led people

quick question. I want to add some led's to my costume this year. how can I run some led ribbon 12v off of AAA batteries? (im talking about 6 inches of ribbon total. will they run at 4.5V (3 batteries in series?)

go to your local radio shack, you can find battery holders ( AAA) , or you can make one yourself.

Typically with a 12v power source you would need to add resistors to get the proper power to the leds, I'd TRY it without the resistors at the lower voltage and see what happens. If you're running a premade strip of LEDs then the resistors will be built in already. Run 10 AAA batts in a series and see what happens... If you apply less than 12 volts I highly doubt you'll damage the leds. If you put over 12 volts, you could. Give it a shot.

so looks like im going with a 23a battery (12v), and using a pwm dimmer to control the brightness. should be sick

Cool, a 9v would have worked just not have been as bright. Be sure and post up some pictures.

Make sure to post pictures of your project when its done. I used some 10mm red LEDs for the eyes of a buddies decoration this year.

Here is another source for the battery holders.
http://www.oznium.com/12v-led-battery-holder
These can be found at most Radio Shacks too.

You can run your 12v led strips off a 9V battery. I have lit up my tower speakers for taking pictures many times using this method. I think they will burn for a few hours if you only have a foot or two. Toss a spare battery in your pocket if you are worried about run time

Unrelated, but badazz..................my bud bought this T shirt in Korea that has a big pair of lips on the front that has voice activated led's embedded. When you talk, the leds make it look like the lips are moving. He has another one with a skull with voice activated led "fire". Funny as hell when he does his "I am the great and powerful Oz" routine.