Led In Dimmer Switch Diy
06-21-2007, 01:26 PM
#11
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Location: Boston
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Vehicle: 2006 Pontiac GTO
Hi,
Is there no way to make the LED dim with the rest of the dash lights? You mentioned that if you use the large terminal, the LED brightness would be opposite of what it should. But there are three ways of connecting that LED to two of the three terminals and you only mentioned two ways. Did you try the third one - i.e. negative LED on the variable terminal and positive LED on the +12v terminal?
I don't really know how the dimmer works, but if it is some kind of voltage divider and the third terminal is +0v to +12v depending on the wheel position, then the following would be true: for any setting, say 3v, you would have three terminals: GND, +12V, +3V. You can connect the LED between GND and +3V (which you did and it behaved the other way around), but you can also connect the LED between +3V and +12V, giving it 9V. This connection would behave opposite of the other one, and thus would be correct?
What do you think?
EDIT: I just tried it and it didn't work (the LED never lights up), however I did find something else. If you look on the other side of the board, there are five soldered joints where the wheel is, a row of two joints and a row of three joints. If you connect the LED positive to the joint in the middle of the three joints row and the LED negative to the negative terminal, I *believe* the LED will dim up and down correctly, although the brightness does not seem to be "linear" with the wheel (very dim most of the time, very short range from dim to bright). Probably not worth the trouble..
Is there no way to make the LED dim with the rest of the dash lights? You mentioned that if you use the large terminal, the LED brightness would be opposite of what it should. But there are three ways of connecting that LED to two of the three terminals and you only mentioned two ways. Did you try the third one - i.e. negative LED on the variable terminal and positive LED on the +12v terminal?
I don't really know how the dimmer works, but if it is some kind of voltage divider and the third terminal is +0v to +12v depending on the wheel position, then the following would be true: for any setting, say 3v, you would have three terminals: GND, +12V, +3V. You can connect the LED between GND and +3V (which you did and it behaved the other way around), but you can also connect the LED between +3V and +12V, giving it 9V. This connection would behave opposite of the other one, and thus would be correct?
What do you think?
EDIT: I just tried it and it didn't work (the LED never lights up), however I did find something else. If you look on the other side of the board, there are five soldered joints where the wheel is, a row of two joints and a row of three joints. If you connect the LED positive to the joint in the middle of the three joints row and the LED negative to the negative terminal, I *believe* the LED will dim up and down correctly, although the brightness does not seem to be "linear" with the wheel (very dim most of the time, very short range from dim to bright). Probably not worth the trouble..
06-21-2007, 02:23 PM
#12
Moderator
it's a floating ground on the green/black wire. The + is batt voltage, the - is adjusted. That's the problem some people have. Just hook it up like in the pictures and you'll be fine.