CLRs - suggestions for diffused vs. waterclear, superbright, etc.

[Bret608]

Hi everyone,

I tried a diffused 5mm LED in a build for the first time recently, and I used the 4.7k for CLR that I've been using for Kingbright waterclear LEDs up to now. It seems like it's not quite bright enough.

So, in order to make this a learning experience (and realizing taste plays a role here), what are some good starting points for CLRs for particular kinds of LEDs?

Thanks!

Bret

[GermanCdn]

I use 2.2 k almost exclusively, although I don't think I could give a hard and fast rule on what to use for what type as it is really manufacturer dependant.  Point in case, the waterclears from Tayda are all over the map - a 2.2 k and the blue waterclear will actually hurt your eyes it's so bright, while the greens are dull in the same setup.  I've got greens from other Chinese suppliers that are blinding at 2.2k.

One thing I've seen on here and am going to try when I remember is is installing a 5 k trimpot on one of Josh's 3PDT boards.  That way you can tailor your LED brightness.

[wgc]

I start with 4.7k which seems good for diffused, but for the tayda 3mm waterclear blue even 10k leaves them pretty bright.   The 3mm waterclear orange seem happy around 2.2k.  Doesn't take too long to try a few values prior to installing, but thinking i might start to just pick one color and standardize.

[Bret608]

Thanks guys! I know what you mean, wgc...4.7k has been fine for me except for an "ultraviolet" from PPP and this yellow diffused I mentioned above. Thinking I may just stick with the ones where I know 4.7k works.

[Haberdasher]

yellow and green diffused are typically not very bright so definitely drop the clr value for those

[madbean]

For diffused you can go as low as 330R I find. That's pretty bright.

For water clear, I prefer really high CLR values...up to 22k even. I don't like getting my retinas burned out