rvooh Posted October 14, 2009 Report Share Posted October 14, 2009 I'm making a trio MIDIbox SID v2's with friends..I noticed two of the acrylic panels I ordered can be backlighted.. normally color is black with gold lettering, but when backlit the gold turns into super cool spacey green..I've been thinking of backlighting it and I'd love some suggestions.What should I use, etc.. I've been thinking of 2 things: ultrabright LEDS on the inside (dont like the idea) or EL-FOIL glued to the underside of the panel (Like it very much, though expensive I think, not sure how to apply it)Any suggestions?pics (sorry, my camera is broken, the best i can do atm) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 this is strange, no replies? ???maybe i have to provide some better pics..will work on that :Pedit: i'm sourcing A3 EL-FOIL at the moment, 1 sheet should be enough for the 2 black midiboxes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nILS Posted October 15, 2009 Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 Suggestion: Try different options and pick the one with the best price:coolness ratio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 i can imagine backlighting the whole front will be a pain with LEDs, it's already a pain to make the control surface, it's a complete pain if i add a whole bunch of leds onderneath it.the EL FOIL however becomes less bright over time.. i think it'll last ten years? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Futureman Posted October 15, 2009 Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 EL tape is pretty cheap me thinks... not as bright as a ton of LED's, but a lot easier to apply.http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3907.m38.l1313&_nkw=el+tape&_sacat=See-All-CategoriesYou could look at a fibre optic solution, use lots of plastic fibres to bring the light to the areas you want, then at least your light source (Led's or even lamps which are way cooler) can be in one spot. RegardsMike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2009 ooh nice didn't know such a thing existed.nice price tooI'll have to check if the brightness is enough to shine thru the acrylic panel though Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrBunsen Posted October 16, 2009 Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 i'm sourcing A3 EL-FOIL at the momentWhat sort of price are you getting on that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 What sort of price are you getting on that?way to much, the price is insane.. still looking for cheaper alternativesmaybe chained leds, christmas light, lol... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baconjuice Posted October 16, 2009 Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 I've been wanting to do this with my sid as well. I was planning on using a cold cathode light like the ones used in computer cases. They are cheap, run on 12v and usually have adjustable brightness. I have one that I salvaged recently and it even has a mic so it can light up with the music. Only drawback is that they use an inverter and that might introduce some noise into the audio but I think that all depends on placement besides, that problem exists with using EL stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 I've been wanting to do this with my sid as well. I was planning on using a cold cathode light like the ones used in computer cases. They are cheap, run on 12v and usually have adjustable brightness. I have one that I salvaged recently and it even has a mic so it can light up with the music. Only drawback is that they use an inverter and that might introduce some noise into the audio but I think that all depends on placement besides, that problem exists with using EL stuff. yeah, the inverters can be noisy themselves, the inverter in my sequencer drives me crazy sometimes.. i heard you have to somehow acoustically contain them and that there are special foam-sprays that do just that.What I haven't really thought about, is that the original C64 psu might not be sufficient for some optionsI'm still looking around, I have some white leds coming in soon so I can test how the light spreads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latigid on Posted October 16, 2009 Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 You could always try LED strips:All the tracks are topside, so in theory you could somehow mount to the CS PCB. Probably the rigid ones are what you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 16, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2009 thanks.. some quick ebaying and googling revealed a flexible adhesive SMD variant of those led stripsthe smaller the better .. on the same site http://sunlighting-led.com/productshow.asp?ArticleID=5PRX610VRXmeanwhile, i spoofed some more pics with the broken cam and bicycle lighting: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echopraxia Posted October 17, 2009 Report Share Posted October 17, 2009 I am curious how deep are your panels cut to do the lighting from behind? Is there a terminology for this type of panel marking/engraving? From what your saying, did you just get a panel cut that was black with gold text and you put a white light underneath the panel and you got light up green text? Would a particular metal work the best for light to leak through?Regards,echo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echopraxia Posted October 17, 2009 Report Share Posted October 17, 2009 In was looking up some perf board and came across this site http://www.allelectronics.com/make-a-store/category/213/Electroluminescent-Strips/1.html with some used el lighting for only $1 US each.They light up green already. Would this change the color scheme when used with you gold text do you think? They have new ones for $3.50 and $4.50 plus discounts on bigger orders. Can this stuff be cut and soldered back together to get longer lenghts?Regards,echo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latigid on Posted October 17, 2009 Report Share Posted October 17, 2009 I am curious how deep are your panels cut to do the lighting from behind? Is there a terminology for this type of panel marking/engraving? From what your saying, did you just get a panel cut that was black with gold text and you put a white light underneath the panel and you got light up green text? Would a particular metal work the best for light to leak through?Regards,echoMetals are usually opaque... and he has "acrylic" in the title ;)I don't really know of other plastics you would use for panels but it would depend on the material's refractive index, thickness and colour. It's hard to tell from his pictures, but it may be "smokey" acrylic which would transmit some light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latigid on Posted October 17, 2009 Report Share Posted October 17, 2009 In was looking up some perf board and came across this site http://www.allelectronics.com/make-a-store/category/213/Electroluminescent-Strips/1.html with some used el lighting for only $1 US each.They light up green already. Would this change the color scheme when used with you gold text do you think? They have new ones for $3.50 and $4.50 plus discounts on bigger orders. Can this stuff be cut and soldered back together to get longer lenghts?Regards,echoBecause the yellow/gold letters are turning green, it actually means they are absorbing RED light and this lets the remaining GREEN light pass through. So using green backlights will probably work differently.My Moog Voyager has a backlit panel 8), and with the intensity turned all the way up it hums pretty badly. Thankfully it doesn't get into the audio, but there is the possibility it might for these sorts of things, as someone said. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Echopraxia Posted October 18, 2009 Report Share Posted October 18, 2009 led thru fiber cable also seems like the way to go. Do you have to get high quality inverter or something to get rid of hum? . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 18, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2009 dunno about the fibrecable thing.. can't really imagine how it would work to light the whole engraving with itthink i'll be looking into miniature led strips once i get the time.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
latigid on Posted October 18, 2009 Report Share Posted October 18, 2009 Do you have to get high quality inverter or something to get rid of hum? .I know they offered a "Quiet II Upgrade". You can see the inverter circuits in later models (Version 3 hardware)(Not my image --> link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flying Panther Posted October 18, 2009 Report Share Posted October 18, 2009 thanks.. some quick ebaying and googling revealed a flexible adhesive SMD variant of those led stripsthe smaller the better .. on the same site http://sunlighting-led.com/productshow.asp?ArticleID=5PRX610VRXmeanwhile, i spoofed some more pics with the broken cam and bicycle lighting:I think it might look really nice (can't say exactly, as the pictures are leaving things a bit to my imagination), reminds me a bit of the old (70's?) calculator displays (with those bright green characters) and some other electronics like on the picture.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2009 @Flying Pantheryour image shows exactly what i'm trying to get!i've been looking into those LED strips, seems like a good solution.prices vary a lot though, and china is tempting at the moment.just saw this:http://cgi.benl.ebay.be/5M-SMD-LED-Leiste-Strip-selbstklebend-300-SMDs-weiss-NEU_W0QQitemZ280363723930QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDE_Haus_Garten_Lampen_Licht_Leuchten?hash=item4146faec9a#ht_3842wt_209846 euro for a 5m strip with 300 leds on it.width: 4mmnow i don't need that much, maybe if someone else is interested in half of it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikkel Posted October 19, 2009 Report Share Posted October 19, 2009 Try lighting the plexi from the side. If it works, it's much easier, and this is how it's usually done when you want engraved characters in plexi to light up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rvooh Posted October 19, 2009 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2009 Try lighting the plexi from the sideno, doesn't work well because its dark plexi. just tried it, doesn't light up further than 1cm with very bright leds.and from a construction point of view it wouldn't work out either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frailn Posted October 19, 2009 Report Share Posted October 19, 2009 Yep, wouldn't work on opaque plexi. But that clear 2mm plexi from ponoko....hmmm...Here's a simple demonstration from Instructableshttp://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-LED-Plexiglass-Heart/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sauraen Posted January 1, 2012 Report Share Posted January 1, 2012 (edited) I noticed two of the acrylic panels I ordered ... If I may ask, where did you get your acrylic front panels from, and how much did they cost? I see Wilba [Edit: everyone :) ] uses Ponoko, and the results are quite nice, but I can't tell how much it would cost for one or two individual panels. [Edit: I can see the prices for the materials, but I don't have a sense of how much time it costs to laser-engrave/cut a complex design--they seem to charge per minute the engraver is running.] Edited January 1, 2012 by Sauraen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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