Intro
If you are looking to light up small spaces with an even wash, especially spaces where you don’t want to see the light source directly, then LED Tape (AKA LED Strip) is often the best option. getting started with LED Tape can be a difficult process and often involves a bit of trial and error to get started.
LED tape has a lot of useful properties, with the biggest one being its size. LED Tape is extremely thin, and less than half an inch wide which allows it to be used in very tight spaces. This limited size however creates some unique challenges.
After spending countless hours wiring, soldering, placing, and troubleshooting LED Tape on many productions, I figured that LED tape is here to stay. I have searched a few times over the years for a guide to LED tape aimed at the stage, but have found nothing.
I decided to create this resource as a way to help others just starting on their first production with LED Tape who are a bit lost on where to start. Hopefully this guide will help answer some of those questions.
What is LED Tape?
LED Tape is a strip of tape typically 1/2″ (14mm) wide or less, and about 1/8″ (5mm) thick. One side is sticky, while the other side has the actual Light Emitting Diodes (LED’s). It will typically be cuttable every 2-3″ which allows you to trim the length as required.
LED Tape typically comes in 16.4 foot strips, which you should consider the maximum length for a section. They will often come with connectors allowing you to connect multiple, but unless it specifically states that it is able to be chained together, you should avoid it.
I will talk more about electrical considerations later, but just know that there is a fire hazard if running too much power on one circuit.
How Does LED Tape Work?
In “simple” terms, LED Tape is a series of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) on a flexible circuit board. By running power (usually 12 volts DC) through the circuit, you activate the diodes, which emit light.
When using Colored LED Tape, there are multiple colored LEDs which can be controlled separately. By controlling the intensity of each set of diodes, you can mix almost any color you want.
This additive color mixing tricks your eyes into seeing different colors by stimulating the different color sensing cones in your eye in different amounts.
Types of LED Tape
There are a few basic categories of LED Tape: White, RGB, and Pixel Controlled. I have already touched a bit on the White and RGB variations, but without naming them yet.
White LED Tape has one single set of diodes, which are controlled as a whole, meaning the entire strip lights up with the same intensity. These are great for basic fill lighting or glowing light boxes. They often come in warm white and cool white variations.
RBG LED Tape works similar to White, but instead has three colored diodes in place of the single white diode. These diodes are Red, Green, and Blue, and give you the ability to mix colors by controlling the proportions of each color on the strip.
If you look closely, each LED Block has 3 sections with one for each color. This makes the distance to desired color mix basically zero. Some strips have separate blocks for each color, which requires a bout 6 inches for the colors to mix appropriately.
In addition to RGB, there are also RGBW strips which add a dedicated white LED. One step further is RGBWW strips which include a warm white and a cool white LED. These variations allow for stronger whites than standard RGB and brighter colors in general.
Having extra intensity is often necessary to compete with conventional stage lighting. The cost difference is typically negligible between RGB and RGBW and it gives greater flexibility.
Pixel Controlled LED Tape works much like RGB Tape, but allows for each individual block of diodes to be controlled individually, allowing for basic pixel control.
These pixel controlled tapes are typically much more expensive than regular LED Tape, and require specific controllers based on the individual strip you purchase.
They are typically black since they are more likely to be seen directly, though I don’t recommend them for direct visibility facing the audience for the simple fact that they have such low resolution, and they are a LOT of work to set up well.
Required Hardware for DMX Control
Before talking about wiring LED Tape I’ll talk about some of the required components to give you a starting point to understand the items I am referring to.
Power Supply (AKA LED Driver)
The first thing you will need for any LED Tape is the correct power supply. The most common voltages are 12 and 24 volts DC. Each LED strip uses a different amount of power, so you should verify that your power supply is able to handle the power required.
Most DMX decoders have input spots for multiple power supplies to allow you to split up the power between two if necessary.
DMX Decoder
In simple terms, the DMX Decoder reads DMX signal from the console and turns the signal into the output voltages of each channel. In the console, you will set up a profile which will control relative voltages of each color through the DMX Decoder.
Most Decoders can support a range of voltages from 5-24 volts. This means they will work with most power supply/LED Tape setups no matter the voltage. Just double check your Decoder is able to handle the range of voltage you are looking to purchase.
Something to keep in mind when searching for a Decoder is the total number of channels required, as well as how many channels the decoder has per “output”. If you plan to have 8 individually controlled runs of RGB tape, you will need at least a 24 channel decoder with 3 channels per output (one per color).
This RGB Decoder shows the pin connections (without the connecting block). See link for connecting blocks toward the bottom of the page.
I will link to some items I would recommend to anyone getting started with their setup. I have actually used every one of the products I will link to below, and I will do my best to give completely honest reviews of each one.
Extra Wire
LED tape can run off of pretty thin wire, typically 20-22 AWG is used for its thin flexible nature, making it extremely easy to hide amongst the set. For those in the UK, 20-22 SWG is slightly thicker (by 0.1mm), but will work just the same.
When purchasing wire for extensions, make sure you have an extra wire in the system for the positive voltage wire. For example, RGB tape requires 4 wires with one for each color and one for V+.
As with many things, purchasing in bulk can save a good bit of money if you plan on using lots.
Wire Connectors
For LED Tape you typically are connecting 20 gauge wire or thinner, so be prepared to spend a good bit of time struggling with stripping and connecting very thin wire. The small grey wire nuts are typically the only ones that connect small wires with some reliability.
The other option for straight through connections is the butt splice, which you crimp down on the ends of the wires to connect. these can be a bit easier than wire nuts in some cases, but are not able to be pulled apart like wire nuts. they are single use and must be cut off when striking them.
Wiring LED Tape
Because wiring has a lot of components to it, I will likely create another article to talk in depth about it. Check back soon for that! In simple terms though:
This step will remain unplugged until you are ready to test the whole system! First the power supply must be fitted with a connector for US standard 120V AC power or UK mains 240V AC.
Next the “V+” and “V-” of the power supply will be connected to the appropriate terminals on the DMX Decoder. These will usually be labeled with “DC Input” or something similar.
After that, the DMX signal must be connected from the console. The majority of Decoders use 3 pins instead of the standard 5, so be prepared with a convertor if necessary.
Next the LED Tape will be connected to the appropriate spots on the decoder as labeled.
Finally the entire system can be plugged into the wall or other non-dim circuit being used to provide power.
Electrical Considerations
LED Tape runs in series, meaning each individual Diode gets power from the previous diode, rather than directly from the source like a parallel circuit. Because of this, the first diode in the strip must be capable of handling all the power of the remaining diodes in the circuit.
Imagine plugging too many conventional holiday lights into one another. If you have ever done this, you know it will blow the circuit on the first strand almost immediately. This fuse acts as a sacrificial weak link which protects the first strand from overheating.
LED tape does not have a fuse built in like holiday lights. That means when you pull too much power through the first diode, it overheats and melts. This creates an obvious fire hazard, and causes the system to fail. I have seen this happen many times.
Story Time
I witnessed an LED Tape system which was built into a scenic piece get overloaded. The Scenic piece was duplicated 6 times across the entire set, and wired the same way in all 6 copies. Throughout the run of the show, all 6 circuits failed in dramatic fashion, causing smoke each time.
Luckily the materials used in the scenic piece were flame retardant and not able to melt, but they all received charring when each system failed. Each had to be re-wired and extra circuits needed to be found to accommodate the changes due to lack of awareness. Long-Story-Short: When in doubt, wire each segment of LED Tape individually.
Because of this limitation, LED tape was initially capped at 16.4 feet in length. Although there have been some advances in efficiency and load capacity of the diodes, most manufacturers chose to stick to the standard length, and opt for more diodes per strip instead.
Suggested Products
Disclaimer: Most of the product links below are affiliate links, meaning I may earn a commission when you purchase a product after clicking the link.
Although this may discourage you from trusting our advice, I assure you the integrity and reliability of these products and the productions who trust our advice is much more important to me than making a sale. If I did completely trust a product, I would not link to it here. Please research on your own, and choose products that fit your limitations and preferences as you see fit.
I every product linked below I have personally purchased for installations of RGBW Tape. I have pulled each of these products from my own order history to include below.
RGBW LED Tape from Amazon
This RGBW LED Tape is available on amazon and is one I have used on close to 10 shows now, and I have never had a defect in the tape out of the box. It’s cheap, reliable, and relatively bright. I have never had noticeable color variation from one order to the next, so their binning seems effective.
Compared to other tape at the price point, I have found this to be the most reliable and cost effective solution for the majority of shows I need LED Tape for now. I typically stick to the RGB-Warm White 4-in-1 since it combines all colors into one LED, which means I don’t need extra space in front of the surface being lit for the colors to mix effectively.
I used the IP65 waterproof variation once, but it was only to protect it from a mist that was sprayed above it during the performance. While we had no water damage issues during the run, I can’t speak to the extent of the waterproofing for situations where the tape is submerged or fully covered with water.
DMX Decoder on Amazon
This DMX Decoder is great for large implementations of LED Tape with connections for 8 full length runs of 4 channel LED Tape per decoder. I did have an issue with one of these decoders when I purchased one a long time ago, but the company was great about replacing it quickly.
These are great for RGBW Tape in large quantities, since most other RGBW Decoders only support one run per decoder. The low end dimming curve of these could use a bit of work since they are only 16 bit dimming, but overall they are a great find for the money.
If you need extra connecting blocks, they can be a bit difficult to find for RGBW tape, since you need 5 pins. Here is a link: RGBW DMX Decoder connectors
LED Driver/Power Supply from Amazon
This LED Driver has a few variations, one with 360 watts which is enough power to run 3 full length strips of LED Tape. If your budget allows, I recommend purchasing more power than necessary, since the cost difference in these power supplies is minimal.
On a whole setup, the extra $20 will mean piece of mind and flexibility to run other systems off spare power. I always found some reason to have the 12v power around for little LED add ons here and there.
You will also need something like this Edison jumper to connect your driver if plugging into the wall. Most theaters already have the stuff on hand to make one, so don’t buy one if you don’t need to!
300 feet of RGBW Wire from Amazon
This should be enough wire for one show in a smaller space, but you may need more for large sales or shows with more than 15 separate runs of LED Tape. This wire is 22 gauge, which is enough for most LED Tape runs, though e sure not to push it past 120w as it will begin to overheat.
1000 Wire Nuts on Amazon
This 1000 pack of grey wire nuts is great for wires down to 22 AWG which you will likely end up using for connections. While 1000 might be overkill, at least you will never run out!
In all seriousness, I recommend checking your local Lowes, Home Depot, Harbor Freight, etc. for these to compare prices. The bulk purchase from amazon tends to be cheaper in the long run, but it’s not always worth it.
18-22 AWG Butt Splice from Amazon
Okay, I lied during the associates disclaimer about every product being pulled from my recent purchases. I have never purchased these from amazon, only local stores, but that has more to do with time constraints regarding delivery.
I personally think they take a similar amount of time when compared to wire nuts, but they are slightly lower profile if that is required for a specific application.
