DIY Help Needed for LED Lights - Use Orbit Marine Fixture with controllable Channel drivers?

[kenman345]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kenman345 http:///t/397788/diy-help-needed-for-led-lights-use-orbit-marine-fixture-with-controllable-channel-drivers#post_3546954
I actually found on the Current USA website that they responded to a Question 2 years ago for the Truelumen LED Strips that they are able to be used with the ELN-60-24D I was looking into. That same LED system is a recommended match for the timer/controller my Orbit Marine fixture came with. I think that helped me with my answer.

I emailed Current USA about this question and hope to hear back before I make any purchases. I am trying to practice some patience with this project as I anyways am trying to save up money for a new LED fixture or the parts to make this fixture controllable

So Current USA responded to me saying that the Meanwell ELN-60-24D would indeed work for my fixture but was not the intended methodology for control. They recommended I find a 0-10V to PWM converter to use instead which would allow me much better control and results. I think this is what I should look for as I have learned the Meanwell drivers are too slow to accurately use the storm mode on the reefkeeper with the ALC module. The 0-10V to PWM converters I have already found but dont look right still seem to claim faster response times than a standard 0-10V driver would give me.

Any suggestions?

 

[2quills]

Meanwells ELN D drivers are for analog signal not PWM. This may be why they wouldn't respond well to a digital signal. Youd probably want the P model. Even though the D might work that may be the very reason why its slow since its not designed for digital signal.
Looks like Steve's Leds sells a converter and harness that would match up to the ALC.

 

[acrylic51]

Exactly what Corey suggested Stevesleds or you can look on the big forum there are some possibly floating around people might be willing to part with...Corey and I had discussed a long time ago about the pros and cons of using the controllers for this function. Maybe a better controller for your LED units might be the StormX controller....tons more features than your controller could do....just my .02.

 

[acrylic51]

A side note the Eln's can't be dimmed to "0" like other drivers...Are you dead set on using the Eln's? Possible a better fit might be the LCC drivers. ...

 

[kenman345]

Quote:
Originally Posted by acrylic51 http:///t/397788/diy-help-needed-for-led-lights-use-orbit-marine-fixture-with-controllable-channel-drivers/20#post_3547155
A side note the Eln's can't be dimmed to "0" like other drivers...Are you dead set on using the Eln's? Possible a better fit might be the LCC drivers. ...
The ELN's are the only ones I've been able to understand the spec sheet for and the obvious part being that others have used them before for LED's and reefkeeper control.

Turns out, Digital Aquatics may be coming out with a PWM control module for the purposes of controlling light fixtures. I may want to go with that type of control since it'll be more precise and should allow for lightning control over the output from the ALC which currently only works with Kessil and AI Sol lighting fixtures. I will be putting this project on hold for now.

 

[acrylic51]

The LCC drivers are small an way more efficient than the ELN's and offer way more advantages.....It's honestly about time Digital does something with their product line....They've fallen so far behind.

 

[2quills]

I don't run the lightning simulations on my fixtures. They tend to freak out the fish a little bit. Every time a storm simulation would roll around my fish would hide once the lightning effects started.
Once you've seen it a couple of times the novelty of having lights that can do that wears off pretty quick. However, I am a fan of the random cloud simulations without the strikes. It's a nice random change of color and intensity that seems a little more natural.

 

[acrylic51]

I can honestly agree with you on the lightning Corey....I seen my buddies Radions in the lightning mode and not impressed at all....That feature definitely wouldn't sell me on the fixture.
Storm X LED Controller

For large scale LED installations, look no further than the Storm X LED Controller. It takes all the features of the Storm LED Controller and delivers 10 extra PWM channels - for a total of 16 PWM outputs, each running at 12-bit resolution to deliver 4096 levels of buttery-smooth dimming. These aren't the only improvements.
The LCD backlight is now driven through a 2N222 NPN transistor - this means that we have PWM control of the backlight, so that it is bright when you need it, and dim when you're away. Furthermore we weren't fully satisfied with the smoothness of the input encoder, so we implemented a filter circuit to ensure that each and every minute input is properly registered with the controller.
What does this all mean for your reef tank? Flawless control over all aspects of lightning. From geolocated sunrise and sunsets, precise delays to stagger the ramp times of each output, immensely smooth transitions via SmoothRamp dimming, to cloud and lightning effects, your lighting needs are fulfilled.
If you're interested in modifying or updating the firmware, take a look at this firmware update tutorial to see what it's all about.
[*]16x2 Character LCD Display
[*]16-channel 12-bit PWM (0-5V)
[*]4096 Dimming Levels
[*]Real-Time Clock Module
Manual Sunrise/Sunset Time
Geolocated Sunrise/Sunset
Staggered Sunrise/Set Delays
line-height: 20px;">Moon/Lunar Phase Simulation
[*]Intuitive Wheel Interface
[*]SmoothRamp Dimming
[*]SmoothRamp Clouds
[*]Cloud Channel Clustering
[*]Lightning Storm Effects
Upgradeable via FTDI
Arduino Compatible
PC Fan Control
Auto-dimming LCD
Quantity

storm-x-firmware.zip

Storm-Controller-Manual.pdf
Product in stock
Price: $95.43

 

[kenman345]

Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Quills http:///t/397788/diy-help-needed-for-led-lights-use-orbit-marine-fixture-with-controllable-channel-drivers/20#post_3547158
I don't run the lightning simulations on my fixtures. They tend to freak out the fish a little bit. Every time a storm simulation would roll around my fish would hide once the lightning effects started.
Once you've seen it a couple of times the novelty of having lights that can do that wears off pretty quick. However, I am a fan of the random cloud simulations without the strikes. It's a nice random change of color and intensity that seems a little more natural.
Thanks,

Yea, I know, I wish we had a giant check list of features we may wish to have, so i can have storm mode with little amounts of lightning. The thing is, that if I am going to do something, I wanna know I am not sacrificing functionality to get it, so even if I never use storm mode, it's nice to know the light fixture is fully controllable to its full extent/capability

 

[SupremeD]

Quote:
Originally Posted by 2Quills http:///t/397788/diy-help-needed-for-led-lights-use-orbit-marine-fixture-with-controllable-channel-drivers/20#post_3547158
I don't run the lightning simulations on my fixtures. They tend to freak out the fish a little bit. Every time a storm simulation would roll around my fish would hide once the lightning effects started.
Once you've seen it a couple of times the novelty of having lights that can do that wears off pretty quick. However, I am a fan of the random cloud simulations without the strikes. It's a nice random change of color and intensity that seems a little more natural.
Thanks,

Yea, I know, I wish we had a giant check list of features we may wish to have, so i can have storm mode with little amounts of lightning. The thing is, that if I am going to do something, I wanna know I am not sacrificing functionality to get it, so even if I never use storm mode, it's nice to know the light fixture is fully controllable to its full extent/capability

What ever happened with this project you were working on?