xLights Sequencing Tips & Tricks
Tips for Sequencing Light Shows
- Always purchase legal copies of MP3 files for light shows you are creating or downloading; common sources are Amazon or Apple Music
- Sequencing an entire light show from scratch will be time consuming, especially at first — figure 30-40 hours of work for a 3.5 minute song if you want to make it look good (you will get faster the more you do)
- Start early! I usually start sequencing new light shows for Halloween in February while it’s cold and there’s not much to do outside — that way I’m not trying to do it in August-September while it’s still nice out.
- For your first season, choose a few (3-5) songs to do a really nice job on (versus 15 badly sequenced songs) – classic Christmas songs like “Carol of the Bells” or fun ones like “Mr. Grinch” will be particularly popular to a broad audience
- It might make sense to start off by downloading some free sequences and adapting them to your layout and props when you import them — this will still take some time, but not nearly as much as creating sequences from scratch
- In xLights, go to “tools”, “download sequences/lyrics” — can also find these on xLights Google Drive
- Check https://xlightsseq.com for free and paid sequences
- See our how-to article on Importing xLights Sequences!
- Adding lyric tracks to sequences: it is super time consuming to try to manually line up the lyrics to the music; avoid doing this if you can — the tips below will save you hours and hours — Lyric tracks are what enable singing props!
- Tip 1: First check to see if anyone has already figured out the lyric timing for your song – in xLights, go to “tools”, “download sequences/lyrics”, then scroll down to “timing tracks” — there are lyrics tracks for some popular light show songs; you can also check the free sequences to see if you can download one of those and pull in the lyrics if they have them — can also find these on xLights Google Drive
- Tip 2: Check https://xlightsseq.com to see if there’s a free sequence that has the lyrics you are looking for — download and import the lyrics track
- Tip 3: Use AutoLyrics by Lighting Fanatics — this online tool lets you upload a legally owned MP3 file, along with the lyrics (I use AZLyrics.com to get the lyrics) for to a song, and will auto-generate an xLights lyric timing track for you in a few minutes; it’s not perfect (claims about 90% accurate) but it saves a HUGE amount of time vs. manually trying to align the lyrics; you may need to tweak a few words after you import the track, but I find this works really well
- Render Order: xLights will process rendering of effects on groups and models in the order of the “master view” that you see on the sequencer tab from top to bottom
- Render order inside each model with multiple layers is from bottom to top — the bottom layer is applied first, and each layer above is painted directly over the layer or layers below it
- Generally you want to keep “all models” or “whole house” groups at the top
- Other models below can have their own effects and paint over the upper groups (like “all models”)
- If you want a model included in an upper group to be “off” (no lights), you can use the “off” effect (black square icon) to paint it black — or you can use “off” as the lowest layer in that model to give you a clean slate to use different effects on the layers above it (i.e. the effects from the whole house group won’t show through)
xLights Sequencing FAQ
How do I “bulk” change colors for multiple effects at the same time?
To change colors across multiple effects, right click and drag your mouse to select the effects you want to change; select the desired color(s) in the Effect Colors panel — then click the little “hamburger” (3 lines) icon to the right and click “update palette” — you will get an “are you sure” box — just click “yes” and you are done!
Why are my effects not showing up on my display (or look strange)?
This is usually caused by a render or preview issue. Try these three quick fixes:
Render All: xLights doesn’t always update changes automatically. Click the Render All button (the painter’s palette icon) on the toolbar.
Update Model Groups: If you applied an effect to a group, make sure the individual props are actually inside that group in your Layout tab.
Check Display Elements: Ensure your props are correctly assigned to the preview window.
What is a “timing track” and why is it important?
The Timing Track breaks your audio file down into visual grids (like beats, bars, or lyric phrases). Trying to ‘ sequence without a timing track is like trying to color in the dark.
Tip: Use the built-in Vamp Plugins (under Timings > New) to automatically calculate the musical beats or note onsets for you.
Can I use a sequence made by someone else on my display?
Yes! This is called Mapping. Because xLights uses a powerful import feature, you can buy or download shared sequences and map their effects onto your specific props (e.g., mapping someone else’s mega tree effects onto your mega tree). It saves hours of work, though you will still need to do some fine-tuning. Please see our article on importing xLights sequences.
Can I automatically “snap” effects to beats or other timing tracks?
Yes! Just make sure you have an appropriate timing track selected (click the little circle to the left of the track name). When you drag effects into the sequencing grid, they will automatically snap between the nearest timing marks where you drop the effect.
What is the difference between a “Sequence” and a “Layout” in xLights?
Think of the Layout as your digital canvas and the Sequence as the artwork.
A Sequence is the actual light show timeline matched to music. You can create dozens of different sequences, but they will all play on top of that same layout.
Your Layout is a 2D or 3D model of your actual home and controllers—you build this once.
How often should I save, and does xLights have backups?
Save frequently! If something does go wrong, xLights automatically creates a backup folder inside your show directory. Every time you save, it retains older versions of your RGB effects files. If a file gets corrupted or you make a massive mistake, you can roll back to a previous save from that folder. I also have my shows automatically saving to a cloud drive, just in case something happens to my hard disk.
What is a “nullstrand” configuration error and how do I fix it?
Take a look at our article on Troubleshooting the “NullStrand” Disconnect: Fixing Null Pixels and String Miscounts in xLights & FPP, which includes a step-by-step troubleshooting guide.