Dimming LED Tape ???

tdtastic

Active Member
Without getting into the quantum physics of why LED's are (but aren't really) dimmable, what are my options for dimming about 30' of LED tape? Plugging a power supply into a D-20 is preposterous, right? Do I need a DMX driver for the tape string? Help! Product links would be greatly appreciated.
 
What are you using it for? Will dictate my answer.
 
I just need about 30' of green that is going to tuck under a platform nosing of part of the set. Just need the single color to dim in and out, controlled by the lighting console.
 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B42M3RG/?tag=controlbooth-20
DECODER

https://www.aspectled.com/products/...dtboJrA5hz-MRR7hKAfM0O04SEaAuLaEALw_wcB#tab-1
PSU

LED TAPE IS UP TO YOU ON QUALITY.
https://www.superbrightleds.com/mor...bFH00Cdidxp74P2LIDEyfGKynL2ANy8YaArTXEALw_wcB
EXPENSIVE

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06X3XZDZN/?tag=controlbooth-20
CHEAP


Now that being said if you have the led slimpars or any kind of flat led fixture I would go that route before you build all this. Paint the underside of the platform white and bounce the light.
 
Thanks! So with these components I will be able to dim any LED strip? Or does the LED strip itself have to be manufactured to dim...and thus labeled as "dimmable?"
 
Any led strip !!!THATS 12v!!! I undersized the PSU as I figured this is a one off if you plan to use it for larger things then look at a bigger PSU. I also only specd one color but I would suggest getting RGB.

Here is a video of it from my old space. Ignore the music and focus on the wall on the right side.
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Basically, the concept is simple. You are correct, there is no conventional way to dim LEDs. What these controllers do is turn them on and off REAL fast. The less on and more off, the dimmer they appear to the human eye. You can get a very nice "perceived" dimming curve that way. Just don't plug them in a dimmer!
Note: REAL = thousands of times a second.
 
We have several hundred feet of LED tape of various generations and RGB and RGBW. We us a standard 12 volt led power supply and then DMX to LED encoder. DMX from the control board controls the “Dimming” and color. If you are going more that 10 to 16 feet you may need to feed two pieces of tape from the center due to the ability of the tape to handle the current.
 

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I confess I've never used DMX (I use an inline "dimmer" with my light strips that has a dedicated remote control), but Amazon DOES have DMX strip controller's listed, but you have to make sure to get the right one as some strips are one colour and others multiple colour (number of lines in the connector). Just search for DMX LED STRIP CONTROLLER on Amazon.
 
LED Tape is usually 12 or 24 volts. LED Tape is usually dimmed via Pulse Width Modulation with doesn't change the voltage but rather pulses the voltage on and off to create the appearance of intensity change.

So what you need is a power supply to supply 12 or 24 volts and a DMX controllable decoder to translate the DMX level into a PWM frequency.

I buy most of my things from Environmental Lights (not the cheapest, but the quality is great)

Decoders:

https://www.environmentallights.com/led-controllers-and-dimmers/dmx-decoders.html


Power Supplies:

https://www.environmentallights.com/led-drivers-and-power-supplies.html


LED Tape:

https://www.environmentallights.com...ip-lights/rgb-colorplus-led-strip-lights.html


There's some videos and products at these links. There is a good amount of calculating to make sure you do this safely. So watch the videos and do some math. If you buy from them, they can walk you through the math. Very helpful customer service.
 
Check out these Guys for drivers and support. Diode Lighting will give you all the support you need, they will lay your system out for you and give you just what you need to get the job done right. http://diodelightinginc.com They are defiantly the experts when it comes to that stuff they really take the thinking out of it.

Jerome,

By "these guys," do you mean "me" or "us?" That's fine, we like product experts. Impressive gallery on the website.
 

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