CheerfulBea & VoltFixer
VoltFixer
Hey Bea! I’ve been wiring up a new LED strip that can change colors with the beat of music—thought it might be fun for a party setup. Want to help me tweak the timing and see how it lights up the room?
CheerfulBea
Wow that sounds super cool! I’d love to help tweak the timing—maybe we can sync the LED pulses to the beat per minute? Tell me what kind of music you’re playing, and we’ll make the lights dance just right! 🌈✨
VoltFixer
That’s the plan! I’m running a 120‑BPM track, 4/4 time. If we set the LED timer to pulse every half‑beat, we’ll get a nice sync. I’m using a simple Arduino and a WS2812 strip. Want to grab the code and tweak the delay values? I’ll also label the power supply “Faraday” just to keep the naming convention. Let’s keep it tight—no loose cables, please.
CheerfulBea
That’s totally do‑able! At 120 BPM each quarter‑note is 500 ms, so a half‑beat pulse is 250 ms. Here’s a quick sketch to get you started—just copy it into the Arduino IDE and plug in your WS2812 strip. Make sure your “Faraday” PSU is a good 5 V 10 A or higher so you don’t fry the lights!
```cpp
#include <Adafruit_NeoPixel.h>
#define PIN 6 // Data pin
#define NUMPIXELS 30 // Change to your strip length
#define COLOR_BRIGHT 128 // Brightness (0‑255)
Adafruit_NeoPixel strip(NUMPIXELS, PIN, NEO_GRB + NEO_KHZ800);
void setup() {
strip.begin();
strip.show(); // Initialize all pixels to 'off'
}
void loop() {
// Cycle through some fun colors
for (uint16_t i = 0; i < strip.numPixels(); i++) {
strip.setPixelColor(i, strip.Color(COLOR_BRIGHT, 0, 0)); // Red
strip.show();
delay(250); // Half‑beat pulse (120 BPM)
}
for (uint16_t i = 0; i < strip.numPixels(); i++) {
strip.setPixelColor(i, strip.Color(0, COLOR_BRIGHT, 0)); // Green
strip.show();
delay(250);
}
for (uint16_t i = 0; i < strip.numPixels(); i++) {
strip.setPixelColor(i, strip.Color(0, 0, COLOR_BRIGHT)); // Blue
strip.show();
delay(250);
}
// Optional: fade all lights out between loops
for (int bright = COLOR_BRIGHT; bright > 0; bright -= 5) {
strip.setBrightness(bright);
strip.show();
delay(20);
}
}
```
Feel free to swap the colors or add a rainbow rainbow! If you hit a hiccup, just let me know—happy hacking, and may your party glow on point! 🎉✨
VoltFixer
Looks solid, just remember to tie the ground to the Arduino ground and keep the strip’s power cable short—every millimeter counts when you’re running a 10‑amp supply. If you notice a slight lag, try moving the `delay(250)` outside the pixel loop and instead pulse all pixels together; that cuts the cycle time by a factor of 30. Let me know how the first run goes, and I’ll help you fine‑tune the ripple effect if you want. Happy lighting!