Bling, Blink, RGB, Blame, Bam, Shakka Flashing, Walkkaa--I'm Old School--WTF? LOL

[DWD1961]

So I'm listing out my new build and I'm seeing tons of lighting options, and I'm confused about how to go about it.

Even back before lighting was where it is today, I invested in a couple of florescent light s and a couple of LED 230mm fans for my old Huge tower case, because you know, huge was in back then.

I'm tryig to get a grip on color--lol.

What are the options for lighting these days. I see:

--LED RAM
--LEDs on the mother board itself?
--Case lights with built in controller (huh?).
--LED lights controllable through the case/software?
--LED lights on fans controlled by the MB and or case?

F-me! Someone lease clue me in!

If I use lights, I'd like to be able to control them from one central location, such as using the MB/software to control all of them, if possible. I really don't want to use two or three different means to control lighting.

I DO NOT want to be held hostage to any lights that are preconfigured and have no way to change them at all. For instance, I've seen some cases that come with their own LED fans and they are either on or off using a case button. So it's either blasting full RGB mode or nothing. Nope!

School me!

 

[Fritzz]

Let's see if I can make sense of all this. Feel free for anyone to add on, I can update my post with stuff people add.

For me the first decision was: What do I want to control everything with? AKA what ecosystem do you want to control everything in.
Options as I see them:
- Mobo Specific software: Asus Aura, Gigabyte(Aorus) Fusion, MSI Mystic Light
- Standalone Controllers: Corsair iCue, NZXT Cam, Coolermaster MasterPlus+, EK has a new one coming out

For me the best option was Corsair iCue. The amount of customization, ability to have fan control and to have it all in one package was my deciding factor. The software allows you to layer in effects to get the desired outcomes. With some soldering, cable making and connector creation I was able to integrate all my Digital RGB(5v) devices into once piece of software. Add in the fact that Corsair has added support for certain models of ASUS motherboards, it starts to become a one stop shop. To be fair I did not try anything else other than ASUS Aura, which was on an older Z270 motherboard that only had 12v RGB headers.

Currently between two systems I can control the following:
- 2 x Commander Pro
- 1 x Lighting Node Pro
- 2 x EK CPU waterblocks
- 2 x custom length digital RGB strips(max number of LEDs is 60 per channel)
- 1 x EK GPU 2080 Super waterblock
- 2 x Corsair LED Strips(10 LEDs per strip)

Not to mention I am able to control the following fans:
- 3 x Noctua Redux 140mm
- 5 x Noctua Redux 120mm
- 4 x Noctua Redux 80mm


With the motherboard connections you will typically get 2.
- 12v which equates to one color or effect to all the leds
- 5v which allows you to individually control each LED separately.

Once you decide which ecosystem you want to be in, then you can decide how to get everything connected. Also knowing what ecosystem you want to be in will potentially drive your decision making on what parts you get.