LED Power Supply

[skyrne_isk]

Hey all, am trying to find a suitable power supply for this chinese black box LED I bought some years back (not one of the common ones). Problem is, the labeling and voltage is not easy to find a direct replacement for, so i’m likely going to have to find an AC adapter that’s close enough and be done with it. I’m not anything close to an electrician so I don’t know enough to know enough about electricity to figure this one out. What I do know is that the fixture itself is dimmable and has 55X3 Cree and Bridgelux LEDs. Pretty sure it draws 110w so each LED must be ran at 2w/each.

Really no harm in trying a close power supply, at this point it’s a paperweight. Can anyone point me in the right direction? It’s listed as a 23V @ 4.5A (which I don’t think exists anywhere here in the states)

 

[Michael Lane]

With power supplies, the voltage is usually more important than the current rating. 23v is unusual, but 24 volts is pretty close and a commonly available supply. You'll probably be fine as long as you choose one rated at 4.5 amps or more.

I don't know what the connector looks like, but something like this 24v 6A supply would probably work. You could also use an external (slightly adjustable) supply and tune it down to 23 volts, but that's probably not necessary.

 

[skyrne_isk]

hey thanks! that’s not too expensive either. the existing power supply is some kind of weird three circular hole pattern (I should have taken a pic). my assumption is I would need to wire it up myself - is it just positive negative and neutral?

 

[Michael Lane]

Sounds weird. you might need a picture of the connector and maybe even the inside of the light to get any useful advice on that part.

 

[skyrne_isk]

here is the connector

 

[Ryan115]

here is the connector

Looks like a "cannon" plug (though may be a XLR, hard to tell from picture.)
Have you tested the power supply to make sure it is the faulty part?
It would be best to trace the wires internally to the unit to verify pinout of the connector.

Here is a set from China.

GX16 3 Pin 16mm Male & Female Wire Panel Circular Connector Aviation Socket Plug

Only US$11.99, buy best gx16 3 pin 16mm male & female wire panel circular connector aviation socket plug sale online store at wholesale price.

www.banggood.com

 

[skyrne_isk]

You know what, I have not tested anything. IIRC, the little light on the brick no longer lights up. How would I trace the wires internally? Just open the casing up and then.....? Sorry, just out of my depth here.

The plug you sent is indeed the kind on the power supply - does the plug itself actually go bad? I just assumed that the cheap Chinese power supply would be at fault....

 

[skyrne_isk]

With power supplies, the voltage is usually more important than the current rating. 23v is unusual, but 24 volts is pretty close and a commonly available supply. You'll probably be fine as long as you choose one rated at 4.5 amps or more.

I don't know what the connector looks like, but something like this 24v 6A supply would probably work. You could also use an external (slightly adjustable) supply and tune it down to 23 volts, but that's probably not necessary.

Is there any basic way to understand how the voltage and amperage gets equated to wattage? I know the LEDs on the whole unit could be ran up to ~150w, but how do you know how far away from the original power supply specs you can go before you are (I assume) driving too much wattage and you fry things out?

 

[Michael Lane]

Power supplies are usually voltage based devices, which mean they supply a stable voltage over a range of current draws. The provide a voltage potential, but do not push current. The circuit after the power supply is usually responsible for determining the amount current (amps) that it pulls. So you could get a 24v 6 amp supply or a 24v 600 amp supply and the lights would work the same. As you approach the power supplies current rating, voltage will begin to drop.

Watts = Volts * Amps, so that power supply provided at 23v * 4.5a = 103.5 watts. Generally, you don't want to push a power supply to full capability, so a guesstimate of 80% probably brings the wattage down to about 85 watts. The 150 watts listed on the product probably reflects the number of LEDs * their max wattage.

The voltage tolerance for the device can be tricky to determine if it isn't documented. Depending on the circuitry, an extra volt could cause damage to some components, or it could be able to work over a large range of voltages.

 

[oreo54]

Many Meanwell 24 power supplies have an adj voltage range.
So you can tweak it down a bit.
Suggest 150 or 200w supply.
Looks to be a constant voltage array so strings should have current limiting resistors every 6or so diodes.
I assume 2channels thus the 3 prong plug.
Ledsupply.com should have a power supply

 

[skyrne_isk]

Many Meanwell 24 power supplies have an adj voltage range.
So you can tweak it down a bit.
Suggest 150 or 200w supply.
Looks to be a constant voltage array so strings should have current limiting resistors every 6or so diodes.
I assume 2channels thus the 3 prong plug.
Ledsupply.com should have a power supply

yup, two channels one for whites and another for blues. i’ll go to ledsupply.com, you guys are the best! (and you explained electricity so i can understand it )

 

[skyrne_isk]

yup, two channels one for whites and another for blues. i’ll go to ledsupply.com, you guys are the best! (and you explained electricity so i can understand it )

Does the power supply need to be dimmable? The light has an onboard SD card that allows then channels to be independently programmed (which was a kinda rare feature outside of radions back when I bought this thing)

 

[oreo54]

Really need more info/pics.. It's already odd that it runs constant voltage.. and 23V to boot..
LRS-150-24 is voltage adj. from 21.6 ~ 28.8V..

 

[skyrne_isk]

okay, here is the power supply. i’ve never opened up the unit and looked at the board of the actual LEDs, but can if needed.

 

[skyrne_isk]

With power supplies, the voltage is usually more important than the current rating. 23v is unusual, but 24 volts is pretty close and a commonly available supply. You'll probably be fine as long as you choose one rated at 4.5 amps or more.

I don't know what the connector looks like, but something like this 24v 6A supply would probably work. You could also use an external (slightly adjustable) supply and tune it down to 23 volts, but that's probably not necessary.

Okay, went with the 24v 6A supply suggested above. My assumption is I need to cut the male plug end off and wire up to the old connector. Is it just positive, negative and neutral lines? I don’t have any line voltage tester to check which is which - am hoping they are appropriately colored, red/white/black etc. Any advice?

 

[skyrne_isk]

And another thought on the power supply, does the dimmable aspect of the unit matter? I’m thinking no - the ballast is what is dimmable or not and that’s not changing

 

[oreo54]

Most of the time "center" is positive.. Shows that on the power supply...
Adj the ps down to 23V is just to match orig..
There is no ballast or driver AFAICT.. Dimming is done by "chopping" the input into on/off segments.
More off vs on ..dimmer the light looks..
So there should be some circuitry to do this ..
ACTUALLY that would point to more of a positive ground situation (see below) since it is common to "pulse" the negative side..

Plus is plus, plus, minus. Maybe..
Could be minus.. minus.. plus (positive ground) but uncommon except in strip lights (5 meter rolls ect)

Best to use a VOM to probe it but if wired incorrectly it just won't light..IF you start w/ one pair at a time

 

[skyrne_isk]

so i’m all wired up and now my main obstacle is trying to remember what the programming instructions were o_O

does anyone have a solution for how to enclose these wires?

 

[Awesome Dennis]

Butt connectors and heat shrink tube

 

[skyrne_isk]

Just a follow up to this. Am using this power supply and it gets noticeably hot

. Temp gun says around 110F. My assumption is that it’s the difference in voltage/amperage? Not sure. Any thoughts on whether another power supply would be more appropriate given the temp of the power supply I’m using? I know it’s a bit of a bummer without knowing more details, but the original specs of this power supply were weird and so a direct replacement could not be done.