This is just a page of handy links I have gathered in my research.   Having them here is easier than looking through browser bookmarks.  Most are geared towards running rgb pixels.  I wanted to list all the stores you can buy stuff from but some really important stuff can come out of group buys in forums.

Forums:
http://doityourselfchristmas.com
http://diychristmas.org/vb1/forum.php
http://falconchristmas.com/forum/index.php
http://nutcracker123.com/forum/
http://forums.lightorama.com/index.php

Handy RGB controller comparison:
http://nutcracker123.com/nutcracker/rgb_controllers/

General Lighting info:
http://www.doityourselfchristmas.com/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page
http://www.holidaycoro.com/kb_results.asp

Sequencers:
http://www.vixenlights.com/
http://nutcracker123.com/nutcracker/releases/
nutcracker wiki

RGB Pixel shopping:
Ray Wu’s store
http://www.holidaycoro.com/default.asp
http://www.holiday-light-express.com/

Prefab items (wire-frame/coro/pcb):
http://www.holidaycoro.com/default.asp
http://boscoyostudio.com/products/
https://holiday.lighting/

General parts/items used to build:
http://www.mcmaster.com/
http://www.mouser.com/

Other tools you may need:
Audactiy – for sound editing and conversion
paint.net – handy free image editing tool