Review: RGB LED IR Remote "Light Stick"



Recently, there was (one of many) awesome posts over at Cheesycam, where Emm talked about accent lighting created from running lights that go under cars and cheap, wireless $15 LED strips with an adhesive backing.  He mentions Steve Taylor's video that puts these lights inside a clamp light reflector for maximum effect.

When I got my set, I had a hard time getting the LED strip to stay inside of my reflector, possibly due to the smaller size. Instead, I wrapped them around a 3/4" PVC pipe where they held firm and were compatible with my PVC light stands (if you want to put them on a regular light stand try this). I like the various lighting effects that could be produced with these, though their use may be limited by the limited remote and strobing issue seen in the video.

If you want to use them in the field, there is the option of powering them from the inexpensive 12v batteries that I use on my external SD monitor. The connectors are the same as the provided power supply, making this an easy (and cheap) purchase.

 

Comments

Anonymous said…
Hey Scott,
Thanks for posting this!
Coincidence or not, I was working just 'till this week on something that something like this could be extremely useful for experimentation: Light Painting Photography!
At that price point I think I'll be getting one for future projects...
[]'s
Ryan said…
I don't this exact set but have used other versions in the past and if I am not mistaken, it looks like you can just cut the green wire in the harness between the control box and the LED strip and you should be able to remove the green LEDs to give you that "police look." There should be four wires: common ground, red V+, blue V+, and green V+.

Maybe solder in a switch that will allow you to reuse the green LEDs in a later production?
Ian Random said…
You might be able to hack it at the receiver and add switches for each color. So no matter the mode, it will only use the colors you want. Also I was noticing you could use it to simulate carnival light.
Scott Eggleston said…
Thanks for the switch idea, guys! It sounds like the perfect solution!
Unknown said…
Hi Scott,
I'm a recent subscriber to your channel and have learned a lot in a short period. To get the effects you want from the led strip lights, I believe you need the larger RGB 5050 LED light strips. Each RGB 5050 chip has 3-3825 led bulbs in it, a red, blue & green.
Color mixing happens within the 5050 chip giving a true color. I have a strip of 5050's with the same remote as you. I also have daylight white 5050 strips w/temp of 5800K, each led gives about 12 lumens.(No CRI Rating) I'm build led panels with these for a 5 point light set.
check the links below.
Education:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqN00B_1hOU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=haQvsrMCRko

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GiqjYW-3Hg8

Product:
5050 daylight strip
http://www.ebay.com/itm/330871797364?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_3138wt_1008

RGB 5050 strip with remote
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00ASHQQKI/ref=oh_details_o03_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1