the connections. However setup at events vary, so this could make things difficult. Typically they are stacked 3 cases high, and overlap each other by 1/2 case for added strength. This is visible in the links in the initial post. I can link more photos if needed. Links were broken, but have been fixed in the initial post.
I think separate power supplies per case will get difficult. I was thinking of one power source per 5 or 8 cases. I have also been thinking of parallel sets of serial strings as you mention, in this same 5-8 config. I have debated the controller per case as well, but as this could easily be added after the initial wire up I have put that off. This is also one of the reasons I started this thread. Didn’t know if multiple Arduinos or RaspberryPi, or something else was better. I like the Arduino since it is also 5v.
As for the last question that is the question. I would love to have custom schemes when certain characters are queried. For example, Captain America, would be a Red, White, & Blue theme. If a figure doesn’t have a specific theme then a default theme would be used. There might be 5 of these defaults that randomize for added fun. Also there might be some default random lighting show type events that just kick off at random times or if I want to get really fancy later based on motion, or some other sensory input.
I know an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, I assume an ounce of planning is worth well more than a pound of cure. Thank you for your reply.
Jared
ps. Yes I am aware of how ambitious this project is, which is why I want to make this scale and add features and complexity, the only way that is possible is great forethought.
Now that I can see the pics I can see your dilemma. I’ll have to have a beer or 3 to think about it. But off the top of my head I think that each case gets one serial string of LEDs. That’s a given. Trying to add more cases to a single string is going to present a programming problem as each show will likely have a different setup which would complicate the programming of the new loooong serial string. I suspect you want to be able to plug’n’play when setting up at en event.
So that means that the data should be parallel, one case gets a string, all cases (up to 40 !) are in parallel. That presents another problem in that it’ll be hard to find a single microcontroller (MCU) that has that many output pins. For the moment (more thought needed here) that points me towards one of two solutions.
First, having an MCU (simple and cheap one, like a [Trinket) per case and then having the MCUs networked … if that’s even needed is one potential solution. That way each case knows it’s contents and only when you change the contents does it have to be reprogrammed (potentially). Leaving some cases at home and setting up any number of cases, from 1 to 40, becomes a snap data-wise.
One thing is for sure, a single Uno does not have enough SRAM to handle all the LEDs (3 LEDs/bay * 16 bays/case * 40 cases = 1920), no matter what serial and parallel arrangement you come up with. Supposedly a Teensy does and I would point you to these links, if only for info ATM.
At a minimum a Teensy can drive 8 strings of these LEDs in parallel. Perhaps that argues for 1 Teensy MCU per 8 cases, keeping the same 8 cases for each Teensy (to keep the programming simple). A power supply per 8 cases would be a logical extension of that idea. And perhaps dividing your display into groups of 8 isn’t a bad idea. Doesn’t mean you couldn’t do … say 20 … cases, just that would be 2 whole groups of 8 cases plus 1 short group of 4 cases. If needed/wanted you could then network the Teensies to some master controller.
It gets crazy setting these up at an event. Here are a few more photos from 2 different events at the Houston Children’s Museum. I was in the same space, but the tables were different and ended up with slightly different configurations.
Plug’n’play is critical. Typically events are setup in an hour or two before they start. Just don’t typically have more time than that.
All 40 in parallel, ick, that is going to be a wiring trick. Think fake Christmas tree with wire lengths. I can definitely figure it out if I have to do so, just want to keep it as simple as possible.
I like the idea of a small MCU in each case as it can keep the inventory/lookup table for that case so when certain routines are run they will know where everything is. I do have a question. If I wanted chase lighting or some other more simple option could these MCU’s report or be connected such that simple orientation to each other could be figured out on the fly based on how I set them up at an event?
Could an Arduino be used instead of the trinket? It is going to sound crazy, but I think I can get Mega’s or Uno’s cheaper than the trinket. Please forgive here I am very new to the whole Arduino scene. I get why data can’t be serial because the arrangement would have to be the same every time for that serial group. So while data needs to be parallel, could power be serial, or would it be simplest to just keep it all parallel.
For reference I have uploaded pictures of the inside of the case, there is a bit of room, the trinket could fit, the Uno might be a touch more difficult, but I still think it would fit.
https://flic.kr/s/aHsk8217Yg - Pictures aren’t perfect, but I think you will get an idea of how much space is in each case.
I like the power of a single MCU per case as it gives the most flexibility. If I need to I think it would be easier to link one Teensy per 5 cases. This would make setup a bit easier to stay consistent. What kind of master controller were you thinking?
Connectors:
So you think I need to separate data and power. This simply means double the connectors per case. The other issue is when these are wall mounted, the more something sticks off the back the harder it is to setup at home, I want to enjoy all this hard work too. The “phone jack” carries 4 wires and I only need 3, so I could get it all done in one phone cord and if not wiring in series I would only need one connector per case. If in series keeping power and data together would serve to make power more uniform and data would be passed forward and only 2 phone jacks per case. I could also do this with Ethernet jacks, however that is 8 wires that are thicker. Would phone wires be sufficient gauge to carry the power and data? If not, what about cat6, could run double power, double ground, and double data, which would still only tie up 6 of the 8 lines. Just trying to keep the connector wires easy to make. I assume you are suggesting the Molex 4pin or DE-9 because of larger gauge wire?
fineclonier:
All 40 in parallel, ick, that is going to be a wiring trick. Think fake Christmas tree with wire lengths.
Well there can be some mix'n'match w/the power. First it's important to know that you can only connect so many of these LED strips in series. The traces for power and ground aren't that large and so the voltage drops as the string of strips gets long. One way to combat this is to feed power and ground to both ends of the string. So you could serially connect N of your cases if you also feed power and ground to the first and last case. But then you need 2 power connectors per case, an in and an out connector. For all but the last case power and ground come in via the in connector and goes out, to the next case, on the out connector. Right now I don't know how long N is. But other posts have that number.
fineclonier:
I like the idea of a small MCU in each case as it can keep the inventory/lookup table for that case so when certain routines are run they will know where everything is. I do have a question. If I wanted chase lighting or some other more simple option could these MCU’s report or be connected such that simple orientation to each other could be figured out on the fly based on how I set them up at an event?
Yes, I'm sure that could be done. It would require all the MCUs be linked and perhaps some sync signal.
fineclonier:
Could an Arduino be used instead of the trinket? It is going to sound crazy, but I think I can get Mega’s or Uno’s cheaper than the trinket.
Sure, an Uno (or Mega) would be larger but if you can get then cheap ...
fineclonier:
What kind of master controller were you thinking?
I haven't given it much thought. If you decide to go w/an MCU per case, then it's really there just to interface to you. To allow you to call up the lighting scheme and/or change one on the fly. What would you want for an interface ? I suspect another Uno would work.
fineclonier:
Connectors: So you think I need to separate data and power.
…
I assume you are suggesting the Molex 4pin or DE-9 because of larger gauge wire?
Right now I'd keep them separated only because the power and data "needs" are different and your setups can vary so much. The wire gauge somewhat depends on how many cases you wire in series. You'll want less voltage drop in the "feed" wires if you daisy chain the cases as described above.
I want to start getting the cases together so while we determine the best connection I will likely have the wires come out the back through one of the mounting holes. Don’t want to cut a port for a jack we move away from.
In order to do this I need to know what gauge wire to use. I have Cat5e - 24 gauge - solid core, phone - 24 gauge - solid, RGB 4 pin - 24 gauge - stranded. I could get something else.
Thoughts were using pairs of cat5 as single wires, this soldering a pair to each connection (power, ground, & data). This would mean I have two 24 gauge solid core wires carrying the load. Don’t know if that is better than 1 20 gauge, for example. This would also leave 1 pair of wires from the Cat5 that are unused, which could be used for the MCU.
I have some ideas to put forth but it’s getting near game time so that’ll have to wait until tomorrow.
FWIW wire gauge goes down as you double the current capacity and a drop of 3 is an increase of 2x in current capacity. So two 24AWG wires in parallel equal a single 21AWG wire. Your almost 2000 LEDs could draw as much as 115A if they were all on at full brightness and white color. Wikipedia has a good table of AWG size vs current capacity and ohms/ft.
From the wiki on power-over-Ethernet …
Power capacity limits: Category 5 cable uses 24 AWG conductors, which can safely carry 360 mA at 50 V according to the latest TIA ruling.[citation needed] The cable has eight conductors (only half of which are used for power) and therefore the absolute maximum power transmitted using direct current is 50 V × 0.360 A × 2 = 36 W. Considering the voltage drop after 100 m, a PD would be able to receive 31.6 W. The additional heat generated in the wires by PoE at this current level (4.4 watts per 100 meter cable) limits the total number of cables in a bundle to be 100 cables at 45 °C, according to the TIA. This can be somewhat alleviated by the use of Category 6 cable which uses 23 AWG conductors.
Even using 3 pairs of 24AWG you could deliver about 1A max. Each case might use about 3A at max brightness, etc, etc. And I’d have to calculate the voltage drop at even 1A. IMO anything more than 0.5v is too much. How long might a power wire have to be ?
While I’m not 100% sure, I’m leaning towards the single Teensy 3.1 route and wiring it all as I show below. First I’d wire the cases as shown, using a single connector for data and power. Data and power is then daisy-chained from case to case. Additional power comes in every other case, direct from the power supply to keep the voltage drop due to the LED strip wiring “small”. This does mean making some Y adapters for the 1’st cases so data comes in from the Teensy on 1 connector, power from the supply on the other and both, now combined, going into the case on the 3’rd connector of the adapter. A similar adapter would be needed every other (or every 3’rd) case to combine the direct power with the daisy-chained power+data. This is probably the simplest and least $$ way I can think off.
(click on to open)
(click on to open)
Note that I show only 2 of the 8 “groups”, 5 cases per group times 8 groups gets you your 40 cases (max). Also I show one ginormaous power supply to power every thing. That may not be the way to go, especially if you do lots of shows with less that the 40 cases.
The data is an 800 kHz pulse train. Using TTL circuitry to drive that from Teensy to the first case, or from case to case, means that wiring should be 3’ or less or you’ll likely have problems. If it’s got to be longer, or if you want to be sure it’ll always work, you could use a non-TTL circuit in between the transmitter and receiver. RS-485 is a simple way to do that and needs 2 wires plus a ground. So my thinking is to use DE-9 connectors on the cases, double or tripling up on the power&ground wires and that leaves pins for whatever scheme is needed to transmit the data (Teensy to case, case-case).
The Teensy has enough Flash and RAM to hold and manipulate a bunch of look-up tables. I’m thinking you’d have a look-up table for each case (ID), telling what content is in what bay of that case. Then, depending on your show, you also have a look-up table that associates the case ID with the position in the group, ie - Case#13 is in the A1 position, Case#5 is in the E4 position. You edit the first set of look-up tables only as the case contents change. You edit the second set (perhaps) from show to show, keep a default (or set of “defaults”) to fall back on. This way you could specify the lighting desired “Superman” (in Case#6, Bay#2) and the Teensy computes the details of the data to be sent. I don’t think the Teensy programming to do this will be all that difficult.
As to why you need to have “supplemental” power every other (or 3’rd) case … here’s some measured voltage data from people using a single 5M strip of 60 LEDs/M. Just putting power in at the ends of the strip wasn’t good enough at even 50% brightness. Your cases at 48 LEDs/M aren’t that much different. FWIW I’'d add at least a 1000 uF cap across power and ground for each case (I can explain why).
Comment #1:
I can confirm that this 5M strip cannot be fully brightened while only fed 5V from both ends. In other words, if you want to go above 25% brightness across all LED’s your going to have to splice some power points along the strip. At 50% brightness, the voltage at 2.5M is around 3.8V and the LED’s no longer can reliably read/transfer the data stream resulting in “random” colors along the strip. Also, check your JST connectors if cascading more than one strip because my output side was miss-wired yel<->red which is not good for the electronics, especially when driving with a >10A power supply!
Comment #2:
I ended up buying some 30A 5V power supplies (and very happy with them) PS1-150W-05 from circuit specialists. I also put automotive fuses on the power lines to protect against shorts. Eventually I will add a current sensor and relay to have the arduino shut things off if the current spikes over the normal.* The strips can get warm to the touch when driving at full brightness even when powered at the start and end of the strip. Voltage drop into the center is just a bit under 4v, so Ideally I think you would power ever 2.5m. I used mine in a lot of animations so they rarely were at full brightness so I didn’t worry about them.
And (FWIW) here’s a depiction of an adapter cable. For just a little more wire and soldering, I think there only needs to be 1 type. It’ll allow connection of a case-case cable along with a data only or power only cable. The red line depicts 5V power, either as a single wire or pair or (possibly) a triplet of wires. Same goes for the ground wires (black). I see no reason you couldn’t have single pairs for “short” power cables, and double or tripe pairs for “long” power cables. All that means is that the adapter should be compatible w/the most pairs used.
The blue lines depict the data in, be it a single wire (TTL) or a pair (RS-422/485).
(click on to open)
As usual the end of the cable having the live voltage should be female (sockets) as they are harder to short out than male pins.
OK, the ball is in your court now ! I’m out of ideas. :mrgreen:
Ok, you start to loose me a bit here. I am a molecular biologist by training. The only TTL I know about is for microscopes and it is a signal to open and close shutters on a camera quickly. I am sure this is likely the same thing, but that is the extent of my TTL info.
I am confused by the way you numbered the case, are you wanting me to split the strip and bring power and data into the middle so the first window lit would be b4 (in numbering from top left corner)?
I completely understand the voltage drop and the need for bringing in additional power. I assumed I would need 4+ power supplies that were distributed around the display. They make storage blocks that look like LARGE LEGO bricks, I was going to get some of these to disguise power supplies.
Will the DE-9 connectors allow the cases to flush mount on the wall? Like this: https://flic.kr/p/dNxVWy
I am a bit concerned over how the Teensy will know what is in each case. I get what you are saying and it isn’t too bad. Is there some small chip out there that simply will report a name back to another board, something really tiny like an RF-ID chip or something that could be used to figure out case order automatically.
Currently I have a 60A 5V supply. I believe it is at full brightness the full length (5M), but would have to verify. I was wondering about resistors or fuses inline to protect things, is this something we should consider now?
How warm is warm? These are exposed to small children at events, I don’t want anyone to get hurt. I doubt I will need FULL brightness, the main reason to do the lighting is it is hard to see figure details in rooms with 20 ft ceilings, the lighting is terrible, so most of the time the LEDs will be on 1/2 brightness white. The others schemes are more for fun and interaction with guests.
I also don’t know what a Y connection is, I was thinking of using those quick clicking connectors like the phone company uses: http://images.lowes.com/product/convert … 9252lg.jpg There are 3 wire versions, so an extra wire could easily be included, but I think you had something different in mind.
Thank you so much for all the assistance, this is AWESOME, I greatly appreciate it!
First, Jared, let me say that if everyone asked questions the way you do we’d all have a lot more fun. You clearly stated what you wanted to do, the constraints you were working under, and exactly where you needed help without being cryptic or trying to be clever. Thank you!
I think that modularizing per case is the way to go. Using the W2812 LEDs (I have been looking for an excuse to play with those), you only need two I/O lines for the entire group of 48 LEDs per case, plus power and ground. Separating per case also keeps the signal bandwidth within reasonable limits. One of [these connectors per board would probably be fine, although you may need to beef up the power/ground wiring to larger gauge wire.
So I imagine an arduino or similar for each case, connected on a network with all the other cases. That’s where things get interesting. It might be worth looking into the DMX512 protocol for communicating with the Arduinos. Each arduino can have a DIP switch to set its address, that way you can set it once and just write the address on the back of the case. A cheaper solution would be to program each arduino with a fixed serial number and use that since you really never need to change it.
A Raspberry Pi for a main controller looks like a great choice. They’re pretty powerful, can have a nice GUI or web interface easily and not very expensive. Of course, if you are going to have a laptop with you already, there’s no advantage to the RPi. The hard realtime stuff is happening on the arduinos and a laptop should be able to send case update messages fast enough.
As an aside, I wonder what commercial applications like this (controlled lighting of large numbers of very small areas) do? They must exist, how do you even find them?](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9920)
fineclonier:
Ok, you start to loose me a bit here. I am a molecular biologist by training. The only TTL I know about is for microscopes and it is a signal to open and close shutters on a camera quickly. I am sure this is likely the same thing, but that is the extent of my TTL info.
Without going into a long dissertation let's just say that the typical output pin of any micro-controller (MCU) won't drive a 0-5v (TTL) signal very far down a set of wires. The link I posted to PJRCs "adapter board" uses some circuitry meant for sending TTL signals but not that far (a few feet maybe). If the wiring for the data signal is longer than a few feet (from Teensy to the 1'st case or from case-case) the data may be corrupted. In that case you'll want to use a different scheme to send the data signal. RS-422/485 is one (time proven and common) way.
fineclonier:
I am confused by the way you numbered the case, are you wanting me to split the strip and bring power and data into the middle so the first window lit would be b4 (in numbering from top left corner)?
That was done because I wanted to keep the connectors in the middle of the case. That way it kept the shortest possible wiring path while it didn't matter if the cases were stacked vertically or arranged side by side. In reality you can do it anyway you think is best.
fineclonier:
Will the DE-9 connectors allow the cases to flush mount on the wall?
About as easy as any connector I'd think. What I would do is "pig tail" the connectors. That is instead of hard mounting the connector body to the case, have the connector body hang loose from the case, the only attachment being the wires themselves. Like how a plug for a lamp is at the end of the wires or how the connector lyndon [[linked to](https://www.sparkfun.com/products/9920) looks. That way the incoming cable and the connectors can lie as flat as possible or perhaps be tucked into some crevice in the case. The incoming cable isn't forced, by the case connector, to be at right angles out to the back of the case or to be at right angles wrt any one side of the case. It's flexible as it needs to be to allow the varied arrangements of the cases.
fineclonier:
I am a bit concerned over how the Teensy will know what is in each case. I get what you are saying and it isn’t too bad. Is there some small chip out there that simply will report a name back to another board, something really tiny like an RF-ID chip or something that could be used to figure out case order automatically.
Yup, that's the drawback to the single MCU scheme. The cases would likely have some printed ID number on them and you'd be responsible for putting them in the correct order and "telling" the Teensy that order (via a look-up table). The multiple MCU scheme is simpler in that respect but uses more hardware and so is more $$s. And needs more space in the case. The requirements for data and power wiring are pretty much the same in both scenarios. As I said before, it might be good to run a sync signal to all the MCUs (in that scenario). It would simplify the chase lighting programming. So add 1 signal for the multi-MCU scenario.
fineclonier:
Currently I have a 60A 5V supply. I believe it is at full brightness the full length (5M), but would have to verify. I was wondering about resistors or fuses inline to protect things, is this something we should consider now?
That's a good thought ! You probably want some fuses in the power lines. It's best if they are as close to the power supply as possible. This probably deserves a post of it's own.
fineclonier:
How warm is warm? These are exposed to small children at events, I don’t want anyone to get hurt. I doubt I will need FULL brightness, the main reason to do the lighting is it is hard to see figure details in rooms with 20 ft ceilings, the lighting is terrible, so most of the time the LEDs will be on 1/2 brightness white. The others schemes are more for fun and interaction with guests.
How warm will the LEDs be ? Not very, certainly nothing to worry about. At max brightness each LED will use 0.3W.
fineclonier:
I also don’t know what a Y connection is, I was thinking of using those quick clicking connectors like the phone company uses: There are 3 wire versions, so an extra wire could easily be included, but I think you had something different in mind.
I"m not sure what wire gauge those will take or how many wires. The Y cable I diagrammed above would look something like this (but less "finished"). Though nothing stops you from buying them. As you can see they are available.
lyndon:
As an aside, I wonder what commercial applications like this (controlled lighting of large numbers of very small areas) do? They must exist, how do you even find them?
A while ago I was helping some poster w/a lighting scheme and ran across a program widely used by Christmas lighting people, you know, the ones who decorate their houses and yards in displays the ISS can see. They tend to use a program called Vixen.
It can output a serial data stream in a number of commercially, and custom, formats … including DMX. I found the earlier “development” version (2.x) pretty easy to use, the latest version not so much. I don’t think they had a “plug in” to output a WS2812 type data stream. Not that one couldn’t be developed. It’s probably an “A-bomb to kill an ant” for the OP but worth a mention.
I like the idea of an RPi as a “head unit / master controller” if the OP goes the multi-MCU route. I can envision a touchscreen and a GUI that shows/defines the case to case connections and directs the MCUs to do their thing. Then again I could see a smart phone (or tablet) with Bluetooth doing something similar for the Teensy 3.1 scenario. Decisions, decisions … :mrgreen: :twisted:
This project piques my interest because I have been coming back to this idea of a system to control a large number of LEDs for portable applications. Problem is that every time I figure out what the design would be I realize that I can’t find a target market that would make it worthwhile.
So I see this and I get excited for a few minutes again… and then float back down to earth.
For that matter … just to control a large amount of lights … say those ceiling mounted about your house. I had my house redone a while ago and I wondered if I couldn’t control all those lights in a better way than the multitude of dimmers I have.
There was, of course a commercial “answer”, but it was so cost prohibitive that I wonder if the makers were trying to make a profit or kill the market**.
But back to the OPs thread … he has to decide how much $$ and time he want’s to invest in this … it’s not insignificant. You and I might just do it for the kewl factor, I suspect he has other concerns. And I’ve yet to have any good feeling for the lighting schemes he may want to implement.
**sometimes I have to wonder … you’ve seen the WWW controlled light sockets, and I’m sure they’d work … but the $$ to make every socket “smart” … yikes !!! Are these people trying to make big $$s now or grow their business ?
My guess is they start by focusing these new technologies on high end homes and expect prices to drop to where it’s feasible for those of us poor folk, but they never do. Meanwhile there’s a wireless version of DMX512 that would probably work very well and it’s a proven technology: no need for anything new. Considering that my 10 year old house came wired for Ethernet, I’m surprised they’re not already putting remote dimming capability into the new houses.
Just to illustrate what I meant by “pig tails” previously (and because football is now all done) here’s a depiction of a case with my … ummm … unique wiring but having the “in” and “out” connectors on pig tails, such that the connectors extend beyond the case edges. Just how long is up to you but perhaps long enough to get the connector out from behind the case when/if the added depth of the connector(s) is not desired. It might also reduce the Christmas tree aspect of the wiring if each case could connect to the ones before and after it in the chain w/o having to use any “extension” cabling, at least for the more common case arrangements.
Thank you everyone for the help, especially Mee_n_Mac. I am starting to collect materials to start tackling this project. Clearly I have plenty of LED strips, but I have to collect many other things. Will keep updating here as I get things done.
http://www.firestartoys.com/ProductImag … /12029.jpg
