Thought a thread to get an idea of what people are using as far as firing systems go would be interesting.
I’m new to this, but i’m using:
Cheap Bilusocn firing system with what amounts to around 100 used cues.
Also using a Crackle Cube to fire the pyro in place of the transmitter on the bilusocn cues.
I’m a Cobra guy myself. I had joined a club years ago and that’s what they were using, so like most others in the club, that’s what I adopted for myself. That was back in 2016, so there weren’t as many options for the backyard pyro / hobbyist.
I tried that Bilusocn system last year and…yeah, NEVER again! I was using it for some special effects work where I needed some inexpensive, potentially disposable systems. I was doing some setup in an outdoor pavilion. I had a small salute attached to an R/C plane on a table where I was working. As soon as I turned on the module, it popped the salute. It was about 30" from me and about 24" from the plane’s pilot. Not surprisingly, everyone around us hit the floor! Scary time for sure!
It’s a reasonable solution if you don’t have the budget for cobra. It allows someone like me on a budget to put on a pyro-musical when paired with the crackle cube. It just uses the rf recievers from the biluscon. Eliminates the button pusher all the way. I think the cheap rf mods are sucseptable to outside interference and the cue may fire. seems a little scary to have a salute attached to an rc plane. but hey, I won’t judge.
I feel more comfortable having a salute attached to a R/C plane with a professional pilot than I do a salute atop a bottle rocket…you judgey SOB! 
I am making my own for open source stuff. But it is a side project. So I don’t expect it to be done soon. As for what I use. Well I use @Evolution2001 Cobra 
I will eventually own my own Cobra remote, and starting with at least 1 or 2 18m.
While I can make my open source one work like Cobra, It is way easier to use the “World Best” at the moment, as that is what most all the Pro operations are using.
Agreed, I don’t dispute that Cobra is the prefered firing system of most. I think alot of us aren’t professionals and if you pay for things out of your own pocket using the best gets expensive fast. Your making your own open source firing system is incredible. Would love to see it when your finished. I thought about designing my own but I’m not versed in radio frequency. (I’ve forgotten more about computers than most will ever know)
The “Crackle Cube” I use to fire biluscon mods is basicly something someone familiar with the tech made (probably with a raspberry pi or some other arm processor - never bothered to ask) and he 3d prints a box for the case. It works pretty good with cheap rf mods from biluscon and some other brands as well. and the cost is about 1/6 th of that of a cobra.
So my choice was purely monetary. I will only use it on holidays and it should suit my purposes until I find a deal on a cobra or some other system. I can expand it pretty cheap, but batteries do become an expense. If I ran a profesional outfit - no doubt - cobra hands down. Purely for the reliability factor. I’ve learned quickly that there are more reliability factors involved with this than the firing system. 1 word - HUMAN! 
I though this thread might get amatures like myself an opportunity see what is available to use and how it performs. As I continue to put on shows for my family, I will document and share the journey as well as the problems that come up along the way. I figure I’m filming it for the family anyway so why not include the things involved in setting it up.
I use Cobra. I started out with an 18r2 and 1 18m mod and now i’m up to 4 18m Mods.
My one main reason for not going the Bilusocsn route was the fact that all the receivers require 4 batteries a piece. I could be $30-50 in batteries everytime I set something up if the shows are far inbetween eachother, then I wouldn’t trust them to hold charge and function and fail when I need them to work, so adding that if I did 4 shows a year then that’d be $120-200 that is non-recoverable and just “part of it”. so I figured going Cobra this was cheaper in the long run, and more stable and less frequency interferring.