DIY LED AC Display to monitor Energy Consumption(Voltmeter/Ammeter)

Smooth Operator · Wed Aug 23, 2017 8:30 pm

Hey Guys,

So for my future build, I'd like to have some sort of LED display to show me how much voltage or current my DIY lighting fixture is consuming when I'm dimming or increasing the light with the potentiometer. I'm not an engineer and I have little to no knowledge about electronics (I'm trying hard though!)so after scouring the internet and getting some help from others on this forum, I found a video to show you how to wire a relatively cheap LED AC display (most of these types of modules can be found on amazon for ~$20). I also believe some of the manufacturer's on amazon have diagrams on how to wire these modules as well but I found this video to be a little easier for me https://youtu.be/v4Zs5DhDnvM. I hope this can help you pimp out your own DIY. I guess the next step is to learn how to pimp out the project box/electronics enclosure to house the display and potentiometer. ENJOY!

Grower · Thu Aug 24, 2017 1:13 pm

Smooth Operator wrote: ↑
Wed Aug 23, 2017 8:30 pm
Hey Guys,

So for my future build, I'd like to have some sort of LED display to show me how much voltage or current my DIY lighting fixture is consuming when I'm dimming or increasing the light with the potentiometer. I'm not an engineer and I have little to no knowledge about electronics (I'm trying hard though!)so after scouring the internet and getting some help from others on this forum, I found a video to show you how to wire a relatively cheap LED AC display (most of these types of modules can be found on amazon for ~$20). I also believe some of the manufacturer's on amazon have diagrams on how to wire these modules as well but I found this video to be a little easier for me https://youtu.be/v4Zs5DhDnvM. I hope this can help you pimp out your own DIY. I guess the next step is to learn how to pimp out the project box/electronics enclosure to house the display and potentiometer. ENJOY!

I'll put this in my next fixture
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/AC-Volt ... st=ae803_1

Thu Aug 24, 2017 1:23 pm

Thanks for sharing, Smooth. I've seen this meter in a few LED builds and I think it's a cool idea.

Tony · Fri Nov 17, 2017 3:18 am

Has anybody tried one of these displays or something similar yet? My old Fluke does not do amps so I am using this for my dc side.

: Medusa Power Anilyser Pro.jpg (29.29 KiB) Viewed 3966 times

I really like it, probably better than an amp meter. I have nothing for my ac side, can't have enough toys.

Fri Nov 17, 2017 7:35 am

That’s a really neat little box. I see that it comes from the RC world. Only downside I see is that it has a max of 60V - is that right?

Tony · Fri Nov 17, 2017 12:22 pm

Yes 60v only, but is great for my parallel build. Also the two temperature ports are nice and the fact that I can connect to my pc for recording and graphing. This unit is discontinued, Medusa said they were going to restart with a new model but I don't think it materialized. The cheap Chinese revolution makes it hard to keep going. I make connections in my circuit at any point I would like to monitor and the analyzer can be quickly inserted.

: Micro Deans.jpg (6.75 KiB) Viewed 3955 times

Most in the RC world are using this unit now, not as sophisticated but should work ok for most.

Sure would like to get an ac display like mentioned above to see what lights, fans and everything else are doing.

Complex · Thu Jul 19, 2018 3:49 pm

I'm looking for something similar. Here's the C&P of my question...

"...I was up on a ladder putting a No.1 phillips into the internal pot of one of three 240h-c2100A's to adjust the output, while looking down at a killawatt meter to get some idea of what I was actually dimming to, when I realised...This is going to be annoying. Hah. Maybe B-type from now on (as much as I don't wanna lose even 10-12% output).

Is there a meter I can put inline with either the ac or dc side that'll give me some values (V, A, W) as I dim a driver and would that not work with an A-type? With a B-type at least we could wire up external pot, and turn to a few set points (80w, 160w, and max-w for eg.) using a killawatt, and mark them with a sharpie for easy dimming..?"

Ideally these would be pretty low cost, so I could work one in to each driver/fixture. Suggestions welcome. I'll check out the links provided in this thread and do som more research when I get home later.

Thanks.

sdfoster22 · Thu Jul 19, 2018 4:21 pm

The b versions are reported to go above max also, you just need above 110kohm dimmer.

Complex · Thu Jul 19, 2018 6:54 pm

sdfoster22 wrote: ↑
Thu Jul 19, 2018 4:21 pm
The b versions are reported to go above max also, you just need above 110kohm dimmer.

Is that right? Hmm, ok cool. Thanks.
I've got my question answered too I think, about the meters

I just got b-type for another build, and a pot. need to find a 10k ohm resister now I think.

sdfoster22 · Thu Jul 19, 2018 6:57 pm

Complex wrote: ↑
Thu Jul 19, 2018 6:54 pm

sdfoster22 wrote: ↑
Thu Jul 19, 2018 4:21 pm
The b versions are reported to go above max also, you just need above 110kohm dimmer.
Is that right? Hmm, ok cool. Thanks.
I've got my question answered too I think, about the meters

I just got b-type for another build, and a pot. need to find a 10k ohm resister now I think.

That is what they are reporting on riu. Make sure you test the resistance of your potentiometer. It could actually be anywhere from 90-110k ohms. You should report your findings.