KG3 Concept mockup
RGB pixel ball concept

Tree of Life

The Tree of Life rebuilt in fully pixelated RGB pixel balls. Every ball is its own pixel, so the trunk and canopy can chase, sparkle and drip, not just change color. The show is recorded into Advatek PixLite controllers and fired with a GO from QLab. Try the cue stack below, or pick an effect and drag to orbit.

drag to orbit · pinch to zoom · 6 ft figure for scale

Run it from QLab

Each cue below is a scene recorded on the controllers. Press GO (or the space bar) to fire the next one, the way QLab would during the show.

    How it's built

    Fixture
    Frosted RGB pixel balls on 24V strings
    Pitch
    One ball every 8 in
    String
    42 ft, 63 pixels
    Height
    About 9 ft 2 in
    Canopy
    About 12 ft 4 in across
    Trunk
    About 4 ft across, 30 columns
    Canopy
    30 radial spokes, 12° apart

    Each trunk column flows straight up into its own canopy spoke, so every branch line is one continuous run of pixels from the floor to the canopy edge.

    1. Up trunk column 1 and out spoke 1
    2. Back in spoke 2 and down column 2
    3. Up column 3 and out spoke 3

    One string covers three branch lines. Pixel 1 of every string is at the trunk base, where the controllers live. The optional inner ring adds 15 more columns inside the trunk.

    Control and network

    sACN (E1.31) by default, Art-Net also supported. One universe per string, RGB, 3 channels per pixel, every string starts at address 1. The IP plan below is a proposal and can be changed to match your network.

    Controller
    Advatek PixLite A4-S Mk3, 4 outputs
    Protocol
    sACN (E1.31), multicast or unicast. Art-Net on request.
    Pixel type
    RGB, 8-bit, 3 ch per pixel
    Per string
    63 px = 189 ch, one universe
    Universes
    1 to 10
    Subnet
    10.10.0.0 / 255.255.255.0
    Console / server
    10.10.0.10 (suggested)
    Gateway
    None needed

    Record and playback

    Pixel control comes from Advatek PixLite A4-S Mk3 controllers. Each one has Advatek SHOWTime built in: it records the live sACN or Art-Net stream from your console or media server onto a microSD card inside the controller, then plays it back on its own. No console or media server has to stay on site, and there is no extra license.

    Controller
    Advatek PixLite A4-S Mk3
    Quantity
    3 (one per 4 strings)
    Record / play
    Advatek SHOWTime, built into Mk3 firmware
    Storage
    Industrial microSD card in each controller
    Record source
    Live sACN or Art-Net from any console, media server or pixel mapper
    Triggers
    Up to 25 per controller: UDP string, sACN / Art-Net / DMX channel value, power-up, chained
    QLab
    Network cue sends a UDP string. Light cue on an sACN channel works too.
    1. Program the looks on your console or media server, patched to the universes below.
    2. Record each look as a SHOWTime scene. Every controller records its own universes to its card.
    3. Map one trigger per scene, for example UDP port 8000, string TOL_GO_01.
    4. In QLab, build a Group cue per look holding one Network cue per controller IP, so all controllers start together.
    5. Show day: QLab GO fires the scene. The console can go home.

    Backup trigger: a QLab Light cue setting sACN universe 100, channel 1 to the scene number. Controllers can also start a default look on power-up.

    Universe patch

    The last few pixels on each string are service pixels coiled out of sight. Leave them at zero; the patch below lists them.

    Pixel map

    Every pixel with its universe, DMX address and 3D position in inches (origin at the trunk center on the floor, Z up). Import it into your media server or mapping software.