Any recommendations for a reasonable quality-for-the-price 5m light strip and what to look for when choosing? It's to install in the kids room semi-permanently for fun (ie. wont be used for room lighting or anything serious).
I've have had bad experiences with various ebay ones (individual colours die, crap adhesive) and good experience with an expensive one behind the TV…but on the surface they kinda all look/sound similar to me so hard to compare, and there are costs vary quite a bit.
Voltage kills them I found. If the power pack is above 12V shortens the life and colour
How can it get above the specified voltage? The power packs are constant voltage…
Depends on how good the brick is if that's what your using. Test it with a multi
I was using these which are adjustable I worked out they last longer just below 12V they do look better at 13V but don't expect them to last
Even the ones that have 3M adhesive don't seem to adhere for long. If you look at furniture with built in strip lighting then you'll find that they normally staple over the top - because they know that the adhesive won't last.
Other than that I can't say much, I've had the same 2m strip plugged in behind my monitor for about a year. I rarely change the colours or anything, but it continues to work after being on for 40 hours a week. It's just connected to the USB port on the monitor itself.
Regarding adhesive, clean the surface down with metho for one.
Two, ideally use a channel with extrusion.
Three if doing above, you can add dabs of hot glue at intervals to aid in long term hold.
"what to look for when choosing?"
I am not an expert on RGB LED strips, but I think you want 60 LED's per metre for the strip. 30 LED's per metre will have dark spots which means you can see each individual LED.
Plenty of videos on youtube that explain all kinds. Keep in mind there is the DIY type, which means you have to buy the LED strip, control box, power supply etc all separately and put it all together yourself. And there is the out of the box type which is much easier to setup and use and also comes with instructions and a easy to use app.
Here is the recent video I watched, guy does DIY strip builds but he reviewed this strip as currently the best plug and play strip.
https://youtu.be/XhMnKVqAIWw
60 chips is still pretty pixelated. Much more acceptable than 30… but not by much.
There is RGB cob strip now for dotless look but it’s still significantly more expensive than the run of the mill ones.
Yeah I just did a quick search to confirm what I knew was right. But turns out they make strips with up to 450 LED's a metre now??
I also forgot to say, 60 LED's per metre but with a good diffuser (another DIY part that gets tested and reviewed by reviewers).
I assume that plug and play kits come with diffuser included, or it's built into the strip.
Mirabella Genio RGB strips "just work" especially rate them with Google Home. recommended
Depends on Features & Functions you want, eg different effects &
Connectivity via Bluetooth, Over wifi or IR Remote.
Then there's adhesive, whether its 3M adhesive or Magnet etc