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Thread: VDM will not dim LEDs to 0 percent

  1. #1
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    VDM will not dim LEDs to 0 percent

    I recently purchased and installed a set of Dimmable T5s from BRS. Followed the instruction and allowed the bulbs to burn in for 50+ hours over a weeks time. Wired them up to VS3 using an old 50' ethernet cable I had in my junk cable box. Everyone has one of those right? White/Blue went to positive (dimming) and Green went to negative (control). The light ramps up and down as expected, but it will not go completely dark when reaching 0%. I do not currently have it hooked up to my eb832 so switching power off at turn off time isnt an option.

    My question is Do I have it wired correctly? Found several different wiring diagrams but very few showed plug orientation. ANyone have ideas on how to get them to shut completely down? Again I COULD plug it into an EB832 once the Apex is moved over from my old system to the new, but I would rather fix the problem and not put a band aid on it.

    If this question has been asked a hundred times before, I apologize. I searched but didnt feel like reading through a hundred forum questions with the generic title of "VDM help"

  2. #2
    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    Not all ethernet cables use the same colors. Snap a pic of the connector on both ends so we can see what color is connected to what pin. A pic of the driver would help too.

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    On the road right now so I cant snap a picture, but on the side I left with a rj45 colors go orange white,/orange/green white/ blue/blue white/green/ brown white/ brown. I am using the blue white and the green positions 5 and 6 as dimming hooked into vdm Port 3/4 using 3 for dimming. It dims as it's supposed to but doesn't completely shut off.

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    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    You used the right wires then. Does dimming shut off completely if you disconnect one of the dimming wires completely?

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    I will check that later. I know when I had the wires mixed up and the dimming and control on Brown wires which did not correlate to anything on a vdm no dimming or control occurred. Went that way because I had orientation of the plug mixed up I will try to disconnect one of the wires leading into the ballast when I get home. Would you suggest the dimming or the control wire?

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    Frequent Contributor zombie's Avatar
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    The dimming wire. If that has an effect, you can connect the dimming wire to the positive side of a diode and then connect the negative end (stripe) to the dimming connector. This effectively does the same thing as removing the dimming connector when the voltage is less than the diode bias voltage (typically 0.7V or about 7% intensity on the apex). Note this does have one drawback in that it will reduce the intensity at 100% by the diode bias voltage as well. This can be minimized with a schottky diode which is only 0.3V.

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    Master Control Freak RussM's Avatar
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    I would not necessarily expect them to shut off/dim to 0%. Dimmable T5 ballasts are usually intended for use in industrial/commercial lighting using building control systems, and many have a 1-10v range - they will only dim to 10%. The HEP brand ballast used in the kit is listed in one place on the manufacturer's web site as a 1-10v ballast, another place as a 0-10v, so it's hard to tell exactly what their behavior should be. However, in this thread, it is said that they do dim to 1%, but flicker at 0%: https://forum.neptunesystems.com/showthread.php?14347.

    The solution is to power the ballast through an EnergyBar outlet, and control the power to the ballast in coordination with your variable output's lighting schedule
    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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    Cycling power through eb832 is probably where I was going to eventually go with it. For now with the tank cycling there really is no reason to give it all the way down to 0%. So running a long Ethernet cable to existing Apex location it's working for now. If I need to go totally dark out I will just unplug it

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  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by zombie View Post
    The dimming wire. If that has an effect, you can connect the dimming wire to the positive side of a diode and then connect the negative end (stripe) to the dimming connector. This effectively does the same thing as removing the dimming connector when the voltage is less than the diode bias voltage (typically 0.7V or about 7% intensity on the apex). Note this does have one drawback in that it will reduce the intensity at 100% by the diode bias voltage as well. This can be minimized with a schottky diode which is only 0.3V.

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    *nods head knowingly and scratches chin*

    Yeah, I'll just power it down with an eb832

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