LED strips are now the new favorite in lighting design. Customers often ask what is LED pixel LED strip lights? Individually addressable LED pixel technology has revolutionized the field of lighting. Easily create stunning installations that showcase precise details and bring unforgettable immersive experiences to your audience. Let’s look at what an LED pixel light strip is and how it differ from normal LED strips.
What is a Pixel LED Strip?
An LED pixel strip (sometimes called a digital, addressable, smart, or intelligent LED strip) is a flexible circuit board. A pixel LED strip is an LED lighting product with unique features.
It is loaded with surface mount device (SMD) light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Pixel LED strip is available in reel form with an adhesive backing to facilitate quick and easy installation. It enables individual control of each LED pixel through an integrated control chip.
Unlike traditional RGB strips, each pixel can independently display different colors and brightness. This creates complex light effects such as flowing water, chasing, and gradients. It is also able to precisely control the color changes of each section of the strip or even each individual LED. Therefore, its application scenarios are more extensive, providing users with more personalized and dynamic lighting solutions.
On individually addressable digital LED pixel strips, each square SMD LED chip contains three (RGB) or four (RGBW) individual diodes, and each SMD chip is classified as a pixel.
Each of these pixels can produce any desired color combination independently of the other pixels in the chain. You can also adjust the brightness of each pixel (or selected groups) or even ignore certain pixels completely. So now there are almost limitless creative possibilities.
What is a Pixel in an LED Light Strip?
In LED light strips, a “pixel” refers to a light-emitting unit that can be controlled individually. Our usual understanding is that each lamp bead has a separate control IC. Each pixel usually comprises one or more LEDs and is equipped with a control chip. The control chip is responsible for receiving and processing input signals to adjust the color and brightness of each pixel.
Pixel density is an important parameter for measuring the performance of light strips, usually expressed in pixels per meter. Common pixel configurations include 30 pixels/meter, 60 pixels/meter, and 144 pixels/meter. Light strips with high pixel density can present more delicate images and animations, while low pixel density is more suitable for simple lighting effects.
This design gives pixel light strips greater flexibility, allowing them to present dynamically changing patterns and light effects, which is very suitable for occasions that require high-precision light and shadow effects.
How Do Pixel Light Strip Work?
We are all curious about how pixel LED strip lights work. Compared to regular LED light strips, pixel LED light strips are a bit more complicated. The working principle of pixel LED light strips mainly relies on the collaboration of control chips, signal transmission, and power supply. Here is its basic workflow:
- Signal input: The controller sends a digital signal to the light strip.
- Chip processing: The control chip of each pixel receives and decodes the signal to determine the color and brightness of the pixel.
- Power support: The required current is distributed through the circuit in the light strip to ensure the normal operation of all pixels.
- Light effect output: Each pixel emits light according to the chip instructions to form an overall dynamic light effect.
Now pixel LED strip supports protocols such as WS2812B, SK6812, or APA102, enable the light strip to accurately synchronize light effects and support more complex animation designs.
What is the Difference Between a Pixel LED Strip and Ordinary LED Strip?
There is a big difference between pixel LED and ordinary LED. How to choose them correctly depends mainly on your lighting application and requirements.
Pixel LED Strip Lights
Each LED lamp bead can be controlled individually, and each pixel is independently controlled. And it supports digital control protocol, the light effect is very surprising, and dynamic effects, complex animations, etc. can be made. The advantage of pixel LED lies in flexibility and programmability.
Ordinary LED Strip Lights
Ordinary LED light strip is a unified control of the entire light strip, single and irresponsible. It cannot be dynamically designed, fixed color or simple effect. There is no non-protocol or simple dimming. It is mainly used for atmosphere lights and basic lighting. Therefore, ordinary LED is more suitable for scenes with limited budgets and simpler requirements.
Are Pixel LED Strip Light Waterproof?
Like ordinary LED light strips, pixel LED light strips can be waterproof. You can choose according to your needs. Pixel LED light strips provide a variety of waterproof levels to adapt to different usage environments. Common waterproof levels include:
- IP20: Generally suitable for indoor use, without any waterproof function.
- IP65: The surface is coated with silicone or resin to prevent splashing, mainly used in humid indoor environments.
- IP67: Fully enclosed design, can be immersed in water for a short time, suitable for outdoor use.
- IP68: Completely waterproof, can be immersed for a long time, suitable for swimming pools and underwater decoration.
When choosing the waterproof level of pixel LED strip lights, you need to consider the specific requirements of the usage scenario. For example, indoor decoration can choose IP20 or IP65, while outdoor or underwater scenes require IP67 or IP68 products.
How to Control Pixel LED Strip Lights?
There are many ways to control pixel LED strips, which are different from ordinary LED strips. Here are some common methods:
- APP control: Connect to the mobile phone APP via Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to achieve more functions, such as partition control, music synchronization, etc.
- Remote control: Simply adjust the color and mode through the wireless remote control.
- Controller: Use independent controllers to support more complex effects, and some models support DMX protocol.
- Programming control: With the help of devices such as Arduino and Raspberry Pi, the light effect can be precisely customized through code.
Different control methods have their applicable scenarios, and users can choose the appropriate solution according to their needs.
Pixel LED strip 5V and 12V Comparison Instructions
When choosing Pixel LED light strips, 5V and 12V are two common voltage specifications. 12V systems are better suited for long distance pixel operation. You’ll be able to extend the reach of a 12V system to twice the range of a 5V system without sacrificing output quality.
So why would you choose a 5V system? Well, if power consumption is an important consideration. The power consumption of 12V tapes is generally higher than that of 5V reels. Here is a detailed comparison of the two:
Voltage difference
5V Pixel LED Light Strip: Generally suitable for short-distance installations. Because lower voltage means that the loss of current and voltage drop will be more significant when transmitting over long distances. Therefore, 5V light strips are not suitable for long-distance installation.
12V Pixel LED light strip: Compared with 5V light strips, 12V light strips have a higher voltage and are suitable for longer light strips because they can maintain better brightness stability and reduce voltage drops during long-distance transmission. If you need test 12V LED strip, pls read How to Test 12V LED Strip Lights?
Brightness and power
5V Pixel light strip: Due to the lower voltage, the brightness per unit power is usually lower. Best used for decorative or embellishment purposes.
12V Pixel light strip: Under the same power consumption, 12V light strip can provide higher brightness, so it is suitable for occasions that require stronger light or longer distance lighting.
Current and power consumption
5V Pixel light strip: The current is larger (because power is proportional to voltage), which means that 5V light strips may require thicker wires to avoid current loss and overheating. .
12V Pixel light strip: smaller current (under the same power, current is the reciprocal of voltage). For installations with thinner wires, especially in large-area LED strip installations, 12V strips are often more efficient.
Control method
5V Pixel light strip: 5V Pixel LED light strip is usually used in occasions that require fine control, such as pixel-by-pixel control through DMX512, SPI or other control protocols. It is suitable for display scenes that require complex dynamic effects.
12V Pixel light strip: Although 12V light strips can also support pixel-level control, due to the higher voltage, they are usually suitable for simpler control methods, or when they need to be installed over longer distances, using 12V light strips will have more advantages. .
Application scenarios
5V Pixel light strip: Mainly used for short display screens, advertising signs, home decoration and other occasions.
12V Pixel light strip: Suitable for decorative lighting in larger areas. Such as building facade, ceiling or long indoor lighting design.
Installation and wiring
5V Pixel light strip: Pay special attention to the voltage drop issue when wiring. We do not recommend short-distance installation. It is best not to install it over long distances.
12V Pixel light strip: Due to the higher voltage, there is less voltage drop problem when installed over long distances, so it has more advantages in large-scale installations.
Cost and Availability
5V Pixel light strip: Generally speaking, the price of 5V Pixel LED light strips will be slightly higher, especially in light strips with higher pixel density and requiring high-precision control, which may require higher technical and material support.
12V Pixel light strip: Because they are more widely used and have lower production costs, 12V light strips are relatively easy to find on the market, and the prices are usually more competitive. If you need choose 12V LED strip, pls check Pros and Cons of 12V LED lights
Conclusion
Choosing a 5V or 12V Pixel LED strip lights ultimately depends on your application requirements, installation environment, and budget. If a longer installation distance or higher brightness is required, a 12V light bar is usually a more suitable choice. For scenes that require delicate control and short-distance installation, a 5V light bar may be a better choice.
FAQs
A pixel LED strip is just like a normal LED strip, but it has individually addressable LED pixels. Each pixel can be controlled individually, allowing for dynamic lighting effects such as color changes, animations, and patterns.
Pixel LED strips use individually controlled RGB LEDs, which means each LED on the strip has its own microcontroller. Pixel strips are usually controlled via specialized controllers, such as DMX or SPI, which send signals to each LED’s microcontroller. This allows each LED to display a different color or brightness level independently.
A normal LED strip is not individually controllable, while a pixel LED strip is. A pixel LED strip has individually addressable LEDs that can be controlled individually, allowing for complex effects, animations, and patterns across the strip.
Yes, you can cut a pixel LED strip. Like regular LED strips, which also has cut points. You need to cut the pixel LED strips at specific points (usually between pixels) to ensure that each pixel continues to work properly after cutting.
There are only a few variants of pixel LED strips, mainly RGB, RGBW, RGBIC, etc. But RGB, RGBW and RGBIC pixel LED strips are more popular and have more uses. You can choose according to your own needs.