Digital (SPI) RGB Color Running Light LED Strip Sets – Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

In short, 24 Volts is the stable procurement option for the SPI white strips, whereas for SPI RGB strips, 12 Volts is preferred.

More details:

• SPI white strips are excellent for main lighting purposes, consuming 10 Watts per meter. So, if 10 to 20 meters are used in a room—where ease of installation is important—and since the light effects are typically used only when switching on or off, and normally they run at full brightness, 24 Volts is an ideal choice. Feeding a 10-meter strip from both ends is sufficient to achieve even, powerful illumination. The downside is that it can only be cut every 15 LEDs, so creating corners—or when the planned LED strip length isn’t evenly divisible by the 12.5 cm sections—can pose installation challenges.
• In contrast, a major benefit of powering SPI RGB at 12V is its flexibility. These strips can be cut every 3 LEDs, that is, every 5 cm. This ease of cutting makes shaping corners simpler, especially when following creative designs. Despite everything, our online store would still prefer to choose the 24 Volt SPI RGB strips. What about the resistance of the LED strip and voltage drop? This is a valid concern. This is also why the 24 Volt white SPI LED strips come in 10-meter rolls, while the 12 Volt SPI RGB strips are offered in 5-meter rolls. In other words, to achieve a perfect lighting experience, the SPI RGB strip must be powered from both ends at least every 5 meters.
  It is a legitimate question whether the sets put together by the webshop offer laypeople simpler kits to assemble, which are wired only from one end. So, do these sets fail to provide the maximum light experience envisioned by the manufacturer?
  Absolutely not! When we set such a 5-meter DRGB LED strip kit to a fixed cool white light, we observe that from 3 meters onward, not only does the brightness fade, but the cool white begins to yellow. The reason for this is that among the RGB components, the blue chip has the highest forward voltage, so as the voltage drops, its light fades first, causing the overall light to gradually shift from cool white toward warm white. Thus, the construction flaw becomes visible. But who is the foolhardy soul who installs an expensive system only to operate it in the cheapest lighting mode, and moreover, with the most unhealthy mixing of three color beams, designed purely for decorative purposes and not for living under their light?
  Clearly, this is completely unrealistic. We buy such a system to create a mesmerizing color-changing light show. However, if the light show features every LED glowing in some color, our consumption compared to white light typically drops to only 40%. Choosing a light show with programmed off-sections can reduce consumption even further, to as low as 10-20%. Given these factors, it's clear that voltage drop won't be noticeable if a 5-meter section is connected at only one end instead of both, since we run the system at just 10-40% load instead of 100%.

This is one of the most common issues. When the strip is set to a fixed white, all the tiny chips (red, green, blue) shine at 100%, which results in a huge power consumption.

• The cause: Due to voltage drop, less energy reaches the end of the strip. Since blue requires the highest voltage, it is most affected, leaving mainly red and green, which creates a yellowish and then orange hue.
• The solution: The essence of SPI kits is the colorful running light. At times like these, only a fraction of the LEDs light up at once, so the power consumption is about 30%, and the light remains perfectly even over 5 or even 10 meters.

Many people are looking for "music reactive lighting." The cheaper controllers have built-in microphones because these are often simply placed on a shelf. or positioned on top of a modest setup.

In contrast, professional systems (Miboxer, Skydance) are usually hidden behind drywall, inside a false ceiling, or under other coverings. There, the microphone wouldn't pick up the music, only the vibration of the wall. In these systems, a reliable radio frequency (RF) connection and a stable Wi-Fi controller are the top priorities. When these systems are operated via a mobile app, the SPI RGB LED system will flash to the music as soon as playback starts in the app.

In my opinion, it’s better to put it this way: there are both more affordable and more professional remote control solutions. The cheaper option can indeed operate using both infrared and radio frequency signal transmission.

• RF cheaper remote controls: It truly seems like a convenient and modern solution, as the RF signal passes through walls, allowing us to hide the controller. This way, you don’t need to keep an infrared sensor in a clearly visible spot, nor aim the remote control directly. This works wonderfully—until you purchase the same system for the neighboring room, or a neighbor does for the adjacent apartment. Because if this happens, this type of remote control instantly shifts us from a state of comfort to one of irritation 🙂 – and it might even react to buttons from a completely different remote control designed for another purpose. However, if our remote is infrared, this issue only arises when aiming at both controllers simultaneously.
• IR remote controls: They operate just like a TV remote. You need a clear line of sight to the receiver unit. Advantage: If your neighbor has the same device, or one is in another room, it won’t toggle your lights because the signal can’t pass through walls.
• RF professional remote controls: They pass through walls and furniture. They offer greater freedom, and even if we have several identical systems, the signals won’t get mixed up, even if the controllers are in the same room, because each remote control must always be paired with its controller. At the same time, they provide additional convenience, as multiple remote controls can be paired with one controller, and one remote control can be paired with multiple controllers. Moreover, there are remote controls that support multiple zones, enabling you to control 4 to 8 completely different lights with the same remote—each adjustable in entirely different ways—or even switch them all on and off simultaneously.

• Bluetooth: Simple, fast, and doesn’t require home internet or a router. You just launch the app, and it works immediately. The downside is the limited range (about 10 meters).
• Wi-Fi (e.g., Tuya, eweLink): Can be controlled from anywhere in the home—or even remotely. It requires a 2.4GHz network, but in return, it can be integrated into a smart home. That is, with a WiFi-based mobile app, we can control many other devices, even remotely via the internet, or by giving voice commands to our smart speaker. Yes, some smart systems use Bluetooth connections alongside WiFi, but the core system is still based on WiFi.

• Traditional LED strips can be branched at any cutting points in as many directions as desired because the PWM signal regulating brightness, or color mixing in the case of multi-color lighting, is applied to the power supply voltage.
• With digital, that is SPI LED strips, this is not possible, or the controller type has 1, 2, or 4 outputs, so we can connect only that many LED strip branches at most. Alternatively, a separate signal splitter must be inserted if we want to create a branch, because the controller chips on the strip are addressed digitally one after another.

Why would more than one branch be necessary?

• If we want a running light along just one straight line, that counts as one branch. But if we want to run several light strips side by side simultaneously, then multiple branches are needed. If we cut one branch into parts and reconnect with extension cables, the running light won’t start simultaneously on multiple branches—it only begins on the next branch when it ends on the previous one.
Of course, there are types of light shows where every variation is possible, and we can even design custom light shows through a mobile application—if we're skilled enough, allowing us to solve every problem. However, it's simpler to consider in advance which installation method suits us best.
• In addition, perhaps the most common solution is to illuminate the room around the ceiling cornice. If this is a single-branch setup, most light shows will orbit in one direction, which can be quite distracting. If we install a two-branch system, the light show starts symmetrically from one point and ends at a common endpoint, creating a much more pleasant and balanced visual effect—so it's worth planning this ahead.
• The multi-branch system also offers the advantage of saving on power connections: the power supply can run from the controller in multiple directions, avoiding complicated wiring and voltage drop issues.

Yes, among the assembled RGB SPI strip sets, we offer versions with an IP65-rated silicone casing. The silicone coating protects against dust and splashing water. It is important to keep the controller and power supply in a dry, protected place, as they lack such protection! For outdoor use, remember that silicone cannot withstand sunlight or UV rays. A single summer’s exposure can ruin it, so even if it could resist heavy rain, it must still be placed in a sheltered spot where sunlight won’t reach it. However, even in shaded areas, such as beneath roof coverings, intense heat can damage the LED strip. No LEDs can be installed in places exposed to radiant heat – but they do prefer the cold.

Not at all! The core idea behind the kits we sell is the -Plug & Play- concept. We carefully design the connectors and power supplies so the system can be safely set up without any electrical expertise, relying on clear, straightforward markings. Each complete kit is assembled and tested before shipment; the remote control is paired with the controller, color accuracy and other lighting sequence parameters are adjusted, and the kit is only taken apart enough to ensure safe transport.

Indeed, premium SPI controllers provide both a DC socket and terminal block connection options. This is more of a logical remnant from analog LED strip control. We know that digital LED strips can be powered directly from the power supply at any cutting point marked on the strip, as they require a stabilized DC supply and do not receive PWM-modulated power from the controller like analog strips. The controller chips on the LED strip do not get power from the central controller; they only receive digital commands. In fact, the power connected to the controllers on the LED strip side simply passes beneath the central controller, running parallel to it. So, when a current limit is specified for these SPI controllers, it does not refer to the throughput capacity of the controller’s electronics, but rather to the Ampere rating of the weakest element among the underlying wires, the connectors, and the wire cross-sections that can reasonably be connected to the connectors. It is also important to consider that the current flowing through heats the controller electronics. For inexpensive, low-cost small controllers, the current flowing through them, if not otherwise limited, can even melt the casing of these small controllers. The controller electronics can handle the control tasks, but not the heating running underneath. Therefore, in our online store, you will find many sets where the power supply is not connected to the controller, as it is unnecessary to heat the controller with the entire system power when an electronic component can last longer by staying cooler. These controllers receive their power supply backward through their output, from the LED strip connection in reverse, so only the amount of current needed for the controller's own operation reaches its housing—not the multiple times that required by the LED strip’s performance.