Comparison
Programmable vs pre-programmed pixel lights
One side stores its sequence on the light; the other takes its orders from a controller. Both are published models in this catalogue.
COMPARE — DESIGNED EFFECTS VS ZERO CONTROL
Who should run the sequence
The programmable string — the IC6018G-2 — does what a controller tells it: chases, sweeps and scenes designed for one structure, changeable for events and sponsors. The pre-programmed pixel — the IC4810-AUTO-2pins — runs a stored automatic sequence the moment power arrives, and its page says plainly that no separate controller is needed for the sequence itself. Every other difference between the two lines is a consequence of that one.
| Aspect | Programmable (IC6018G-2) | Pre-programmed (IC4810-AUTO-2pins) |
|---|---|---|
| Sequence | Designed per structure, changeable | Stored automatic sequence, fixed |
| Controller | Required — specified with the string | Not required |
| Wiring | Power and data, on a 3-pin connector system | Power only, on a 2-pin connector system |
| Commissioning | Programming is part of the job | Power up and it runs |
| Spares | Any unit; the programme lives in the controller | Any unit; the programme lives in every unit |
| Best home | Feature structures, signs, designed shows | Rotating structures, long outlines, small crews |
Cost the control side in full
Programmable pixels are often compared on lamp price, which is the smallest part of the difference. The full ledger adds the controller, the data wiring, the programming hours and the maintenance skill to one side — and credits the other side with removing all four. Against that, the programmable side holds an asset the pre-programmed side can never offer: the effect can change. A park that re-themes, a sign that carries sponsors, a stage that tours — each is buying change, and should pay for it knowingly.
Mixed installations are legitimate and common: pre-programmed pixels on the rotating and remote structures, programmable strings where the audience gathers. The two model pages carry the tables; the inquiry can carry both.
One more line belongs in the ledger, and it is the one most often missed: documentation. A programmable installation is a piece of software living outdoors, and its programme files, controller configuration and wiring order are part of the asset. Parks that file them with the ride's own records can restore an effect after any failure; parks that leave them on a departed contractor's laptop own a dark structure and a story. The pre-programmed side has no equivalent liability — its documentation is its wiring diagram — and for small operators that absence is worth real money, priced in risk rather than in units.
The decision, in the end, is about where a structure's intelligence should live. Put it in a controller and it can be rewritten, extended and repaired in software, at the price of depending on that controller forever. Put it in the lamps and it can never be rewritten at all, at the price of depending on almost nothing. Neither answer is naive and neither is sophisticated; they are two honest engineering postures, and the structure — its motion, its crew, its audience, its owner's appetite for change — has already chosen between them before the buyer opens this page. The buyer's job is simply to hear it.
Before you order
Ask for both options priced in one quotation — one form covers every line, and the reply quotes against your model, quantity and destination.