Add color to your projects with analog LED strips!
I recently wrote a tutorial on how to connect and control non-addressable RGB LED strips. Non-addressable (a.k.a. analog) LED strips can only have one color turned on at a time over the entire strip. However, they are lower cost and are easier to use compared to their digital counterparts. Since these can be powered at 12V, daisy chained strips do not require power to be injected as often as the 5V.
While you could just apply straight power to the non-addressable LED strips, you are limited to seven colors. You would also would need to adjust the connection every time you need to change the color. Using a microcontroller with PWM pins and a few power transistors enables you to be more flexible with your color options, adjust the brightness and include basic animations.
For more information, check out the tutorial linked below.
Clear Common Anode RGB LED- 5mm | Diffused Common Cathode RGB LED- 10mm | SMD Common Cathode RGB LED on a Sewable PCB | High Power RGB LED on a PCB |
Happy blinking! ^_^
See our LED page for everything you need to know to start using these components in your project.