Reef PI LED Controller Help

[Iranian45]

Hi All,

I have something similar to this light with the two turn dial dimmers and two switches. One set for full spectrum one for the blues.

https://www.amazon.com/Lxyoug-Aquar...617&sr=8-8&keywords=led+reef+lights+for+coral

How could I convert this so I can use it with reef pi to have like the full day /moon cycles?

 

[Flippers4pups]

Bump

 

[Fishyj]

@theatrus ,@Ranjib ,or @Diamond should be able to help. Wait for them to chime in.

 

[Ranjib]

I vaguely recall folks hacking viparspectra or somilar blackboxes. I dont have the details handy, I'll check if I can find out the thread once and get back to you,

 

[Kampo]

it really depends how there setup and what drivers your particular black box use. might be as lucky as they take straight PWM. or you might need to convert to 0-10v. do some research on black boxes to convert them to work with apex. that will give you some info on what to look for and what your getting into

 

[Brad Cox]

I have the marsaqua on reefpi. I had to convert to 0-10v to get them to dim right.

 

[Iranian45]

This is what the inside of my light looks like if that helps at all? I started googling how to use it for Apex but I dont see the controllers like what was described.

 

[Diamond1]

Looks like they are just using the potentiomiters for dimming, my guess is that they are 0-10v. I don't see anything like a dimming circuit in there that you can hack into. It may be that the dimming circuits are built into the drivers or they are wired to just use the pots to control the dc voltage.

 

[Iranian45]

So am I better off getting a new light to get this kind of control out of it? I would rather not spend much more money if I dont have to?

 

[Ranjib]

So am I better off getting a new light to get this kind of control out of it? I would rather not spend much more money if I dont have to?

The potentiometer is feeding the driver. Can you check the voltage and current draw in the potentiometer output ? I think you can just change those bits to use a 10v pwm input instead

 

[Iranian45]

Sounds good, I will check the potentiometers today/tomorrow and let you guys know. I am not very savvy when it comes to this so I may ask some questions if needed.

 

[Ranjib]

@Iranian45 did you get this working ?

 

[boneone]

I have the marsaqua on reefpi. I had to convert to 0-10v to get them to dim right.

Depends on the Driver how much PWM V needed, read the Drivers Data Sheet to be sure!

for MW LDD-****H
Power ON 2.5 ~ 6VDC
Power OFF : < 0.8VDC
https://www.meanwell.com/Upload/PDF/LDD-H/LDD-H-SPEC.PDF
so for this MW Driver no PI 0-10V mod needed...

 

[Iranian45]

@Iranian45 did you get this working ?

No, I have had some family emergencies. I am hoping to take it apart this weekend.

 

[Iranian45]

@Iranian45 did you get this working ?

@Ranjib

So the potentiometer is 1k ohms and output measures between 2 and 107 mV

 

[Ranjib]

@Iranian45 this is still an issue ?

 

[Iranian45]

@Ranjib Nope, I have it figured out almost. I wired the blue lights on a separate plug and by passed the pots wiring them directly to the PIs PWM pins.