Content

• Steps
• Tips
• Warnings

You've probably seen a video where New Year's garlands flash in sync with the music. The single from one of the most viewed videos of all time on YouTube, "Gangnam Style" PSY, also featured a festive sparkle extravaganza. If you want your lights to twinkle to the beat of your favorite song, make a plan and purchase hardware that will impress your friends and create a dazzling display. It will take a lot of time, garlands and tools to make it come true, but the result will be amazing.

Steps

1. 1 Decide on the scale of your light show. You can hang the whole house with garlands - both inside and outside - or choose a separate area on the wall and in the front garden. Keep the following in mind when planning your show:
   • A lane is a section of strings that can be individually controlled. For example, a single bush in front of a house can be a strip if you hung one set of garlands on it.
   • All garlands in a strip work as a single section. Unfortunately, you cannot light a separate bulb.
   • Bands 32 to 64 are a great size to start with if you've never programmed lighting your lights to match the music. A little more and you will curse the day you decided to take on a project (or when your wife made you take it on).
2. 2 Stock up. Best to buy garlands after New Year. This is how you can find very substantial discounts.If you buy them before the holidays, do so as early as possible while you have a choice. Compare prices in different stores and on the Internet.
3. 3 Get a regulator. You will need hardware that connects to your computer. This control can be bought assembled, complete or a homemade system.
   • The entire assembled system works right out of the box. It will cost approximately 700-800 rubles per page. This regulator can be purchased from online stores. Stop at this choice if you don't want to mess around with any electrical work (especially soldering) or have no idea where to start.
   • The kit requires some kind of keyboard control. It costs from 500 rubles per strip, but itself is almost the same as the whole control, only without the case. Since it is very easy to fit the electronic board into the case, this kit is a great option if you want to save money. Some vendors sell everything you need to assemble a regulator, including a bare circuit board and parts. If you want to solder a little, check it out.
   • The "do it yourself" system costs from 200 rubles per page. The price depends on how much you have to do yourself. The system consists of a controller, which is adjacent to the computer, and a solid-state relay (PPR), which actually lights the garlands. PPR can be bought or made by yourself. If you bought this system, you will have to spend a lot of time to make this equipment, but you save money. You will also have the opportunity to fully customize your hardware and you can easily troubleshoot problems.
4. 4 Get help. This project can be very significant and difficult, so at first you may be overwhelmed. Refer friends and family members, or sign up on the forums below to help you.
   • Depending on the difficulty, give yourself 2 to 6 months to get ready before your daisy show is fully completed. It sounds terrifying, but this is how long you will need.
5. 5 Install the software. If you are a low-tech technician, buy software that will help you program the flashing lights. There is also a free program for do-it-yourself systems (see links section). If you are ambitious and apply for the title of technical master, codify this program by hand in any major programming language. However, remember that you cannot use this option for pre-assembled products as most of their protocols are closed source.
   • The software of your choice will break the song you want to sync your lights with into very short chunks (.10 seconds), allowing you to program each strip of lights to turn on, off, flash, or twinkle. There are three commercial versions of the software.
     • Light-O-Rama is the supplier for most residential daisy-chain displays. However, it is quite complicated, so it would take four hours to match a minute of a song with 32–48 bands.
     • Animated Lighting is much more expensive but easier to handle. Some residential daisies also opt for Animated Lighting.
     • D-Lights are the second least expensive option, but you will have to familiarize yourself with information on control systems and electrical engineering.
     • Hinkle's Lighting Sequencer is free software that is easy to use yet powerful for incandescent, LED and GLC LEDs.
6. 6 Create your own decoration. Create exterior decorations. The following common elements need to be included:
   • Mini lights or nets that extend throughout the garden area.
   • Luminous icicles or crescent-shaped garlands hanging from the roof.
   • Mini-trees are trees 60–90 m high, made from a tomato cage, which must be wrapped in garlands of one or more flowers. Arranged in a line or in a triangle, they are often used in animated decorations.
   • The mega tree usually consists of a large pillar decorated with garlands that extend from the top to a large ring around the base. Again, it is used in animation sets.
   • The frames are metal frames decorated with garlands. Compressed molds - plastic glowing sculptures of deer, Santa, etc. They are often placed all over the yard.
   • Garlands C9 are bulbous, convex and multi-colored lights, which are usually placed around the perimeter of the yard.
7. 7 Program your show. This is where you have to sweat! Choose the music with which you will sync the twinkling of the garlands. And then start programming on the timeline. Don't grab onto everything at once. This will most likely take a couple of months, depending on the length of your show and the number of bands available. The show will depend on which software you choose.
8. 8 Let them hear you. Create great sound, but keep the peace with your neighbors. The same music playing from the speakers over and over will drive neighbors into a frenzy, so in most cases you will need to stream music above FM. Please see the warnings section at the end of this article.
   • Be sure to inform your neighbors of your intentions to create an animated demo. It is important that your neighbors support you if you want your demonstration to last long enough for other people to see it.
   • Play one show at the beginning of every hour, once or twice a night. If the neighbors find out that the show is only three minutes long and will air at 8 pm and 9 pm, they will be more understanding than if you ran it continuously from 6 pm to 9 pm.
9. 9 Turn on the power supply. Make sure your home has enough power to turn on the lights. A regular mini light thread, for example, pulls 1/3 ampere. Speaking of power, computerizing your demo will wind up at a lower electricity bill than a static demo, since not all lights are lit at the same time. Please see the warnings section at the end.
10. 10 Claim your show. Place a sign in your yard. Make a website. Submit to the demos site. Notify your friends. If you don't, no one will come and watch your demo. Don't go to extremes - just get people to know about you.
    • Again, advertise your demonstration to your neighbors. They will be much more accommodating if they find out about your intentions, and will help to attract the attention of everyone in the area.
11. 11 Set up your decoration. Go outside every morning and check your decorations. Repair or remove unusable light bulbs, or remove objects damaged by weather conditions. Make sure everything is ready for the night.
12. 12 Ready.

Tips

• If you have a lot of children and pets on your street, make the scenery safe for them.
• Use your time wisely. This is a difficult project, so don't be afraid to ask for help or try to do something more efficiently. Try to take the time to check the lights and eliminate the risk of fire!
• Contact people who specialize in electronic equipment for help - suddenly there are pros among your neighbors. Who knows?
• Register on the forums sites for Christmas demonstrations. There they will help you and you will help others.
• Notify neighbors, police and homeowners' associations about possible problems related to traffic flow, noise, etc. It is better to prevent the problem than to fix it. However, let them know that problems may arise, not exactly will.People need to know what to expect, but don't exaggerate things, or they'll shut down your shop, not even letting work begin on the demo!
• PLM has tremendous control over devices that can be caught between the RS232 connection to the PC and the daisy chain relay board. The initial cost of the Spartan 3e Xilinx demo board ranges from 5,000 rubles.

Warnings

• Be tactful. Neighbors may not appreciate your flickering lights and loud music, so you will need to turn them off during the evening. In some territories there are laws about specific times when it is allowed to turn on lights and music. Some of them recommend turning them on and off at a certain time every night (or every day of the week). For example, Sunday through Thursday from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm and Friday to Saturday from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Send letters to neighbors asking them if you will disturb their peace.
• FM transmitters are permitted to comply and not to comply with FCC rules. The transmitters broadcast at very low power, so they do not interfere. The FCC allows you to broadcast 60 meters from the transmitter without a license.
• Use your country-specific regulator. Many countries use voltages that are higher than the United States. Sometimes different frequencies are used on power lines. In some places there are voltage-reducing transformers. Check your product manufacturer or design to determine if the selected regulator is valid for your country.
• Time is running out. Therefore, start 6 months in advance, especially if you purchased a homemade regulator.
• When you work with string lights, you are dealing with high voltage. US mains voltage (115 volts AC) in the right place and quantity can kill you. For your own and public safety, always use the APZ on any circuit outside of the street, including your lights.
• Do nothing on your Belkin device, just pull out the antenna. It is not recommended to assemble the amplifier. If the transmitter is interfering with anyone, cover it.