Music Box Instructions****w/ Silence Detection Feature
Do not use RGB ROPE lighting with a controller built into the lights as it will damage the controller and void the warranty. Single color rope light will work fine. A 50’ rope light will draw .5amps. The PBS Lighting Music Box controller is a hi-tech, computer-controlled controller that sync’s light and music (sound). Make sure both power sources to the controller are connected. The first 2 output channels will trigger to the beat of the music. The remaining 8 outputs will trigger to different parts of the music. Some music will not trigger some of the outputs or seldom trigger them. When the sound selected is soft, you might have to increase the volume slightly on the playback source. Different music has different effects. This is normal. No two different pieces of music will trigger the same outputs and will look different. These effects are pre-programmed into the computer and can’t be changed.
This controller has a Silence Detection Mode. When the music / sound stops, outputs one and two will turn on and stay on until the sound resumes (when the music plays, outputs 1 and 2 will flash to the beat of the music). After approx. 7 seconds of no sound, all the outputs will turn on and stay on until the sound track resumes. This is an easy way to test that all 10 outputs are working. Watch the total amps load when doing this as you can overload the controller’s max. amps.
This feature is controlled by the switch on the front of the controller. Turn the switch to the first off (Far left) position for the Silence Detection Feature.
The center off position on the switch will cause the outputs 1 and 2 to turn on and stay on until the sound resumes. All other outputs remain off.
In the “on” position, the Silence Detection Mode will be off and the controller will run in the normal mode. Output 1 and 2 will turn on only when there is no sound and react to the beat of the music when there is sound.
You MUST use a stereo audio cable to connect to the audio input to the controller (doesn’t matter if the sound is stereo). Use a line level audio source only and be sure the volume of the audio line level
source is set to slightly above the mid-range for best results. If you think that the controller is not working correctly, do this test, connect an audio source that is a talk radio station. Most will work fine. Watch the outputs. All will trigger over a 10-15 second period, some very briefly.
Since 2003, we have provided excellent customer service. Any questions about our products or for service if ever needed, please call before you call the dealer. We want to be your first point of contact. Any issue is normally very simple and quickly corrected. We’ll work with you to make your display great. Have a display idea you want to run by us, we’d love to hear about and help if we can.
Music Box, Mini lights and LED's
There has been some talk about using Mini light sets and LED light sets with the PBS Music Box Light Controller.
When the Current Music Box was upgraded 18 months ago, better semiconductor switches were selected. This gave the controller a little better power at the outputs and a better response to the music. Our customers noticed the upgrade in the following ways. If they were using mini lights or tungsten lights, they were not as bright or as fast with the music being played. Led lights were full bright and had a better “look” with the Music Box.
This was because mini lights are tungsten and require the filament in the bulb to heat up to get a light output. If not hot enough, the bulb will look dim. LED’s are semi-conductor devices and turn on to full brightness in an instant. Many times, faster than a mini light bulb.
For the best “look” with the Music Box, LED’s should be used. You will also get more lighting effect, more bang for your buck by using LED’s as you can use more LED’s on each output.
Any questions, please call PBS Lighting at 602-702-6822 and ask for Stan (StanFikel@cox.net)
Music Selection
I have been asked about music selection. Here are a few CD’s that have made a great sound track for my display and at a parade we attended in our golf cart. “Now That’s What I Call Christmas”, Kidz Bop Christmas, Una Feliz Navidad, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Yulesville. These CD’s that can be bought online, really shows off the Music Box Controller and Spitfire controller. Any music will work, but these have been the best I have found so far.
Music Box Instructions****w/ Silence Detection Mode
Thank you for purchasing the PBS Lighting’ Music Box Controller. The PBS Lighting’ Music Box Controller will sync music and lighting displays. This is a plug and play system that doesn’t require a computer or complex software that needs to be programmed to operate. You just need an audio source, sound system and lights to have a great display.
Note: Even though the Music Box has been manufactured with some moisture protection in place, the Music Box should not be considered water proof. The controller should not be placed in standing water and be protected from rain and snow such as a waterproof enclosure.
The controller has ten outputs. Outputs 1-2 will trigger at the beat of the music and turn on continually with no sound. Outputs 3-10 will trigger to different parts of the music and if in “Silence Mode “ the remaining outputs will turn on continually until sound resumes. No two pieces of music will look the same. Each output will normally handle 125 watts (1.25 amps). You can mix and match your display outputs. That means that one channel can have 50 watts and another can have 100 watts, just as long as the total output demand doesn’t exceed 125 watts (1.25 amps) for each output channel, 10 amps total for the controller. If you connect too many lights, the fuse will blow. Reduce the number of lights connected to the controller and replace the fuse. Replace with a 5mm X 20mm, 10 amp, slow blow fuse. Any larger fuse and the controller will be damaged. Disconnect from all the power sources when replacing the fuse.
To set up for use, first connect the wall transformer to the front of the sound controller and then to a 120 AC power supply and next connect the AC IN to 120 AC power. Both the sound controller’s power sources can be used with a timer to control when your display operates. Two different power sources were chosen for better performance of the sound controller.
Start by connecting an audio source to the audio input on the controller. Use only line level audio sources for the audio input to the controller. Line levels are the ear phone outputs on a MP3 players (IPod), Smart Phones, and***Tablets***. Do not use any other outputs from a stereo system, head phones, powered speakers, or transistor radios as they will not work will and will damage the controller due to high voltages. There’s a transistor radio that we have tested and works with the Music Box Controller. It’s the NiZHi TT-028and can be bought online. If you need an adapter to change plug sizes, they can be bought from an electronic supplier like Radio Shack. Use gold plated connectors as they will give better performance and not rust if exposed to moisture. The best way of hooking the Music Box up is the following. Use a “Y” connector to split your music to the controller and your stereo system speakers from your music source. Make sure that all the cables and adapters you use are 1/8” (3.5mm) stereo, gold plated. Connect one side of the “Y” to a 1/8” (3.5mm) to an RCA (Radio Shack # 42-494 or 42-495) connector cable, then connect to the AUX or CD input of your stereo System. Select the AUX / CD input on your stereo unit for the program. Connect the other side of the “Y” to the Music Box. Set the Volume on the MP3 player to just over the 1/2 level to start with, can be fine tuned after basic setup. Turn on the stereo and check that you have music from the MP3 player playing on the stereo system. If possible, connect the MP3’s charger cord, while connected to the MP3, to a non-switched power source and keep powered on all this time. This will keep you from restarting the MP3 player each time you run the display.
Set the MP3 devices’ volume setting to the mid-point to start. Adjust the volume while watching the display to get the best effect. Set the MP3 player to “Repeat” if you have a few songs. Use the volume on the stereo system to control the sound level into the display, it will have no effect of the signal going to the Music Box. That’s controlled by the MP3 player’s volume setting.
If you have a collection of music for your program, and since the volume of the recorded songs will differ between the tracks of music playing, select a volume on the MP3 player that gives you the best results for all tracks. A small adjustment may be all that is needed.
Note: You will need to connect both
the black wall transformer power and the white male 120 AC plug for the controller to operate correctly. Do not connect to a dimmer switch or dim the controller’s power supplies or it will damage the unit.
Lights.
The controller will work with both mini-lights and LED’s. The advantage with LED’s is you can use more strings of LED’s per output and the effect is best with LED’s. You can use 3 strings of 100 mini lights per channel if you are using all 10 output channels. With LED’s you can use 10 strings per channel. The effects will be slightly different with LED’s as well (faster flashing) due to the design of the LED lights.
If you blow a fuse, reduce the number of lights connected to the controller and replace the fuse with a ***10 amp, slow blow***fuse only.
MAXIUM CURRENT LOAD PER CHANNEL IS 125 Watts ( 1.25 amps)
Unit used in stand-alone configuration
Light Type Current Draw Per Light Set Max # Per Output Channel
Mini-lights 50 light set .2 amps 7 Strings
Mini-lights 100 light set .35 amps 4 Strings
LED Mini-lights 70 light set .05 amps 10 Strings
Trouble Shooting Guide
The lights don’t come on.
Check to see that the wall transformer and “AC IN” (on back of the box where output cables are connected to a 120AC power source).
Adjust the volume of the sound source (MP3 Player or other line level audio source) to about ¾ level. Adjust more or less for best operation.
Make sure the “Audio Input” cable is connected and completely plug in., if so remove and re-insert the connector with care, don’t force the connector, use gold flashed, shielded connectors for better connections. Keep the cable run as short as possible.
Check the fuse and see if blown, reduce the number of lights connected to the controller. Disconnect the power from both the wall transformer and the “AC IN”. Replace the fuse with a 10 amp, slow blow fuse that’s 5mm X 20mm.
Lights come on all the time.
Some will be better than others because all music is not recorded the same. Watch the display for several pieces of music or sounds and make small adjustments with the source volume control (volume) to get the best results. Is the Silence Detection feature on or off, turn it off and the lights will go out. Sometimes the audio cable connected to the Music Box is too long and will pick-up electronic noise. Use gold, shielded cables for best results.
***Note:***Even though the Music Box has been manufactured with some moisture protection in place, the box should not be considered water proof and not placed in standing water and protected from rain and snow such as a waterproof enclosure.
Any questions about our products or for service, please call. We’ll work with you to make your holiday display great. Have an idea you want to run by us, we’d love to heard about and help if we can.
Hey there holiday geek’s!
Let’s go over some possible issues and solutions for problems you might be having with the PBS music box controller!
So right off the bat your probably really excited to have a controller that no one else on your block probably doesn’t have, your ready to plug it in and start dominating the neighborhood or vehicle. This should be a given, so here are some troubleshooting steps
- My music box doesn’t keep channels one and two solid when music stops or seems to be inheriting some noise.
- Solution 1: a shielded 3.5mm audio cable needs to be used. Ferrite cores also help a lot with noise issues, these can be purchased cheap on Amazon. I’ve found it helpful to use two on each audio cable especially if using a Y adapter for a FM transmitter
- Solution 2: your audio cable is laying on or around your supplied 120vac and/or the outputs. your going to want the audio cable coming from the music box to be a straight line away from all power cables and directly to mp3 source. No Winding excess cables or extra length that isn’t needed. The shorter route the better.
- Solution 3: your mp3 player and/or signal device is being charged while playing. To resolve this issue you’ll need a Bluetooth receiver plugged into the audio jack of the music box to isolate any interference from the charging circuit on your device. These can be purchased at Walmart and Amazon. Just be sure your mp3 device is Bluetooth capable
- Solution 4: your mp3 device is defective and/or the 3.5mm jack has been compromised due to bending or improper handling.
- Solution 5: there is a open female 3.5mm jack that isn’t being utilized. This can be caused by using a 3 in 1 adapter and leaving the third female to open air, this will cause noise interference.
So you have no noise issues and when you pause your music just channel one and two become solidly active, that’s great!
Removing noise is the hardest issue we’re going to have, now time for the fun.
So your music box is powered up and mp3 source is running and you don’t like the way the lights are synchronizing?
-Solution 1: move your lights around on the music box outputs, I’ve found that when trying to sync lights is best to have left and right side house lights on the same channel to add some rhyme to rhythm. Keeping the lights looking in sync.
-Solution 2: adjusting your mp3 device equalizer. Since this controller activates the outputs from audio recognition, adjusting the equalizer you can really dial it in. You’ll notice when adjusting the lower frequencies on the equalizer certain channels will be more active. The same goes with the higher frequencies. Dial and tuning to where you like it.
Have a great holiday!
Stan Fikel PBS Lighting
PBS Lighting
Stan Fikel
Stanfikel@gmail.com
