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Thread: Variable Output 1

  1. #1
    Frequent Visitor MJNTWise's Avatar
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    Variable Output 1

    I Bought 2 reefbrite 50/50 led lights with the Controller That I plug into the Variable Output 0-10v...How do I do the dimming??? Lets say I want to lights to come on at 7am ramp up from 0 to 50% in the first 2 hrs and then start ramp down at 7 for 2 hrs...

    Thanks
    Matt

  2. #2
    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by MJNTWise View Post
    I Bought 2 reefbrite 50/50 led lights with the Controller That I plug into the Variable Output 0-10v...How do I do the dimming??? Lets say I want to lights to come on at 7am ramp up from 0 to 50% in the first 2 hrs and then start ramp down at 7 for 2 hrs...

    Thanks
    Matt
    Use the wizard for the variable speed outlet it's plugged into and just draw the intensities you want at each time on the graph.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

  3. #3
    Frequent Visitor MJNTWise's Avatar
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    Thanks....

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    Frequent Visitor MJNTWise's Avatar
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    Is there a code I can write to increase the intensity by 5% a week until 100%???

    Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

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    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by MJNTWise View Post
    Is there a code I can write to increase the intensity by 5% a week until 100%???

    Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
    Nope.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

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    I am trying this same thing but my light won't come on. I have the Reef Bright strip plugged into the Reef Bright dimming module and then the dimming module is plugged into the V1/V2 outlet. I have the V1 outlet programmed on the graph. And I have the power outlet that the Reefbright is plugged into set to ON. But the lights won't come on. What am I missing?

    Thanks!

  7. #7
    Frequent Visitor MJNTWise's Avatar
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    You need to copy v1 to v2. For some reason they are tied together...

    Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

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    Quote Originally Posted by MJNTWise View Post
    You need to copy v1 to v2. For some reason they are tied together...

    Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk
    Thanks but that doesn't seem to be working. Here is what I have at the moment...

    1. Power outlet is simply turned on.
    2. V1 & V2 are programmed about the same with the graph interface.
    3. Light dimming module is plugged into V1/V2 outlet. (looks like an ethernet outlet.)
    4. I have confirmed that if I bypass the dimming module, the light works. And the dimming module is new.

    Any idea what else I could be missing? Do I need to use profiles? Do I need to somehow link the variable outlet to the the power outlet?

    Thanks

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    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Patrick Cox View Post
    I am trying this same thing but my light won't come on. I have the Reef Bright strip plugged into the Reef Bright dimming module and then the dimming module is plugged into the V1/V2 outlet. I have the V1 outlet programmed on the graph. And I have the power outlet that the Reefbright is plugged into set to ON. But the lights won't come on. What am I missing?

    Thanks!
    You probably made a wiring error. If you post good pics, we can probably figure out where you went wrong.

    You might be an engineer if...You have no life and can prove it mathematically.

  10. #10
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by MJNTWise View Post
    You need to copy v1 to v2. For some reason they are tied together...
    VarSpd outputs are not tied together; they are fully independently controllable.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

  11. #11
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by zombie View Post
    You probably made a wiring error.
    The ReefBright driver has the 0-10v cable hard wired - a CAT5 cable comes out of the case, and is terminated w/ an RJ45 already.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

  12. #12
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Patrick Cox View Post
    1. Power outlet is simply turned on.
    2. V1 & V2 are programmed about the same with the graph interface.
    3. Light dimming module is plugged into V1/V2 outlet. (looks like an ethernet outlet.)
    4. I have confirmed that if I bypass the dimming module, the light works. And the dimming module is new.

    Any idea what else I could be missing? Do I need to use profiles? Do I need to somehow link the variable outlet to the the power outlet?

    Thanks
    1, 2, 3 are good
    4. is unclear to me... what exactly do you mean by "bypass". Not sure which Reefbrite fixture you have, but w/ the XHO models, the lights come on at full intensity if the dimming control cable is not connected. Is that what you mean by "Bypass" - that you disconnected the cable and the LEDS came on?

    Profiles will not help here. Since you have the outlet supplying power to the lights ON, there's no need to link the variable and EB outputs together, at least not at this point. Later, after you get normal functionality, you'll want to do that because the ReefBrites only dim down to about 7% intensity; the LEDs do not shut off below that, even if the dimming control is less than 7% or at 0%. This is the way the XHOs work; I am assuming that the Techs and Lumi Lights work the same, since they use the same dimmable drivers.

    What happens if you manually turn ON and OFF VarSpd1? What happens if you manually turn on and OFF VarSpd2?
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by RussM View Post
    1, 2, 3 are good
    4. is unclear to me... what exactly do you mean by "bypass". Not sure which Reefbrite fixture you have, but w/ the XHO models, the lights come on at full intensity if the dimming control cable is not connected. Is that what you mean by "Bypass" - that you disconnected the cable and the LEDS came on?

    Profiles will not help here. Since you have the outlet supplying power to the lights ON, there's no need to link the variable and EB outputs together, at least not at this point. Later, after you get normal functionality, you'll want to do that because the ReefBrites only dim down to about 7% intensity; the LEDs do not shut off below that, even if the dimming control is less than 7% or at 0%. This is the way the XHOs work; I am assuming that the Techs and Lumi Lights work the same, since they use the same dimmable drivers.

    What happens if you manually turn ON and OFF VarSpd1? What happens if you manually turn on and OFF VarSpd2?
    Ok, your last question helped. I didn't realize I had to turn the Variable outlets "On" or "Auto" on the dashboard. That was the issue. They are all turned "OFF". However another thing that is odd, when I turn Var1 On, nothing happens, but when I turn Var2 On, the light comes on. Not sure why that is but I will just use Var 2. So I will try to program it and see how that works tonight. This is mainly a night time strip that I want to run a less than 100% intensity.

    Thanks!

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    Quote Originally Posted by RussM View Post
    1, 2, 3 are good
    4. is unclear to me... what exactly do you mean by "bypass". Not sure which Reefbrite fixture you have, but w/ the XHO models, the lights come on at full intensity if the dimming control cable is not connected. Is that what you mean by "Bypass" - that you disconnected the cable and the LEDS came on?

    Profiles will not help here. Since you have the outlet supplying power to the lights ON, there's no need to link the variable and EB outputs together, at least not at this point. Later, after you get normal functionality, you'll want to do that because the ReefBrites only dim down to about 7% intensity; the LEDs do not shut off below that, even if the dimming control is less than 7% or at 0%. This is the way the XHOs work; I am assuming that the Techs and Lumi Lights work the same, since they use the same dimmable drivers.

    What happens if you manually turn ON and OFF VarSpd1? What happens if you manually turn on and OFF VarSpd2?
    One more question Russ. You indicated above the the LEDs don't shut off but when I set a point on the graph to zero %, the lights look like they are off to me. Is that not correct? I do want the lights on only in the morning and the evening. Thanks.

  15. #15
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    The Reefbrite driver comes in two versions - a single channel and a dual channel. I’ve only worked with the dual channel variant in conjunction with XHO fixtures. If you have the dual channel, swap the lights to the other pigtail to see if control moves to VarSpd1. If you have the single-channel, my guess is that it is internally wired to use V2 or V4 only.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

  16. #16
    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Patrick Cox View Post
    One more question Russ. You indicated above the the LEDs don't shut off but when I set a point on the graph to zero %, the lights look like they are off to me. Is that not correct? I do want the lights on only in the morning and the evening. Thanks.
    As I said, the 7% minimum dimming was for XHOs. Other RB fixtures may be different. Check in darkness - on a XHO fixture, 7% was fairly dim - barely a glow IIRC. I could possibly be not remembering correctly though - it has been a couple of years since I last worked with any reefbrites. And they might have changed something in the driver since then too.
    Please do not send me PMs with technical questions or requesting assistance - use the forums for Apex help. PM me ONLY if the matter is of a private or personal nature. Thanks.

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