NeoPixel Blade Plug?

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08-19-2019, 09:33 AM
JTP

NeoPixel Blade Plug?

Hello all,

So I've been very leisurely planning my next build over the past 2 years, just grabbing a few parts at a time, and I think I may need to change course now just because of how gorgeous NeoPixel is. Curse you Madcow and your beautiful IG posts!

I've got a fresh new CFv9 and CeX board that'll probably just have to chill in my electronics organizer for now while I grab a Prizm for this build.

One thing I've seen mentioned here, and on reddit a few times, is that the one drawback to a NP blade is the lack of an illuminated blade plug. To be honest, that is a bummer for me too as I have a lot of people at the office that love me to bring my builds in to play with (nobody parties like engineers, haha) and sometimes just letting them play with the plug in is easier than getting the blade put in for them. That and it's fun to be able to draw it off your belt and ignite it, even if you don't have the blade in :)

Now maybe I'm missing something, which is very likely as this will be my first Prizm/NP build, but what is holding someone back from using NP strips to make an illuminated plug?

Obviously I'll be trimming the NP strips as part of the build when making my blade the length I want, so is there anything stopping me from soldering up those scraps back to back, even if they're only going to be 2 LEDs long or so, and putting those in some leftover blade section?

I hope I'm typing this in a way that makes sense.

Basically, my idea is to make a NP blade that is only +/- 1.5" in length from my blade, foam and NP scraps. From there, I could take the copper portion of one of the plugs I like and find a way to fix it to the top of that mini blade.

Now I know in the config files you need to tell the board just how many LEDs are on your NP strips to function properly, so would using that mini plug/blade work, or would I confuse the board and end up putting a lot of work into a blade that won't illuminate?

My original idea was to use a stock blade plug and put the NP strips inside it, then attach the plug itself to the proper sized adapter, but I realize that the plugs may not have the proper ID to work with those adapters. that and the plug material itself may not diffuse the LEDs as nicely as a blade+foam setup. I'd have to try that after ordering the parts I suppose.

Has anyone tied either of these spit-ball ideas?
08-19-2019, 10:16 AM
JamoUp

You can use an illuminated plug. Erv uses one in the CFx demo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FK4-2X43lo&t=1035s
08-19-2019, 06:41 PM
JTP

Oh okay. Looks like a custom build for that plug. I see that it does use the NP blade-side PCB. Do you happen to know if he used either of the methods I described above? If not, what he used to make it?

I've seen one or two pre-made plugs for sale on etsy and similar sites but I would prefer to do it DIY if I could. Good learning experience.

Now unfortunately I'm left wondering if I should grab a Prizm now or wait for the CF-X. SHOOT! :)
08-20-2019, 05:43 AM
JamoUp

I'm not sure how he did it. But what you described, using the extra "scrap" bits for the plug should work. That is what i am doing.
08-20-2019, 06:25 AM
JTP

That's good to hear! I hope you post it somewhere in the forum here when you're done with it. I love seeing what people come up with when making custom plugs!
08-20-2019, 10:11 AM
Tom Tilmon

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTP

Oh okay. Looks like a custom build for that plug. I see that it does use the NP blade-side PCB. Do you happen to know if he used either of the methods I described above? If not, what he used to make it?

I've seen one or two pre-made plugs for sale on etsy and similar sites but I would prefer to do it DIY if I could. Good learning experience.

Now unfortunately I'm left wondering if I should grab a Prizm now or wait for the CF-X. SHOOT! :)

I make neopixel blade plugs using the blade end PCB on a blade plug. THen I use however many neopixels I can fit in there. You can use just one, but I find you get a better result by putting as many in as you can get. Normally, I have about 7 pixels. 3 coming up from the blade adapter inside the plug, one facing the blade end of the plug, then 3 pixels down the plug back towards the butt end. This allows fuller illumination of the sides of the blade plug as well, which is important for shine through, and also helps illuminate the blade plug more fully.

TOm
08-20-2019, 10:26 AM
JTP

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom Tilmon

I make neopixel blade plugs using the blade end PCB on a blade plug. THen I use however many neopixels I can fit in there. You can use just one, but I find you get a better result by putting as many in as you can get. Normally, I have about 7 pixels. 3 coming up from the blade adapter inside the plug, one facing the blade end of the plug, then 3 pixels down the plug back towards the butt end. This allows fuller illumination of the sides of the blade plug as well, which is important for shine through, and also helps illuminate the blade plug more fully.

TOm

That's interesting! So instead of using 2 NP strings back to back like you would inside a full blade, you use just one string and loop it back like an upside-down "U" inside the plug? And you can do that with a stock plug? Is that correct?
08-21-2019, 08:57 PM
Tom Tilmon

Quote:

Originally Posted by JTP

That's interesting! So instead of using 2 NP strings back to back like you would inside a full blade, you use just one string and loop it back like an upside-down "U" inside the plug? And you can do that with a stock plug? Is that correct?

Yep, that is precisely what I do. I have used them in TCSS graflex, MPP, and DV6 blade plugs. In a U, precisely as you perceived, leaving at least one pixel shining towards the blade, while the other pixels are lighting up the sides of the blade plug.

https://youtu.be/4zqQiamO1xg