Dimmer Wire in Harness
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
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From: Purdue/Virginia
Dimmer Wire in Harness So I have a HUmount flush mount kit. I was wondering if its ok to power the LEDs directly off the dimmer wire as opposed to whats given in the install directions.
For the "bulb" version of the light-up kits they say to power the bulbs straight off the dimmer wire and then ground the thing.
For the LED version they say to power off the ignition wire then ground it, and if dimming is desired to wire in a variable resistor into the ground wire. Why can't I have the whole dash (HUmount) included dim off of the gauges?
Also, is the kit independently fused anywhere? I'm almost done wiring and I would like to just be done with this!
I do want the lightup mount to only light up when the headlights/parking lights are on. I don't want them running full time.
What are my options and is the dimmer wire enough to power those LEDs?
For the "bulb" version of the light-up kits they say to power the bulbs straight off the dimmer wire and then ground the thing.
For the LED version they say to power off the ignition wire then ground it, and if dimming is desired to wire in a variable resistor into the ground wire. Why can't I have the whole dash (HUmount) included dim off of the gauges?
Also, is the kit independently fused anywhere? I'm almost done wiring and I would like to just be done with this!
I do want the lightup mount to only light up when the headlights/parking lights are on. I don't want them running full time.
What are my options and is the dimmer wire enough to power those LEDs?
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 143
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From: Purdue/Virginia
Does anyone at least know the voltage/amperage of that wire? I realize there wil be a range but does anybody know what the range is? That line is on a 5 amp fuse so I'm guessing its pretty low amperage...
Isn't there a LED electrical genius on here? They're really outside of my realm....
Isn't there a LED electrical genius on here? They're really outside of my realm....
Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,329
Likes: 346
From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
I don't see any reason why you couldn't use the dimmer wire. However, LEDs tend not to dim in the same way as regular bulbs. They dim only to a point and then they just shut off. You can always use the parking light circuit (brown wire in black head unit connector) - they won't dim but at least they would only be on with the rest of the dash.
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 143
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From: Purdue/Virginia
Well I had them wired to the orange wire and it worked temporarily. Now the LEDs don't light at all... If anything I should've been underpowering them which (to my knowledge) doesn't hurt LEDs?
I rewired them to the ignition wire and no dice. Is there a way to visually tell if LED is broken? I'm at a loss now. I'd like to put the dash back together but not without finishing the lighting....
Incandescents you can look at the filament. How do you tell if a diode is broken... I never saw any smoke or smelled any burning. The stereo still works and none of my fuses are blown.
I think the LED assembly is 3 sets of 3 LEDS in parallel. so its 9 LEDS in a partial parallel partial series circuit. There's still connectivity between the positive and negative. I think it was around 5 ohms but still no light...
Also, does anyone know of a convenient place to get an LED assembly like this? Radioshack maybe?
I rewired them to the ignition wire and no dice. Is there a way to visually tell if LED is broken? I'm at a loss now. I'd like to put the dash back together but not without finishing the lighting....
Incandescents you can look at the filament. How do you tell if a diode is broken... I never saw any smoke or smelled any burning. The stereo still works and none of my fuses are blown.
I think the LED assembly is 3 sets of 3 LEDS in parallel. so its 9 LEDS in a partial parallel partial series circuit. There's still connectivity between the positive and negative. I think it was around 5 ohms but still no light...
Also, does anyone know of a convenient place to get an LED assembly like this? Radioshack maybe?
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 143
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From: Purdue/Virginia
General LED question. I saw somewhere that you want the resistor to be in the ground wire only. Why is that? Somebody said something like "you don't want to be dropping the voltage across the LED" which doesn't make any sense to me...
Why can't you put the resistor in the lead wire?
Why can't you put the resistor in the lead wire?
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Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 143
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From: Purdue/Virginia
This is a more generic question about the power supply. How many volts should I be getting when the car is turned to acc or just before starting? Using a volt meter I see about 8 volts to the stereo harness. That seems low to me and I've heard that the LED assemblys won't light below 10v. Doesn't explain why they lit for a little while but I'm stretching now.
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Verdad Gallardo Joined: Nov 2003
Posts: 11,329
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From: Jacksonville, FL (originally from Toronto Canada)
You should get full battery voltage (or almost) when the ignition switch is in the accessory position. If you're only getting eight volts then maybe you should get your battery load tested. Places like Auto Zone will usually test it for free.
Thread Starter
On The Tree
Joined: Dec 2003
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From: Purdue/Virginia
I tried turning it over today and its cranked once before dying on me. It dawned on me last night that I've been wiring and testing for a few weeks now without ever running the car...
I think the LEDs will only light over 10v (and likely fry over 14v) based on Ohm's law and the LED tolerances so I shouldn't be surprised I had issues.
I'm going to jump the car tomorrow morning, hopefully put the thing back together and then take some pics!
I found a pretty good site for buying LED lighting though. Not sure what the rules are about posting links to retailers but they had all sorts of flexible options and pre-wired and calculated options.
Unfortunately I switched the wiring to the ignition wire already but if it works it works and I guess I can always switch it later to be able to turn it off...
I'll post pics if it works.
I think the LEDs will only light over 10v (and likely fry over 14v) based on Ohm's law and the LED tolerances so I shouldn't be surprised I had issues.
I'm going to jump the car tomorrow morning, hopefully put the thing back together and then take some pics!
I found a pretty good site for buying LED lighting though. Not sure what the rules are about posting links to retailers but they had all sorts of flexible options and pre-wired and calculated options.
Unfortunately I switched the wiring to the ignition wire already but if it works it works and I guess I can always switch it later to be able to turn it off...
I'll post pics if it works.
Launching!
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 231
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From: Ontario, Canada
Hey dude, how did you end up making out here?
I did the same thing you did and now mine won't turn on. Did switching them over to the ignition wire fix your issue?
As an aside:
Does the parking light circuit wire (brown wire) carry the same voltage?
I did the same thing you did and now mine won't turn on. Did switching them over to the ignition wire fix your issue?
As an aside:
Does the parking light circuit wire (brown wire) carry the same voltage?
