Thanks Tom.
As for the details. The multiplexer is made by a company called Gemmy. I am sure yo ucan get one on ebay. I got mine on clearance at JC Penny last year for a steal. There are other versions of the multiplexer, GE makes a wirelss set, not sure how well it works. The important part is to lay out the lights on a drawing and figure out the most efficient way to run the extension cords to plug into the appropriate outlet on the multiplexer. It has six different outlets, each one tied to a certain frequency range. The device does not come with what outlets are what. I put masking tape on the front, hooked up six strands of lights (one to each outlet) played "Here come the bells", or whatever the song is called, you can hear it in my video at the 40sec mark. I wrote down the order the lights went from 1 to 6, 1 being the top, 6 being the bottom,or first to last or however you would like to set up your lights. Once you are labeled, lay out your lights, use masking tape and label each plug as to which outlet it goes in, which helps when hooking it all up and you get totally confused.![]()
The multiplexer should be around 100 bucks I would think. The MOST IMPORTANT part is using LED lights, not incandescent. This will save you time and money. I did this last year with a mix of incandescent and LED and broke my first multiplexer. It can only handle about 7.5 amps which in incandescent lights is not a whole lot at all. If you switch to LED, like I said before, I have 750 feet or so of lights, only draws 1.25 amps, so I am not even close to overloading anything, not to mention that makes the effect on my electricity bill nill. When you lay out your lights, think layers, overlap strands that would be from outlet #1 with lights on #3, and #6. This gives the illusion of motion, and ties everything together without looking generic and unoriginal. Your imagination and vision is the only that will limit you.
If you have any more specific questions, let me know.