RGB LED Strip Specs and Accessories

I'm having a hard time understanding the difference between the ColorSpace™ RGB Color Changing LED Strip Lights and FilmGrade™ FiveSpect 5-in-1 LED Strip Lights. I need the LED strips to create a light panel (25x27 in.) that can emit blue, red, green, and anything in between, but with high spectral specificity. I also need the lights to be able to switch from one wavelength to the other in approximately nanosecond timing (probably by the use of an Arduino controller). 

The primary difference between the ColorSpace RGB LED strip lights and the FiveSpect LED strip lights is that the FiveSpect includes two additional white channels - warm white (2700K) and daylight white (6500K).

​It sounds like the ColorSpace LED strip lights may be a better fit for you since you are not looking for any full-spectrum white light output. Do keep in mind that the red, green and blue wavelengths are fixed, and any kind of colors "in between" would be the result of color mixing rather than discrete monochromatic light output.

Below is our LED spectrum simulator which may assist in providing additional insights into how the LED channels would mix together to create various color outputs.

https://www.waveformlighting.com/led-spectrum-simulator/

We unfortunately do not have any data on the timing of the controls, but as solid-state semiconductors, we would expect the LEDs to be nearly instantaneous in terms of response time.

I was also wondering about the ColorSpace™ RGB Color Changing LED Strip Lights: What is the difference between the 12 V and 24 V options. Does this correlate to brightness output? 

From the website, I see that the max output brightness is 96W per 16.4 ft for both voltage options - if I mount these strips parallel over a 25x27 inch board, will they provide an intensity of at least 400 uW/cm2 on a surface that's within a foot of the panel? 

The difference between the 12v and 24v versions is mainly a preference question. Both offer the same amount of total power and brightness (the 24v has half the current but twice the voltage to equal the same total power as the12v).

Please see below for an article going over some of the differences as well as the advantages of the 24v:

https://www.waveformlighting.com/home-residential/advantages-of-a-24v-led-system-vs-12v

We unfortunately do not have any irradiance measurements for the LED strip lights so it's a bit difficult to convert our LED strip specifications to your irradiance requirements. If our UV LED strips are any indication, however, we have measured 228 µW/cm² from a distance of 12", so I do believe we are approximately in the ballpark given roughly similar efficiency levels of our RGB and UV LEDs.

Is there significant heat generation if the full 5 meters of LED strip are powered on at max brightness for extended periods of time (e.g. 12 hours)? If so, would it help dissipate the heat if the LED strips were mounted on a large aluminum heat sink? 

I'm considering using an optical diffuser to help equalize the irradiance of the LED strips - is there a recommended material to use that would minimize distorting the spectral composition of Red, Blue, and especially UV-A (365 nm) light? 

We don't expect any significant issues or temperature increases for the LED strip lights, even when operated for 12 hours straight. We have measured a typical temperature rise of 54 F (30 C) over ambient temperatures. In other words, for an LED strip in a typical room temperature environment of 75 F (24 C), you can expect the LED strip to reach a temperature of 129 F (54 C).

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An aluminum channel may assist in helping to dissipate this heat somewhat, but it is by no means necessary.

For the optical diffuser, the most commonly used material is polycarbonate. Unfortunately, polycarbonate and UV do not "mix" well due to the high absorbance factor of the UV material. As such, we would not recommend using the UV-A channel with any kind of diffuser if possible.

What is the minimum power supply capacity needed to power up 1) each individual color LED over the 16.4' strip at full power, and 2) all three LEDs over the 16.4' strip at full power? 

​We can confirm, however, that the power draw for the product is 96 watts for the entire reel for all colors combined. For each color individually, the power draw would be 32 watts for the entire reel.

We generally recommend using a power supply unit that has a capacity that is 20% higher than the power draw requirements. For all three colors, for example, we would recommend a capacity of at least 115 watts (96 watts x 120%).

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LED strip lights

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