NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

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vil
 
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NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by vil »

Hello,

so I bought the 'NeoPixel Ring - 24' a month or more ago, hooked it up to an Arduino board and it was working great! Then the ring just stayed for 2-3 weeks not being used. I hooked it up today again and not only the leds do not light up, but the whole ring gets really hot fast. Also I removed the GND and DI from Arduino, but the ring gets hot really fast nonetheless.

Does that mean that it is fried? I looked up the ring closely but there seems to be no visible damage that could cause a short of some sort.

Thanks for help!

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

Getting hot is usually a sign that something has shorted. Post a photo of how you have the ring connected, but don't actually run power through it to get the shot. I'd just like to double check the connections.

vil
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by vil »

Here's the power supply connection. The other loose GND wire was connected with the Arduino and the DI is now cut off because I tried different wire lenghts (initially I thought that was the problem - did not notice the heating of the ring itself at first) and after a few tries disconnected (desoldered) it entirely.

http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/IMG_1817.JPG

Here's the power supply unit itself, set to 5V.

http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/IMG_1818.JPG

Here's how the +5 PWR and GND is connected to the power supply connector.

http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/IMG_1819.JPG

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Can we see a close-up of the front-side of the ring?

vil
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by vil »

Well, I may have ruined the ring so probably no point in continuing fixing it.

Today, after a very close inspection I found that the first pixel is fried (different from the others), so I thought I found the problem! (while attaching the ring for the 2nd time to the Arduino I forgot the 500ohm resistor) I soldered the DI to the second pixel data input (it was extremely hard to attach it to the right leg and I probably ruined the whole ring by doing it), but the heating problem remains and the ring still does not work. I desoldered the DI from the second pixel to make sure no shorting occured, but the two pixels look pretty ruined and it's possibly not worth doing anything more... I think the problem was with the first pixel being fried.

http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/IMG_1820.JPG

I'm ordering a new ring, but meanwhile is it possible to somehow disconnect those two pixels from the whole ring so I can do some coding with the remaining pixels while the new ring arrives?

Thanks!

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adafruit_support_mike
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by adafruit_support_mike »

Since you don't have to worry about preserving the pixels, just clip the leads/pins with a flush cutter. Once those are disconnected, you can lift the body of the pixel out and remove what's left of the pins one at a time.

vil
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by vil »

Hey,

so I did receive the new ring today and same thing happens (the ring gets hot fast and nothing lights up) :(

I soldered the wires extremely carefully this time and do not see any damaged pixels on the ring or any damage on the circuit. Here are the photos of the current ring:

http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/DSC05508.JPG
http://tinywhitetribe.com/neopixelring/DSC05509.JPG

I do not imagine what may be wrong...

vil
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by vil »

Sorry, my bad, I found the problem only when I tested the voltage with a voltmeter - the low-cost power supply connector had it's '+' and '-' markings printed incorrectly and that led to a mixed PWR and GND wire connection. I swapped the wires and the ring lit up beautifully!

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boneco
 
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Re: NeoPixel Ring - 24 Stopped working and heats up

Post by boneco »

Unbelievable. Thanks for posting your solution. I was having the same problem and driving myself CRAZY trying to figure out what I was doing wrong. I feel dumb for not checking my power supply polarity. Time to grab the soldering iron and make some changes...

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