LED strip where do i plug it into

zerg · 5 Aug 2011 at 23:00

Basically I bought a LED strip, that is 60CM long and has like 18 LEDs or something, I was wondering where do I plug in the 4 pin connector? It's not a molex, just a small 4 pin, can it be plugged in on the motherboard?

marc1024 · 5 Aug 2011 at 23:32

Is it like a 4 pin fan connector or a floppy drive connector?

getcarter · 6 Aug 2011 at 08:21

Yes you can plug it into the motherboard.

Tealc · 6 Aug 2011 at 09:52

Perhaps it's some of these jobbies?

Can't find a better picture without the company logo on top. It's basically 4 holes allowing male pins to be fitted. Much larger than header pins on fan connectors but much narrower than a molex pin.

They seem to be pretty universal for LED strips to allow daisy chaining of several LED strips. You can buy male to male connetors and solder some wires from a molex to them or chop the end off and solder the wires to a molex or something.

These LED strips are for auto use so will have different plugs to what we use in PCs.

I assume they have 4 pins for RGB LED usage. Common Anode, R, G, B Cathodes. For a 12v single colour strip you'd only be using two of the pins.

marc1024 · 6 Aug 2011 at 10:13

Iv never used LED strips, i always thought they where molex connectors.

Terminator1612 · 6 Aug 2011 at 12:33

marc1024 said:
Iv never used LED strips, i always thought they where molex connectors.

Likewise, I was under the assumption that the LED strips would have standard molex connectors, in the same way all the various cold cathode kits i've used did.

PhillyDee · 6 Aug 2011 at 12:36

I bought an LED strip which was neither! It was a round plug. Quick snip and crimped a molex on.

Tealc · 6 Aug 2011 at 13:18

The ones I've bought have had bare wires and I've bought a few, although they were all cheap. Just goes to show there isn't a standard fitting.

zerg · 6 Aug 2011 at 14:09

Tealc said:
Perhaps it's some of these jobbies?

Can't find a better picture without the company logo on top. It's basically 4 holes allowing male pins to be fitted. Much larger than header pins on fan connectors but much narrower than a molex pin.

They seem to be pretty universal for LED strips to allow daisy chaining of several LED strips. You can buy male to male connetors and solder some wires from a molex to them or chop the end off and solder the wires to a molex or something.

These LED strips are for auto use so will have different plugs to what we use in PCs.

I assume they have 4 pins for RGB LED usage. Common Anode, R, G, B Cathodes. For a 12v single colour strip you'd only be using two of the pins.

Aye, it looks similar to that, doesn't seem to plug into the fan connectors, or a molex. Could I buy a molex head, and solder that onto the wires? or is there a easier way to connect this up, also if I solder the wires must they be in a certain order?

PhillyDee · 6 Aug 2011 at 15:32

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Molex_female_connector.jpg

Yellowis 12v, black are both 0v (ground) and yellow is 5v.

Yes you can buy just the plug.

Tealc · 6 Aug 2011 at 16:47

You could grab one of these, or similar...(simply the cheapest on OcUK..£1.39)

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CB-037-OK&groupid=1929&catid=153&subcat=

Once you remove the SATA connector The Yellow and the Black will be the key wires to use from the Molex. From the LED strip connector you will need to determine which wires are the +12v and which is the ground. Black will usually be ground but you never know. If you connect it up wrong nothing bad will happen, it simply will just fail to light up as LEDs are like Diodes in that they prevent current from flowing in the reverse direction.

The connector pictured above in PhillyDee's post will be the wrong gender to connect up to your PSU by the way so don't get one of those.