Ultra bright blue LEDs.

[Graham Doggett]

Whats with the recent obsession with putting ultra bright blue LEDs on everything ?
My most recent experience of this is my new Project Phonobox, which is a magic upgrade to my system by the way, but it has an incredibly bright blue LED.
It lights up the whole room !!!!!!
I mean its OK that I need to know it is turned on, but I don't think the neighbours need to know.
I fixed the little sucker though by carefully painting it with a black permanent marker, leaving just a tiny pinhole of light still visible.
Sorted.
Graham.:D:D:D

[eRaS]

I have the same problem with the Xindak DAC-5, but I'm thinking that bluetac might be a less reversible solution. Hard to relax to music when that thing is glaring at you, though...

[mycenius]

I have the same problem with the Xindak DAC-5, but I'm thinking that bluetac might be a less reversible solution. Hard to relax to music when that thing is glaring at you, though...

You might find PVA glue a good alternative, mix a small amount with a few drops of white or light gray acrylic paint (artist's or craft or model paint), then coat the whole LED using a small brush so it creates a partially opaque coating once dry to tone down the light and you can just 'peel it off' later if needed with tweezers or such - as the PVA won't adhere permanently to plastic or metal... If needed repeat the coats or add more acrylic paint to increase the opacity...

Don't use house paint (interior or exterior) or such as that may not be water soluble after drying so may affect the properties of the PVA...

[neil]

Or just put in a resistor to drop it down... but yes they are bloody bright. I had a pair of speakers a few years ago with active bass drivers and the blue leds on those literally lit up the room. You could almost read by the amount of light they put out.

[too_tall]

I hate leds. Except in torches. then I love them. I have a torch the size of your average 2AA cell torch, the head is about 40 - 50mm diameter, and I can spot possums, rabbits and wild cats at 200m - which is about the limit of what I can accurately shoot standing up anyway.

the Cree led lights are bloody amazing devices. If anyone is wanting something super bright, click on the Dealextreme advert Mr Jones has floating around on this site, and look up the cree T60.

[Ernie]

A tiny bit of duct tape. Easy and reversible. Not so cosmetic.

[Owen Young]

Never had blue LEDs myself but these things usually have a R in series to set the voltage/current. As Neil says, replace it with a bigger R or put a R across the legs of the LED...if you have soldering skills.

In fact, looking at the inside of the Phono Box SE, you could just bend the offending blue sucker back from the hole if you want... ;)
6948
(PS. I think this is an earlier Phono Box model but the LED mounting looks similar.)

[Antipodes]

Some of those blue LEDs need a lot of resistance to bring the light intensity down and there is a narrow range between where I like them and turning it off, so I usually just put a 200-500kohm pot in there. Not much soldering skill required.

[horn-loaded]

My music server (Silverstone mini-ITX case) had two annoying blue LEDs.
I ended up blu-tacking a piece of black cardboard over both, totalling masking the HDD activity light, with just a pinprick over the power LED so there is some indication the server's powered on (although the attached 17" LCD display usually makes that fact rather obvious)!

[wizard]

Blue LEDS are more expensive than red.
Shows no expense spared if you have blue LEDS.
Blue means expensive and quality.

[Owen Young]

Oh that'd be why they're fitted to all China-made hifi ;)

[Luis]

It could be that hi-fi manufacturers are being pro-active in preventing suicides http://suicidepreventioncommunity.wordpress.com/2009/11/11/blue-lights-suicide-prevention-or-marketing-ploy/
I wonder if a study has been done to compare suicide rates of audiophiles who have gear with blue lights vs those who don't?

[Graham Doggett]

Blue LEDS are more expensive than red.
Shows no expense spared if you have blue LEDS.
Blue means expensive and quality.

Oh dear, does that mean I should scratch the black paint off again ?
I don't want to give the impresion that I'm just a common peasant.!!
Graham.:D:D:D:D

[Newbie]

Oi! I like blue lights (even the blue light in my fridge sealed the deal).

With the house lights off, it provides just enough background mood lighting so as not be weird sitting in total darkness.

Must swap out that odd red LED in the preamp - just looks weird amongst all the blue ones :)

[wizard]

Grin and bare it Graham. Any alterations will void the manufacturers warranty on the new item. Unless Neil et al can do the resistor thing under warranty, just enjoy the music and sooth yourself in the blue hue or put a post it over the glow.

[Michael Wong]

Oh that'd be why they're fitted to all China-made hifi ;)

Haha

There's blue and there's BLUE.

The former are the classy subdued tones on a classic Krell or Plinius.

The latter is the tasteless, over-bright floodlights fitted to less exalted brands...

[fisher X 100 A]

I need a blue light on my Rega TT. Left it spinning for 4 hours last night again:o

[omegaspeedy]

Good on you fx110a:) Must have been a good night! Not a bad idea though with an LED run off the power switch.

[chopper]

The thing is unless the unit is in your bedroom does it even really matter? They use hardly any power.
I've got a Project Dockbox so I know how bright they are.
Think of them as a nightlite that does good audio.

[cloth_ears]

I need a blue light on my Rega TT. Left it spinning for 4 hours last night again:o

Have you thought of putting a mains timer switch on it?

Or better still something with a delinquency switch that you need to press at least once every 30 minutes to keep it going.

Hmmmmmmmmmmm.......... I wonder if there'd be a market for such a thing?

[bluedog]

When i see the 6 red LEDs on my amp going it really does not bother me at that stage generally to much red liquid has been consumed :p

[too_tall]

I dislike any lights when I am listening. I have a limited amount of sensory processing time available. Music always sounds best when my eyes have nothing to do at all.

Little dull red leds are preferred in my system. That, or a black blanket over things which dont get hot ( my amps are all in a different room )

[fisher X 100 A]

Have you thought of putting a mains timer switch on it?

was thinking to put a 600 amp contactor (because the fisher is that good hehe) on a dedicated mains spur.........switch the contactor from a location near the set up.......... switch controls the whole lot?

[itwasonly$60luv]

With no lights on and dusk approaching, my mostly valve system looks like a small village at night, possibly in another world or dimention, and the bright blue speaker lights on my hybrids become transports flying to the village, and ..............I really need to stop drinking.

[johnnyC]

How do I get my KT90 valves to glow blue then ? :rolleyes:

[moby]

How do I get my KT90 valves to glow blue then ? :rolleyes:
A little bit of air will do the trick - they will be no good for amplifying but they will look pretty.
Retina burning blue leds are an offshoot of the striving for efficiency in LEDs for lighting purposes (after all a white LED is just a blue/UV LED with a dot of phosphor on front of the dice). Blue leds are no longer the luxury item they once were (I remember buying one from Active Components many years ago - it cost over $10 and was really dim - now they are 1000s of times the brightness and cost a few cents). Built a bargraph style VU meter a couple of years ago for a display using elcheapo Chinese blue LEDS and this thing had you seeing yellow spots before your eyes for ages afterwards.

[Owen Young]

It common for big power tubes to have a blue glow, sometimes called 'fluorescence':
6962

From "Sylvania Engineering Data Service", vol. 1, pg 23 (1960?):

BLUE GLOWS

Blue Glows are not tube detriments per se. They are, however, suspects in the eyes of many receiving tube users for lack of a full understanding of their origins. There are several types of Blue Glow which can be described as follows:

FLUORESCENCE-this type of glow is usually violet in color and most noticeable around the inside surface of the glass bulb. It is most pronounced on power tubes and is the product of electron bombardment of the glass taking place within the tube. It generally has no adverse affect upon receiver performance, and in fact, tubes displaying this phenomenon are particularily good with respect to gas content.

GAS-produces a blue haze, generally confined to the vicinity of the mount structure. The proper function of gas types such as thyratrons, voltage regulator and voltage reference tubes, requires the presence of this glow as an indication of proper tube operation. Some voltage regulators use neon instead of argon and as a result exhibit a pink-orange glow. It is, however, a distinct detriment in vacuum receiving types, where the presence of gas in large amounts can cause malfunction of the equipment.

[beeman]

yep my 16 x KT88s have that 'fluorescence' very pretty :D

[TonyD]

yep my 16 x KT88s have that 'fluorescence' very pretty :D

.... would be even prettier with blue glass (http://www.tubedepot.com/jj-kt88b.html)

[Owen Young]

Sorry chaps, only one name can be synonymous with blue tubes...Arcturus (http://www.bill01a.com/articles/arcturus-a.htm).

[beeman]

have had a couple of those - they come in the most beautiful tube box I have seen

[Gary.M]

Leds/Lights/ In all of the PureAudio products they go OUT when the music is playing.

[Alistair W]

Nicely done, Gary.

How about "Quality is inversely proportional to Features"



Leds/Lights/ In all of the PureAudio products they go OUT when the music is playing.

[Owen Young]

Leds/Lights/ In all of the PureAudio products they go OUT when the music is playing.In that case make them BRIGHT neons that wake you up at the end of the record :D

[Gary.M]

Or strobes?

[Michael Wong]

Or message in run-out groove a la Sgt Pepper ?

WAKE UP WAKE UP STYLUS IN DANGER

[lac]

Im not sure with these devices/circuit boards but I know back in the day at school/tech when i needed to dim a LED or light all i did was use a variable resister as such
http://www.kpsec.freeuk.com/components/vres.htm

So i would assume just taking one end of the led out from the circuit board, attact the LED to the Resistor and the other end back to the spot the LED was taken off the Circuit board. In this way you can adjust the light intensity.

Would that work in these devices? In theory it should....

[got tinnitus]

I need a blue light on my Rega TT. Left it spinning for 4 hours last night again:o

I used to do this a lot so I stuck a small piece of white tape to the edge of the glass platter.
So at a glance from across the room I can see if I've left it running...

[Newbie]

Nice idea, GT.

I hate it when I find the TT still rotating the following morning. In the old days, I used to hear the run out groove going "thunk thunk thunk" but now-a-days the grooves are so silent!

Once found the RCM still going on its scrub cycle one morning...I may be imagining it but the record now seems to sound duller than I remember it, clean but dull.

I want to hook up some blue LEDs to shine through my acrylic platter (saw it on some youtube video and it looked brilliant!). I have a Shanling CD player that has a perspex lid that lights up blue too. Oh, and a head amp with blue LEDs to light up the tubes a nice blue colour...

I LOVE Blue LEDs :) :D :o

[Newbie]

Haha

There's blue and there's BLUE.

The former are the classy subdued tones on a classic Krell or Plinius.

The latter is the tasteless, over-bright floodlights fitted to less exalted brands...

Cambridge Azur CD player and 640phono have a small discrete blue LED.

In comparison, the Plinius 8150 has a large and NOT discrete blue LED, but maybe the 8150 isn't a classic! :-)