12 replies to this topic

[DBrown67]

I have an Ultimarc PacLED64 which I have successfully rigged up to work a 5x RGB flasher bar. It's all working with DOFconfig fine. I found this very easy as I just used the Ultimarc 5V RGB LEDS he uses in his buttons so I didn't even have to solder anything. It was all plug and play.

But now I want to expand a bit and add some undercab lighting and a couple of strobes. No mechanical toys... just LED stuff.

 

Most strobes or automotive white LED units run from 12V... so I cannot wire them directly to the PacLED64. People have told me to use Mosfet modules but I've been in contact with Andy at Ultimarc and he says that won't work as his units sink current to ground... whatever that means.

 

So I need some help from people who have successfully wired a PacLED64 to LED RGB strip or strobes or even a beacon. Or even other toys if it helps me. What have you used and how did you wire it?

 

Please don't refer to the LEDWiz as that's slighty different and here in the UK it's not available (without importing myself).

[mjr]

It's a little tricky to boost the PacLed outputs like you want to do.  Some people have had success with the "Mini LED Strip Amplifiers" you can find on eBay, but be aware that some of those work with the PacLed and some of them don't, and there's no way (that anyone around here has figured out) to tell before buying which you're going to get.  The issue is that the PacLed's PWM frequency is too high for some of the LED amplifiers.

 

If it were me, I'd build a little booster circuit for it myself, because I don't know of any off-the-shelf solution besides the LED amps, and those are hit-or-miss.  But I think you're looking for something more turnkey, so you might just need to order some LED amps and cross your fingers.  They're only about $1 each, so you could try ordering three or four from different vendors and hope one of the lots is the right type.

Sucky solution, I know.  If you're up for building a DIY circuit out of transistors and resistors, I can propose something that might work.

[DBrown67]

Many thanks for your reply mjr. I believe you wrote the Pinscape tutorial?  That helped me tremendously in my build, thank you.(I only came into this 2 months ago).

 

I'm prepared to try those little LED amplifiers. I just need to check the wiring. They come with just red/black 12V output wires which connect to my strobe? (I need one for each strobe I assume). But how do I wire the input? I'd need a 12V supply from my PSU.... where does the PacLED64 come in?

 

I could try a booster circuit if it's not too complex.

[mjr]

I'm prepared to try those little LED amplifiers. I just need to check the wiring. They come with just red/black 12V output wires which connect to my strobe? (I need one for each strobe I assume). But how do I wire the input? I'd need a 12V supply from my PSU.... where does the PacLED64 come in?

 

The red and black wires are actually the power supply for the amplifier unit, so you just connect those directly to a 12V supply (red to "+" and black to "-").  The unit will then have four little pin sockets on each side, one for Input and the other for Output.  That will become clearer when you get your hands on the unit and can see it close-up.  The Input and Output sides should be labeled so that you can tell which is which.

 

The four pins on the Input and Output consist of one pin for a +12V power output, which you won't need to use at all, and three pins for the amplified channels.  There are three channels because these are designed for RGB light strips, so you need one channel each for Red, Green, and Blue.  You're not using them for light strips, though, so you can use each channel to control a separate device.  In other words, you can control three devices with each unit.

 

Here's how you wire them:

 

- Connect the Red wire to the 12V power supply "+" terminal

- Connect the Black wire to the 12V power supply "-" or GND terminal

- DO NOT connect anything to the Input or Output pin for 12V - just leave that pin unused

- Connect one pin on the INPUT side to the PacLed

- Connect the corresponding pin (directly across from the pin you just wired on the input side) to the strobe's "-" terminal

- Connect the strobe's "+" terminal directly to the 12V power supply "+"

 

If you want to connect another device, repeat the last three steps, using a different matched pair of Input/Output pins.  You can mix device voltages, but you probably don't want to use devices above 12V with these, since they're only designed for 12V LED strips.

[DBrown67]

Thank you! This is how I like my electronics... spoon fed!  LOL   I'll give it a go then. I will report back here with results... though it may be a few days as I have to place Amazon order now.

[DBrown67]

I've just discovered that some of these amplifiers have 4 pin input/outputs and some have 5 pin input/outputs. Does it matter which I buy?  Both are advertised as RGB LED amplifiers. What's the extra pin for on the 5 pin version?

[gtxjoe]

5 pin is for RGBW 4 pin is for RGB

Undercab strips for VP are RGB

[mjr]

On the 4-pin vs 5-pin question, it's like gtxjoe said, that the extra channel on the 5-pin is for a fourth "white" color channel for use with RGBW LED strips.  Since you're not using this for LED strips anyway, it amounts to allowing for up to 3 devices vs up to 4 devices.  So *other things being equal*, you'd probably prefer the RGBA 5-pin version, since it gives you more channels per unit.  What I don't know is if other things are in fact equal, in particular, whether any of the RGBW devices are PacLed compatible.  I think all of the past experience where "some work and some don't" comes from the 3-channel RGB version.  It's possible that 100% of the RGBW devices are PacLed compatible, or that 0% are compatible, or that it's the same as the RGB.  Assuming they're in the same $1 each price range as the RGB version, I'd probably throw a couple of each into the mix to have more chances at the compatibility lottery.

[MikePinball]

If you already using addressable LEDs and have a Teensy (such as the Oak Micros PAL board), then you could use WS2812B addressable LED strips. Yes they are more expensive but by the time you buy amplifiers it is probably break even.

 

Note that the device you choose in the DOF Configurator tool will be "UnderCab Complex MX" rather than "UnderCab Complex".

[DBrown67]

Just ordered 2x RGBW port amplifiers (voltage range 5-24V).  Cost me 3 quid.

 

Going to try them with some 12V automotive white side marker LEDS I want to use as strobes. Their dimensions fit my minicab flasher bar perfectly. I can also try one with the 5V RGB strip I bought (2m length). That can work through USB with a remote to choose colour etc. so if it doesn't work with the amplifier I can still use it.... though not with any DOF.

 

I *will * report back with results (good or bad) to help anyone else using a PacLED64.

Edited by DBrown67, 07 August 2020 - 07:18 AM.

[mjr]

I *will * report back with results (good or bad) to help anyone else using a PacLED64.

 

Great, it'll be good to know how it goes with the RGBA type.

 

By the way, when you have it wired up, you can test the amplifier part to make sure the wiring is correct by taking the wire that goes into the PacLed port (from the amp input pin) and connecting it to ground instead.  That should turn on the amp and activate the strobe - if that works, you can connect the wire back to the PacLed and test the full setup.

[DBrown67]

Still waiting on the arrival of the amplifiers. But in the mean time I've added a second atx PSU to power the leds and PacLED64. People have advised to use a separate PSU for LEDs and toys and expansion may occur in the future.

 

But once my PacLED64 was powered with 5V from PSU #2 it did not work. Now I'm no expert at electronics but I'm thinking that I need to join the earths of these two PSUs? The USB lead of the PacLED64 is attached to motherboard which is powered by PSU #1.

 

Which grounds wires are best to use (assuming this is the issue)? Can I use any black wires? I've never done this before.

 

EDIT:   This answers all my questions on the secondary PSU:  http://mjrnet.org/pi...d=powerSupplies

Edited by DBrown67, 15 August 2020 - 08:05 AM.

[DBrown67]

Good news... the stuff I bought works!!!     I've only got one strobe wired up for now just to make sure all was OK. Will get both wired up now. These are the items I bought:

 

https://www.amazon.c...2dDbGljaz10cnVl

 

https://www.amazon.c...2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

 

The "strobes" are just 12/24V automotive side lights. I'm running off 12V PC molex supply. So they aren't as bright as what you guys might want but might be under 24V. Then again they are a perfect fit alongside my RGB flasher domes and right in the players line of sight. So it's best they aren't blinding. They are as bright as the the flashers though.

 

The amplifiers are 4 pin RGB as I had a problem with the ebay seller with the 5 pin RGBW so ended up going Amazon.

Edited by DBrown67, 15 August 2020 - 08:05 AM.