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Blue Lian T-3 (pic)

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Ross

Senior Intel-lectual
Joined
May 20, 2002
I doubt I am the first to do it, but just in case...

bluet3.jpg


It's a swift PITA since the LEDs are so small. I used some from Mouser.com P/N 606-CMD-15-21UBC. They are rectangular instead of the half-round top as the originals are and have to be mounted literally on their side facing up. I also had to do a little rewiring since the stock circuit would only light up to 3 of them even with the resistor by-passed.

I thought it would've been easier to do when I originally ordered it, but I am glad it's finished :) Maybe Jameco or other electronics distributors have surface mount LEDs more in line with the originals in terms of specs and shape. In any case, a thin tip iron is definitely a plus on this job. I only had a standard size tip which is why you'll never see pics of the inside :D
 
The problem with blue LED is they take a higher voltage than other higher wavelength colors. Its just the way they work. So not much chance of finding a blue led that takes less voltage. Looks nice, however.

O, and you dont wanna see the inside of some of my projects either... :D
 
Wyrm--
That's no lie :) Even two blues in one side with the two stock greens in the other side, they light up, but are more dim. The left side was practice side. The right side came out great, but of course only 1 of them would light on the stock circuit. It took me a few solders/desolders to get them enough juice to light both. By the time I was done, the right side looked just as bad as the left :)

Digital--
Like $2.95 each and I would definitely suggest buying one or two extra as well as some needle nose pliers and a magnafying glass :) These would probably be great for the DD5 display mod, but you'd probably need 2 per side to make it as even and bright as possible and you may run into some re-wiring issues for enough juice unless the LED on each side is on a separate circuit that can receive the full 12V for 2 LEDs. It takes about 5V to light each to any worthwhile intensity and their forward voltage is only 5.5V. Honestly, I am suprised that 3 lit in series on my T3, but 4 is totally out of the question.

It would probably be more worthwhile to spend the cheese on the correct 1x9 (or whatever they are) LED size that is in there originally, but here are the specs...

Page 174 of the Mouser catalog:
blue_smd.jpg


Size-wise, they are truly dinky...little less than 1/8" long. I should've put a T1 3/4 LED in the pic for comparison, but you can see just how small they are in relation to the resistor on the right.

t3pcb.jpg
 
How much did those screens cost you? Where did you get them? I've been thinking about doing a similar project.
 
http://www.lian-li.com/product.php?action=viewPD&prdid=798

I got it at Newegg.com.

It's an OEM add-on from Lian. I just swapped the stock green LEDs with some blue ones. When I stopped to think the CompuNurse thingies are ~$15 for just one unlit LED/probe, I thought it was worth the $20. You could easily buy the Lian T3, cut the appropriate holes in a 3.5" cover from your case and screw/glue the PCB to it.

If your case is on the floor, installing them in the top would be sweet. They are impossible to see unless your rig is on the desk. That's just an LCD thing...if you don't look almost dead on, you aren't seeing anything except backlight :)

I thought about cutting a small window in the top of my case (moves from the desk to the floor often) and mounting the PCB inside the window facing up/forward at like a 45° angle.
 
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