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Super Bright & Slim Pre-Wired Surface Mount 12V LED : 5050 SMD - Customer Questions

Frequently Asked Questions by Oznium Customers

If I'm running 12-15 of these wired in parallel off of a 12 volt wall converter. What size wire is suitable. 20 ga ? 18ga wire length from power source to lighting display will be approximately 15 ft
18 gauge would be better for the long of a run.
I believe cars can often output voltages greater than 14.5v. Will 14.6v kill these, or 15v?
Yes, that is correct. Higher voltages will reduce the life of the leds. You can add an inline fuse which helps to reduce the voltage. You can find that here: https://www.oznium.com/install-bay/self-tap-in-fuse-holder
I want to run 27 of these lights in a cabinet. How would I go about doing this? And I want a dimmer switch. Would one 12v power supply light all 27? So power > dimmer > leds
You can wire them together in parallel, hot to hot and ground to ground. One 2 amp power supply would work: https://www.oznium.com/power-adapters

For a dimmer switch you could use either of these:
https://www.oznium.com/switches/led-dimmer-knob
https://www.oznium.com/switches/mini-led-dimmer-knob Then you wire all the leds to the dimmer. If you need more assistance please let me know.
How can i power these lights i wanted to use them in a costume. Or what can i use to power them? what do i need to buy
I would suggest either of these battery holders: https://www.oznium.com/install-bay/12v-led-battery-holder

They would wire directly to the leds.
Is it safe to trim down what surrounds the led? - by Ryan
You could trim the black housing down a slight bit or you could use the 2835 which is half the size and the same brightness or this with no housing: https://www.oznium.com/prewired-5050-led
what is the maximum voltage of the 5050 SMD I can use them on. - by Walter
Max input: 12 - 14.5 vdc.

Of course if you want to run them on higher voltages such as 24v, 36v, etc, a different resistor can be used.
I would like to use these as side markers on my electric golf cart which runs on 48 volts but the head and tail lights are 12 volts. At the light switch when it's turned on is 16 volts and all of the other lights function with 16 volts. Can these 5050 SMD LEDs work at 16 volts ? Thanks - by Richard (The Villages,FL)
No, it will burn them out.
How would I use these in my home (120v power source)?
just wire them to an adapter: https://www.oznium.com/power-adapters/ac-adapter
Is 5050 brighter than 2835? - by Ike (Townsend, DE)
The 5050 is slightly brighter.
Have you tested weather or not these will hold up inside a projector housing in a headlight? i saw a previous question above asking the same thing. Just wanted to know if there is an update. would love to use these for a RGB Demon eye look. - by Jason
Sorry we haven't tested this yet.
I am hoping to use these (three: cool white, blue, and pink) as part of a costume. Besides the 23A battery holder & batteries, will I need any additional parts in order to install them? And with three LEDs pulling from the same battery, I assume the battery life would be ~20min, correct?
No other items are needed, 20-30 minutes.
I have mounted these under and stuck to the bottom of a Harley fuel tank, 3 on each side . The look fantastic but do you know if they will hold up in this location with the heat approx 200-250 degrees?. Thanks. - by Stephen (Bryantown, MD)
Not sure how long they will last with that high heat.
When connecting Multiple (4-12) Surface Mount LED's in Parallel,
do I only use the one Resistor in the first LED closest to the power source for all LED's Or do I use all the resistor that is supplied for each LED when wiring all in Parallel... - by Douglas
No extra resistors are needed, leds are prewired with resistors.
what is the length of the wire it comes with. - by Phill
The 5050 has a 40 inch wire
The 2835 has a 20 inch wire
When you use the RGB Million version with a compatible controller. Can you Cycle and stop on a specific colour and leave it as is so it is stored the next time you turn them on?

I want to use 3 of these in each headlight to light up my projector like a demon eye. I know you haven't tested the longevity when exposed to heat, but i will also be leaving a controller in each headlight. Can they withstand higher temperatures too? - by LiteAngels (London, UK)
They need a controller to change color. Controllers give you the capability to pick a color and remember that setting when turned off, different controllers have different control modes. The receivers are not waterproof or heat proof.
I bought the RGB Million with the controller. I am attempting to connect the wires, but i can't seem to get the 3 black wires to correctly match up with the 3 colored (blue, red, green) wires. All the colors don't show up (only about 6 at a time) although if i do a different combination of black wires to the colored wires, i can get other colors, so i know those work, i just can't get them all at once. I looked for a diagram of which colored wires to which black ones, but couldn't find one. Any help? Thanks. - by Bryan (Houston, Texas)
Try isolating the 3 black wires, or essentially hooking up only 1 at a time until you figure out which wire goes to which color.

So hook up the red wire from the LED to your 12v .

Then pick any of the 3 black wires, and tap it to your 12v- source. One of the colors on the LED will light up, and you'll just have discovered which color that wire activates. Continue with the other 2 black wires, and you'll have figured it all out.
Can these be used in 12v landscape lighting applications..and if so can you tell me how to wire them..?
Yes, you're certainly welcome to use them for that. There's just 2 wires to hook up to your 12v power source.
Where can I find the single Warm White SMD LEDs that match these? My OCD is killing me because I can't find them.. - by Ben (Oklahoma)
Not sure what you are trying to match to the surface mount, maybe these: https://www.oznium.com/led-bolts-prewired-leds/prewired-leds
what is the specific Wavelength of the UV LED - by Nicholas (United States)
400nm
Hi, want to use this type of item on my son cub scouts pinewood car, is there a led that can run off a watch battery or a AAA? - by Kyn
We have battery packs that the leds can run off of: https://www.oznium.com/install-bay/12v-led-battery-holder
I understand that the LED itself does not give off much heat, but does the resistor on the wire produce a lot of heat?
Yes
Hi I want to put these in a grill of a car has driving lights about 17 on each side will they hold up and how to wire them all together or in series parallel - by Arvin
They may or may not hold up, it depends how well you install them, and how exposed they are to the elements.
Wire in parallel.
Which is brighter, the prewired Superflux or the these (5050)?
Superflux is a bit brighter.
I bought these to use as a remote turn signal indicator. They burn continously and only blink when the turn signal is on. Can the be altered to only blink with the turn signals and be off the rest of the time? - by Cliff (Beaumont, TX)
If you wire them into your turn signals, they should go blink when the signal is on. If you have running lights, then they will be on when turned on as well.
If I switch the resistor out can I use this on a 24V DC system. What new resistor would I need? - by Davis (Orange, ca)
Sure, you could do that.
You could also wire 2 in series.

Or if you want to change the resistor, depends on the color of LED, but for white, blue, green colors:
We recommend a 270 Ohm resistor with a power rating of at least 3 W.
Hi. I would like to use these for a water feature. Will there be a version with 1' of flat ribbon cable, which would make them easier to conceal? Also, does the simple 9.95 controller you market work with these? Thank you (sorry for repeated query but browser glitched while I was typing this). - by Kurt (portland, OR)
We have no plans to make a version with 1 feet of flat ribbon cable, although if you can order at least about $2000 worth, we're happy to custom make them.

Yes, the Inline LED Controller will work great with these, and virtually any other 12 volt LED product.
can you make the the tiny prewire led work on 120vac? i need to buy about 10000 but so far i dont have any luck finding someone who can make it
Don't think there's a way to do that without using a converter of some sort.

Please explain your application, as maybe there's something else we can try.
Would 1 of these in warm white be bright enough to sufficiently illuminate one of those round paper lanterns often used for weddings etc? - by Mike (Boston, MA)
Not sure how big a paper lantern is, but probably. Maybe two would be needed to place it safe.
Im thinking on using these to replace a burnt out bulb in my home audio amp...the current bulb is 12-15 V and 110ma, and needs 2, can I use 2 of these?..will the built in resistor handle the volts and the ma? - by Shawn (jacksonville FL)
Yep should be fine. Go for it.
How would a person go about hooking one of theses to your 12v AC adaptors? Is that what the junction box is designed for? - by Ash
Run the positive wire to your power wire and then the negative wire to the ground on the AC adapter. The AC Adapter comes with a pig tail that you don't have to use. Just connect the wires with electrical tape, connectors or any way you want.
is there any way to get these to work from a 3V power source? or does it just mean that they wont be as bright? - by Dave (United Kingdom)
They will not be able to work on 3v, only 12v. They might turn on at 9v, but suited for 12.
I have a rare question which im sure hasn't been addressed.

First of all I would like to say I find these fantastic for the sheer power and size of the end product. however Im trying to match my original red interior button lights and one Surface Mount LED looks to be 2-3times brighter so my 1st question is if there is possibly a way to buy some of these at a less light output without a dimmer switch (as there is no real room behind my dashboard/head unit) and I would be willing to buy these at a more expensive price and 2nd question is if its possible to have the resisitor/black bulky part near the end of the wiring instead as I need the wiring to be as thin for as long as possible to wire it through my collapsible drink holder :)

Again I will be willing to buy these at a more expensive price knowing that it requires them to be built from scratch :D

Thanks again - by Sean (Chelmsford, United K)
Certainly possible to build the custom LEDs, but the economics would only make sense if you can order about 500 pieces or more.

I think you just need a handful, so how about you remove the resistor, and relocate it to the end of the wire. To dim, you could use a dimmer on the circuit somewhere, or use additional resistors.
Motorcycle "dummy" lights???? Can these be used like the 5mm led's for a custom motorcycle job? I want to wire them into the stock wiring harness to use as indicators for turn signals, check engine light, hazards, oil temp, water temp, high beam indicator,neutral indicator, and low fuel light. I already know your 5mm can be used for a project like this because a friend of mine did it. - by Michael (Maryland)
Yes, they can be used the same as the 5mm.
to add just four of theas to a new car with just one simple dimmer/ on off swithc ? I did not see a kit to make ordering simpler ? - by James (San Antonio)
Run the positives wires to your power source and ground the negative wires.
How bright are this lights? I am making led light bases for my glass art are they bright enough? - by Randy
For the different brightness levels of each color and LED, please refer to the lumen output on the Tech Info section
Are these bright enough to use for underneath lighting on a car frame? - by Brian
No, not really.
If i wanted to hook up multiple of these leds to the same switch how would I go about doing that? - by Joey (Chatsworth, CA)
Wire them in parallel after the switch. A fuse would be a good idea in between the power source and the switch.
Can you power these off the speaker wires? - by Napaj (Oakland, CA)
You can use speaker wire (or pretty much any copper wire) to transmit current from a 12V power source to the LEDs, but you shouldn't use speaker wires that are hooked up to your speakers/amplifier.
How much brighter is the warm white prewired surface mount than the prewired 5mm? Would the warm white be about as bright as a yellow superflux?
The Warm White Surface Mount LED is a lot brighter then the 5mm LED. The Warm White Surface mount is also brighter then the Yellow Superflux.
I know that the red is positive and black next to it is negative, what are the other two black wires for?

I tested them attaching the red to power and grounded the black...but they didn't change colors (I have the million)? Is this because I didn't include the other 2 black wires? If so, where do these black wires go so that the LED changes. - by Matt (Pittsburgh)
The million color / RGB LED has four wires: A common positive, and three for each negative (to the red, blue, and green part of the LED).

Since the LED doesn't change color by itself, you'll simply need to hook it up to an RGB LED controller. We have many styles to choose from: LED Controllers. And this Freedom Controller, specifically is a popular one.

Or if you're looking for an LED that changes color on its own without an external controller, you may consider these: RGB Color Changing LED
Would these lights be able to safely be powered by the positive and negative speaker wires of an amplified speaker? (subwoofer probably) The wattage to the subwoofer is 150 watts rms if that matters, and all I want to do is be able to wire the lights in so that they flash when the sub hits.
No. It doesn't make sense to wire LEDs to amplifier outputs. You'd need to use a music interface.
Is the resistor necessary if I am connecting these to your standard 12v adapter? In other words, can I cut the resistor off and wire directly from the flat ribbon attached to the LED? Is there a way to remove the bulky section of the wire?
You need the resistor to limit the current to the LED. If you remove the resistor and power the LED directly with 12v, it will burn out. You could always re-locate the resistor though.
I plan on having a few scattered throughout the interior of my car.. but I dont want to have to install a dimmer for EVERY LED i place, is there no other solution to dimming them?
Just in the same way you can easily use a single on/off switch to control an unlimited number of LEDs, you can also use a single dimmer to dim an unlimited number of LEDs.

Just place the dimmer at the beginning of the power wire, for example: Battery > Dimmer > LEDs
How can I add more wire to these lights? Can I buy regular wire?
You can add wire by using electrical tape, solder, or even butt connectors. Yes, you can buy regular wire.
I'm thinking of putting these in my headlights inside the projector housing. Would these stand up to the heat inside without falling off or dying? - by scott (Laredo, TX)
Great question. We haven't tested operating temperature ranges.
i have your 4 channel million color controller and still would like to get about 2 more but still waiting to see if they will be back, but anyway i want to use the controller with eather these or the rgb flex strips in a 4 channel pattern around the center console of my car is that possible?
Yes, it will work.
Are these RGB's common negative or common positive? - by Gary (Santa Clarita, CA)
The RGB style is Common Positive
can you tell me the dimensions of the light? - by Andy
3mm thick (height) and 10mm by 10mm (width/length)
what is the current draw of these bad boys? - by Taylor (Texas)
About 50 mA
So if i want to put these in the vents of my car all i have to do is stick them in there with the 3m Tape and run the positive wire to my battery or another positive source then ground the negative and im shining bright? - by Jake
Yes
If the system already has a low volt power source, would a resistor still make it go lower or does the resistor just bring any voltage down to a fixed, specific voltage?
A resistor does not bring any voltage down to a fixed specific voltage. There\'s more calculations you have to do. For example, what is the current draw? The power rating of the resistor is important too.

What exactly are you trying to do? If you are trying to dim something, why not use one of our LED dimmers?