Group Buy: Budget CRI 95 LED Strip Lights

[Patrick Tresch]

I'm using these for my audio recorder and love the form factor. Globalmediapro batteries that I use for the camera have a D-tap and a mini connector.

Pat

 

[Brandon J.F.]

I need email addresses for the following people:

Daniel Stilling
Justin McAleese
Anthony Berenato Jr
Dean Bradshaw
Steve Das
Erich Roland
Gregory Bennett
Adam Beck
Ryan De Franco

If you are on the above list please PM me your email. I did try to PM you the other day, but we still haven't connected.

If you are NOT on the above list and you are in the Group Buy you should have received your confirmation email from me. If you have not received it yet, please PM me ASAP.

The faster all the invoicing is taken care of the faster we all get our lights.

If you got here late and want to be an alternate, please PM me your email.

 

[Brandon J.F.]

It ends up that solderless connectors do not exist for variable strips. Anywhere. Seriously... The good news is, since we have so many people on this Group Buy and need a lot, I was able to find a company to make them for us. So, we are all set! We'll be the first people in the world to have these. The power of numbers...

 

[Robert Andriessen]

That's great news! Will make our lives a lot easier. Is there any change in delivery date?

It ends up that solderless connectors do not exist for variable strips. Anywhere. Seriously... The good news is, since we have so many people on this Group Buy and need a lot, I was able to find a company to make them for us. So, we are all set! We'll be the first people in the world to have these. The power of numbers...

 

[Antony Newman]

Hi Brandon,

For the Variable strips - my understanding is that they will be connected in one of the following configurations:

[A] Desktop_pwr + 5.5x2.1mm power out -> ? Connector_1 ?-> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

DIY_pwr -> Connector_2 -> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

[C] Battery_with_female_Dtap -> ?Connector_3? -> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

----

Q1) Does the variable controller accept a 5.5mm x 2.1mm barrel - or is a further connector (Connector_1) required?
If so - what type of connected does the variable_controller use?

Q2) What type of connectors are required for Connector_2, Connector_3 and Connector_4?

Q3) Does the Spool have 2 x connectors (one at either end of the spool). If we wish to cut the spool in half (eg to reduce the max power to within the tolerance of batteries used) - would your new 'Solderless connection' be able to directly connect to the cut pieces.

Q4) What is the currenct rating of the Variable_Controller

Q5) If we Did want to use 1 x remote control to control two Variable_Controllers - would that be possible?

Thanks,
AJ

 

[Brandon J.F.]

That's great news! Will make our lives a lot easier. Is there any change in delivery date?

No, there shouldn't be.

Hi Brandon,

For the Variable strips - my understanding is that they will be connected in one of the following configurations:

[A] Desktop_pwr + 5.5x2.1mm power out -> ? Connector_1 ?-> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

DIY_pwr -> Connector_2 -> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

[C] Battery_with_female_Dtap -> ?Connector_3? -> Variable_Controller -> Connector_4 -> Variable_strip

Q1) Does the variable controller accept a 5.5mm x 2.1mm barrel - or is a further connector (Connector_1) required?
If so - what type of connected does the variable_controller use?

You made this look way more complicated than it needs to be. Let's keep it simple...

* Variable strips have 3 wires (fixed have 2). You connect all 3 to the terminals on the controller.

* All controllers (variable or fixed) are powered by a 12 volt source and have a + and - connection.

* Anywhere you want to add connectors is up to you. It's just for convenience.

There are terminal connectors built into the controller. You don't need anything else. Again, adding connectors is for convenience only. All you need is some wire.*

*Unless you have the Desktop power supply. Then you need 1 female barrel connector which comes in the power kit.

The basics are about as easy as connecting speakers to your home stereo.

Q2) What type of connectors are required for Connector_2, Connector_3 and Connector_4?

None of that is required. The DIY power supply uses terminals which are built in. The variable strip has 3 wires already on it that you can connect directly to the variable controller. If you cut the strip shorter you can add a clip on connector that adds wires. Those are included in the variable connector kit. Those connectors aren't required though if you're adept at using a solder iron... I do suggest everyone get connectors though.

Q3) Does the Spool have 2 x connectors (one at either end of the spool). If we wish to cut the spool in half (eg to reduce the max power to within the tolerance of batteries used) - would your new 'Solderless connection' be able to directly connect to the cut pieces.

Correct.

Q4) What is the currenct rating of the Variable_Controller

9 amps.

Q5) If we Did want to use 1 x remote control to control two Variable_Controllers - would that be possible?

Actually, I think it is. I think there will be a lot of surprise features like that. Stay tuned...

 

[Brandon J.F.]

99 people have confirmed their order and been invoiced so far!

If you have not replied to the confirmation email I sent you and confirmed your order, please do so as soon as possible.

Thanks!

 

[Brandon J.F.]

The first batch of our custom variable controllers/dimmers just went into production! Oh, and there's a 5 year warranty!

 

[Joachim Hoge]

5 years. That's impressive. Can't wait to get my lights. I've used Phillips Hue on smaller shoots, and bought their led strip as well, turned out it was way too weak for my purpose. Expecting quite a bit of location work in the new year so these lights can't arrive soon enough

 

[Note Suwanchote]

going to confirm soon Brandon. Just figuring out things needed.

 

[Terry VerHaar]

The first batch of our custom variable controllers/dimmers just went into production! Oh, and there's a 5 year warranty!

Way cool. Thanks!!

 

[Maik Müller]

going to confirm soon Brandon. Just figuring out things needed.

Same here.

Sorry, for being late, i just discovered that mail in my spam-folder.

Quick question, the power supplies and dimmers can handle one stripe, but not two or three. Right? So just to get started, ordering a number of V and a smaller number of dimmers doesn't make sense, right?

 

[Patrick Grossien]

Damn it. I totally missed this. Sigh!

 

[Brandon J.F.]

113 people have been invoiced so far!

We have ~50 more to go... If you haven't finalized your order yet, please do so ASAP. We have a lot of people anxious to get their lights (including me).

If you did not get a confirmation email from me, please PM me. Also, take a look in your SPAM folder...

Production Update: The development of our custom solderless connectors for the variable strips has started!

Oh, and if you missed out on this Group Buy and want to be an alternate PM me.

going to confirm soon Brandon. Just figuring out things needed.

Cool, if you have any questions, you can email me.

Same here.

Sorry, for being late, i just discovered that mail in my spam-folder.

Quick question, the power supplies and dimmers can handle one stripe, but not two or three. Right? So just to get started, ordering a number of V and a smaller number of dimmers doesn't make sense, right?

The controller/dimmer can handle 2-3 full length strips. Where you will come up short is power. There are ways to do it and there will be example wiring diagrams with your order.

How many dimmers you want really depends on how many separate lighting rigs you plan to use at the same time. If you plan to make a variety of rigs to use in various situations, but only ever will use 3-4 at once then all that's the number of controllers you need. That said, these controllers are an amazing deal and they are special order, so having a few spares around isn't a bad idea...

 

[Martin Stevens]

Can you tell us how to NOT damage the LED stripes with too much power etc.?

 

[Brandon J.F.]

Can you tell us how to NOT damage the LED stripes with too much power etc.?

Make sure you only use 12 volt power sources

 

[Donald MJ Anderson]

Hi Brandon

What was the hardware required to get these working on booms with China balls?

Been trying to see what parts I need but my googles skills have failed me.

?

Looking forward to try these out.

 

[Brandon J.F.]

What was the hardware required to get these working on booms with China balls?

Do you mean how to put the boom rig together or how to power the lights?

 

[Carey Lee Coffey]

Do you mean how to put the boom rig together or how to power the lights?

Yeah, it would be great if we could bundle together China Ball on Boom Pole Kit. Or at least a list of links to each piece of gear needed to put it together.

I'm thinking Large, synthetic silk China Ball, extra long D-tap cable, cheap, lightweight boom pole, battery belt, and some way to wrap the lights around something that can be rigged inside of the china ball with a 1/4-20 thread.

 

[Brandon J.F.]

Quick update on our custom variable solderless connector. They expect to be finished with it in 1 week. That means it won't cause us any delays!

Yeah, it would be great if we could bundle together China Ball on Boom Pole Kit.

I agree. Let's all brainstorm this. I'll post one method I use tomorrow. I'm sure we can come up with even better ones. Maybe we can even get the part we attach the LED strips to custom made for us.