Author Topic: LED drivers  (Read 2146 times)

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Offline Melvang

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LED drivers
« on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 08:17:13 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?
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Offline regack

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Re: LED drivers
« Reply #1 on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 08:49:40 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?

I can't answer definitively, but I don't think there would be anything that would work that way directly.  I'm sure, however, that you could use the HDD LED signal as an input to a microcontroller, then drive the LEDs from that point...

-

maybe the HDD LED wires could operate a transistor circuit that could operate the LEDs?  just thinking, depends on what you're trying to do with the other batch of LEDs.
« Last Edit: Thu, 20 March 2014, 08:51:19 by regack »

Offline Melvang

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Re: LED drivers
« Reply #2 on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 08:52:57 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?

I can't answer definitively, but I don't think there would be anything that would work that way directly.  I'm sure, however, that you could use the HDD LED signal as an input to a microcontroller, then drive the LEDs from that point...

Yeah I am only planning on running 2 LED's from that so I would think the motherboard would be able to give out 40mW ish to drive a pair of LED's.  Though having a full backlit board as HDD activity LED would be interesting.  I suppose I could plug a pair of LEDs in parallel to the power indicator pins on the motherboard.  I would assume that they have the same output characteristics.
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Offline regack

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Re: LED drivers
« Reply #3 on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 09:07:34 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?

I can't answer definitively, but I don't think there would be anything that would work that way directly.  I'm sure, however, that you could use the HDD LED signal as an input to a microcontroller, then drive the LEDs from that point...

Yeah I am only planning on running 2 LED's from that so I would think the motherboard would be able to give out 40mW ish to drive a pair of LED's.  Though having a full backlit board as HDD activity LED would be interesting.  I suppose I could plug a pair of LEDs in parallel to the power indicator pins on the motherboard.  I would assume that they have the same output characteristics.

HDD Activity backlit keyboard... I think the idea just gave me an epileptic seizure :D

You can probably just run the two LEDs in parallel directly from the mobo, or if you want it a little safer/more complicated, use the HDD LED signal to operate something like this optocoupler

Wire up the HDD activity LED to the A (1) & C (2) pins, which in turn drives the 5 & 4 pins - run power from the 5v or 12v rail from the PS into pin 5, and the Anode of your LED group to pin E... then the LED cathodes back to ground on the same power rail.

Offline blackbox

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Re: LED drivers
« Reply #4 on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 09:45:12 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?

I can't answer definitively, but I don't think there would be anything that would work that way directly.  I'm sure, however, that you could use the HDD LED signal as an input to a microcontroller, then drive the LEDs from that point...



Yeah I am only planning on running 2 LED's from that so I would think the motherboard would be able to give out 40mW ish to drive a pair of LED's.  Though having a full backlit board as HDD activity LED would be interesting.  I suppose I could plug a pair of LEDs in parallel to the power indicator pins on the motherboard.  I would assume that they have the same output characteristics.

HDD Activity backlit keyboard... I think the idea just gave me an epileptic seizure :D

You can probably just run the two LEDs in parallel directly from the mobo, or if you want it a little safer/more complicated, use the HDD LED signal to operate something like this optocoupler

Wire up the HDD activity LED to the A (1) & C (2) pins, which in turn drives the 5 & 4 pins - run power from the 5v or 12v rail from the PS into pin 5, and the Anode of your LED group to pin E... then the LED cathodes back to ground on the same power rail.

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epileptic seizure= check
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Offline Melvang

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Re: LED drivers
« Reply #5 on: Thu, 20 March 2014, 12:28:48 »
Does anyone know of an LED driver that allows the use of an input signal (HDD LED wires) for controlling a batch of LEDs?

I can't answer definitively, but I don't think there would be anything that would work that way directly.  I'm sure, however, that you could use the HDD LED signal as an input to a microcontroller, then drive the LEDs from that point...

Yeah I am only planning on running 2 LED's from that so I would think the motherboard would be able to give out 40mW ish to drive a pair of LED's.  Though having a full backlit board as HDD activity LED would be interesting.  I suppose I could plug a pair of LEDs in parallel to the power indicator pins on the motherboard.  I would assume that they have the same output characteristics.

HDD Activity backlit keyboard... I think the idea just gave me an epileptic seizure :D

You can probably just run the two LEDs in parallel directly from the mobo, or if you want it a little safer/more complicated, use the HDD LED signal to operate something like this optocoupler

Wire up the HDD activity LED to the A (1) & C (2) pins, which in turn drives the 5 & 4 pins - run power from the 5v or 12v rail from the PS into pin 5, and the Anode of your LED group to pin E... then the LED cathodes back to ground on the same power rail.

Thanks for the awesome idea with the optocoupler there regack.
OG Kishsaver, Razer Orbweaver clears and reds with blue LEDs, and Razer Naga Epic.   "Great minds crawl in the same sewer"  Uncle Rich