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Mini theatre lighting array with BlinkM MaxM
This is my first project with arduino. I am bascially trying to control 8 lights hanging from 8 foot tall ceiling. I plan to control 8 LEDs in real time with arduino from a computer. I'm going to house the LEDs in a PAR can type enclosure with light reflectors. Looking at the power specs it seems that I the power draw for the MaxM LED is 250 ma max. So does this mean I can use 1 MaxM with external power(2A) and then buy 7 more RGB Blasters and daisy chain the i2C and power?
Sorry I'm a total noob.
thx
Sorry I'm a total noob.
thx
I’m unsure
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Inappropriate?Do you want to have independent control of each of the 8 lights? If so, then you need 8 full MaxMs (Master + Blaster). If you want all 8 lights to be controlled simultaneously and be the same color, then you can use any array of common-anode RGB LEDs with MaxM. Just unplug the Blaster and plug in the LEDs.
For instance, here's a couple examples of running larger LED arrays off a Master:
http://flickr.com/photos/todbot/29792...
http://flickr.com/photos/todbot/25890...
A single MaxM Master can run several strings of LED arrays.1 Comment
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Hello,
I am using MaxM for an art project (preview if interested: http://www.caviart.net/caviart/yannis...).
My question extends the one raised above. I have one MaxM Master with which I would like to control simultaneously 4 Maxm Blasters and be the same color.
The 4 Maxm Blasters will be at a distance of one meter (3 feet) from the "Master". I will connect with seperate cables the R,G,B,5V,gnd "Master" output with the equivalent input on each "Blaster".
I have the following questions:
What is the ideal DC Power input for the "Master" (and "Blasters")? (6V@1400mA, 9V@1100mA, 12V@1000mA...)
Secondly, do I need any pull-up transistors for the cables between "Master" and "Blasters"? (Not the 12C between Arduino and Master which will be very close to each other).
Thank you in advance for your time.
PS.MaxM is great so far. No comparison with the plain LEDS of my prototype. -
Inappropriate?Hi Yannis,
Your project looks pretty cool! As for driving multiple Blasters with one Master, you have to get a little bit tricky (not too much, but a little). The Blaster board is powered by the 5V voltage regulator built-in to the Master board. That regulator is designed to power just one Master and one Blaster. But you can use an external 5VDC power supply with MaxM and have it drive many Blasters. Each Blaster uses about 250mA when full on white, so pick a power supply that is big enough for your application. For instance, a 5V @ 1Amp power supply (a common & cheap one) could drive four Blasters at full white brightness, or more if dimmer or if only one color is used.
Here's a wiring diagram of how you would wire it up:
I've also just made a post about this very topic on my blog, here:
http://todbot.com/blog/2009/04/12/mul...
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this answers the question
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Inappropriate?Hi Todbot,
Thank you very much for your answer!
The post at your blog is excellent.
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