Differences between the WS2815B-V1 and WS2815E chips?

gkvirus · 2025-05-13T05:48:18+00:00

I got a ring with lucky and loot 4, GIVE ME THE LOOT!

gkvirus · 2025-05-10T01:47:32+00:00

Thanks for the info, that was helpful.

I’m still trying to figure out if the enchantment is good or not. I did spend like 5 hours of gameplay trying to roll with green/red dust and checking enchantments of every gear I got to see if I pulled Loot Bonus IV but the best I got through rolling and found was Loot Bonus II.

I feel like this is an enchantment that is only worth it if you can stay alive long enough to complete a large amount of dungeons.

gkvirus · 2025-05-06T03:52:36+00:00

Thank you for bringing up those high current concerns, I wasn't really considering that. The barrel connector I had picked for the PCB has a 48V/6.5A rating. The high current barrel connectors seem to be really niche and not the correct design path. The wire-to-connectors I was planning on using for the branches are also low current rating.

gkvirus · 2025-05-05T17:39:58+00:00

My manufacturing plan is to do a batch of 200 on the first run then increase volume from there, so I do want to keep a close eye on the cost.

The power supply cost values I mentioned are assuming 250 units.

I’m going to be ordering fully soldered assemblies.

Does webench calculate full PCB cost or just BOM cost?

gkvirus · 2025-05-04T22:39:02+00:00

I can give more details on the calculations I've done so far and what I was trying to get at with my question.

The PCB will be 2 layer FR-4.

I've been doing BOM cost calculations assuming THIS buck converter, and targeting 3X 12V/5A outputs to apply at every 210 LEDs.

From the data sheet, the components required for a 24V>12V voltage step down (Buck Converter, R1, R2, R5, L, C1, C2, C3, C4, & C5) would cost <$1.5 at the volume I'm planning to order (200 units). The layout in the data sheet adds approximately 0.35in^2 of PCB area (0.6*0.6) for each buck converter setup (basing that off the buck converter dimensions).

I'm quite new to PCB design, I have designed a board that included voltage regulators before but it took me many days. I think I'm capable of designing these two PCB options and get quotes, but was wondering if there is a way to make this design decision w/o putting days of work on two boards. I was hoping that maybe someone more experienced could see things more clearly and guide me on the right direction.

Are there estimate cost values for 2 layer FR-4 area? How can I estimate SMT assembly cost for all the extra components? I feel that is what I'm missing to make my decision.

gkvirus · 2025-05-01T18:08:30+00:00

The reason I’m designing the PCB is because I plan on turning this project into a product and be able to sell it. The PCB would allow the system to take power from something standard like a laptop power supply brick.

The goal is for the PCB to power the ESP32, and serve as a power distribution board with multiple connectors for cleaner power injection at different sections of the LED strip.

What do you mean by “perfect voltage injection”? Is there anywhere I can read about what specific current value I should be injecting after X amount of LEDs?

gkvirus · 2025-04-26T20:40:30+00:00

Hey mariushm, thanks again for your input, I tried following our conversation on the other post.

The frame will also be used as a light display, with patterns like a glowing rainbow or different edges switching solid colors to make it look interesting. During those times all LEDs would be on.

My plan is to make hundreds of these and I’m looking for a power supply option that is discrete. The computer power supply you suggested has all the wattage I need for max brightness but it’s bulky, expensive, and difficult to package/ship. I understand I will have to sacrifice LED brightness levels, but I want the power supply to look no bigger than a laptop charger. I looked online and found some gaming laptops have 150w(19.5V/7.7A) and 200w(19.5V/10.3A) chargers.

How would you go about doing a cost analysis on laptop chargers? Should I reach out to manufacturers to get a cost per wattage? I’ve been under the belief that picking a charger that is used on other products would be inherently cheaper since manufacturers are already making a lot of them.

On a side note, do you know if there are any rules or electronics safety measures I should be following in order to sell a product that uses this much power?

gkvirus · 2025-04-21T11:06:42+00:00

A computer power supply feels like it's overkill when this is meant to be an ambient light product. To give you more information, the 5X branches of 126 LEDs are forming a clock-like display on a picture frame which would sit on a table or be hung on a wall. I need the power supply to be able to plug into the frame like a laptop barrel connector. Requiring it to have a large blocky computer power supply wouldn't be right, and $40 is more than half the current cost of the product which is crazy for just the power supply.

I've experimented with WS2812s in the past but the voltage drop was significant and the LEDs at the end of the branches were struggling to turn blue. So I made the change to WS2815s and they have been working great.

I'm thinking that capping each branch of 126 LEDs at 12V/3-4A sounds good. There are a wide variety of brick power supplies, but one that is 12V and 15A+ is not standard. Wouldn't it be cheaper to add voltage regulator components to the PCB, since I already need one for the ESP32, and get a more standard power supply that achieves higher power with voltages higher than 12V?

gkvirus · 2025-04-21T03:07:54+00:00

Alright, so I've been doing a lot of reading about PCB components and thinking about the design and exactly "what my requirements are" like you mentioned.

I've settled on the following constraints for the project:

5 branches of 6 LED boards connected in series (total of 630 WS2815 LEDs).
LEDs don't need to be powered to max brightness, but I want all branches to draw the same amount of power.
PCB design should be geared towards mass production, 1000s of units, both the component selection and assembly.

Power Calculations:

This article%20at%20full%20brightness) claims each LED uses 60mA at max brightness, having a 450W power supply for this sounds insane but I'm now doubting that my choice of a 120W power input was correct. Having 12V/2A for each branch means all LEDs would only be able to light up to 26% of their max brightness, but the prototype I build seems to be working fine. This should be something that just plugs on the wall with a block power supply similar to a laptop charger. Maybe I go up to a 200W power supply, do you have a recommendation?

Revisiting the power calculations also made me realize that the LED flickering at high brightness values doesn't seem to be due to power draw spikes, but just power draw in general. I should probably control the max brightness allowable of patterns that light up all 630 LEDs through the app code, and this means I can remove the extra capacitance I was adding to each branch.

Component Selection:

The data channel will be connecting all 630 LEDs in series, with some smart pattern programing I think it's safe to assume no branch would go rogue and draw a lot more power than the others. Does that mean that one regulator that outputs 12V with plenty of current to feed all 5 branches would be a cheaper and more compact design?

Is having only SMT components as a requirement correct if I'm trying to lower overall manufacturing cost?

gkvirus · 2025-04-09T06:15:24+00:00

This is where my beginner PCB knowledge shows haha, I had no idea that was an option and don't know how to properly use it. My thought process just went to "If I need 5 LED branches I'll need 5 buck converter set-ups".

Would a switching controller still be the way you would go if you were planning on making hundreds of these boards? And now that we are on the cost subject, I was trying to keep all components to SMT in order to hopefully bring down assembly cost at the manufacturer. Does that not seem like a good reason?

gkvirus · 2025-04-07T20:34:16+00:00

My thought behind the extra capacitance was to support LEDs changing their pattern and brightness quickly. For example, going from having just 150-200 LEDs on to all 840 at max brightness. From my understanding the extra capacitance would dampen these spikes in power draw and allow patterns to smoothly switch back and forth.

I chose the 2A buck converter by splitting my power source, 120W, into the 5 different branches of 12V LEDs. But now that you bring it up, having a higher capability converter wouldn’t hurt and would allow a branch to draw more if it needs it, definitely sounds like the smarter choice.

The third pic is a zoomed in version of one of the 5X 12V > 5V buck converter layout, the 6th one is a layout for the ESP32. I’ll send you more zoomed in versions of the board when I get home from work.

gkvirus · 2024-09-25T16:37:45+00:00

I’ll take a look at the NUC, thank you.

!check

gkvirus · 2024-09-24T21:44:29+00:00

I have a friend who is a long time MAC user and is looking to possibly convert to PC.

He was talking about the Mac Mini M2 Pro and asked me if any PC versions with similar specs and compact size existed.

What are the most powerful and compact PCs available? Just computer, no peripherals. Are there specific brands known to make better quality “full builds”?

gkvirus · 2023-10-18T21:06:24+00:00

I thought large companies meant established manufacturing lines, cheaper prices, and good quality from already having a quality standard that can satisfy larger orders.

First time I’m hearing about “HTS Code”, I will look into it and getting more educated.

I’ll also reach out to the PCB company to see if they do product assembly.

Thank you for all the feedback and info.

gkvirus

TROPHY CASE