Wifi Controlled Lights With QuinLED-Dig-Uno

Have you driven by houses with fancy Christmas lights, often synchronized to music? Normally, these setups require commercial light controllers costing hundreds of dollars (and commercial animation software that can also be quite expensive). It’s a literal money pit for the average home owner.

This Instructable shows you how to build a low-cost, wifi light controller using a QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller based on an ESP32 microcontroller. QuinLED-Dig-Uno animates a string of inexpensive lights found on Amazon, eBay, and lot of other online stores. And the best part? The controller hosts its own wifi access point or can connect to your home wifi network, so you can place your lights anywhere in the house or in the yard, controlled and animated from the comfort of your computer or phone!

There are hundreds of simple animations built into QuinLED-Dig-Uno and are controlled via web interface on your phone or computer. This is possible by the free WLED software loaded onto the controller. Fancier animations are created using the free xLights program that runs on your computer.

The beauty is, once you have multiple controllers as you add more lights to your house, xLights makes them all work together as a "show". You can do all of the wonderful animated lights that the professionals use, with a little bit of homemade building!

This Instructable will build one light controller that can animate digital LED lights (called "pixels"). The controller supports up to two strings of 1,000 pixels each. These pixels are pushed into "coro" (white plastic resembling cardboard) formed into pre-made shapes such as stars, candy canes, and more. You can put lights into tubes for glowing arches, attach them to strips to make virtual trees, and so much more.

You'll be amazed how easy it is and have the best Christmas (and other holiday) lights on the block! You can also visit my website www.itwinkle.org for much more information on building computerized Christmas lights.

QuinLED-Dig-Uno

This is the heart of the pixel controller. It hosts its own wifi access point or connects to your home wifi network and drives the animated string of pixels. Click here or here to buy them.

Important! The QuinLED-Dig-Uno in your kit comes with a detachable "whip" antenna. This allows your QuinLED-Dig-Uno to have improved wifi range. It has a tiny, brass connector that attaches to the tiny, brass socket on the white board, on top of the QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

We recommend that you do not attach the whip antenna until you get home as the QuinLED-Dig-Uno has an internal antenna that is sufficient for class day. It is easy to damage the plug and/or socket; be very careful when attaching/detaching it!

Pixels

There are two voltage types for pixels, 5V and 12V. If your project uses up to 100 pixels, buy 5V pixels. If your project uses 100 or more pixels, buy 12V pixels.

12V WS2811 pixels

These come in strings of 100 or 50 pixels. These are digital lights that are animated with an industry standard protocol called ws2811. Your QuinLED-Dig-Uno, once programmed, will also know this protocol. Pixels come in many shapes & sizes. As long as they support ws2811 or ws2812, they will work with your project. Make sure the pixels operate on 12V DC and that the wire thickness is 20 AWG or lower. This ensures that the pixels can be placed at far distances from your controller. Buy them here.

5V WS2811 pixels

These come in strings of 50 pixels. They are similar to 12V pixels mentioned above. Because they run at a lower voltage, they cannot used for long distances as 12V pixel can. However, using a technique called "power injection", it is possible to obtain longer distances and higher densities of pixels. 5V pixels have an overall lower wattage consumption than 12V pixels. Buy them here.

Power supply

ws2811 “bullet” pixels consume up to 0.06A per 12V pixel. Purchase a power supply that supplies 120% of the total number of pixels that your project uses. For example, a 300-pixel project needs 18A, so purchase a 22.5A power supply. 

Here are examples of power supplies that would work:

Up to 50 pixels: 

AC to DC 5V 4A Power Supply Adapter, Plug 5.5mm x 2.1mm

https://www.amazon.com/Power-Supply-Adapter-5-5mm-2-1mm/dp/B09JW28WQC

Up to 100 pixels:

BTF-LIGHTING AC100-240V to DC5V8A Max40W Suit 7A 6A 5A 4A 3A 2A 1A Device Transformer Power Adapter Converter with 5.5x2.1mm DC Output Jack for WS2812B WS2811 WS2813 SK6812 etc LED Strip/String

https://www.amazon.com/BTF-LIGHTING-Plastic-Adapter-Transformer-WS2812B/dp/B01D8FM5Y2

Up to 300 pixels:

Henxlco AC 110V/220V to DC 12V 20A 240W Universal Regulated Switching Power Supply Adapter Transformer Driver Converter for LED Strip Light, Security Camera System, Computer Project

https://www.amazon.com/Henxlco-AC-110V-Regulated-Transformer/dp/B010CVJAYS

"Coro" plastic shapes

You can arrange your strings of pixels any way that you want (hang them, put them on a tree, etc.). One popular way is to push them into plastic cardboard-like shapes (called "coro").

Here are examples of shapes supported by this Instructable:

• Present (50 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/chromapresent-single/
• Candy cane (48 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/daycor-chromacane-mini/
• 3D tree (70 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/small-360-minitree-coro/
• Snowflake (30 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/chromaflakes-12/
• Stocking (50 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/chromastocking-small/
• Large spinner (61 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/pixel-spinner-15/
• Small spinner (33 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/daycor-pixel-spinner-12/
• Star (40 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/chromastar-15/
• Heart (25 pixels) https://boscoyostudio.com/product/chromaheart-15/
• Matrix (300 pixels)
• 24x9” coro, 3 layers glued together for strength
• 30 pixels wide by 10 pixels high, 0.75” spacing, 12mm holes
• Contact Schantz Makerspace to obtain this coro shape.

Extension cable

This cord will be used to give your power supply 120 VAC. Any outdoor rated extension cord will work for this project. 

What are LEDs?

LEDs are highly efficient, long lasting, environmentally friendly alternative to incandescent light.

How do they work?

Traditional light bulbs heat a filament to get bright. With LEDs, current pushes negative and positive atoms toward each other, combining to release photons in the middle (light).

How do pixels work?

Each pixel consists of three LEDs for red, green, and blue with a tiny computer chip to control them. The language (protocol) that the chips use is ws2811.

What is ESP32?

ESP32 is a series of low-cost, low-power system on a chip microcontrollers with integrated Wi-Fi and dual-mode Bluetooth. The ESP32 includes built-in antenna switches, RF balun, power amplifier, low-noise receive amplifier, filters, and power-management modules. ESP32 is created and developed by Espressif Systems, a Chinese company, and is a successor to the ESP8266 microcontroller. The heart of the QuinLED-Dig-Uno is an ESP32.

What is WLED?

A fast and feature-rich implementation of an ESP8266/ESP32 webserver to control NeoPixel (WS2812B, WS2811, SK6812) LEDs or also SPI based chipsets like the WS2801 and APA102!

More info at https://kno.wled.ge (click “hamburger” icon in top-left corner for table of contents)

Good tutorials at https://kno.wled.ge/basics/tutorials

What is QuinLED-Uno?

This is the heart of the pixel controller. The upper (white) board has an ESP32 for its brain. The lower (blue) board has the power circuitry and fuse to connect your pixels to. The QuinLED-Dig-Uno comes out of the box with the WLED software already flashed so it’s really as easy as just hooking up the wires to the screw terminals! It will support pixels from 5V to 24V (the latter are typically used for digital floodlights).

For more information, go to https://quinled.info

This equipment will certainly come-in handy while you are building your wireless light controller!

• Heat shrink tubing
• Heat gun, blow dryer, cigarette lighter, or stick lighter (to seal heat shrink tubing)
• Soldering gun/iron & solder
• Electrical tape
• Craft/utility knife
• Wire cutters
• Wire stripper
• Voltmeter
• Magnifying glass
• Ultra fine Sharpie marker for writing pixel numbers on coro (or a ball point pen that will write onto coro)
• For matrix shapes, fork connectors to connect wires to power supply
• Masking tape (for labeling wires)
• 18AWG wire (for creating wires for power injection and connecting the QuinLED-Dig-Uno to the power supply; these are needed for the matrix shape)

If your project uses a simple, enclosed DC power supply (sometimes called a “wall wart”):

1. Cut-off the barrel connector that provides output power. Strip the wires then, twist each set of strands to keep them together.
2. Use a volt meter to determine which wire is positive and which is ground. Mark the positive wire with masking tape and write “12V” on it.
3. On the QuinLED-Dig-Uno, locate the two-pin blue terminal near the red fuse. Connect the 12V wire to the “5v-24v +” terminal, then the ground wire to the “GND“ terminal.

STOP: Have an assistant check your work before proceeding further.

If your project uses a large, rectangular, steel DC power supply:

Important! Do not connect the power supply to AC power until an assistant checks your work below. Otherwise, you may sustain injury from electric shock and/or damage the QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

1. Cut-off the female end of the AC extension cord.
2. Strip wires to reveal the black, white, and green wires. Twist the strands on each wire to prevent fraying.
3. Crimp fork connectors onto these wires.
4. Attach the black wire to “L” on the power supply, white wire to “N”, and green wire to the ground symbol.
5. Do NOT plug the extension cord into AC power. 
6. Strip the ends of two 18AWG wires. 
7. Mark both ends on the first wire with masking tape and write “12V” for both ends. 
8. Attach fork connectors to only one end of both wires.
9. Connect forked end of the 12V wire to the “+” terminal on the power supply (there may be multiple “+” terminals, use any of them.  
10. Connect forked end of the other (non labeled) wire to the “-“ terminal on the power supply.
11. On the QuinLED-Dig-Uno, locate the two-pin blue terminal near the red fuse. Connect the 12V wire to the “5v-24v +” terminal, then the ground wire to the “GND“ terminal.

STOP: Have an assistant check your work before proceeding.

Prepare the QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller

1. Locate the 4-pin blue connector on the QuinLED-Dig-Uno. It is closest to the silver square on top of the board.
2. To access the screw terminals on this blue connector, gently pry-off the white board on top of the controller.

For coro shapes except the matrix:

IMPORTANT: On both ends of the string, you will notice extra pairs of blue & red wires, already stripped. Snip off the bare wires! Otherwise they may touch while powering the string, shorting them out and causing damage.

1. The pixels in your string use three wires: data, power, and ground.
2. Each string has an “input” end and an “output” end.  
3. Each pixel in that string has an "input" side and an "output" side.
4. With the 5V strings, the input end has a flat, female connector. The output end of the string has a male connector.
5. On each pixel, its input side has “+5V, DI, and GND” marked on its circuit board. The output/opposite side on each pixel has no writing on the circuit board.
6. Cut-off the output end of the string (male connector), leaving spare wire after the last pixel (and leave spare wire on the male connector, too).
7. Strip the wires on the male connector, then twist the strands on each wire to prevent fraying.
8. Under the blue 4-pin terminal, you will see them marked “+”, “LED2”, “LED1” and “-“.
9. Connect the male connector’s red wire to “+”
10. Connect the white wire to “LED1”
11. Connect the blue wire to “-“
12. Carefully reattach the white board to the top of the controller. The USB connector faces the red fuse.

STOP: Have an assistant check your work before proceeding.

For the matrix shape only:

The pixels in your string use three wires: data, power, and ground.

1. Each string has an “input” end and an “output” end.  
2. Each pixel in that string has an "input" side and an "output" side.
3. With the 12V strings, the input end has a round, male connector. 
4. On each pixel, its input side has “12V, DI, and GND” marked on its circuit board. The output/opposite side on each pixel has no writing on the circuit board.
5. The output end of the string has a female connector.
6. Your 12V pixel has 100 pixels per string. You received three strings to support 300 pixels. 
7. Label each string "1", "2", and "3".
8. Connect them all together to form one, long string.
9. On the female connector at the end of the the third string (string "3")…
10. Because all three wires are the same color, mark each wire twice. For the 12V wire, put one label close to the pixel and the other close to the female connector. Repeat for the GND and DI wires. You should have six labels altogether (two 12V labels, two DI labels, and two “GND” labels.
11. Cut-off the output end of the string (female connector), leaving spare wire after the pixel (and spare wire on the female connector, too).
12. Strip the wires on the female connector, then twist the strands on each wire to prevent fraying.
13. Under the blue 4-pin terminal you will see them marked “+”, “LED2”, “LED1” and “-“.
14. Connect the female connector’s 12V wire to “+”
15. Connect the DI wire to “LED1”
16. Connect the GND wire to “-“
17. Carefully reattach the white board to the top of the controller. The USB connector faces the red fuse.

With 12V strings, power applied at the beginning of the string only supports 100 pixels. Because your string has 300 pixels combined, you will need to insert fresh power near pixel 150 and at the end of the string (after pixel 300). To do this:

1. Cut four lengths of 18AWG wire that will go between the power supply and your matrix.
2. Strip the ends and crimp a fork connector on one end of each wire. Label two wires “12V” and two wires “GND”.
3. To make power injection wires for the end of the string:
4. At the end of the last string (string "3", after pixel 300), solder a long, 12V wire to the pixel’s “12V” wire and a GND wire to the pixel’s “GND” wire. Connect the other end of these long wires to the power supply’s “+” and “-“ terminals, respectively (via their fork connectors).
5. To make power injection wires for the middle of string "2":
6. Attach six labels between pixels 150 & 151 (the middle of the second string), similar to the labeling that you did previously.
7. At the end of pixel 150, label the 12V, DI, and GND wires.
8. At the beginning of pixel 151, label 12V, DI, and GND wires
9. Cut the wires evenly between pixels 150 & 151 EXCEPT the center wire (DI), then strip their ends. Again, do NOT cut the middle wire between these pixels (indicated as "DI"). This is the data line between pixels and must not be cut.
10. Twist together both pixel wires marked “12V”, then twist-in the remaining, long, 12V wire.
11. Twist together both pixel wires marked “GND”, then twist-in the remaining, long, GND wire.
12. Solder the three 12V wires together. Then solder the three GND wires together.
13. Finally, attach the along 12V and GND wires to the power supply via the fork connectors.

STOP: Have an assistant check your work before proceeding.

When powered on for the first time, the QuinLED-Dig-Uno acts as a wireless access point with a wifi network name (SSID) of WLED-AP. For this class, we gave all of the QuinLED-Dig-Uno's different, unique names.

1. Plug the power supply into an AC outlet.
2. Orange lights will appear on the white board and the lower, blue board. The LEDs on the string may light-up as well.
3. On your phone…
4. Disable Mobile Data
5. In Android, go to Settings > Network & Internet > Mobile data
6. View wireless networks
7. In Android, go to Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi
8. In Windows...
9. Click the Wi-Fi icon in the lower-right corner of the screen (next to the clock).
10. Choose the unique name that was assigned to your QuinLED-Dig-Uno in the list of wireless networks, then choose Connect.
11. If you are asked for a password, it’s “wled1234”.
12. In a moment or two, your phone/laptop’s web browser should automatically open, displaying a “Welcome to WLED” page. 
13. If this does not happen, open a web browser, then go to this webpage: http://4.3.2.1
14. Optional: If you want to change the wifi name to something else...
15. At the “Welcome to WLED” page, choose “WIFI SETTINGS”
16. On the “WiFi setup” page, find “AP SSID” near the bottom of the page (under “Configure Access Point”).
17. Enter a different SSID (2-32 characters, no spaces, no special characters, it is case sensitive).
18. Clear anything in the “AP password” field.
19. Choose “Save & Connect” at the bottom of the page.
20. Now you need to connect to the new wireless network name. To do this…
21. Disconnect power from the wall outlet.
22. Wait 10 seconds.
23. Repeat steps 1 – 3 above

Your QuinLED-Dig-Uno supports up to two strings of pixels. For this project, we are only using one string.

The “brain” of your device is an ESP32, a microcontroller similar to an Arduino. As with Arduino, the ESP32 has data output pins, two of which are reserved for each of the two strings. We need to set the correct data pin on the QuinLED-Dig-Uno that represents the terminal marked “LED1” on your QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

1. On the Welcome to WLED page, choose “TO THE CONTROLS”
2. You will see a color wheel.  
3. Choose Config near the top of the page.
4. Choose LED Preferences from the list shown.
5. Near the bottom of the LED & Hardware page, find the Hardware setup > LED Outputs section.
6. Under the “1: WS281x” section…
7. Set Color Order to “RGB” (exactly as shown)
8. Set Length to the number of holes in your coro’s shape. Here is a legend:
9. Present 50 pixels
10. Candy cane 48 pixels
11. 3D tree 90 pixels
12. Snowflake 30 pixels
13. Stocking 50 pixels
14. Large spinner 61 pixels
15. Small spinner 33 pixels
16. Star 40 pixels
17. Heart 25 pixels
18. Matrix 300 pixels
19. Set GPIO to “16”.
20. Under the “2: WS281x” section…
21. Set Length to “1”. 
22. (even if a second string is not attached, this cannot be zero).
23. Choose Save at the bottom of the page.
24. Choose Back from the list shown.

Testing your pixels

1. On the Welcome to WLED page, choose “TO THE CONTROLS”
2. You will see a color wheel.  
3. Touch the various colors on the wheel; your pixels should change to match.

This section explains how to use the various features of WLED, the animation software built into QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

Effects

These are different animations to choose from. Many use colors that are changeable via the Colors tab at the bottom. Some effects have predefined, locked colors that cannot be changed.

For more information, visit:

https://kno.wled.ge/features/effects/

(this webpage also shows animated previews of the effects)

Palettes (“Colors”)

Changes the color scheme of the currently running effect.

Touch a color on the color wheel and your pixels should change to that color. Note that some effects have predefined, locked colors that cannot be changed. If the manipulating the color wheel doesn't change the pixels' color, try a different effect (for example, the "Solid" effect allows its color to be changed via the color wheel.

Below the color wheel are groupings of colors based on a theme. Most effects use multiple colors, so you can choose a color theme for it from this list.

For more information, visit:

https://kno.wled.ge/features/palettes/

Segments

Pixels can be arranged into segments that have independent effects and colors.

By default, your entire string is treated as one segment (Segment 0). To change how many pixels you want the segment to occupy:

1. Click the down arrow under Segment 0.
2. Enter the starting pixel and ending pixel, with the first pixel as "0", second pixel as "1", etc.
3. Click Apply in this segment's box.
4. To define another segment, choose "+ Add segment".
5. Enter the starting pixel and ending pixel, with the first pixel as "0", second pixel as "1", etc.
6. Click Apply in this segment's box.

Notice the checkmarks next to Segment 0 and Segment 1 (or lack of checkmarks). Whatever colors and effects you choose will affect the check marked segments. So...

1. If you want a Solid effect on Segment 0, place a checkmark next to Segment 0, remove the checkmark in Segment 1, then choose the Solid effect.
2. To place a different effect on Segment 1, remove the checkmark next to Segment 0 place a checkmark next to Segment 1, then choose a different effect.

Normally, effects affect each pixel in a string. Pixels can be arranged into "groups" where multiple pixels act as one. This is also called "virtual pixels".

For instance, if you have a string of 50 pixels, you can divide into groups of 5 pixels each. Assume that your string has 50 pixels as one segment (Segment 0). In the Segments tab at the button, enter "5" in the Grouping field for Segment 0, then choose Apply. Now your string will be treated as 10 virtual pixels, each "pixel" being five pixels long.

“Spacing” allows unlit pixels between lit ones.

For more information, visit:

https://kno.wled.ge/features/segments/

Presets

Presets can be used to save your current colors, effects, and segments into a "preset" that can be activated later. You can have multiple presets for different reasons (time of day, holidays, etc.). And you can combine presets into a "playlist" that plays one preset for an amount of time, play another preset after it, etc.

1. Setup your light colors, effects, and segments as you like them.
2. Choose Presets tab at the bottom.
3. Choose "Create preset".
4. Give it a name when prompted, then choose Save preset.

Presets can be activated on-demand, but also triggered by time of day, buttons, or sensors that you connect to the QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

For more information, visit:

https://kno.wled.ge/features/presets/

This section explains how to use the various features of WLED, the animation software built into QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

Config

WiFi setup

By default, QuinLED-Dig-Uno creates its own wifi network (access point) that you can connect to via your phone or laptop. But that means that your phone or laptop cannot use your home network nor Internet while accessing QuinLED-Dig-Uno.

You can join QuinLED-Dig-Uno to your home network (instead of being a wireless access point). This way, you can access its web interface from any device on your network that has a web browser.

LED Preferences

Enable automatic brightness limiter

This forces a maximum brightness on all of your pixels so that you don't overload the amps going through QuinLED-Dig-Uno (or overload your power supply).

Note: The default amps in this field may be too low for people building the 300 pixel matrix shape; it may need to be adjusted higher (3,600mA max).

Button 0-3 GPIO

Allows external buttons or sensors to control which presets to play. Buttons can trigger different presets based on state (short press, long press, double press).

Turn LEDs on after power up/reset

By default, QuinLED-Dig-Uno lights up your pixels when it receives power. You can keep the pixels off at power-on by disabling this setting.

Brightness factor

This sets the master brightness of all of your pixels, no matter what brightness you set in the Colors, Effects, Segments, and Presets tabs.

Timed light

This settings determines how many minutes elapse before QuinLED-Dig-Uno turns off your pixels. This happens when you activate the Timer tab at the top.

User Interface

RGB sliders

If you activate this feature, an RGB slider appears below the color wheel in the Colors page. Then you can change colors by adding various amount of red, green, and blue.

Show bottom tab bar in PC mode

If you are using a laptop or tablet to control QuinLED-Dig-Uno (instead of a phone), enable this feature to show more information on the large screen. Notably, it will can display colors, effects, segments, and presets, all from one page.

Sync Interfaces

You can connect QuinLED-Dig-Uno to home automation systems such as Alexa, Philips Hue, Blynk, and MQTT. Notably, you can control it with your voice!

This is also the place where you allow QuinLED-Dig-Uno to be a DMX receiver. This is necessary to use QuinLED-Dig-Uno with the free, highly sophisticated xLights animation software.

Time & Macros

As mentioned above, presets can be triggered by time, button presses, or sensor triggers (via Macros). When triggering by time, QuinLED-Dig-Uno can set its clock via the Internet via an NTP server.

Timer

Automatically turns off pixels after a set number of minutes (amount of time is set in the "Config > LED & Hardware setup" tab).

Sync

If you have multiple QuinLED-Dig-Uno devices, you can set the colors, effects, and presets on one device. When you enable "Sync", all other devices will mimic the first one.

Peek

Peek will show a preview on your phone or laptop of effects your pixels are currently showing. The preview appears as an animated color bar at top of page. This is helpful, for instance, if your pixels are attached to a roofline and you can't see them from inside your house while you are making changes.

When inserting pixels into your coro shapes, you have to insert them into a particular order. This way, xLights knows exactly where the pixels are. Then, when you create animations in xLights, the animations will appear on the coro shapes as shown on the screen.

With the 5V pixels for this class (red, white & blue wires), the first pixel starts after the flat female connector.

With the 12V pixels for this class (black wires), the first pixel starts after the round male connector.

The included wiring diagrams will provide the order for each pixel. Here is how to use them:

1. Determine the front of your coro shape.
2. Flip the shape over to its back side. The wiring diagram is meant for the back of your coro shape.
3. With a Sharpie ultra-fine marker or ball-point pen, mark each hole on the coro shape as indicated by the wiring diagram.
4. Insert the pixels in the order of the numbers.
5. The pixels have 3" spacing between them. In some cases, the distance between two holes may be greater then 3", so the next pixel can't reach the next hole. If that happens, you must cut the string and solder extension wires (three of them, one each for power, data, and ground) between the pixels that need the longer reach.
6. IMPORTANT: Be sure not to mix-up the power, ground, and data when joining the pixels back together with the extension wires! Remember to look at the markings on the pixels to determine which is power, ground, and data for each pixel.

Note that the matrix coro shape can be wired four different ways, if desired. The starting pixel can start in any of the four corners, though the remaining pixels must be inserted horizontally, one line at a time. Refer to the included wiring diagrams and do not deviate from them.

As you learned above, your QuinLED-Dig-Uno has its own built-in animations via WLED. You can leave it this way for simple animations.

But if you want sophisticated animations, you can install the free xLights software on your computer, then send the animations from the computer to the QuinLED-Dig-Uno. In technical terms, xLights will send "DMX" commands via wifi; the QuinLED-Dig-Uno will be a DMX "receiver" to receive those commands.

Now we will configure your QuinLED-Dig-Uno to work with xLights so that your laptop can send animations to it.

1. Make sure your QuinLED-Dig-Uno is powered on.
2. Open a web browser on your laptop, then go to this webpage: 4.3.2.1
3. In the WLED "welcome" screen that appears, choose "TO THE CONTROLS"
4. Choose the Config tab at the top of the screen
5. Choose Sync Interfaces from the list given
6. On the Sync Setup page, we need to disable many options here to prevent conflicts with xLights.
7. Disable all checkboxes on this page
8. In the Network DMX section, choose:
9. Type: E131 (sACN)
10. Start universe: 1
11. Skip out-of-sequence packets: Enable (checked)
12. DMX start address: 1
13. DMX mode: Multi RGB
14. Disable real-time gamma correction: Enable (checked)
15. Click the Save button at the bottom of the page

xLights is a free and open source program that enables you to design, create, and play amazing lighting displays through the use of controllers like the one your just built. With it you can layout your display visually then assign effects to the various items throughout your animation.

While your matrix (and other shapes) supports 300 pixels, xLights can support millions! xLights runs on Windows, Apple OSX, and Linux computers. It does not work with Chromebooks, tablets, nor phones.

To install xLights...

1. Download the latest version of xLights here.
2. After it has downloaded, run the executable to install the program.
3. During the installation process, you will be asked for a "show directory" or folder. This is where xLights will save all of its configuration for your particular lights. I recommend creating a folder named "xLights Show" inside your Documents folder, then tell xLights to select this as your "show" folder.
4. When the installation has finished, xLights will create shortcuts on your Desktop.
5. If xLights hasn't already started, double-click the "xLights" or "xLights64" shortcut on your Desktop.
6. Do not use the xLights Scheduler shortcut.

Before you design light animations, xLights needs to know about your QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller, your coro shape, and how it is connected to the controller.

When you start xLights, you will see three tabs under the colorful effects toolbar: Setup, Layout, and Sequencer.

1. Click the Setup tab at the top.
2. Under the "Lighting Networks" section on the left side of the screen, click the [Add Ethernet] button.
3. In the window pane on the right, enter the following:
4. Name: DigUno (do not use spaces)
5. Auto Size: Disabled (remove checkmark)
6. IP Address: 4.3.2.1
7. Start Universe: 1
8. Universe Count: 2
9. Click the [Save] button on the left.

In the above settings, xLights treats your pixels as three LEDs per pixel, one for red, blue, and green. These three colors are called "channels". So, one pixel contains three channels while 300 pixels contains 900 channels.

A universe represents the length of your string of pixels; it's a container of sorts. One universe can hold up to 510 channels. So, if your string has 300 pixels in it (900 channels), you will need two Universes to hold them all.

1. Connect your laptop to wifi with Internet, such as wifi at the class' makerspace or your home wifi.
2. Click the Layout tab at the top.
3. In the lower-left part of the window, disable "3D" (remove the checkmark).
4. IMPORTANT: Follow the below steps very carefully.
5. Above the big black box is a list of models (arches, candy canes, etc.). Click the "down arrow" icon at the end of this list
6. "Create new download" will appear when you touch it with the mouse.
7. Point to the big black box, then hold down the mouse button to drag the outline of a rectangle. It will appear somewhat invisible (no outline) with blue corners as you drag it larger.
8. When you release the mouse button, a window appears with a large list of coro shapes
9. To find the snowflake shape, open the "Christmas > Snowflakes > 12" Snowflakes" sections, then choose "ChromaFlakes 12" -- 3 prong".
10. To find the candy cane shape, open the "Christmas > DayCor Printed Props > Candy Canes" sections, then choose "DayCor ChromaCane 48".
11. Choose [Insert Model] at the bottom-right of the window.
12. A "dotty" image of your shape will appear in the black area.
13. If the dotty shape looks out of proportion (a "fat" candy can, for instance), you can drag the blue corner handles to reshape it.
14. On the left side of the screen, we need to associate the shape with your QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller. In the table in the lower-left area of the screen, specify:
15. Name: CandyCane or Snowflake (no spaces)
16. # Strings: 1
17. Controller: Use Start Channel
18. Start Channel: 1
19. Click the red [Save] button at the bottom.
20. Connect your laptop's wifi to the QuinLED-Dig-Uno. That way, xLights on your laptop can "see" it and send animations to it.

Now xLights knows about your coro shape!

Your 3D tree has two shapes: the tree's body and the tree's star. We need to create each of these shapes (called "models" in xLights) separately. Here is how to do it:

1. Click the Layout tab at the top.
2. In the lower-left part of the window, disable "3D" (remove the checkmark).
3. IMPORTANT: Follow the below steps very carefully.
4. To make the tree's body
5. Above the big black box is a list of models (arches, candy canes, etc.). Click the "tree" icon near the end of this list
6. "Create new tree" will appear when you touch it with the mouse.
7. Point to the big black box, then hold down the mouse button to drag the outline of a tree.
8. IMPORTANT: Click the [Create new tree] button three times (slowly) to stop the drawing process.
9. Click the tree. The white dots will turn yellow.
10. On the left side of the screen, we need to associate the shape with your QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller. In the table in the lower-left area of the screen, specify:
11. Name: Tree
12. # Strings: 1
13. Nodes/String: 70
14. Strands/String: 10
15. Starting Location: Top left
16. Controller: Use Start Channel
17. Start Channel: 1
18. Click the red [Save] button at the bottom.
19. To make the tree's star:
20. Above the big black box is a list of models (arches, candy canes, etc.). Click the "star" icon at the end of this list
21. "Create new star" will appear when you touch it with the mouse.
22. Point above the tree, then hold down the mouse button to drag the outline of a star.
23. IMPORTANT: Click the [Create new star] button three times (slowly) to stop the drawing process.
24. Click the star. The white dots will turn yellow.
25. On the left side of the screen, we need to associate the shape with your QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller. In the table in the lower-left area of the screen, specify:
26. Name: Star
27. # Strings: 1
28. Nodes/String: 20
29. Controller: Use Start Channel
30. Start Channel: 211
31. Click the red [Save] button at the bottom.

Now xLights knows about your coro shape!

1. Click the Layout tab at the top.
2. In the lower-left part of the window, disable "3D" (remove the checkmark).
3. IMPORTANT: Follow the below steps very carefully.
4. Above the big black box is a list of models (arches, candy canes, etc.). Click the button near the middle of the toolbar that looks like a grid
5. "Create new Matrix" appears when you touch it with the mouse.
6. Point to the big black box, then hold down the mouse button to drag the outline of a rectangle. A rectangle of dots appears.
7. IMPORTANT: Click the [Create new Matrix] button three times (slowly) to stop the drawing process.
8. Click the rectangle. The white dots will turn yellow.
9. On the left side of the screen, we need to associate the shape with your QuinLED-Dig-Uno controller. In the table in the lower-left area of the screen, specify:
10. Name: Matrix
11. # Strings: 1
12. Nodes/String: 300
13. Strands/String:10
14. Starting Location:
15. For this choice, determine which corner that your first pixel starts in your matrix (when viewing from the front)
16. Note: When you get the display working with animations and text later in these instructions, if the text is upside-down or backwards you can adjust "Starting location" to display the text properly.
17. Controller: Use Start Channel
18. Start Channel: 1
19. You matrix may show as a long, horizontal line. This is a bug in the software. Drag one of the blue corner handles to display the matrix normally again.
20. Click the red [Save] button at the bottom.

Now xLights knows about your coro shape!

Now we are ready to animate your coro shape in a myriad of colors! The third major tab in xLights, [Sequencer], is where you create animations. xLights calls animations "sequences".

1. Click File > New Sequence from the menu.
2. On the "Sequence Settings" screen, choose the green [Animation] button.
3. On the next screen, choose the green [20fps] button.
4. On the next screen, click the [Done] button at the bottom.

You will see a large black area with your shape's name on a line near the top. The box is arranged as a timeline; you will see seconds markers every five seconds at the top of the black area. You can drag animations (xLights calls them "effects") from the colorful toolbar at the top. To create an animation, we will drag an effect from the colorful toolbar to the line where your shape is, in the black area. Let's try one!

1. In the colorful toolbar, point to the fourth icon called "Butterfly" when you touch it.
2. Hold down the mouse button, then drag to the line next to your shape in the black area, at the "00" seconds mark at the beginning of the timeline.
3. You will see a purple line in the timeline.
4. Drag the right side of the purple line, stretching it to the right until it becomes much wider.
5. In the middle of the purple line, you will now see the Butterfly icon. Click this icon once.
6. In the House Preview and/or Model Preview windows, you will see the matrix animating with rainbow colors!
7. To send the animation to the pixels on the QuinLED-Dig-Uno, click the "lightbulb" icon in the middle of of the top toolbar. Your pixels should light-up!

xLights is sophisticated pixel animation software. It is powerful, but has a steep learning curve. The good news is that there is plenty of help learning it!

xLights website: https://xlights.org

xLights manual: https://manual.xlights.org/xlights

xLights training videos: https://videos.xlights.org

xLights Facebook support group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/628061113896314