Reddit reviews SUPERNIGHT (TM) Data Repeater RGB Signal Amplifier for SMD 3528 5050 LED Strip Light, DC 12V 12A
We found 5 Reddit comments about SUPERNIGHT (TM) Data Repeater RGB Signal Amplifier for SMD 3528 5050 LED Strip Light, DC 12V 12A. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Brand Name : SUPERNIGHTRGB Amplifier is used for all our company RGB LED controller.In theory , RGB amplifier can be connected to numerous.It can accept PWM signal.When adding one RGB amplifier, it can connect to more than double of the number led lights.
Data Repeater RGB Signal Amplifier
Power Supply
2.1 mm breakout adapters
Or just buy this here and have everything in one kit
You want this: https://www.amazon.com/SUPERNIGHT-Repeater-Signal-Amplifier-Strip/dp/B00E4JQDKE/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1498868470&sr=8-6&keywords=led+amplifier
You use the arduino to control it, and it controls the lights.
If you wanted to build your own version of this, you would use some form of transistors.
I use one of these in pretty much every LED project I do.
My thought on using a computer PSU that is also powering a computer is if there is a problem with the led strips. Such as one gets danged or the RGP controller goes bad, this could result in damage to your psu and other components. If it was all in case it would not be a problem as the strips will likely not be able to be damaged. For my own project I thought about using an PSU standalone to power some extra led strips for the garage, going for total of 288W. I deiced not to as I can get something smaller, cheaper and no waste of power like the 5v rails and 3.3v. At 200W depending on the psu you may have to wire into mutiple rails of the psu. I got this 360W 12v from amazon. Do note that this probably not UL tested. From what I understand for it to be safe and legal to be used in your house it needs to be in some other enclosure. Basically if it causes a fire your insurance may not cover damages. Also a note on long runs of led strips you should plan on running multiple 12v lines as the strips will have voltage drop. Being you are doing RGB you will need a signal amplifier/repeater like this. I would start with 1 repeater and test it to see how far you can power a run.
That's probably what I'll do for now, and if I need to I found this thing on Amazon, which looks to be exactly what I was looking for.
I've actually been looking into setting up a number of these lately, and while I don't know a lot about electronics, I've come to the same conclusions you have. 10a sounds like enough, but to avoid any dimming, you'd probably be better of with 12a or even 15a.
The real problem I've read (don't know if this is true) is that the receiver only handles 2 strips at a time, so you might need one of
these to keep the signal going. So you could keep your original PS and add another 5a in line with this repeater and most likely be fine.
Sorry for my shitty guesstimations but I hope it helps!