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Anyone have a schematic for a light circuit to keep lights from flickering, may be a capacitor.
I have been a little confused in the past about your regulator. Will this work with conventional (old school) equipment? I run exclusively pre-war and I am currently using an RW transformer. I have added lights to my 603s and 604 and I am in the process of "restoring" some 610s and a 612. I would like flicker free and a POT. Would your regulator be overkill for my needs?Here's a schematic of an LED module that will give you flicker-free lighting, DCS compatibility, and intensity adjustment.
Just some pre war passenger cars (and maybe caboose) for interior LED lighting. LED strips, flicker free (capacitor), AC to DC (diode) and a potentiometer (POT) to adjust the light output level I am looking for. Pretty basic stuff. I use early post war transformers (RW-110 & KW) if that helps.If you're talking about a single LED application, you can do those with a simpler scheme. Basically a diode, capacitor, and the CL2 constant current regulator.
So, if you can be more specific about the application in detail, I can probably provide more focused answers.
I don't want to hi-jack the thread if the answer is complicated.
Running conventional gets a bit tricky with the LED's. What I had one guy do is jumper out one of the LED's in each group of three to lower the voltage requirements of the string, then the conventional track voltage was enough to light the cars.Just some pre war passenger cars (and maybe caboose) for interior LED lighting. LED strips, flicker free (capacitor), AC to DC (diode) and a potentiometer (POT) to adjust the light output level I am looking for. Pretty basic stuff. I use early post war transformers (RW-110 & KW) if that helps.
I like the idea of using PCBs to cut down on a wiring mess inside the cars.
TIA
In general the pot has worked out fine. However, it's somewhat hard to adjust, so the next production run I may switch to a different style. I just have to find one small enough not to alter the footprint.I don't want to hi-jack the thread if the answer is complicated.
I just received a new batch of 5 of the tiny MP series buck regulators. The trim pot in the first one I tested was "flaky" by my eye. I couldn't dial in any voltage between ~4 V and ~8 V. A big jump in the regulated voltage no matter how I fiddled with the pot. I used a 18 V DC supply for testing.
Do you find this style trim pot to be problematic?
View attachment 522840
Thanks, John. That explanation helps.Running conventional gets a bit tricky with the LED's. What I had one guy do is jumper out one of the LED's in each group of three to lower the voltage requirements of the string, then the conventional track voltage was enough to light the cars.
The problem is, you can either have a step-down or a step-up, having both is more expensive and also a larger footprint supply. In order for my board to light the "standard" 12V LED strips, you need around 9-10 VAC on the track. If you jumper out one LED, it's down to around 6-7 VAC on the track.
There are 5 V LED strips with all their LED/resistor pairs in parallel. I have some and tested them with the MP style buck regulators on a convectional transformer at minimum throttle.The problem is, you can either have a step-down or a step-up, having both is more expensive and also a larger footprint supply. In order for my board to light the "standard" 12V LED strips, you need around 9-10 VAC on the track. If you jumper out one LED, it's down to around 6-7 VAC on the track.
There's these single turn, 20% tolerance styles in standard resistances (5K ohms linked) available in single quantities from Digikey.In general the pot has worked out fine. However, it's somewhat hard to adjust, so the next production run I may switch to a different style. I just have to find one small enough not to alter the footprint.
Can you post a diagram of what you did? 2200uf is big but should still work. What kind of bulb is it... seems it would be drawing a lot of current to drain that cap.I tried a 2200uf and a wave bridge with incandescent bulb. Still no good. Running conventional ac, if I use LEDs I need regulation right? Not sure how that will help me. The cap is doing all of the storage.