Scud2 Posted September 26, 2016 Share Posted September 26, 2016 So I am slowly upgrading all my led christmas lights to the dumb rgb lights. I bought the kit in the spring sale from LOR and have 8 strands. My only question was what do I use for the extenstion. I see there are plenty of 4 prong wires. But what gauge? I will be going a max of like 25-30 feet. I was thinking 18 gauge. And on two of the extensions I wanted to have 2 strands connected. Is that possible? Or is that too much for one channel to have 2 stands? Thanks for the help. 2001 Mustang GT Vortech V3 Supercharged 402 HP 389 Torque Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Little_b Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 18 gauge should be fine. I use 16 myself. I also use Burial Speaker wire with 4 wires. Running 2 strips off one wire should be fine, but it is always better to check the power consumption (Amps) of the lights and the rating of the channel on the controller you are using. I don't know if you're using 12v or 5v, but I run 12v at about 30-40 feet from the controller. If you start getting much longer you will start to see some voltage drop, which will change the color at the end of the strip light, in which case you will need to start looking at power injection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scud2 Posted September 27, 2016 Author Share Posted September 27, 2016 Aweosme. 30 ft was prob an over estimate but I wanted to be safe just in case! Thanks for the help! Excited to get this year programmed! Setup will be the easy part as always! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. P Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 I use 18 ga wire and my farthest run is 75 feet with no issues on one strand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. P Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 I use 12v also (no edit button, this sucks) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zvacman Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 16 AWG 4 wire here, running 12 volts and trying to stay 25-30 feet away max. Z Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scud2 Posted September 27, 2016 Author Share Posted September 27, 2016 Awesome help guys! Thanks. Yeah hate the no edit lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sax Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 Dumb lights are very forgiving. I tested 18 gauge wire pre made extensions purchased from Ray out 150' no issues. 12v. I thought my longest run was 125' so I wanted to make sure I wouldn't have issues. Turns out it was only 100'. Smart lights or pixels 25' is pushing it. And I don't get dimly lit pixels at that distance. I get flashing or non working strips or pixel strings...the control signal is lost. Again 12v. 5v will be much much shorter distance. I do get fading or pixels that don't light when I make a strip or string too long. That requires power injection. But I opt for a new string or strip over power injection. My largest strip is 55 pixels no issues. 12v. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vince4xmas Posted September 27, 2016 Share Posted September 27, 2016 16ga for pixels 12ga for power 2016 Mustang Shelby Cobra GT350 530HP 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scud2 Posted September 28, 2016 Author Share Posted September 28, 2016 Nice signature!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now