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Author Topic: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing  (Read 26622 times)

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Offline merCUrium

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #30 on: March 04, 2014, 11:38:39 AM »
Just to understand, what the hack actually does:
The component removed supplies the audio engine with constant 5V, regardless of the multi cell battery setup and actual voltage during discharge.
Something like a single chip step down regulator? I am aware that the current regulators used usually can't bring the 3.7V from battery unto these 5V, so the reduced quality comes from "under driving" the audio engine, right?
But would there be theoretically some step up regulator that could substitute this removed part? Or would this require lots of more work (special satellite board e.g.) so it would be inefficient  in context of the almost unnoticeable trade off on audio quality?
Sorry if this is a dumb question, I just stumbled on the "step up/down" thing when learning about Vf and current regulation and I'm always quick on adapting new vocabulary  :)).

Offline erv

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #31 on: March 04, 2014, 12:06:44 PM »
The component removed supplies the audio engine with constant 5V, regardless of the multi cell battery setup and actual voltage during discharge.

that's correct. You loose (constant) loudness and regulation of the audio engine (quality... a little bit) but you save space with a single cell.

Adding a step up regulator would here be totally inefficient (though some claim 96% efficiency), would bring more heat to the game and would ruin audio quality.

Offline merCUrium

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #32 on: March 04, 2014, 12:19:08 PM »
Thanks for this really fast reply.

Adding a step up regulator would here be totally inefficient (though some claim 96% efficiency), would bring more heat to the game and would ruin audio quality.

Expected something like that. Again just out of curiosity, why would the step up converter ruin audio quality? By the way it works, or by the heat it generates?

Offline erv

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #33 on: March 04, 2014, 12:46:50 PM »
by the way it works. Switching mode power supplies aren't good for audio (unless running at very high frequencies and even though... you get sub harmonics pissing upon the rest of your circuit).

Fact is : my LED driver *IS* a switching mode power supply (in the form of a current regulator). The regulated audio engine is there to ensure it can coexist properly with the audio playback.

The loop is looped :-)

Offline merCUrium

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #34 on: March 04, 2014, 01:12:42 PM »
Now my brain is doing loopy loops ;P

Thanks for this brief lesson on electronics.

Offline XsaberX

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #35 on: November 30, 2014, 07:38:35 AM »
Since the PC and CF are stock designed to run with regulators, and the config parameters are referenced in ma (can run channels 2 and 3 up to 1500ma with CEX) I'm wondering about the drive conversion when not using a CEX. Essentially, how do the 2 unregulated color mixed channels 0-1500ma on hacked CF and PC relate to your direct drive range boards (Prizm, CS, NB) which use 0-1023? Congruent (1500=1023)? 1023 is max and anything above does nothing? Or something else?

Offline erv

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #36 on: November 30, 2014, 07:48:44 AM »
you'll indeed have a mapping of the 1500 range to the 1023 range, but in the case of not using the current regulator, you don't get any mA equivalent, just a drive. Your max current is then defined by the cell voltage and the resistor used.

Offline XsaberX

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #37 on: November 30, 2014, 07:52:15 AM »
Thanks!

Offline ishtob

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #38 on: January 25, 2016, 05:09:19 AM »
I noticed in your video that some of the direct drive channels were set well below the 80% of max drive when you are using the color mixer. Is that okay or would this cause the board to generate heat and potentially damage the board?

Offline erv

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #39 on: January 25, 2016, 05:56:10 AM »
not if there's a proper resistor behind

Offline ishtob

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #40 on: January 25, 2016, 08:48:38 AM »
ah perfect, i got the blue and green channel looked up with a 5W 0.4 ohm resistor each. It should be set to do pseudo color blending then?

Offline erlomd

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #41 on: December 25, 2016, 10:43:49 PM »
thanks ERV for the explanation...im guessing thats why my single cell set up has cracking sounds when the brighter LED colors come on like yellow or red but then neutralizes when the color is changed to a deep blue or green...am I going to have to lower the brightness in those channels for it to all work correctly with no crackling in the speaker?

Offline erv

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Re: SINGLE CELL CF/PC and CF simple color mixing
« Reply #42 on: December 25, 2016, 11:25:02 PM »
this is symptomatic of the battery voltage dropping down due to not handling the excessive current going in your LED.

 

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