New 8x8 LED Matrix

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1

A grid of 64 beautiful SK6812 (WS2812/NeoPixel) addressable LEDs, perfect for Pixelblaze, arranged in an 8x8 matrix. Combines really nicely with the 8 Channel Output Expander

It comes with a 3 wire connector that can plug right in to the output expander (though the 3 pins are ordered differently, just be sure to solder the wire to match).

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This was really easy to get going:

  1. Solder it
  2. Connect and configure 8ch expander (optional)
    a. Set 64 pixels in general, AND in the channel config
    b. Color order is GRB
  3. Define a 8x8 matrix in the mapper using the preset example
  4. Load any pattern that uses render2D()

I had never really seen the 2D/3D patterns before. The examples: cube fire 3D, plasma 3D, sinpulse 3D, fast pulse 3d, or honeycomb 3D all work on 2D and look really cool. “sound - spectromatix optim” also works if you have the sensor board connected.

I noticed my v1 WS2812 output expander has occasional sparkles (glitches) when Pixelblaze is set to a lower global brightnesses. This might be a problem with my soldering though. The newer APA102/WS2812 output expander is perfectly smooth at lower global brightness.

For $15 and 20 min this was pretty easy to get started with a matrix. That is, after I realized I had the 3-pin connector on backwards :joy:

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