LED strip power

LED Strip Light - This is one of the most popular sources of LED lighting. LED Strip Light constructively consists of many SMD surface-mounted LEDswhich are located on a flexible base. This base also serves as a conductor of electrical energy. How does an LED strip connect to a household network? In this article, we will consider the issue of how LED strip power.

As a rule, LED strips are rated voltage 12 volts. Each element of the tape is designed for 4 volts, respectively, in an LED strip, every three LEDs are connected in series, because when connected in series, the supply voltage of several elements is equal to the sum of the voltages of each of the elements. With a parallel connection, the voltage is equal to all connected elements. Therefore, all the elements of the LED strip are connected in parallel in three pieces. That is, every three elements of the tape receive 12 volts.

Based on this principle, the LED strip shows the marks on which to cut the tape. If you cut the tape in another area, that is, where there is no special designation, the tape will not work, as it will not receive power.

There are also cases when there is no mark on the purchased tape indicating the possibility of a cut in one place or another. In this case, being guided by the above principle of powering the LEDs of the tape, cut off part of the tape, the number of elements on which is a multiple of three.

For example, you can cut off a portion of an LED strip that has 24 elements. In this case, the tape contains eight parallel-connected groups, each of which consists of three elements.

There are times when LED strips use LEDs that are designed for 3 volts. In this case, the principle of feeding the elements of the tape differs from the above method by the number of elements connected in series. That is, in this tape several groups of four elements are connected in parallel.

The LED strip is powered by special power supplies. There are a huge number of different types of power supplies that differ in rated power and design. That is, when choosing a power supply for powering an LED strip, it is necessary to take into account the nominal power consumption of the tape.

Depending on the power of the power supply, several LED strips can be connected to it. You can also use multiple power supplies for each tape. It all depends on the power consumption of the tapes.

To power a single-color LED strip, a power supply is enough. If you purchased RGB tape, then for its power you will need not only a power supply, but also controller. In this case, the controller performs the functions of adjusting the degree of illumination, as well as managing the colors of the tape.

If there is a need to connect several LED strips, then the power of one power supply and controller will not be enough, since RGB ribbons are equipped with rather powerful LEDs. You can use a more powerful power supply or include two in parallel operation, but the controller may not withstand a large load current. Therefore, it is recommended that no more than one LED strip be connected to one controller.

How to connect multiple LED RGB tapes?

For this purpose, there is such a device as RGB signal booster. This amplifier is powered by a separate power supply. It is also possible to connect the amplifier and controller to one power supply, but in this case it is necessary to use a power supply of a rather impressive size.An RGB amplifier receives a signal from one tape and transfers it to another tape. At the same time, the synchronization of color changes and brightness of both LED strips is maintained.

Read how to choose the right LED strip here - LED Strip Tips, and the power supply here is LED Strip Power Supplies.