Adding Pixels to Your Display

Adding Pixels to Your Display

What’s a "Pixel?"

Any light, any color and you control the the color!

What’s a smart pixel?  Any light, any color and you control the color.  You can easily add pixels to your current traditional display, or just start out with pixels on their own! Here's an example of displays that mix Classic and Pixel Lighting.

What if you could mix together different colors of light?  We took three colored spotlight beams, one red, one green and one blue, aimed them at a white brick wall and looked at the results.  Click the picture to the right for a closer look.  Where two beams overlapped, a different color was produced.  Where all three beams overlapped in the center, there was white.  By varying the intensities of the red, green and blue lights we could create almost any color of the rainbow.  The scientists call it ‘additive color’ because they are added together.  The rest of the world calls it RGB (Red Green Blue) technology.

Same LED can change colorsThe latest Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology puts the equivalent of a separate red, green and blue light source into what looks like one bulb.  By varying the intensities of the red, green and blue sources, the bulb appears to change color.  They’re called RGB LEDs.  Start thinking of the possibilities.  You create the final color by controlling the individual brightness of red, green and blue.  That’s three control channels and it’s typically called a pixel.

A smart pixel light ribbon or smart pixel light string means every pixel is individually controllable.  50 sections on your smart pixel ribbon?  Each section can be any color.  50 lights on your smart pixel string?  Each light can be any color.  Now you know where we got the phrase: any light, any color at any time.

Smart pixels mean you control the color of each light. If you have a string of 50 smart pixels then you can control the color of each individual light on that string.  Remember that each pixel requires three control channels so for a string of 50 smart pixels you’ll need (50 x 3 =) 150 control channels.

Cosmic Color means easy-to-add smart pixel devices

The Light-O-Rama engineers got pretty excited when RGB technology emerged many years ago  One engineer was staring at the bulbs late in the evening when he was in a particularly mellow state-of mind-and said it was a comic experience.  Light-O-Rama Cosmic Color devices were born.  Pretty soon Light-O-Rama added Cosmic Color bulbs, floods, pixels and ribbons to the catalog.

How does Cosmic Color smart pixel technology work?  Remember the explanation above and one simple sentence:  Any bulb, any color, any time.  By varying how bright each color is in the pixel you can create almost any color.

To make it easier for you, we include a sophisticated pixel controller with each Cosmic Color smart pixel device.  We also provide a properly sized power supply that will work in almost any country (120-240VAC).

Cosmic Color Ribbons


Cosmic Color Ribbon

The Light-O-Rama Cosmic Color Ribbon is a flexible, weatherproof strip with 150 super bright RGB LEDs spaced evenly along its length.  The 16.4′ (5 meters) ribbon can be broken into 50 pixels, meaning you control 50 individual sections. With the right kind of sequencing, the ribbon can dance to the music and dazzle your audience with fast moving effects. 

Cosmic Color Bulbs and Pixels

We created a high tech light string where each bulb is about the size of a C9 Christmas light and call them Cosmic Color Bulbs.  Each bulb is a RGB pixel so each bulb can be any color at any time while being under your full control.  We also have smaller bulb form factors (squares and bullets) that can be used in many different applications.  We call them Cosmic Color Pixels.  


Cosmic Color Bulb with ruler

Cosmic Color Square Pixel with ruler

Cosmic Color Bullet Pixel with ruler

 

Purchase Cosmic Color Ribbons, Bulbs and Pixels Now!

 

Cosmic Color Floods


50 Watt Cosmic Color RGB Flood with built-in controller

The 50W Cosmic Color Floods are great for wall washes, blinders or anything else where you want a super-bright light source to change colors on your command.  Cosmic Color Floods are outdoor rated and designed to bring life to a featureless backdrop or venue.

These 50 watt floods have a built-in controller and power supply to make installation easier.  Are they bright?  No need to worry.  A 50 watt RGB based LED is about the same brightness as a 300 watt incandescent flood with a much more concentrated light source.

Can Cosmic Color Floods do tricks?  They have a built-in strobe function for dazzling the crowds.  We even have a ultraviolet flood that’s perfect for haunts or any venue where you want to use black light effects. 

Looking for something a little smaller? Check out our dumb pixel CMB24D controller with our dumb 10W RGB floods.

 

Dumb pixels at work

This video shows  eight (8) different dumb RGB ribbons outlining the windows, doors, gutter and stairs.  Note the entire ribbon is the same color at ant time.

What about controlling your own smart pixels?


Pixie8D Smart Pixel Controller

Our Pixie series of smart pixel controllers have 2, 4, 8 or 16 ports.  Designed for the typical user, each port on the controller board can handle up to 100 smart pixels.  Create your own pixel trees, matrices, leaping arches or outline your venue in smart pixels.  The possibilities are endless. 


PixCon 16 with E1.31 capabilities

Already have some smart pixel devices and looking for a way to control them easily within the Light-O-Rama ecosystem?  Keep in mind each smart pixel needs three control channels, one for each of the internal red, green and blue colors.  If you have a string of 100 smart pixels that adds up to 300 control channels.  Lots of smart pixels means lots of control channels.

Our PixCon16 is an advanced controller that handles 16 SPI ports, each controlling up to 340 pixels.  Designed for the sophisticated user with a deep technical background this smart pixel controller can also handle up to four DMX-512 ports.  Communicate via a highspeed Light-O-Rama data network or E1.31 (DMX over Ethernet).  Add your own power supply and watch the magic!