Messages

1

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Playing video to projector while controlling syncronized RGB pizels

« on: January 14, 2016, 12:17:44 PM »

you would want to use a raspberry pi Model B,B+ or 2.
Do not use the BBB (it does not have as powerful a graphics processor), do not use the raspberry zero

The Model B,B+ or 2 all support 1080p/

Here is basic process i used
I take the mp3 of a song, say wizards.mp3. I go into a video editor, i use Power Director 13, i create an empty video. I paste the mp3 to the audio track. If i want a video to start at 11 seconds into my sequence, i drop video effects on video track starting at 11 seconds. Since i have the exact sound file, i can exactly position video where i want it. In this case the first 11 seconds would be blank.

I now save this as wizards.mp4

I run my lights from the master , 45K channels. The playlist would be something like
1) wizards.mp3    wizards.fseq
2) carol.mp3      carol.mp3
3) soundfile        sequence file

in the second rpi, i configure the FPP to be a slave. There is no playlist, there are no fseq files.  i just upload wizards.mp4 and carol.mp4.

Now when the master plays, it starts wizards.fseq, starts using wizards.mp3 for the sound. A signal is sent to the slave saying "I am running wizards.fseq". The slave looks to see if it has wizards.fseq (it doesnt), the slave looks if it has wizards.mp3 (it doesn't), it looks for a wizards.mp4, yes!. It now starts playing the wizards.mp4 and keeps it within one frame of the master fpp.

you can have thousands of slaves, thousands of projectors. Each raspberry pi can drive 1080p.
This assumed all lights being driven from master FPP. One FPP can drive 512,000 so it is probably enough, but what if you want one of the slaves to be your neighbor? Just send their slave the fseq sequence files, connect controllers to that slave.

Thank you Sean, I was hoping to see this in basic terminology! ...\One more question on this...more so from the preview standpoint, you never really account for the video in the sequence itself, so nothing is showing on the preview...would that be a correct presumption.

2

My Show Setup / Re: 10 minute video "Sampler" of our 20 minute multimedia Christmas display

« on: January 14, 2016, 11:37:51 AM »

Here is the link to our 10  "Sampler" video which is an abridged version of our 2015 20 minute multimedia Christmas display.

I want to send a sincere thank you to everyone on the xLights and Falcon teams for their excellent work and products.

I had to increase the light levels in the camera to properly catch the video portion of the display and by doing so, the LED are more saturated that I had wanted.  But, it is hard to capture both with one shoot, so here it is.

https://youtu.be/t8t-JGxhpwI

Charles Belcher

I didn't see anything saturated when I watched, and the show was spectacular...incredible job Charles!

3

Nutcracker Models / Re: Could there be a door frame model?

« on: December 29, 2015, 12:00:47 PM »

I didn't mean that it would make sequencing any easier, sorry.  I meant that when you are filling in the little squares.  When I first laid mine out, I came up two pixels short at the end of the 3rd leg.  Here is a snip of mine.  My actual front door frame is 21 pixels high, by 9 wide.
[/quote]

Okay..you do yours how I do mine...schwooo, thought I was missing the boat on this one 

4

Nutcracker Models / Re: Could there be a door frame model?

« on: December 29, 2015, 06:34:42 AM »

  Hint, when you build your custom model, make it 2 nodes wider than the actual # of nodes on the top of the frame.  You will realize why when you are working on it.  I had to re-do mine a couple of times before I got the hang of it.
[/quote]
I'd be curious as to why 2 nodes wider..my custom model uses the exact node count...if your way is better from a sequencing standpoint, I'd like to understand why so I can make the adjustment...thanks

5

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Changes to RGB Effects XML

« on: December 28, 2015, 04:23:56 PM »

While I was out taking a picture...I started counti9ng the number of pixels it was skipping...exactly 1 universe...so I looked at the setup itself...and low and behold..Universe 41 was before 40, and with the automatic numbering within xlights...well, you get the picture...quick fix...sorry for wasting your time!

6

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Changes to RGB Effects XML

« on: December 28, 2015, 04:04:30 PM »

I mean why are you trying to add models using a text editor?  You can do it in a couple seconds inside the program and then you don't have to worry about messing up the format.

I do allow the program to do it...I wasn't sure on the sequential order piece, which you clarified didn't matter
Believe me Gil..anything that is automated..is my friend! Here is my xml RGB effects file and controller set up...IF you have time to peruse it to see if I am missing something...I'd appreciate it

7

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Changes to RGB Effects XML

« on: December 28, 2015, 10:31:59 AM »

So not order dependent...so that would not have been the issue then...The trees were never new elements, and they are in a few different models/views.   

What do you mean by why not just use the program to do it? Do what? 

Being they are not order dependent...I'll post my XML file and Controller set up tonite,  as I am at loss on this one, and hoping that I am overlooking something.   I thought it could possibly be interference on the cat5 cable, being that I have 2 cables relatively close to each other,  but being it does exactly the same thing every time...the same 20 pixels on tree 8, when it should be the star on tree 6, led me to believe that would not be the issue.

8

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Changes to RGB Effects XML

« on: December 28, 2015, 10:05:04 AM »

I am trying to figure out a mini tree dilemma...I have 15 of them, 100 nodes per tree...the first 80 nodes of the string are the tree, the next 20 are star.  The first 5 are all doing what they are suppose to be doing, but when I get to the 6th tree...the first 80 light up...but when I go to light up the star...20 nodes on tree 8 light up...and this does this for a couple more trees, and then it is correct again.

So I looked at the XML file, and noticed that the first 5 show in order   Mini 1 and then Mini Star 1, Mini 2 and Mini Star 2...etc...but when I get to 6, it goes Mini 6, Mini 7, Mini 8, and the Mini Star 6, 7, and 8, etc...are after the rest of the Mini trees.    The numbers as far as start channels on all the Mini Trees and Mini Stars are correct vs  the models...so didn't think that would be the issue...but I could be wrong.   I went and cut and paste in the xml file to add the mini star after  the mini tree sequentially. Saved the set up, and logged off Xlights, Logged back on...no change as far as output... But I did not re render all sequences, as I didn't know if that would happen when the schedule played, or if I needed to do it for each sequence independently.
 
I thought it could be the controller set up...but that was straight forward, a E682... Using 15 outputs...100 nodes per output...so its not the controller set up...

If I need to re render each sequence independently...Let me know and I'll do so tonite when I get home...want to figure this out before I tear it down, as its making me nuts.   If I don't need to re render and save everything, I'll post my xml file  and controller set up in case I missed something. I'm novice at the XML file, but I can figure out the whole numbering thing vs my channel spreadsheet to see that the numbers looked correct for each model.

9

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Display stops when playing schedule

« on: December 23, 2015, 11:29:17 AM »

Got 2 of them in the mail yesterday...once this season is over...I will work on figuring it out...thanks for the link Gil...
I personally do the same thing..leave the lid on the laptop shut...it is only up when the show is running , 3 to 4 hours a day..have not looked at the resources being used, but not on the internet, pretty much just the show running.

10

Nutcracker Effects / Re: Has Sean or someone done a how to tutorial on pictures (creating images)

« on: December 23, 2015, 11:18:11 AM »

There is another thing I do to make images look better.  I have a 12x50 tree so I take images that are larger and then resize them to a height of 50 and then I scroll them sideways across the tree and they look pretty nice.

So when you scroll them across...what are you using for width?  My tree is 32 x 82...but I like the idea of left or right scroll, could probably get away with going 60 wide that way...

11

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Display stops when playing schedule

« on: December 22, 2015, 11:25:27 AM »

Mine shut down last night for the first time in the middle of a song...running directly from the PC, I keep the internet connection off on my show computer so I don't arbitrarily get a windows update or some other stuff that isn't as important as the show.

My wife says, did you do something different, the lights are half on, and static ( I like that she knows the difference between static and animated) .  Xlights was off all together when I went out, could not get it to start up....I did a restart on the computer, and it worked fine the rest of the night.

12

Nutcracker Effects / Re: Has Sean or someone done a how to tutorial on pictures (creating images)

« on: December 21, 2015, 01:49:26 PM »

You can do a 30 day free trial on Photoshop Elements 14, or Elements Premiere 14,  which is what I just did last week...and removing the background is pretty intuitive, (but I watched a video on youtube) and within 15 minutes, I was removing backgrounds...I'll probably even purchase one of these fine softwares...69 and 99 dollars respectively.

13

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Mounting Pixels for Roof Lines

« on: December 02, 2015, 02:15:46 PM »

I have the HC clips...yes, they do tend to snap...especially if they have sat out for the entire summer in Florida...but what I have found is if you leave them a little loose, not a lot, but just not tightened down to the nuts...they are more receptive of the PVC...

Jeff, I would like to hear how the alternatives that you are looking at work...I don't care to replace these every year, especially since HC is raping us on the pricing...

14

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Megatree setup

« on: December 02, 2015, 01:22:49 PM »

Fantastic, 6 Strings and 2 strands per string did the magic.
Thank you for really quick help.

You are welcome

15

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Megatree setup

« on: December 02, 2015, 11:32:17 AM »

So when defining your model, you tell it that you have 6 strings, and the number of STRANDS per string is 2.  Also you have 150 pixels per string.