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DMX Lynx vs ACx16

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Pony_God View Drop Down
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  Quote Pony_God Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: DMX Lynx vs ACx16
    Posted: 08 Feb 2010 at 8:48am
Can anyone compare/contrast them? I've been to the site/forum thing that kinda talks about it, and I've seen the wiki page that shows something and some pics and I se there's some 128 port controller but it's all RJ45 connectors, so where's the AC (or is that DC) go?
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  Quote cstrang Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 08 Feb 2010 at 12:17pm
You must be talking about the Lynx Freestyle.  In addition to the controller board, you need to get SSR4 boards.  The SSR4 boards have the triacs and must be connected to AC and require a cat5 run to the controller board.  The AC-16 and Lynx Express have the triacs on the same PCB as the controller.
Charles
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  Quote HarleyHaynes Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 11 Feb 2010 at 8:03pm
Pony if you look here http://www.holidaycoro.com/2010LSHworkshop/  I think this might help out some.
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  Quote Pony_God Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 19 Feb 2010 at 9:08am
Well, that information is usefull for a cost/complexity basis, but what about functionality? What can the Freestyle or SS4 actualy do? Can it do a rampping shimmer?
I suppose what I'm asking, is once an ACx16 and a Freestyle are built to compleation, and are sitting there with lights attached, how do they compare?
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  Quote deweycooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 19 Feb 2010 at 2:19pm
They speak different protocols.  The Lynx/Freestyle boards respond to a DMX signal.  D-Light has its own protocol that is very close to the LOR1 protocol.

DMX doesn't know what a ramp or fade or shimmer is.  It only knows how to do intensity commands, ie, turn on at 50%, turn OFF, turn FULL ON.  But your sequencing software can be used to generate a series of commands that make ramps/fades/shimmers/etc possible.  For a ramp from 0 to 100%, you don't have to create 20 individual commands: 0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, etc - the software can generate those for you.  So ramping shimmers are possible to - either the software needs to support them (to make it easier on you) or you can generate them manually (yuck).

D-Light boards speak differently.  Aurora can send it a single command to tell it to ramp from 0 to 100% over the next 3/4 of a second.  The controller then takes over and makes the necessary adjustments to control the lights over that time period. 

There's pros and cons to each.  DMX sends intensity commands to every channel at every time step - so there's no change into how much data gets sent.  For D-Light, the amount of data can vary depending on what's going on in the sequence.  It can be little to none, or much more than the DMX equivalent.

In the end, sequencing is pretty much the same - the only difference is specifying what type of controller you're dealing with.  I haven't noticed a difference in the visual result - it can be different theoretically (update frequency - but that's a software setting), but I haven't noticed any difference.


Edited by deweycooter - 19 Feb 2010 at 2:20pm
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  Quote Pony_God Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Feb 2010 at 7:48am
I understand that DMX is a differnt protocal, but I think the second half answered the question.
So, Aurora will support in software for DMX all of the commands that D-Lights supports in hardware. Right?
So, I suppose the question would be: When comparing to a D-Light Silver, why not buy the freestyle and save 50%?
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  Quote deweycooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Feb 2010 at 9:18am
I won't answer for Michael, but I would expect for all commands to be supported on the DMX side.

Adding a freestyle means another adapter for the separate network.  That might mean that you will use more cat5 than you would have otherwise used, and you've got a new piece of hardware that you have to have at least some level of understand in how to use, and no guaranteed support.  Some people aren't comfortable going there.  Those are the downsides that I see. 
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  Quote ChrisL1976 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Feb 2010 at 10:24am
Whats the final price of the freestyle boards?   It doesn't seem like the silver kit is worth the hassle of soldering the entire thing, even at sale pricing.   Right now for the silver kit parts are like $134 dollars without shipping, then $100 for the board.  Thats $117 each when a built gold edition  board is $121.  By the time you add shipping its just about a wash.     You seriously mine as well buy the gold boards. 
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  Quote Pony_God Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Feb 2010 at 8:24pm
Well, according to the 2010 Lone Star Holiday DIY Workshop (http://www.holidaycoro.com/2010LSHworkshop/Controller%20Cost%20Comparison.pdf), it's about $60 for a lynx where as the Silver is $120 + heatsinks
So half the cost... or more realistically twice the channels.
 
As for cat5 and networks... ehternet is cheap and we already have dual networks. I wouldn't mind switching over one side of the driveway to Freestyle and the D-Light controllers on the other net. OR, just start moving the D-light stuff wireless.
 
Did I see that DMX can go wireless too? I'm guessing that since it's still RS485 that lengths and termination is the same.
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  Quote deweycooter Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: 22 Feb 2010 at 10:33pm
I played with the Lynx wireless this past year.  I didn't get the range I was hoping (trying to jump across the road and 200-300 ft down) and ended up just hardwiring everything.  The new version coming out is supposed to have better range.  Last year's transmitter was about $50 and each receiver about $20.  This year, there's only one type and it can be designated as a transmitter or receiver by setting a jumper - not sure what the price will be yet, but I'd be it's between $20 and $50.
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