As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you for supporting this site by purchasing through the links below!

Wiring A Coro Prop – Including Singing Props

First – Setup The Prop in xLights

1. Open xLights to the correct show folder that you want to prop to be part of
2. Switch to the “Layout” tab in xLights
3. Most props will come with a file called an “xmodel”, which you usually download from the prop vendor’s website — download this file and drop it into a folder that’s easy to find
   • If your prop doesn’t come with an xmodel, it may be a prop that’s a native shape for xLights, like a star
   • If this is the case, you will need to create a native xLights model using the icons at the top of the layout tab
4. Create a new model by clicking the Import Button in the model icons in the layout visualization window on the right
5. After clicking the icon, click and drag your cursor on an open area of the layout to create a square where you want the prop — you can always move and resize it later
6. You will get a pop-up window asking you to “choose model file” — choose the xmodel file you downloaded in step 3
7. Over in the models list of the left, you should see the new model named whatever the xmodel creator specified (for example “small spinner” or something) – I will call it “new model” for the rest of this tutorial
8. Click on the “new model” name in the list on the left
9. At the bottom left, you will see all of the settings for “new model”
10. Rename the model, if desired, by changing it in the settings box (name is first item)
11. Strings should be set to 1 (even if you have multiple physical strings of lights — for example a 200 light spinner could have 4 sets of 50 lights daisy chained together)
12. Hit save (red button at bottom of screen)
13. The prop is now set up in xLights! Now you can wire it (push pixels)!

Second – Assign The Prop To A Controller Port

1. In the xLights controller tab, click the name of the controller you want to assign the prop to
2. Click “visualize” – a window will pop up
3. Click and drag the name of the prop on the right side to the desired port on the left side
4. You can assign multiple props to the same port if you plan to daisy chain them together
   • Make sure that you drag them in the correct order (same as physical wiring)
   • Make sure you have enough power based on the number of pixels; inject power if needed
5. Click the red “save” button over on the far left of the screen

Third – Wire the prop aka “pushing pixels”

1. In the xLights layout tab, click the name of the prop
2. Right click the prop name and choose “wiring view” from the menu
3. You will see a popup of the prop’s wiring diagram — this is the reverse view (looking at the back of the prop), since this is how you will push the lights through the coro
4. You can choose to work off the screen (you should probably maximize the view) or I sometimes choose to print the wiring diagram:
   • Right click the diagram and set the color scheme to “light” — which will give you black on white
   • Right click and set it to “smaller font” (this keeps node numbers from getting bunched together)
   • Right click again and say “export” (I have not had good luck printing directly from xLights)
   • Go open the .png file of the model you just exported, and you can print from there
   • See examples below of 250 pixel spinner, xmodel and test video
5. Now you can start wiring — be very careful to find pixel #1 on the back of your physical prop and ensure you are starting at the right place — if you don’t, you will be tearing it apart and re-doing it later
6. Push the first pixel (the one closest to the controller) into hole #1 until the bulb pops through the other side of the coro
7. Continue to follow the wiring diagram, pushing bulbs 2-250 (or however many bulbs your prop has)
8. As you go along, you will need to screw together additional strings of lights; I use 50 pixel strings for maximum flexibility, so the prop below has 5 strings
9. When you get to the last bulb, you are done and can test out the prop!
   • If this prop will be standalone, or the last prop in a daisy chain of props, you should cap the last xConnector to keep water out
   • Some props will include “submodels” and/or “states” which you can use in your sequencing
   • To check for these in the layout tab, click the prop, then look for “submodels” and “states” in the settings (click the … to open)
10. Check out the article on mounting coro props