LED strip SMD 5050, its features and varieties

So, to emphasize certain elements of style and create a special atmosphere, he uses LED strip. It allows you to highlight and accentuate the most beautiful aspects of the design concept.

Many organizations produce different types of LED strips. However, the most popular are LED strips such as SMD-5050 and SMD-3528. Actually, we will consider the first of them in this article.

Features and scope

The uniqueness of this type of LED strip lies in the special production technology of SMD 5050. Today, SMD 5050 remains the only widely used compact LED for SMD mounting, in the housing of which there are 3 separately controllable light-emitting crystals, which allows you to obtain almost any color of light, as well as control it light using a special controller.

Most often, SMD 5050 LED strip is used as decorative lighting:

• to fill the room with rich blue, green or red light, as well as their shades;
• to create light and music effects;
• for advertising purposes and show business;
• as a New Year's decoration.

If you need to get bright white light, then it is better to glue a strip of powerful SMD 5730 LEDs in parallel with it.

Connecting 5050 LEDs

The connection is made using SMD technology, which means group soldering using a hot-air soldering station. When connecting power, the polarity of the LEDs must be taken into account. There is also a ban on connecting a tape without current limiters to a power source. Each chain of serial connections must be connected to a separate resistor.

How to solder correctly?

For soldering, you need to purchase smd5050 tape in Moscow, use a small soldering iron, which should heat up to 260 degrees. The soldering process for each point takes no more than five seconds. It is recommended to use medical tweezers as an “assistant”. Fast and high-quality soldering can be based on aluminum flux (tin-lead solder).

Execution options

LED strips assembled on SMD 5050 chips can be divided into 3 types: single-color, multi-color and addressable.

Single-color (monochrome) SMD 5050 tapes are assembled on the basis of three crystals emitting light of the same color. If you look closely at such a tape, you can see that at the cut points there are only 2 contacts for connecting “+” and “–”.

Multicolor or RGB tapes consist of chips with three crystals of different colors (Red, Green, Blue) and have 4 contact pads at the cut points. This allows the user to set any shade of light using an RGB controller.

The disadvantage of RGB strips is the low emission power when operating in white light mode. We managed to get rid of it by installing a white LED (RGBW strip) next to each RGB LED. Moreover, the white LEDs are controlled via a separate line. You can also find an option on sale where in the SMD 5050 case, in addition to RGB crystals, a white LED chip with separate control is mounted.

You can purchase RGB LED strip based on LED SMD 5050 in many online stores. The most worthy option is the online store www.giant4.ru, which has established itself as a seller of quality goods with a low price tag.

In the addressable LED strip under the SMD 5050 housing, an additional WS2812B PWM driver chip is installed with three emitting crystals. As a result, each addressable LED operates on an individual command, which it receives from a DMX controller or Arduino. Such an original solution greatly expands the capabilities of RGB LEDs, but requires the use of specialized equipment and software.

Types of LED strip smd 5050

The size and width of the LED strip are selected depending on your needs, but in addition to the standard parameters, you need to take into account that all strips of this format are divided into two main options:

• Multicolor (rgb tape 5050), which have different glow options, are controlled via a controller, which allows you to get different shades and colors;
• Monochromatic, which emit exclusively one color.

Single Color 5050 Diodes

The product consists of single-chip chips (LEDs). The color will correspond to the glow of the crystal used: green, red, blue, yellow. To obtain a white glow, a blue crystal coated with a phosphor is used. Since the phosphor quickly degrades, the brightness of the product quickly disappears. But, the 5050 rgb LED strip retains its original properties and characteristics for a significant amount of time, since the color is obtained through the use of RGB LEDs.

Multicolor LEDs 5050

This option is good because you can control the glow. Three different crystals are mounted into the chip - blue, green, red. Each crystal is powered separately, which makes it possible to change the unique proportions of color relationships and allows you to realize even the most daring creative ideas.

Which is better - multi-color or single-color?

Naturally, first of all, the size and width of the LED strip are determined, after which the nuances of color solutions are assessed depending on the goals set. The multi-color option is more practical in the lighting design of interiors, since with such a product you can create various special effects in color format. Where artistic design is not required, a single-color option is perfect (for example, interior lighting for shop windows).

How to control the colors of an rgb 5050 led strip?

To control the product, a specialized controller is used, as well as a remote control. There are various versions of such devices, but their set of functions is almost identical:

• Transition to different panoramas;
• Change color by frequency;
• Brightness adjustment;
• Selecting a permanent color (one).

The LED design option is considered one of the most interesting lighting design solutions, but it is worth remembering that only a competent choice of a high-quality strip will help you obtain the desired parameters of brightness and durability. Also keep in mind that the controller will respond exclusively to commands from the control panel that comes with it.

Main technical characteristics

To understand whether this type of LED strip is suitable for solving the tasks, you need to know its parameters. To do this, we suggest considering the main technical characteristics of the SMD 5050 LED strip.

Supply voltage

A significant part of LED strips are designed to operate from a 12 V DC network, which is due to several factors:

• +12 V is the standard used for many types of batteries, including automobile ones;
• +12 V allows you to power a group of 3 LEDs connected in series of any color with minimal losses on the limiting resistor;
• +12 V is the safest voltage for humans.

LED strip SMD 5050 for 12 V is the best option for designing lighting at home, because To connect it, you can use not only a ready-made power supply, but also a power supply from a computer or a battery from a UPS.

Also on sale you can find LED strips SMD 5050 for 24 V and 36 V, connected to the appropriate DC power supply, and powered from a 220 V AC network, connected via a diode rectifier. Models with such voltage are not very popular for various reasons, incl. due to the large cutting ratio. For SMD 5050 address tape, the supply voltage is 5 V.

Degree of protection against moisture and dust

An important parameter when choosing an LED strip is the degree of protection from external influences of solid objects and water (IPXX). This parameter cannot be neglected, because it affects the cost and ability of the product to withstand the negative influence of external factors during operation. As a rule, the outer shell of SMD 5050 LED strips has the following protection class:

1. IP20 – from solid objects with a diameter of more than 12.5 mm and does not prevent the ingress of water. This product does not have any coating and can only be used inside dry rooms (living rooms, bedrooms, offices).
2. IP33 – from solid objects with a diameter of more than 2.5 mm and from drops of water. In this case, the coating is made of a thin layer of varnish. In addition to dry rooms, the tape can be used to illuminate the kitchen, where there is a possibility of water droplets getting into it.
3. IP54 – with partial protection from dust and splashing water in the form of a silicone layer only on the elements side. As in the previous version, this tape is intended for interior decoration of kitchens and other rooms with temporarily high humidity.
4. IP65 – with full protection against dust and jets of water. In this case, the protective layer is a silicone coating on all sides. LED strip with IP above 65 is quite suitable for street lighting and bathrooms.
5. IP67 – withstands short-term exposure to water. Visually, it differs from products with IP65 in the type of shell (PVC profile and silicone on top). It is perfect for car and bicycle tuning.
6. IP68 – the highest degree of dust and moisture protection. This LED strip is placed inside a PVC tube and can withstand the effects of water under pressure for a long time without damage. Its scope of application is the decoration of pools and fountains.

LED Density

This parameter indicates the number of LEDs in one linear meter of strip and can take the following values: 30, 60, 120 and 240 pcs/m. The higher the installation density, the greater the luminous flux and power consumption of the SMD 5050 LED strip. To prevent degradation of the LEDs, the strip with a density of 120 and 240 LEDs per meter must be glued to an aluminum profile.

Sometimes instead of density (pcs/m.) on the reel you can see the inscription “quantity - 300 pcs.” This means that the manufacturer indicated the total number of LEDs in a strip 5 meters long. Accordingly, the density of such tape is standard – 60 pcs/m.

Light flow

For monochrome and RGB LED strips SMD 5050, the resulting luminous flux depends on the color of the glow. It is known that the human eye perceives green light best. Therefore, an RGB strip turned on in green light mode appears the brightest. Also, do not forget that the luminous flux of the Economy class LED strip is approximately 30% lower than that of the Premium class. Moreover, a significant difference in quality can be observed even among one manufacturer. For example:

• Foton SMD5050-30led/m-RGB-IP20-Econom – 180 lm;
• Foton SMD5050-30led/m-RGB-IP20-Premium – 270 lm.

The luminous flux of the SMD5050 white LED strip is affected by color temperature (hue). For an SMD 5050 chip with neutral light (4500-5500°K), the luminous flux of 18 lm is considered the norm; warm light (3000-4000°K) – 16 lm; cold light (6000-7500°K) – 20 lm. Multiplying these values ​​by the density, we get the total number of lumens emitted by one meter of LED strip.

What does color temperature affect?

Color temperature determines what shade of white we will see when the diodes glow. It is measured in Kelvin (K). There are three color groups: warm (below 3500K), neutral or daytime (3500-5300K) and cold (above 5300K). When choosing a glow color, we rely on the glow temperature declared by the manufacturer.

All four tapes have a cold glow, but again only sample 1 falls into the designated range. For the rest, we see underestimated declared indicators, i.e. in fact the tapes are colder. We assume that this was done on purpose: the colder the light of the tape, the higher its brightness appears.

Power calculation for choosing a power supply

The key to reliable operation of any LED strip is a properly selected power supply. You should choose a power supply for a single-color LED strip on SMD 5050 based on two parameters: output voltage and the power that it is capable of delivering to the load. The output voltage of the power supply must match the supply voltage of the LED strip. In most cases it is 12 V, less often 24 V. The power is calculated based on the length of the tape and its density. To facilitate calculations, there is a special table that shows the power consumption of 1 meter, taking into account the type of LEDs and installation density. Regarding the SMD 5050 tape, we have the following data:

• 30 led/m – 7.2 W;
• 60 led/m – 14.4 W;
• 120 led/m – 28.8 W;
• 240 led/m – 57.6 W.

Here the power values ​​are indicated for maximum brightness mode. This means that the RGB strip, operating in single color mode, will consume 3 times less energy, because Only 1 of 3 crystals will be used.

The power of the power supply is determined by the formula:

• P1m – power consumption of one meter, W;
• N – total length of all segments connected to the power supply, m;
• K – power reserve factor. Usually K=1.2.

To connect an RGB LED strip to an SMD 5050, in addition to the power supply, you will need an RGB controller. How to choose the right RGB controller, in what cases is a signal amplifier needed, and which connection diagram is better? Answers to these questions can be found in the article “Connecting RGB strips of different lengths.”

Reliable manufacturers

In addition to technical characteristics, one should not forget about quality. Especially if you are faced with the task of assembling suspended ceiling lighting. It is best to buy LED strip from brands such as Philips, Feron, Gauss. However, due to the high cost, their products are in little demand. In this regard, potential buyers are forced to choose from what the Russian market offers. Here you can trust SMD 5050 LED strips in the mid-price range from Navigator, JazzWay, Foton, Lumex, Giant4, Horoz Electric, Arlight.

A few words about products from AliExpress

Trying to save money, many potential buyers turn to AliExpress to search for cheap products. At the same time, they forget that this trading platform is a leader in the sale of low-quality products. And even numerous positive reviews do not guarantee the quality of the product and the integrity of the seller. Practice shows that due to gross violation of technology and the use of low-quality components, LED strips from China partially or completely fail in the first year of operation. Therefore, cheap LED strips from AliExpress are suitable only for making New Year’s decorations and other homemade items.