Technical Details

Power

The Lumazoid board requires a 5V DC power supply (available in our store). The power supply must be capable of supplying 2A of current when using the Lumazoid with 60 or 120 LEDs (for example, a 1m or 2m strip with 60 LEDs per meter). The Lumazoid firmware is carefully designed to draw less than 2A of current when used with 60 or 120 LEDs. If you use the Lumazoid with a 180 LED strip, you will require a supply that can deliver at least 3A of current, but you probably already have such a power supply if you have that many LEDs. We only sell 2A power supplies at this time.

If you design and code your own visualizations for Lumazoid, make sure you consider the current requirements of your visualization.

LED Strip Compatibility

The Lumazoid is designed for WS2812 or WS2812B LED strips. These are readily available from many suppliers (including us) and are sometimes referred to as “NeoPixel” which is Adafruit’s branding for WS2812B strips. Sometimes LED strips are referred to as “WS2811” but the name WS2811 only refers to the driver chip and not the integrated chip+LED combo. If you have an LED strip that someone called “WS2811” and it has 3 wires (5V, ground, and data) then it should work.

The Lumazoid does NOT work with other types of LED strips based on different technology like APA102 and APA104 LEDs (for example, Adafruit “DotStar” strips). Lumazoid only works with 3-wire LED strips based on WS2812 or WS2812B technology.

IMPORTANT: When connecting the LED strip to the Lumazoid, carefully pay attention to the labels for the connections (GND, DOUT, 5V). The Lumazoid DOUT connects to the LED strip “DI” or “DIN” connection. Do not assume that the wire colors will match or that the order will match! The top-to-bottom ordering of connections on the Lumazoid board is GND, DOUT, 5V, and this order may be different on your LED strip. If you buy an LED strip from us, the order will match. If you buy a Lumazoid Bundle from us (Lumazoid board, power supply, LED strip) the board will have a wire harness that is compatible with the LED strip and you have nothing to worry about.

IMPORTANT: Always connect the LED strip before connecting power. Do not connect the LED strip to a powered board.