Powering pixels both directions

uncledan

Senior elf
Generous elf
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Dec 27, 2014
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Buellton California
The subject came in chat regarding power injecting pixels in both directions. My whole display is based upon this and I've had no issues other than maybe one blown fuse (it served its purpose). Someone in chat had mentioned that someone told them it wasn't recommended to power the strings in both directions. You should disconnect the V+ between the injection points. In my mind the fuse is to protect the wire and/or a short. If one fuse blows and you're now powering twice the pixels from one injection point... the other fuse will blow as well. Thoughts on the subject?
 

darylc

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Dec 8, 2012
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yeah ideally you should disconnect the v+ between injection points, otherwise you can end up with cascading fuse failure. In practice you can often get away without doing so though.
 

uncledan

Senior elf
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Dec 27, 2014
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Buellton California
yeah ideally you should disconnect the v+ between injection points, otherwise you can end up with cascading fuse failure. In practice you can often get away without doing so though.
No harm in a cascading fuse feature thought right? They still do the job. Just out a few fuses if you have an issue?
 

R Weiland

New elf
Joined
Jun 11, 2017
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3
The subject came in chat regarding power injecting pixels in both directions. My whole display is based upon this and I've had no issues other than maybe one blown fuse (it served its purpose). Someone in chat had mentioned that someone told them it wasn't recommended to power the strings in both directions. You should disconnect the V+ between the injection points. In my mind the fuse is to protect the wire and/or a short. If one fuse blows and you're now powering twice the pixels from one injection point... the other fuse will blow as well. Thoughts on the subject?
Typically we inject to avoid excessive voltage drop in the pixel wiring. If using multiple power supplies then yes you might need to separate the V+ lines. If powering a run of pixels from a single supply then powering the pixels from both ends is the standard practice. See the 101 Lighting manual on power supplies for more info on power injection.
Cheers
 
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