Well, it is definitely an all year hobby for a single month show. We usually start planning the next year when we reach a point in the current year when we know we can add no more to finish on time. We keep a list of wants and additions and then prioritize them based on want, time and budget. Every year we make some sort of addition or change or both…usually both. We’re constantly updating sequences, changing them out, adding old ones back into the fold that haven’t been shown for a few years and making them new. Always something to keep it fresh and new each year! Here are some details to help you build your own show and learn more. Of course, you can always Contact Us for any questions you may have.
Information and Support Resources
- Aus Christmas Lighting Manual – This is a MUST read for anyone new to the hobby!
- xLights Forum – Support for all things related to the xLights sequencing software…also General Support and Group Buys
- xLights Wiki – More info from controllers to pixels to software
- xLights Tutorials – A ton of videos and information from community members and the development team. Training and feature discussions
- Falcon Christmas Forum – Support for all things related to the Falcon Player and Falcon Controllers…also General Support and Group Buys
- Falcon Wiki – More info from controllers to pixels to software
- Aus Christmas Lighting Forum – General support for the Christmas lighting hobby
- Holidaycoro Blog – Good information to read up and learn
- Do It Yourself Christmas Wiki – More info from controllers to pixels to software
How does it all work together?
First you’ve gotta read, read and read! We’ve shared some links above that will provide hours of reading and videos. First step is planning. From the planning phase you’ve now decided how you want to layout your display. You’ll then take that planning information and start configuring it inside of the sequencer. Once the sequencer is configured it is time to start sequencing. What good is all this planning and sequencing without anything to show it off?!? You’ll need some hardware now. You’ll need something to play the sequences, some controllers to receive the player data and lights of course!
The following sections will cover how we do things though we will mention some other options and thoughts but there are just so many ways and options out there it’s impossible for us to talk about all of them here. This is why we provided the information above for you to read and make your own decisions, though if you follow what we did you’ll definitely have a great starting point with a lot of questions already answered for you. We’ll also cover props and tools we use. Hopefully you’ll find it helpful!
One last thing we want to mention around why we chose the sequencer (xLights), player (Falcon) and pixel controllers (Falcon) we did. The xLights and Falcon communities and developers are very close and work very closely together. As they continue to develop their products the more closely they work to integrate them. This makes for a very seamless product overall and is easy to manage and grow…and since we don’t plan on leaving this hobby any time soon that fits our roadmap!