How to arrange 9 metres of Lighting Node Pro aRGB strips on desk?

[Ca1ibos]

 

This is my current Desk Setup. Its basically 2x Hand-me-down IKEA Malm Desks broken down into their constituent parts and recombined with the addition of Lack Coffee Table top, Lack shelf, 2x Malm Bedside Lockers and an assortment of Capita Legs and Brackets. Its 3 meters wide.

 

At the moment I have some generic RGB strips along the underside and behind the Integrated Desk Wall up top.

 

I'm putting the finishing touches to my new 5900x/RTX3090 PC in a Lian Li O11 Dynamic XL Case with 9x QL120 fans. Thats going to go on the left side of the Desk. On the rightside will be a soon to be finished 24/7 12 Bay Media Server in a Corsair Air540 Case.

 

I bought an LS100 Kit for use in the Media Server Case but was playing around with it on the back of my UW monitor with Wallpaper Engine last night and was so impressed that it de-procrastinated me about going full aRGB for the desk lighting which is an idea I was toying with.

 

I decided I wanted 3x 3m runs on the desk. 2 of the runs exactly where my current generic strips are as pictured but also a third 3m along the top of the desk shining down the front of the integrated desk wall to the desk surface. Don't worry, these strips will not be directly viewable because despite not being in that photo, I already have IKEA Rimmi Picture shelves along the top of the desk wall which create a lip that hides the strips from direct view.

 

 

So I ordered 2x Lighting Node Pro 4 Strip kits and 4x 4 strip expansion kits giving me 24 strips. It is my understanding that with 2 LNPro's and their 4 RGB Channels with each channel under iCue4 supporting 6 strips, I can run all 24 strips from the 2 SATA power connections from the LNPro's in my PC. PC has a 1000w RM1000x PSU.

 

At 410mm per strip, each 3m strip run will use 7 Strips for a total of 21 on the Desk. So already I realise that I am going to have to fabricate some aRGB cable extensions. The spare 3x 410mm Strips I intend to use inside my case inside my GPU Shroud who's warranty I am already risking anyway when I dismantle the card to fit new Memory Thermal pads as I intend to Crypto-mine with it for a few months to pay for the damn thing :D

 

With that in mind, its obvious that the middle of a 6 strip run is not going to align with the middle of the desk. So for example, say I start my runs on the underside of the desk. The 6 strips of the first RGB channel almost get me to the other side of the desk (they'll cross under the mid point of the desk half way across strip 4). The first strip of the second RGB channel finishes the run on the underside of the desk, a spliced cable extension then runs up the back of the desk and Strip 2 of the 2nd RGB channel starts the run back across the top of the desk wall behind the White Rimmi 'Channel'. (crosses midpoint of desk half way across strip 5 of RGB channel 2......Look, You catch my drift.

 

The question is, does aRGB and iCUE allow me to lay out the strips in the GUI and define my own mid-points. So for example, say I built my own Wallpaper Engine Visualiser with graphic equalisers columns mirrored left/right from the midpoint. Could I have the desk strips mirror that with the colours spreading out from the mid point of my desk from my centrally located monitor even though technically, the desk midpoint is not actually the mid point of any of the 4 RGB channels that went into making those 3x 3m strip runs on the desk.

 

Or is my idea not possible at all and the only way of doing it would be to physically align the mid point of a 6 strip RGB channel with the mid point of the desk. In other words, only use 3 RGB channels of 6 strips each on the desk and lay the strips such that Underside of Desk was RGB Channel 1 with 3 of its strips to the left of the midpoint of the desk and 3 to the right and similarly the Rimmi Lip run would be RGB Channel 2 with 3 of its strips to the left of the midpoint and 3 to the right etc etc.

 

[side Question] I'm using the LS100 Kit inside the Media Server case because while it can be controlled by iCUE on the Server, I can also switch it off from outside the case manually with the button on the Controller. That functionality will be useful to me. I was wondering though. I am going to use the 3x ML120 fans from my H150i Elite Cappellix that I won't be using on my main rig (using QL120's instead) in the front of the Media Server. Given I also have spare Lighting Node Cores from the QL120 Triple packs, is there anyway I can run the RGB of the ML120's through the controller of the LS100 kit such that with the touch of a button I can turn On/Off both the LS100 Strips and the LED's of the ML120's at the same time?

[Ca1ibos]

Calling Zotty the RGB Maestro Extraordinaire!!

 

Help me Obi-Zotty, You're my only hope!! :D: :D:

 

2x Lighting Node Pro Kits with 8 strips and 4x expansion kits with another 16 strips arrived from Amazon today. Need to know how many and how to arrange the strips on the desk before I start installing them.

Edited May 12, 2021 by Ca1ibos

[Zotty]

Hey bud... Well iCUE is going to let you have 6 Strips per channel..

 

this may help?

 

http://i.imgur.com/C7UEOt4l.png

 

as for placement. i would go. back and sides and some under it??

[Ca1ibos]

Maybe this explains what I am asking a bit better?

 

[Ca1ibos]

WRT to showing me the diagram with the external PSU. Is that your way of saying I can't run 24 strips off my PC's 1000 watt 25amp 5v rail via SATA?? :D:

[Zotty]

i wasnt thinking that... but am now haha... sorry bud. just showing you how i did mine....

[Ca1ibos]

Well I actually do happen to have a spare 10 year old Corsair Hx1050 PSU. :D:

 

So I need the Switched 24pin Jumper cable and an Alexa Smart Plug. I don't actually have an Alexa Device at the moment but now that I think about it its something that will be very useful in the future not just for this. Well straight away I can swap my main Room ceiling rose lights to Smart LED's and control them with Alexa but longer term this room will also become my Home Cinema Room with Electric Screen and Projector and all the Home Cinema Gear controlled by a Harmony Hub which can by extension be controlled by Alexa Voice commands. Do you think I should put in a Pre-order for the June 9th release of the 2021 2nd Gen Echo Show 5??

 

Everything in the new Rig always or on occasion drawing power from the Corsair RMx1000 PSU:

 

1x Case RGB LED Strip (Lian Li O11 Dynamic XL)

1x R9 5900x

1x RTX3090

4x 8gb 3600mhz CL18 Vengeance RGB Pro

1x 1TB Samsung 980 Pro NVME (G4)

1x 2TB Samsung 970 Evo+ NVME (G3)

2x 3TB Toshiba 7200rpm HDD's

1x H150i Elite Cappellix AIO

1x 7in IPS Sensor Panel

9x QL120 Fans

4x Non LED Fans

1x Lian Li Strimer+ RGB 24pin Motherboard extension

1x Lian Li Strimer+ RGB Triple 8pin GPU extension

1x Commander Pro

1x Commander Core

1x Lighting Node Core

1x NZXT USB2.0 Header Multiplier

1x ST100 Headset Stand

1x MM800 RGB Polaris Mouse Mat

1x Strafe RGB Keyboard

1x Logitech G920 Wheel/Pedal Set

1x Thrustmaster T16000FCS HOTAS and Yaw Pedal set.

 

I take it that blows through the 25amps on the 5v rail if I try and connect 24 RGB strips on 2 Lighting Node Pro's?

 

So you are suggesting its not even worth doing the math? I definitely need to run the Desk Strips off a separate PSU?

 

OK, opened one of the LNPro RGB Strips boxes and see that its actually a Mini USB port not a permanently wired USB Header cable. So I guess thats why you say connect them to a USB hub. I could dig into my drawer of assorted USB cables and find 2 USB Mini cables and plug them into a conventional USB port on the rear IO. Part of my confusion stemmed from thinking my options for the LNPro's was USB Header connection only.

 

You're the guy that connected his wifes Case RGB to his PC too aren't you?

 

I'll have a 24/7 Media server on the other side of my desk with an LS100 RGB Strip kit inside and 5x ML120 Fans. Can I connect those 5 Fans to an RGB Fan hub or spare Lighting Node Core from my QL120 Triple packs (The Fan PWM cables connected to a Fan Controller) which is then connected to the second channel of the LS100 Controller. Then run a USB cable from the LS100 Controller back to my main PC on the other side of the desk to control the RGB when gaming or playing music where I want all the RGB controlled by iCUE on the main Rig, ie Main Rig, Desk RGB and Media Server RGB.

 

Can I clarify expected behaviour though. If I set the RGB Values of the Hardware Lighting for the LS100 Strip Channel and the ML120 Channel to 0,0,0, the strip and the fan lights inside the Media Server will go off when I turn off the main Rig, correct? Does the Button on the LS100 controller do anything in this configuration?

Edited May 12, 2021 by Ca1ibos

[Ca1ibos]

Or what about this idea?

 

Use the HX1050 PSU for the 24/7 Media Server and power the 2x Lighting Node Pro's and all the Desk Strips off the Media Server but run the USB's back to the main rig. When main rig is on it takes control of all aRGB of Desk and Media Server fans and with hardware Lighting set to 0,0,0. the desk and Media Server lights go off when main rig is turned off. LS100 kit gets used elsewhere. Do I need a Powered USB Hub?? I now realise I cant connect a spare Lighting Node Core to a spare Lighting channel on the Node Pro's and would need an RGB Hub for that.

 

I may have that spare channel on a Node Pro if you or anyone can answer my main question which is whether the 21x 410mm Strips I'd need to cover the full width of the 3x 3m strip runs, where each of the 3 runs needs 7 strips to fill the width but as we know each channel of a Node Pro supports only 6 strips, so they would be arranged as pictured in the photo above. With that arrangement can I define in software the mid point where mirrored effects emanate from or do I have to accept using only 6 strips per 3m run (ie 18 in total) across the desk and physically locate the midpoint of each 6 strip run with the real life midpoint of the desk on each of the 3 runs.

 

Edited May 13, 2021 by Ca1ibos