if you hold the fan plug down with the lip facing toward the floor (sorry no pics) the wire on the right is positive. wire a negative from one fan and the positive from another fan together. that should leave you with just two wires left. justconnect those to your 24 v PS and you now have them wired in series. i would not cut the fan plugs from the silenx fans. they are small and sometimes it is diffucult to strip those puny wires. buy some fan extension wires, plug it in to your fans and cut the extension wires. plus those would come in red and black to easily distinguish + and -. i will post ics if you need it later on today or tommrow.

When you say "60-degree" optic, is that equivalent to "+/-30-degree" or "30-degree half-dispersion angle"?

+/- 30 degrees off center.


Sure. Should only take an hour or two

Depends on the tank and the sps. I think many of us that are diving into LED tanks are not dosing as well as would be needed for a many heavy sps setups. There have been some of us that have been able to keep very good color though once dosing is straight. Sherman has a good representation of colorful sps under LEDs


Is there any other LED's that you could add to enhance colors?






The tank on the left is 19x19x12". The LED's will be about 22" away from the sand bed and the space that need's lighting is about a 16"square. Will 18 LED's suffice and do I need optics? Or how high can the LED's be before I needs optics?

I've been thinking about getting a MeanWell driver ELN-60-48 but I'm still hesitating between the "P" and the "D" model. I know it's been covered on other threads but I want to make sure I get it right.

I want to create a fading of the LEDS for sunrise and sunset simulation, using an Arduino. Is it possible to run the Arduino with a "D" driver ? I'm asking because "D" models are a lot easier to find and to get.

Thanks in advance for your reply !

You can add reds, greens and cyans to broaden the color range. The big issue with trying to use them is area of coverage. Unless you add a lot of them to cover the area, you will get the effect in only small areas. This will ramp up the cost quickly. Changing the whites from cool to neutral might help, as they get a boost in the red and red/orange area, but still lack more green. It's tough to do without adding a lot of cost.

For a 22" distance from LED to sand, you will need optics. You are probably going to need 40 degrees for that distance. 18 LEDs might be a little light though. Some of it will depend on how you configure it.


For control with an Arduino, the "P" will be your best bet. It has the pwm input and will require the least number of support parts to get working.

Evil (or others!), do you know where I can find "P" model ? It sucks nano tuners don't have them because I first intented to order all my stuff from there (LEDs, optics, thermal pads, and drivers)...

How far from the sand bed would the Fixture need to be to use 80 degree optics and how low for no optics?

There are a few places like Powergate where you can try and find them.


14" for no optics, 18" for 80 degree optics.

Can anyone tell me if there's a big difference in light intensity between Cree XR-E Q5 and Q4 at 1000ma ?

I know at 350ma, there's a 7 lm difference between those, but I can't tell if this is a small of big difference for corals and even more when running them at 1000ma.

Thanks !

there really not much difference in the 2 at all. i have the q4's in one fixture and q5's in another, and seem very similar.

Last question(I think ) How many LED's can you safly put on a 4"x7" Heatsink(from heatsink USA) that has a 4" fan on it? I would like to put 9 but even 12 would be great but that might be pushing it?

With fan cooling, you can put far more than that on there without having to worry about heat issues.

I have a question, are the Cree XR-E Star LED's strong enough to keep Anemones?

Yes, but it depends on a lot of things, like tank depth, drive current, and optics choice (if needed).

I'm making a pcb for the pcb mount led drivers adn wondering what k is the potentiometer? and where can I get a good pcb mount one?


EDIT: found it's 5k but ditto on where to get a good one?

Everywhere and anywhere. Look at all the big electronics part houses like Mouser, Digikey, Newark, Allied, Future, TTI, etc....

Hello,

I've been calculating LEDs space spreading over the heatsink. The outer PCB mounted LEDs are pretty close to the edge of the heatsink (around 0.4" between PCB and heatsink's edge). Is that too close or is it fine ? I'm just wondering if it could have any effect on heat transfer or whatever...

Thanks !

That's fine. The only time I would have concern is if you are hanging the LEDs over the edge

When hooking up a pot do you solder pin 2 to 3(cw) and then ref to pin 3 and ctrl to pin one on the pot? Just want to make sure i'm doing it right

Typically no. Ref to one outer pin, and ctrl to the center. Leave the other pin alone. This is for a Buckpuck?

yeah it's for the none wired buckpuck-Does it matter what outer pin ref is attached to?


this is where I thought the middle pin got attached(figure 9)
http://www.leddynamics.com/LuxDrive/datash...21-BuckPuck.pdf

No. All that does is change the rotation direction.

is there like at outline of the leds that I can print out so I can put it on my heatsink to know where to drill and tap?

Check in Waterproof BC14 thread. I think he had something like that. If not, put holes at 20mm.

My friend wants to know how many leds he would need to do his tank. Its a 35 gallon hex. 11" sides and 24" deep. Dont think he wants to do hard corals.

11" on a side is just under 20" across the flats. You should be able to use 18 LEDs (6x3).

Okefenokee y’all.

I just literally read the entire Meanwell thread. For someone who’s only very nominally acquainted with electronics, that was a huge info dump, but very useful. Things are making sense now. Since the most helpful posts for me were the ones from folks asking the “fat crayon” grammar school questions, I figured I’d ask a few and maybe it will help some others.


I’m avoiding the Buckpuck due to posts I’ve seen here about their reliability. The Meanwell seems to be more reliable.

Can I buy a dimmable Meanwell, ELN-60-48D but just run it from the wall outlet 120v AC without the 10v ps and 10K pot, or does this model require the 10v input?

Do the Meanwells come with a long enough power cord (120v) or will I need to supply that myself?


The onboard pot on these--- If it’s accidentally ramped to full throttle, will this cook the XRE’s? Damage the 10v ps or 10k pot? Or is this dimmer difficult to accidentally change?

Has anyone tried one of the adjustable 1.5-9v wall-warts as a ghetto pot? I’ll be the only dude on this Seminary campus that has anything called “ghetto pot”:D.

How many mA would the LED’s be driven at with 9v input?

Is there a “plug and play” dimmer for the PWM models? Such as the one Evil hinted at????

Nope. The Meanwells default to the lowest output with no input. If you don't want a dimmable version, just drop the "D" off the part number.



Nope. It's only about a foot long. You will need to splice a power cord in.




It's difficult to change. You physically need to open the case to adjust. Even if you crank it all the way up, it won't instantly kill the LEDs, but it can certainly shorten the life of the LED. It won't affect the dimmer input.



It will work fine. Not super smooth, but effective.



In theory, 90% of your max current.



Haven't seen a unit that has an appropriate frequency to work with the Meanwells. They are typically too high (used for motor control). The 555 pwm dimmer is pretty easy and cheap to make.

Sweet detailed answers, thanks Evil!

Regarding the use of the ghetto variable-voltage wall wart, is the sudden increase (or decrease) in current that the LED's will experience detrimental? Seems to me like the sudden jump could be kinda hard on them, but that's only a wild guess.

Shouldn't be an issue.

After reading all these threads for the last six hours my brain is fried. Lots of great info, a little overwhelming but I can start getting my brain around it. I would like to build an array for my fluval edge. I've tried replacement MR11 Led, not to happy with them; one has already burned out because there is really no way to protect them. I will be starting a thread later in the week (just too tired now).

What do you guys thinks a good layout will be. I have no problem putting a new hood on, I just won't be able to cover the access hole under the existing hood so lighting that area is going to be a PITA. The array is going to be U-shaped. I'm thinking I'm going to need 18 LED (either 2:1 or 1:1 RB:CW) Think I would be able to use 12? BTW the tank is 9" deep.

something like this:

W XXXXXXXXXXXXX W
RB XXXXXXXXXXX RB
W RB XXXXXXXXXX RB W
RB XXXXXXXXXX RB
RB W W RB W RB W W RB

Hi redfishsc

As for meanwell driver all are not constant current driver that i've found out from the agent only constant current limiting function not too sure bout this maybe guru here can help but there's only the LPC model is constant current driver

I wouldn't know a constant current from constant current limiting function, but there is a huge thread here specifically for these Meanwells. I'd suggest you try posting this info there as well.

I do know that there are a lot of folks on this forum using the Meanwell with (seemingly) no issues.

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...0&start=500

I'd use as much of that 5.5"x8" area as much as possible. You could cram 12 LEDs in there, but I don't think it's necessary. You can use 8 LEDs in a 4x2 arrangement. The trick is going to be positioning the array low enough to get as much light out to the edges of the tank as possible. Making a splash guard will be a requirement.


Don't know about that. Meanwell has constant current and constant voltage drivers in their LED catalog. The LPC is not the only constant current driver.

MPJA has 24V 4.2A Power Supply in Special @ $9.95

This is a non payed public commercial

Makes me want more LEDs to power them

http://www.mpja.com/email/11-10-09.asp?r=301423&s=4

Speaking of power supplies,

What is the recommended (ie, cheap but useful) 10v powersupply for the Meanwell's dimmer function? I can dig them up all day on Ebay but wanted to see what you guys suggested.

Here's the exact same power supply on Ebay for $4 and $10. I suppose I'd have to lop off the adapter on the end and figure out which is positive and which is negative. Would that be simple enough for someone who's a bit dense ?
http://cgi.ebay.com/BRAND-NEW-10V-2A-AC-DC...1#ht_2319wt_939

http://cgi.ebay.com/BRAND-NEW-10V-2A-AC-DC...4#ht_2157wt_939

Hey guys. Just ordered my diy 24 LED kit from rapidled. Got a question about the array. Instead of 12 white and 12 blue, I went with 9 white and 15 blue for a more 20K look. I'M NOT USING OPTICS. Do you like this array:

BBBBBB
WBWBWB
BWBWBW
WBWBWB

In other words alternate blue and white for the first 3 rows and all blue in the back. My thinking is I won't have that "spotlight" effect viewing the tank from the front.

Any advice is appreciated.

I'm no experd but i would say, if your chasing the 20K look i wouldtry and stick the extra blues in the middle region more.. having them all at one end will make it actinic and that end and normal 14k the other..

best to have them as even as possible..

Yeah, I want it as even as possible. 12 and 12 would have been easier.

what spacing is between leds??

what tank dimensions.. you might get away with 3 rows.. make it a LITTLE easier..

Like I have mentioned before, I would use a 12 supply and use an LM317 to regulate the voltage. Many of these cheap 10v supplies will output much higher voltages with little to no load on them.


Much easier. If you had got dimmable drivers you could have just adjusted the whites down to get a 20K look. Having the row of blues in the back won't give you a full 20K look. All it will do is make the back of the tank really blue, and won't affect most of the front of the tank.

Heat sink is 7.29x14 for BC29 w/ SPS. I wanted to keep is simple- no dimming and one power cord. Rethinking that though. Maybe I'll do 2 power cords. One all blue and one mostly white, some blue.

I was checking out the comprehensive project thread. There are some awesome designs there. I saw Evil's recommendation of 3 blue to 1 white. Cane I do triangle clusters on a heat sink that size?

How does this shopping list sound. Due to finances and time I have to start small and simple, but I want to be able to upgrade in the future. I already have (almost) enough PAR with my T5’s, so this is a supplement.



I’ll get the dimmable Meanwell 60-48D, use the variable voltage wall-wart for now to supply voltage to the dimmer, and just run 6 blue LED’s. Later I’ll add in 6 whites and perhaps some cooling fans.


Evil, you noted that some power supplies could have a higher voltage than indicated when used in a lower load. Would the variable voltage one from Radio Shack (1.5-9v) be safe? I'm avoiding using the LM317+12v supply+ pot since I have no clue on what to do with them once I get them, and it just multiplies the places I have to order from (increased shipping mess).



What all will I need to complete this (meaning, what do I NOT want to forget to order online and pay twice for shipping)?



---Variable voltage wall-wart (1.5-9v) (Radioshack, $20 local…. Maybe a pot later for fine tuning).

---Meanwell ELN 60-48D (nanotuners)

---Power cord (recycled drop cord)

---6 Cree XRE RB on PCB star (as they come from Nanotuners) no optics

---Berquist Thermal pads (X6) from Nanotuners (I assume these are all the adhesive and thermal transfer medium I need for the LED’s on the heatsink)

---Heatsink (already have 2”X24” from heatsinkUSA.com)

---Weller 100/140W soldering gun (already have)

---Wire, tape, caps, & solder (local)

---reading up on soldering, tinning, etc….




Being a carpenter I have every woodworking tool imaginable available to me, so I can easily build a mount/suspension rack for this.

Don't know where you saw that. 99% of the time I recommend a 1:1 mix of white and blue. It makes life far easier laying it out and getting a good blend on the colors.



The multi voltage supply could have the same issues. It varies from unit to unit. Check with a meter just in case. The LM317 isn't hard to hook up, and all the parts can be found at Radioshack. Seriously, it's really easy, and will be far more accurate than any cheapo power supply.

Your shopping list looks fine though.

OK, so if I were to try the LM317, what do I do with it? I guess I'm not understanding how it will regulate to 10v--- how does it adjust? I am SURE I've seen it somewhere in either this or the Meanwell thread, but if you have a link/image that describes it, that would be cool.

Is this an LM317?



Major thanks for all the help! I'm close to pulling the trigger on ordering what I need to get started.

Take a look at this post

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?...t&p=2516566

It has the circuit diagram with the values modified already for what you need. All the parts are available from Radioshack.

Thanks, that's what I was looking for.

I'm not sure what all the parts on there are. I see a 470 ohm resistor, 10K pot, the LM317.

Voltage in says 28v, I assume it will be 12v in my case.

What is the 1K, the C1 (0.1 micro farad capacitor?), and the C2? I do not recognize those things, having limited electronics.

The 1K is another resistor. You put it in series with the 470 ohm resistor to make 1470 ohms. C1 and C2 are both capacitors. They can be just simple ceramic capacitors (again, readily available from Radioshack). They are there for filtering purposes. They can be left out if you want to simplify the circuit a little.

Great! I'm a bit surprised I recognized them as capacitors. I apparently do remember something from physics I took 12 years ago.

Things are coming together for me now. Funny how I can study some very complicated philosophical and theological theories, and understand them... yet get lost on a simple circuit.

Now, if you could entertain a couple more questions.

What is the item I have circled in red?

What is the item I have circled in green, and what is it leading to?