Best LEDs to use and other such things

[Spyder12587]

I was wondering what the best LEDs were for screen mods. I already have my screen and figured I could start modding it so when I'm able to get the system, I'll be ready to begin that step. The problem I'm coming across is that I basically know nothing about electrical work. The screen is a 5" Zenith and I was planning on using 4 LEDs to help even out the lighting but other than that, I'm lost. Any info would be greatly appreciated!

[eurddrue]

3 mm work the best. And it is proper to use a resistor in front of each LED, using 1 resistor makes the load slightly heavier on each LED thus making their lifetime shorter. (not that it matters, the LED's will probably still out live you and your children)

[Spyder12587]

I knew about 3mm but is there a standard amount of candelas, viewing angles, flat or round top, required voltage, etc. Also, the resistors should be 10 ohm, correct?

[eurddrue]

yupperdoodle resistor should be 10 ohms. As for those little details on the LEDs it really doesn't matter. Buy your LEDs from mouser.com, and they'll be just fine.

[Spyder12587]

I greatly appreciate the info sir.

[Spyder12587]

I just opened my Zenith screen to check out the insides and there are a lot more cables than when I opened the Sony screen. Do I just desolder all the wires going to the jack at the bottom of the screen? Anything of particular interest I should know?

[Kurt_]

That looks slightly different than mine did. That pluggable headphone jack seems very handy. Disconnect it now and save it for later so it doesn't break.

Apart from that, yeah, you can disconnect all the wires and just treat the screen like a PSOne screen. Alternatively, you can solder your video, audio, and power to the spots on the board that the coloured wires represent.

[Spyder12587]

Yeah, I was thinking of saving the headphone jack (especially since it has the plug/already wired). I may have to use the front casing as well because I can't see a good way to get the speakers off the inside (short of breaking them off). I tried to take off the speaker grills to see if they are screwed in behind it but the speakers are tabbed into the case, making it kind of difficult...

EDIT: They just pry off, no screws or anything. On a side note. I was using an LED calculator to see how I should wire my screen and it says I should use 68ohm resistors. The LED's I ordered said the forward voltage is 3.2v, they draw 30mA, and I plan to use 4. The input voltage would be +5v coming from the 7805, correct? So are those the proper resistors or should I stick with the 10ohm ones?

[nevermind1534]

68 should work better. The LEDs usually won't last very long on 10 OHM resistors.

[Spyder12587]

Ah ha. That's what I wanted to know. Thanks!

Oh, another quick question. Which tends to be the preferred video method for the SNES: composite or RGB?

[Kurt_]

I found there was little difference. For a SNES, at least, the difference is negligible. The colours are brighter and less washed out, but it's hardly noticeable unless you're comparing.

Speaking of which, comparison photos have been done. Somewhere.

[Spyder12587]

Alright, this is going to prove how much of a n00b I am...

Which prong of the LED is positive and which is negative?

[nevermind1534]

Alright, this is going to prove how much of a n00b I am...

Which prong of the LED is positive and which is negative?

I'm pretty sure that the long one is positive and the short one is negative. If you get it wrong, all that will happen is that it won't power on.

[Spyder12587]

Alright, now how about resistors? Does it matter which side is which?

[nevermind1534]

Alright, now how about resistors? Does it matter which side is which?

I forgot about the resistors. I just remember that the power goes the way that it looks like it should. See which way is correct before you solder.