Technicolor Pixel FYI

niteshift38

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I'm a NEWBIE and have found ACL and it's members to be the best and most helpfull. Because of this, I hope I can contribute a little back. After TONS of research and reading, I began putting together my 1st testing for what I wanted. Following will be my "initial" findings. Hope it may help others.

I decided on starting with the J1SYS controller (ECG-P2). After trying WS2811 strips from Holiday Coro and Technicolor Pixels (WS2811) from Ray Wu, the wife and I chose the pixels from Ray (with C7 covers) to fit OUR needs.

While I waited on my orders to arive, I began working on my controller box (using a CG-1500 box & messing with a Raspberry Pi ... still in progress)(actually got the Pi to work).

Orders arrived ... began testing ... Found different results than what I expected (to the downside). Two 50 pixel sets could NOT be used WITHOUT power injection.

Experimented ALOT!!! I found a solution that worked for me and my needs. The following PDF file shows my findings. (I used Ray's pigtails)

Hope this may help someone !!!

Here is what I used for MY testing:

Power Supply:

http://www.aliexpress.com/item/-/1948832565.html

Controller:

http://www.j1sys.com/products/lighting/ECG-P2.html

Technicolor Pixel Sets:

http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/50nodes-DC12V-WS2811-LED-technicolor-pixel-with-C7-cover-waterproof-RGB-full-color-in-WHITE-color/701799_1953353849.html

Because I am new, PLEASE forgive me for being in the wrong section or any info omitted :) .. ANY questions and I will answer(if I know, because there are ALOT more knowledgable then me here)

THANK YOU ACL !!! (Credit given to the ACL 101 Manual for the way my pic looks)

P.S. Tests were on Port 1 of ECG-2
 

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  • Pix 1.jpg
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  • Pix 2.jpg
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  • My Tests.pdf
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i13

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It does seem strange that it dropped from 12V to 4.8V. I would check that you have 12V at the P2's power input because the power supply might have been turned down. This should be easy to correct.
It's also possible that the jumper settings for the P2 are incorrect and it's outputting 5V. If that's the case then you're lucky that it wasn't damaged because the P2's 5V regulator is only rated to 1 amp.
 

Superman

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Are you running the strings directly from the output of the P2 and expecting the P2 to handle the power.
The P2 is not designed to output power to many pixels at all.
I don't even connect the 12v+ connection to the output of the P2 the lights get connected directly to the power supply.

Your setup should be wired as below with the P2 and power injection would only be needed after 50 pixels as a guide.
P2.jpg
 

niteshift38

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Feb 20, 2015
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i13 ---
I double checked and my power supply is in fact outputting 12.2v

Superman ---
I'm sorry, my picture is actually wrong. I am in fact using ONLY power supply power. Strange thing though. While checking again, I never brought GND from the controller output though. Could this be causing this ? The only wire on the output connector is the DATA line. I figured the INPUT GND and OUTUT GND were NOT isolated. I know I did use several different sets for my first test and all end voltages differed by only a couple of 10ths. If this stands, I will have to rethink my power injection points.

Thanks again and in advance for your help and responses !!!

Here is the updated and correct PDF:
 

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fasteddy

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Using 12vdc lighting you should get around 100 to 120 lights to work without injection (depending on your lead in cable size and length) if you are getting 1 string that is dimming towards the end (less than 50 pixels) then i dare say the string may have a short in one of the pixels which is bringing the voltage down
 

niteshift38

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Fasteddy ---
Could Rays 6' leads w/pigtail be the culprit ? (can't really judge what the wire size is, but it is the same as between pixels) I haven't cut and shortened on as of yet.
 

fasteddy

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niteshift38 said:
Fasteddy ---
Could Rays 6' leads w/pigtail be the culprit ? (can't really judge what the wire size is, but it is the same as between pixels) I haven't cut and shortened on as of yet.

Going from past user comments then this could cause your issue as the cables have been known to have some consistant quality issues. But a 6 inch length is not long enough to be an issue if it is good. The wire inside the plug may not be connected correctly and only have a few strands connected and thus causing voltage drop
 

fasteddy

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you should be able to use a 20 foot lead with little issue, so a 6 foot lead is not that long and shouldnt cause you that much voltage drop
 

gerry

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I have had inconsistent results with leads provided by Ray (cant remember the length but they were all about 1 or 1.5 m long and procured at the same time).
I bought 20 to use for a mega tree.
About 1/2 had issues. Some would not work at all , some caused the latter lights of the string to not light up etc and some worked with no problem.
Took a while to figure out that they were the issue, especially due to the inconsistent results.

Note - have not had any problems with the pigtails that I get Ray to connect to the strings/strings - just the fully sealed leads.
 

niteshift38

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Fasteddy ---
Got home form work this morning and tried 2 more sets for testing (bought 16 total). Similar results :( ... With 1st set only connected, this is what I measured at end of string:

20150427_073530.jpg

After adding the second string, this is what I measured at end of second string:

20150427_075929.jpg

The following 2 pics are 1st string, then the second (not sure if my phone picked up the pinkish). Pink started around pixel 9-10 of 2nd set (59-60 of Universe 1):

20150427_075600.jpg
20150427_080145.jpg

Gerry ---
My next test will be to cut off a lead on one set and use a pigtail. So far ALL of the pigtails I have from RAY have been perfect.

You guys have been tremendous with help and support as I move from a static display to an RGB animated one. (past photo of my lights)
 

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arw01

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I procurred from Ray a bunch of T's, 3 core, 4 core, and 2 core. So far the 3 core have been good, haven't used much 4 core, and the 2 core 90% were shorted (burned up one real nice). I happened to get the ONLY good one out of 10 the first time I hooked up something and the daugher was not so lucky when I sent her for one.


All my extenions except a couple have been fine and I have 50 or so of those between 2 core, 3 core, 4 core, 5' and 10' lenghts.


Ray is shipping replacements with another order for the 9 core and promised to check them this time (those instructions were in the last order too)
 

fasteddy

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I wonder what is the current they are running these LEDs, normally with 12vdc string it will run at about 9.5 milliamps per colour at 12vdc instead of 18.5 milliamps at 5 volt, so if these were 12vdc running at 18.5 milliamps per colour then that would explain it as then these would need to be treated similar to using 5 volt strings with injection between each string (or back inject at the end of the second string).

The issue you may find is that with the additional heat that is dissapeted from the resistor, then this may cause issues with water ingress because the heat will expand the LED housing. Over 1/2 of the energy put into the string is wasted in heat being dissapated from the resistor when running at 18.5 milliamps per colour. When run at 9.5 milliamp then the briightness of the LED is slightly lowered but this is barely noticable to the human eye as the human eye is not linear where as LED dimming is.

We have seen this before with other strings sourced from Ray, so this may explain the results you are seeing if these results are consistant with all your strings doing the same thing because you are expecting to be able to connect 2 x 50 light 12vdc stings together, but if the LEDs dont have the correct current setting for 12vdc then you will get a much larger voltage drop across the string whilst wasting more than 1/2 your energy as heat.

Does the body of the light (where the chip is) feel warm after running the lights for a period of time
 

andrewa

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I used the black version of these lights this past Christmas and I needed to back inject at the end of the second string, so I assume that this is normal for these strings


I used 5 strings and powered at start, injected at 2, 4 and at end of 5th string


Also noted that 2 out of the 5 strings suffered from moisture intrusion and failed.


AndrewA
 

niteshift38

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arw01 ---
Knock-On-Wood, I bought only pigtails from Ray to make my own T's (2,3, and 4 core), and have not had any bad ones to date.

Fasteddy ---
So far I have measured between 2.55A and 2.75A at full white (51 to 55mA/pixel). Luckily the body of the pixel has only been slightly warm after being on for 30 minutes. I do not mind having to add more injection points. The longest single string in my design will only be 5 meters. Hopefully water ingress will not be an issue. Just glad I tested before assembling my T's (I have seen numerous posts emphasizing testing here, so I have been).

AndrewA ---
Were you able to pinpoint a specific place where water ingress occurred most often ? If so, I will add a little extra treatment there.

I am sure future hurdles will arise with which I will be running here for help and advice. I got a hold of some 24v - 10A power supplies from work, so I will be incorporating them into the design using DC-DC buck converters. I guess I will need to order a few more than the 5 I already bought. With my controller box almost complete, I am ready to begin making a mounting system for my design using PVC pipe. This hobby is so fun and VERY addicting. Can't wait to see the fruits of my labor (so to speak). C.L.A.P. for sure !!!!

As always ... Thanks to ALL !!!!!!
 
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