Light Emitting Border tutorial

[Skrogh]

Because the shell of the LED will then become diffuse, and instead of focusing the light, it will spread it. (At least to some degree)
Make sure to scratch the outside of the LED as much as possible, or use a diffuse one (you can get LEDs with a milky-white shell)

[StarGeezers]

  Anybody tried putting reflective material across the broad unseen areas to reflect/ focus the light to the edges??   Maybe just some tin foil ?

[CodeMonk]

  Anybody tried putting reflective material across the broad unseen areas to reflect/ focus the light to the edges??   Maybe just some tin foil ?

Yeah I tried.
Didn't do shit for me.
But then again, I only really tried it once and didn't put much effort into it.

[rockhorst]

I'm trying to get it to work for a wah shell...did some experimenting and it's kinda funny: you get the front and the back side of the border lit up pretty easily, even by a LED dead in the middle. But you hardly get any light from the sides. I guess it's got something to do with the corners.

[Gurner]

Because the shell of the LED will then become diffuse, and instead of focusing the light, it will spread it. (At least to some degree)
Make sure to scratch the outside of the LED as much as possible, or use a diffuse one (you can get LEDs with a milky-white shell)

For a typical high brightness 3mm/5mm led, the issue is that the LED lenses are manufactured in such a way as to narrow the beam into a very tight directional focus (from recollection something like a 15 degree angle), diffusing the lens by sanding it can only help a little (cos the lens underneath is still tightly focusing the light into a relatively fine pin prick).

Flat top leds have a wider angle of 'light spread' (but then again they look weaker...there's a reason high brightness leds look intensely bright!). SMD leds have about 120 degree of spread...but even then, thery're only going to be effective if you can physically mount the leds back from the acrylic border. (ie if you mount the leds at the edge of the acrylic, you'll still get more of a pin pricks of light vs diffused light)

[rockhorst]

Gurner makes my point...although comparison shows that sanding helps a bit. But I can't really get a good illumination of the sides and I have to really really push the blue LEDs, so I imagine they won't have a very long lifetime...

[toomanypies]

Hello, I stumbled upon this thread and it cast me back to my first build. Thought someone else might like to try this...LEDs under the knobs:

                                 >>>>>>    http://i1048.photobucket.com/albums/s366/billyblanks3/5ef9ce0e.jpg    <<<<<<

[deadastronaut]

^ more info on that?....

[toomanypies]

Sure. It uses the same sort of principle as the LED border. There are two clear plastic rings, each about half a mm thick, one under each knob, and the underside of each knob is lined with tin foil. I used two blue 3mm LEDs and each one is partly inserted (from inside the box) into a small hole (roughly 2mm) I drilled under each knob. I had to use mini pots, otherwise the holes would be visible outside the edges of the knobs. When powered, enough light makes it up through the hole to be reflected through the plastic, and by the tin foil. In reality the effect is more subtle than my camera suggests, not so OTT.

Great forum! I never thought I'd say this, but I now have Stompbox Fever  

[haveyouseenhim]

I'm making an orange squeezer at the moment and I'm definitely going to use a some acrylic i have left over from making this DOD OD 250. And maybe if i can find some clear knobs i could put some leds under them.





And this is a lil amp i made where the border flashes with the bass.

[deadastronaut]

@toomanypies:  cool cheers for that...and welcome!..

@mike:  that looks nuts...in a cool way...love the biohazard too....must've been a pig cutting that stuff though...

[haveyouseenhim]

^ Thanks. Here's the sister amp.

[deadastronaut]

nice!...

[toomanypies]

Thanks for the welcome deadastronaut. Here's a picture I managed to scrounge up:

[deadastronaut]

^ that looks great...

[haveyouseenhim]

I had some enclosures come in the mail today, so I'm working on the Orange Squeezer at the moment.

[haveyouseenhim]

The orange squeezer is coming along nicely.



Here's the decal I'm going to use.

[deadastronaut]

thats coming along nicely.....cool decal too.

thats some chunky perspex (in the UK we call it that) your using...

i used much thinner stuff as i didn't want to use/find longer screws etc...plus i like the sleek thin look of it...

cheesey vid alert...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfoSck073gU&feature=plcp

[haveyouseenhim]

I figure it will be alright being that thick. It's going to be the power indicator, so it's a good thing that it's thick. It's going to be super bright. I'm going to use 2 super bright white leds on it. The acrylic I'm using fluoresces when light hits it.

It's got its last clear coat drying right now, so I should have finished pics tomorrow or Sunday.

[haveyouseenhim]

I'ts done!!!!!!