[matyhaty]

Hi All

I run 3 Raspberry Pi with XBMC on my house, connecting to a Readynas NV+ V2.
I have to said its works super well, super stable and even works really well using wifi dongles.....

Anyway, I wanted to explore the Ambilight options which I have seen spring up over the last few months. Ive noticed there are a few options being created and wanted to get people thoughts on which ones are:

1) The best
2) Decent budget
3) Best hardware (e.g. not too messy to setup etc)

I see iBeLight, but they are not shipping.
PiBob (http://pibob.nadnerb.co.uk/) which seems a true DIY
Other names have been bounded around......

Requirements:
- Obviously must be usable on Pi
- Must cater for 52" TV
- Be sensible
- Be stable


Hopefully I can tackle this and make up some nice tutorials (if it works) for others to follow

Thanks

[popcornmix]

Hyperion (http://forum.stmlabs.com/showthread.php?tid=11053) uses only about 1.5% cpu, whereas boblight uses about 20%.
Might be worth choosing hardware that is supported by that.

[matyhaty]

Thanks for the response, but I not looking to replace Raspberry Pi's at this time, and thus, that make Hypertron non viable for me.

[popcornmix]

Thanks for the response, but I not looking to replace Raspberry Pi's at this time, and thus, that make Hypertron non viable for me.

I don't understand. Why does Hyperion involve replacing the Pi's? It's just some software than runs on a Pi.

[matyhaty]

As per their Wiki
https://github.com/tvdzwan/hyperion/wiki...t-for-RPi)

Not supported.

[popcornmix]

As per their Wiki
https://github.com/tvdzwan/hyperion/wiki...t-for-RPi)

Not supported.

That page is wrong. Note the screenshot reads:
"Hyperion is an open source ambilight clone for the Raspberry Pi"

and the README of the github page reads:
"Hyperion is an opensource 'AmbiLight' implementation controlled using the RaspBerry Pi running Raspbmc."

Read the thread I linked to in the raspbmc forum (a Pi specific forum).

[matyhaty]

Ahhh

In that case im all over that

I see you need three things it seems from the hardware page.
The chip on the header pins of the Pi, a DC jack and the lights.

The ights are pretty simple to search on ebay for but the other two im a little less familar with
Could you advise

I would love to update teh hardware wiki page (and others) based on me doing this = as it gives a 'easy way in' to people - which is a major blocker for most.

Ta

[tvdzwan]

That page is wrong. Note the screenshot reads:
"Hyperion is an open source ambilight clone for the Raspberry Pi"

and the README of the github page reads:
"Hyperion is an opensource 'AmbiLight' implementation controlled using the RaspBerry Pi running Raspbmc."

Read the thread I linked to in the raspbmc forum (a Pi specific forum).

The page is not wrong, maybe only confusing. The Hyperion XBMC addon is meant for non-Pi platforms. Capturing screenshots on the Pi is handled differently (dedicated VideoCore libraries). Therefor the addon is 'not for the pi', while Hyperion is for the PI.

---

Ahhh

In that case im all over that

I see you need three things it seems from the hardware page.
The chip on the header pins of the Pi, a DC jack and the lights.

The ights are pretty simple to search on ebay for but the other two im a little less familar with
Could you advise

I would love to update teh hardware wiki page (and others) based on me doing this = as it gives a 'easy way in' to people - which is a major blocker for most.

Ta

The chip on the header pins is not absolutely vital. Although the official specification of lots of led-strings specify strict minimum voltage levels on the data and clock lines, their implementation is less strict. Many users connect the leds directly to the header. This is further explained on the Hyperion wiki.
Another important piece of required hardware is the power supply. Lots of users go wrong here with a power supply that does not have enough juice. So be careful in ordering the 'cheap' power supplies from Chinese websites, although their specification might suggest lots of power, in practice they are disappointing.
Next to ebay, aliexpress is a nice website for finding leds.

[matyhaty]

Thanks for clearing that up....

Could anyone recommend the products I need to buy....

Is the buffering device a worthwhile device? (Kinda says do it, but most dont)

What else do I need other than the LEDS

For a 52" plasma, is 50 enough?

thanks

[Hedda]

Have you guys already seen this awesome "Project XBMC AmbiLight" (with 104 RGB LEDs) that Oscar Andersson posted on Facebook?

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=...0cc8af29b8





He have full HOW-TO instructions with pictures and diagrams for everything you need to get this done a easily and for as little as possible!

Project XBMC AmbiLight

Home theater with modified XBMC running AmbiPi, Raspberry Pi with custom PixelPi showing Avatar fire scene.

Avatar fire scene:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT9_RS_bN40

The Lion King intro (Also showing Telldus plugin for ceiling light)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y-CcsyEP870

The ceiling light and computer screens are linked to radio frequency receivers that are controlled via Telldus API. Plugin linked below:

http://www.googleandroid.se/xbmc/tellstick/index.php

AmbiPi consists of a custom XBMC with modifications to capture the screen and send a data stream to a Raspberry Pi running a modified version of PixelPi to drive 104 WS2801 RGB LEDs via the Raspberry Pi's SPI bus.

How to install:

Install Occidentalis v0.2 to your Raspberry Pi. Instructions and download below.

http://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-raspb...s-v0-dot-2

After installation run the following commands via SSH:

sudo apt-get update

sudo apt-get upgrade

sudo apt-get install python-cwiid

sudo aptitude install python-imaging-tk

git clone git://github.com/hydra/PixelPi.git

cd PixelPi

git checkout ambipi

sudo python pixelpi.py ambipi --chip WS2801 --udp-ip Your-RaspPi-IP --udp-port 20434 --num_leds 104

Install the custom XBMC client. Download below.

http://hydraservices.com/files/ambipi/

If you already have XBMC installed and encounter problems remove the following files:

C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Roaming\XBMC