Roman Props MK1 Weathered Project

[Jukesie]

WOOT! My speaker is ok 1 down, 82 to go

Thank you Ridire, that's a great reply and gives me some food for thought.

My wiring was based off the information I've managed to gather from online, various wiring examples to be honest, as there doesn't seem to be the exact same setup that I'm trying to do, I amalgamated a few. I'll see about getting myself one of those mats and see if that helps me at all.

Thanks again.

 

[Ridire Firean]

Hey Jukesie ! While you wait for your TCSS Nano Biscotte V4 Mat....

The Custom Saber Shop

www.thecustomsabershop.com

...to arrive, here's a little bit less obstructed, but still not totally legible preview or complete, to possibly help you figure out the basics while you wait...

... thanks to SulfurCityFoundry in New Zealand who's video I cut and pasted and skewed together to help you out a bit with the wiring diagram that should totally be in the User's Manual.

I expect you to get at least one more out of your last 82 with this little bit of help!

Good Luck! And I'm looking forward to seeing what you come up with for a Crystal Chamber!

 

[Jukesie]

I've tidied up my previous version. I'm still a little confused as to where the Accent LED should be connected. If it should be as noted (which I believe is inline with the NB manual for an Accent LED. Or based on the Soldering Mat above and connected to the L3 at the north of the board, and the FoC channel. Not sure. Does this look better to anyone? Again, this is trying to splice together the diagrams from the ShtokCustomWorx NXPL connector and the NB v4

 

[Halliwax]

wicked schematic!

 

[Jukesie]

Thanks. I'm still a little unsure of the positioning of the Accent LED and the Resistors (as well as if I actually need the Dyna Ohm resistors)

I presume I should be able to connect all of this up with croc-clips or something to test before I solder it in place, but the last thing I want is to blow the blade strips / NB / NXPL Connector. That is, if I can even buy a NB, JQSabers aren't returning my email requests and the NB is out of stock at the moment.

 

[Jukesie]

The Accent LED is a puzzler for me, should I use a Common Anode RGB to connect to the L3 pad with 3 Cathode's or is it easier/better to use a Common Cathode with separate Anode connectors? And is it correct that the L3 designates the RGB effect? i.e. it will change to match the colour of the blades?

I'm going to order the NB from TCSS because I won't be able to buy one in the UK for a few months otherwise, so hopefully I can get cracking on this soon.

 

[Halliwax]

The Accent LED is a puzzler for me, should I use a Common Anode RGB to connect to the L3 pad with 3 Cathode's or is it easier/better to use a Common Cathode with separate Anode connectors? And is it correct that the L3 designates the RGB effect? i.e. it will change to match the colour of the blades?

I'm going to order the NB from TCSS because I won't be able to buy one in the UK for a few months otherwise, so hopefully I can get cracking on this soon.

Really interested and hearing what you go with

 

[Ridire Firean]

Hey Jukesie ! Is your "Accent LED" a single color "Power On" LED, or are you wanting it to be a 3mm/5mm RGB LED for a Crystal Chamber that mirrors the Blade?

The reason I ask, and there may or may not be a work-around for it, is that the Owner's Manual states in the features list "No Accent LED". But you can have a single color "Power On" LED.

 

[canister]

If you have not brought one? You could look into getting a spark board from Naigon, hes been pretty helpful in the past with his products. Also the new-ish teensysaber/Profieboards, they seem to be all the rage at the moment. I've not wired a sound board in 2 years and have not kept up with the latest so can't help with the v4 and the new led strips. I will be following to see how you get on and might even finish a hilt one day.

 

[Jukesie]

Hi canister thanks, I have looked at the profieboards but I settled on NB quite a while ago, and I actually bought one last night from TCSS (I couldn't wait months) the shipping was less than I expected. So, I'm just waiting for my NB to arrive now. But thank you for the suggestion, I plan on stopping on 1 saber, so I will definitely look at your suggestions for my future projects.

*edit* I'm sticking to NB anyway, because I had already bought the NB-MK chassis from ShtokCustomWorx too.

Ridire Firean forgive the terminology, I'm still learning the exact terms, but yes, it was supposed to be a changeable Crystal LED. My most recent schematic doesn't reflect my recent discovery. I hadn't spotted the section in the NB manual on "Adding a Pixel accent LED(s) to your saber" Which talks about using extra blade pixels as accents?? If I did understand it correctly, using a normal Common Cathode LED in their place would work the same??

My biggest concern is that I'm using ShtokCustomWorx NXPL connector, which has the ledstrip connectors and 5 LED's wired together for the blade, I was going to set it to run in Parallel so they all light together. I figured, as long as I wired the Accent (CC) LED with a separate resistor, and a separate one on the blade data line, then this would work correct??

I'll follow up my crazy ramblings above with a new schematic this weekend.

 

[Ridire Firean]

Hey Jukesie ! O.K. I see it now, I was reading that section more as a "Trident Blade" setup rather than a Crystal Chamber Accent setup because of the two extra NeoPixels in the diagram.

As erv notes in the manual, if your Multicolor LED is setup as RGB, but your NeoPixel (Blade Strip) is setup as GRB, you'd only ever get the B(lue) to match. Any solid color R(ed) Blade would give you a G(reen) Crystal with a RGB 3mm/5mm Multicolor LED. Any solid color G(reen) Blade would give you a R(ed) Crystal with a RGB 3mm/5mm Multicolor LED. And Unless your R(ed) and G(reen) parameters were exactly even, you'd never get the color you were hoping to achieve through color mixing. Whatever color those exactly even parameters are, would be the only color you could ever achieve as a match between your Blade and your Crystal, except B(lue) of course.

So, if you can't find a GRB 3mm/5mm LED, you might want to try and adapt a single NeoPixel to your design in order to illuminate your Crystal.

I know what you mean about the terminology! I wish that everyone would agree to call blades made with indiviually soldered 3mm/5mm LEDs "LED Strings", and that the new type of blades with flat multicolor "LEDs" were only ever referred to as "NeoPixel Strips". Leave the LED part out of the latter altogether and go by the brand name to help prevent any confusion between the two. It's probably too late to have everyone adopt "NeoPixel Bands", but that would even further distinguish the two different types of blades. Strings and Strips can get confusing too.

How many people ever ask for a "facial tissue"? None, they always ask for a "Kleenex". The same standard should be set for NeoPixels.

As for the separate resistor, you wouldn't need it if you ran it in parallel as shown in the manual.

Good Luck! Maybe by the time your parts arrive someone will actually post up a complete wiring diagram!

 

[Jukesie]

I've been a little confused I think, looking at all the diagrams online and trying to make it more complicated than it needs to be.

Hopefully, and thanks to a couple of pointers from Dimitri Shtok, I think I've settled on the below, although I'm still not sure where I need to put my LED resistor, if anywhere. - As always, any pointers or adjustments you can see, please let me know.

 

[Jukesie]

I'm still awaiting a couple of pieces before I get started, however, I'm still at a loss about the resistors.

With these NXPL connectors, I'll be soldering two 0603's on to the board and a couple of others on the blade side PCB. Does that mean that I don't need a resistor to be connected to the Data wire (purple)?

And if that's the case, I suppose I should only need one on the purple wire leading to the accent LED?

I don't want to keep bothering Dimitri Shtok on his facebook page lol.

Does that sound right?

 

[Jukesie]

I'm going to look at building the blade this weekend. as a starter. I posted my schematic on TCSS (after waiting forever for my account to liven lol) but so far I've not had a single comment, so either I've got it spot on (unlikely) or I'm so far wrong no one knows where to start lol

 

[Halliwax]

When the blade is done be sure to share it here!

 

[Jukesie]

Hi, sorry that I've been vacant recently, but I'm making some progress.

My blade is done, although it was touch and go for a while lol

This is the final diagram I'm working from, but I was hoping someone could take a look and let me know if there are any glaring errors.

Plus, the wiring I have here, does it matter if I splice the wires or would it better to connect each one to the pad?

i.e. The blue wire runs from the switch, and I have three "junctions" running off from that line, Battery, PEX & Accent LED. Should those 3 wires run straight to the pad or not?

 

[Halliwax]

I didn’t know the NBv4 could do neopixel?! That’s wicked

 

[Jukesie]

Ha! Now you've got me worried But, I've seen loads of tutorials from TCSS that have NBv4 & Neopixel combos, so I think I'm good

 

[Ridire Firean]

Hey Jukesie ! Unless that WS2811 RGB LED Driver has onboard current regulators, and @ShtokyD specifically told you that you don't have to use resistors on your RGB LED with that driver, then you need to put resistors on all 3 anodes of your 5mm RGB LED.

If you don't, you're definitely gonna fry your red, and the blue and green colors of your LED might not last too long. Assuming you're using one like the one sold at TCSS...

5mm RGB LED

www.thecustomsabershop.com

...and the WS2811 RGB LED Driver...

9.13US $ 12% OFF|Ws2811 Ic Led Pixel Node Module Light No Wire Addressable Led Lamp Chips 50pcs 5v 12mm - Led Modules - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

that ShtokyD links to on his Facebook picture...

https://www.facebook.com/ShtokCustomWorx/photos/a.611631732327945/1394909964000114

...which is weird in that the specs for the board are 5V but he's feeding it with 3.7V in his diagram.

The 20mA DynaOhm Resistors recommend by TCSS...

20mA DynaOhm™ Variable Resistor

www.thecustomsabershop.com

...look HELLA BIG. I'd just figure out the correct resistor needed for each of the colors calculating it from 3.7V or 4.2V (fully charged battery).

That way you'll have far smaller resistors and it will make fitting them into your hilt space a much easier task.

As for your "blue wires" in your diagram, I believe it's O.K. to piggyback them, provided they're in locations conducive to doing so. Madcow aka Rob Petkau has several videos where he combines negative wires coming back from LEDs and other bits together before soldering a lead back to the negative on the board. Be mindful of your wire size and current though.

If space on the pad, or chassis corridors permits, I'm more comfortable with individual wires. It just helps me keep the routing of electricity straight in my head.

Did your NBv4 ever arrive?

Good Luck! And keep at it!

 

[Ridire Firean]

I just noticed the RGB LED at TCSS is Common Cathode, not a Common Anode as specified in ShtokyD's diagram.

Still need resistors though.

Here are a couple of Common Anode LEDs from Kingbright through Digikey...

WP154A4SEJ3VBDZGW/CA Kingbright | Optoelectronics | DigiKey

Order today, ships today. WP154A4SEJ3VBDZGW/CA – Red, Green, Blue (RGB) 625nm Red, 525nm Green, 470nm Blue LED Indication - Discrete 2.2V Red, 3.3V Green, 3.3V Blue Radial from Kingbright. Pricing and Availability on millions of electronic components from Digi-Key Electronics.

www.digikey.com

WP154A4SEJ3VBDZGC/CA Kingbright | Optoelectronics | DigiKey

Order today, ships today. WP154A4SEJ3VBDZGC/CA – Red, Green, Blue (RGB) 625nm Red, 525nm Green, 470nm Blue LED Indication - Discrete 2.2V Red, 3.3V Green, 3.3V Blue Radial - 4 Leads from Kingbright. Pricing and Availability on millions of electronic components from Digi-Key Electronics.

www.digikey.com