I have a 5V 40A PSU (That’s what it says on it) connected to 250 LEDs. I have set WLED to limit the current to 10000ma as it is connected to a 10A fuse. Wires are are all 18 gauge. Distance from PSU to controller, less then 10 inches if wire. Distance from PSU to LEDs, less then 18 inches of wire. I am getting brownouts causing the MCU to crash. Testing right at the terminals on the PSU I am testing at 4.7V when under a load (Lots of LEDs on) and 5.01v when nothing is on. Is this normal? A bad PSU? Something else I am totally misunderstanding? Bad wiring? I just don’t know.
It’s entirely possible the PS is dropping .3V under load, that’s often why they have adjustment pots to boost them a little and compensate. Just be careful and stay at 5.25V or under when the power supply is not loaded. The LEDs don’t like over voltage much.
This type of thing is why I suggest a dedicated supply for the ESP if only to eliminate power as a variable when dealing with your setup and programming.
I may have to do that. But I may try increasing the voltage first. Can the ESP8266 can handle 5.25v okay?
The ESP is probably OK as it should have and on-board regulator down to 3.3V.
Probably want to check your specs to be sure.
The LEDs are the more sensitive devices, especially when there’s nothing on and the input voltage peaks.
Does sound like your PS has somewhat cruddy load regulation (that’s how much the output voltage varies as the output current varies).
I don’t know if I would know how to check the specs. But I guess the worst thing that will happen is I release the magic blue smoke. They are cheap.
Yah, and it would be a good excuse to move up to an ESP32 (you really want to go there)…
I know the processor is faster… But really what do I get out of it? All the effects work fine.
Two major items right off the bat:
-
Expanded memory, and use of peripherals (GPIOs). The extra memory means an ESP32 can handle a greater number of presets, more strips, more LEDs and more complicated setups.
-
You won’t get phased out of existence. Support for the 8266 is going to be dropped in WLED - not necessarily soon, but it’s inevitable given the resources needed for all the goodies in that code (Sound Reactive has already been pulled).
The cost increase of an ESP32 board is very minimal compared to an 8266. The only place I see the 8266 surviving long term is in very small fixed items and single props. When you’re looking at an ESP32, stay away from the S2/S3 and C3 boards.
Actually where I am from, they turn out to be almost twice the price. But thats still under $5 each here in Canada.
Anyway, this is what I was looking at:
Hmm, it seems in the last couple of days, the forum hosts have banned Aliexpress links… Anyway
They are marked as CH340C Not C3 or S2/S3… And since I just wouldn’t know the difference (And apparently I forgot to order controllers on my order yesterday) if you think those are fine, I will order em. There full name is: “ESP32 WROOM-32 Development Board TYPE-C CH340C/ US” but without a link, it may be hard to know for sure what ones you are talking about.
I typically order those from Ali as well (I’m on the West Coast of Canada).
My last order was these:
TTL-RS485 adapters
I ordered 100 pcs for $54 landed at my door, but you can get 30 pieces for about $20.
The ESP32 WROOM-32 boards are definitely what you want.
This link should get you some good examples : Ali ESP32s.
At that shipping rate (flat ~$5CDN for 3 units or more) I’d usually pick up 5, or more likely 10.
The ESP32s are just too handy to have around
So the only question I have then is the difference between the 32U and the 32D After some googling it seems like the 32U is a better board, however it looks like it has a connection for an antena cable, and the D seems to have the antena built in. Does the U have it built in as well? Or is an external required?
Looks like those boards have no antenna for the 32U. Might be useful if you need to try for longer distance WiFi. More work than needed for my environment, I just added more Access Points if I need better coverage.
I’ve pretty much used 32D’s and the “protected antenna” (not protruding) version of 38pin.
I’ve never compared the WiFi performance with the 2 versions (protruding vs non), so I can’t comment there.
Where are you in CA?
Ext antenna’s can provide much better coverage (depending on how large dbi antenna you use). As far as Esp’s with the flat onboard wire tape like antenna vs the ones that have the onboard ceramic antenna, I really did not see much difference in the 2.
Note: If a board supports both onboard and ext, you normally have to resolder a 0Ω resistor to a different pad orientation to enable the ext ant and if you don’t have decent soldering skills that can be very tricky as they are tiny.
NE Ontario.
So, I am a bit confused. The link you sent doesn’t incluse any of the devices labeled WROOM with a “prorected antana” that I can see. I just wanna be sure I get the right ones so I don’t end up with something that is ether not useful to me, or is total crap.
If you want onboard antenna, I would pick the one from divsys’s link that is labeled: Color: ESP-32 38Pin.
It is the 38pin variant and has holes in each corner if you need them to mount it. The black part above the silver shield is the antenna.
The only one without an on board antenna is 2nd pic that shows a tiny gold circular connector near the GND and GPIO22 pins in the upper left. Pics 3,4, and 5 all have on board antennas. It’s hard to see, but 4 and 5 have a small board type antenna above the main circuit board. Pic 3 has the "unprotected version of that same antenna, but in free air for better performance (supposedly).