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Tue 16 Mar, 2004 04:59 am
I've just bought a bunch of LEDs of ebay,and I would like to put them in the front of my xbox.
Can anyone tell me how to wire up and connect those little suckers?
I would like to have four along the front. All I know is that each one can handle 6.3v
I'm handy enough at soldering so I don't mind that end of the project it just where to start.
Thanks
OK, you know their voltage. You need to know what current they run at. Commonly LED's can run from between 16 and 24 milliamps. You'll need to know the voltage you've got available to run them. Most computers should have a 5v supply available somewhere in the box. Then it's just a matter of using ohms law. Current (I) = Voltage (E)/ Resistance (R). Rearrange to determine R. R=E/I. Assuming a 5 volt supply and run at 20mA. R=5/20E-3=250 ohms. I don't know if a 250 ohm resistor is available, but 270 ohms definitely is. Connecting at 270 ohm resistor in series with the LED and connected to a 5v supply would run it at about 18mA. It might actually be a little less considering the voltage dropped across the LED. (should be about 0.6 v, which would run it at 16mA)
Of course, this is just an example. Just remember R=E/I and some simple transposition if needed.
I can give you a link to an xbox forum that may be able to help as well. I'm not going to post it here (it'd probably just be deleted in any case). If my explanation doesn't help, PM me your email address and I'll send you the link.
I've had a proper look here's the specs;
REVERSE VOLTAGE:5.0 V
DC FORWARD VOLTAGE:3.3V TYPICAL/3.5V MAX
DC FORWARD CURRENT:20mA