Festoon bulbs (again)

[Rich Andrews]

Has anyone ever tried to make a LED array to replace the McIntosh festoon bulbs?

Seems to me that an array of blue or white leds with a blue gel would last a long long time.

 

[kevzep]

Has anyone ever tried to make a LED array to replace the McIntosh festoon bulbs?

Seems to me that an array of blue or white leds with a blue gel would last a long long time.

Ive seen someone selling something like that on that you know (epay) site.........
Not sure how good they are........

 

[skippy_ps]

Several years ago, I bought a pair of led festoon lamps at that auction site. Didn't work very well as the output was poor. Haven't looked at them since but might be something to try.

Murray

 

[tuberadios69]

There was a gentleman in Colorado who sold (on e-bay) LED festoons for various brands including Mac. I outfitted my MX114 with them and they are outstanding. That was about 3 years ago. I don't think he currently runs specific auctions for them but I re-contacted him (about a year ago) to inquire and he said he still sells them. His e-bay ID was/is "whsh94a". Highly recommended.

 

[Rich Andrews]

I was actually thinking about making the replacement myself. I can buy 100 LEDs for about $7. I might start with some white leds and then try some blue ones. The blue might be a little too intense but I will try.

 

[Rich Andrews]

It just isn't economically feasible. New bulbs are $5 each. I have better things to do right now.

 

[Rich Andrews]

I just got off the phone with Gail at McIntosh and their parts department is shut down for at least a week. I can't wait that long. I made some LED bulbs from a 7/32" piece of brass tubing and a dozen white leds. Total cost? $0.50 each. Of course the dimmer switch doesn't do much but such is the price of progress.

With 12 leds in series, no current limiting resistor is needed.

The leds I have operate within the range of 3 - 3.3 volts for maximum brightness
I am operating them at 2.16 volts each. Plenty bright enough.

 

[Rich Andrews]

I put everything back together and it looks better than it ever has. The "white" leds I used had a definite blue tint to them and with them focused on the edge of the glass, it looks like a very nice blue. I will take some pictures and post them.

If anyone wants the source for the LEDS I will be happy to give it.

 

[Rich Andrews]

The LEDs turned out so nice that I am going to pull the good festoon bulbs out of my MR67 and put in LED arrays.

 

[perryinva]

how does the color compare to the original bulbs? that was always my gripe about leds.

 

[Rich Andrews]

It depends on what you are looking for. The thing about white leds is that there are many different colors of white available. I selected a blue white led. I will take a picture later tonight.

 

[bart1]

This guy has some

http://www.radiolabworks.com/products/mcintosh/mcintosh.html

 

[Rich Andrews]

Wow. $22 a set. For $22 I can buy 300 leds and have change left over.

 

[Rich Andrews]

Photographing a glass panel is damn difficult but here are some shots anyway.

Before - Yes the stock panel lamps are on. The festoon bulb just spreads light everywhere.

After - There are two leds wired in series on each side of the panel.

No blue leds were used. These are the common white leds. I used the 3mm flat top style leds and placed the top of the led against the edge of the glass. The LEDS while labelled as white, have a blue tinge to them.

I suppose someone could come up with a custom color scheme. I might play with color one day. With the advancements of LED technology, changing the color of the front panel would be just a matter of selecting the right LED and performing some tweaking. McIntosh does use LEDS in their new equipment. The color of blue is tightly controlled.