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Updated: 11/30/02 Email
the Webmonkey
 If
you like eye candy...
... then you should check out the Sauce
line of colored light gadgets from Color
Kinetics. I first learned about this company while I was browsing
the LED Museum--a
must-see for gadget lovers. After a little searching, I found a discounted
Sauce Lightwand
at Target for $7.
Since I recently upgraded my PC's case to a Chenming model with a big
window, I thought a gadget like the Lightwand might make for a good
interior illumination effect. So, I ripped it open and wired it up to
my PC's power supply, because I didn't want to keep feeding it AA batteries.
In short, it works pretty well. The effects are very good, though the
light isn't as bright as I would like. The Lightwand only has 3 LEDs after
all... and they are not as high power as something like this Laser
LED unit. But I am now highly motivated to try this mod with a Sauce
Lightwasher
or one of their other bigger products... Must have more light!
Jump down to pictures and movies
Inside the Lightwand
Once you unscrew the case (which will require a very
small Phillips) you can easily remove the two circuit boards. Each is
about the size of a quarter. The product's many display modes are controlled
by one momentary pushbutton switch.
The power stage takes 1.5V from one AA battery and bumps
it up to 3.5V. About 60mA is drawn from the battery. I didn't check the
current drawn by the lighting stage... if one was motivated to do so,
one could probably snip off the power stage and power the lighting PCB
directly. But I was lazy so I didn't check the current draw for the second
stage...
Wiring it up to the computer power supply
I used the computer's 5V power supply to power the Lightwand.
Knowing the current drawn was 60mA, I calculated that a resistor on the
order of 60 ohms should give me the right voltage drop. I found one around
70 ohms and called it close enough.
I scrounged some more wire and extended the power lines,
then used electrical tape to cover up the bare metal.
 To
prepare it for mounting in my computer case, I also did the following:
Ran another long pair
of wires to the switch on the Lightwand's circuit board--can't be cracking
the case every time I want to push the button, right?
Mounted my own
pushbutton switch in a 3.5" bay faceplate
Used hot glue to stick
the two round PCBs together, back to back
Put some double-sided
tape on the thing so I could stick it somewhere inside the case.
(BTW: I know I need black-faced components... one thing
at a time.)
With that all done, it was time to place
the light and take some pictures!
And movies of the device in operation...
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LED cluster going through color washes
QuickTime,
1.4MB
(Nikon 990 movie)
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Interior of case, multiple lighting modes shown
QuickTime,
4 MB
(Canon ZR-40 & iMovie 2)
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Things to keep in mind
If the computer is in subdued lighting like a typical computer room,
the effect is subtle but still very noticeable. In a brightly lit room
it is hard to see. Clearly more LEDs are needed! MORE!
It is best to conceal the LEDs from direct sight to avoid glare--the
effect is much better when the light is diffuse.
The Lightwand has an auto power off timer. To bypass it, press the
button (with the device off) and hold it until it lights up blue. You
will have to do this every time you power up your PC, unfortunately.
(I assume the AC-powered gadgets like the Lightwasher don't have this
feature.)
I'll be scrounging more Color Kinetics gear as soon as I
can, stay tuned for updates!
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