Blue Leds brightness and MIDIBOX project

[ohmstudiste]

I'd like to use blue leds for the matrix of my SID.

I've read that  these are way too bright compared to standard ones and you simply have to replace the resistor of the dout and put a 470 one.

But I see there are some 6000 and 7000 mcd blue leds like these:

http://cgi.ebay.fr/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7958905863&fromMakeTrack=true

Could they still be used for a midibox project ? 

[moebius]

Hi,

I'd say those are OK. (If only 22 degrees wide beam isn't a problem).

But any of these "water clear lens - ultra bright" leds are, you guess'd it, BRIGHT :P I recommend testing those out with different current limiting resistors to find out what suits your needs. Don't be surprized if you need several KOhms to bring down the brightness.

Bye, Moebius

[Twin-X]

hehehe yep i have this problem. I forgot to put in other resistors. I now have 99 3000MCD blue bright leds. I wear sunglasses to play with my sid.

[smashtv]

hehe  8)

[ohmstudiste]

So all I have to do is find the right resistor to put on the Dout ? No special care to take ?

I actually intend to buy these:

http://cgi.ebay.fr/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=7958905863&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT

What voltage should I chose:6,9 or 12V ?

[seppoman]

If you want to use these, take 12 V. This just means, the guy ships higher value resistors with the LEDs. If you dont want to get blind, the 12 V resistors probably are still too small.

But why don´t you just use "normal" LEDs? These extra bright ones are verrry bright (as the term says :) ), and normally you get other LEDs way cheaper than extra brights. So you´re paying money for a feature you don´t actually want.

BTW Ohmstudiste: I got your PM and will answer on weekend when I´ve got some more time.

Seppoman

[moebius]

If you want to use these, take 12 V. This just means, the guy ships higher value resistors with the LEDs. If you dont want to get blind, the 12 V resistors probably are still too small.

Yeah ;)

But why don´t you just use "normal" LEDs? These extra bright ones are verrry bright (as the term says :) ), and normally you get other LEDs way cheaper than extra brights. So you´re paying money for a feature you don´t actually want.

It's not quite that simple - These COOL(?) (I love 'em) blue leds always seem to cost about 5 times more than "normal" coloured leds. And the ebay deals are really good, but sellers mostly offer these "trendy" ultrabright ones..

But if anyone knows where to buy blue 3mm diffused leds cheaply in the eurozone, I'm interested!

BYe, Moebius

[ohmstudiste]

I don't want bright ones... I want blue ones. If you tell me there are standard one available in blue, point me to the shop please...

[moebius]

Hi,

I assume your German, right.. well, I can't speak german, but http://www.reichelt.de/ seems pretty cheap: 0,50€ a piece, search for "Standard-LED, 3mm, blau"..

Bye, Moebius

p.s. Oh - I told ya, that blue leds are more expensive than "normal" ones :P

[ohmstudiste]

I'm french ;)  though I speak german. ..

I had noticed the reichelt blue ones. But take 50 ones at .50 it's 25 euros ! Whereas I can get 50 for 6 euros, that's 0.12, which is close to the price of a standard green/red/yellow led, isn't it ? So why hesitate if they work and the only issue can be adressed by a simple resistor ?

Well, ok, i AM still hesitating so I wait for a GOOD reason not to put those nice blue led on my future all chrome desktop SID (btw I got a blue LCD too  ;D )

[moebius]

I'm french ;)  though I speak german. ..

Oh, sorry.. my bad ;) (Now I notice that both of your ebay links are to french version.. :P I just look at the specs!)

I had noticed the reichelt blue ones. But take 50 ones at .50 it's 25 euros ! Whereas I can get 50 for 6 euros, that's 0.12, which is close to the price of a standard green/red/yellow led, isn't it ?

Yeah - huge price difference. Sadly, those are the cheapest diffused blue leds I have succeed to find :(

Well, ok, i AM still hesitating so I wait for a GOOD reason not to put those nice blue led on my future all chrome desktop SID (btw I got a blue LCD too  ;D )

Actually - I think that "tamed" ultra bright leds could fit cool chrome casing extremely well, even better than normal ones - those leds are pretty good looking, if you use big enough current limiting resistor ;)

Bye, Moebius

[ohmstudiste]

Well, I guess I'm gonna buy them, right ?  ;D 8)

[jdutcher]

Whereas I can get 50 for 6 euros, that's 0.12, which is close to the price of a standard green/red/yellow led, isn't it ?

yeah, right!  i bought 100 red, 100 green, and 100 yellow LEDs for $6 total.  i'm not a big fan of the blue ones, though.  but i think that ebay source is your best bet.

good luck.