RĒzĒ
04-17-2009, 12:12 PM
I thought I'd revisit this topic since this info is kind of hard to find anywhere...
SB's mod works great, (http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=49174) I just thought I post how to wire a LED so that they will come on even if using the buddy port when using a sim.
Here's what my DX7 looks like. I chose to place them at the top so the lights were not facing my eyes, and so they could be seen easily from any angle. Plus you can access that area of the radio without having to take anything else apart, or out of the radio. :thumbup:
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_2.JPG
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_1.JPG
Blue LED. Rated from 3.8V to 15V
Here's an extremely useful tip. Frost the outside of the led by lightly sanding the whole outside with some very high grit sandpaper (like 1000). This will cause the light to diffuse around the whole LED. If you don't you will not be able to see it nearly as well. Also note the LED's do have a positive and negative lead and cannot be reversed. Make sure to pay attention to what side is what when wiring.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_3.JPG
470 Ohm resistor. Use 1 per LED. You can just series them in line on the positive lead side of the LED.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_4.JPG
First mark where you want the LED's to go on the case. Drill out the holes with a 3/16" drill bit. Assuming your LED's are the same size as mine (which I think they are basically standard) that size hole will fit them nice and tight. Be carefull when drilling and make sure the drill doesn't get pulled into the radio and start drilling into things in there ;)
Next wire your LED's together in series. Use a small bit of wire and solder the positive lead from one LED to the negative side of the other. Then solder about a foot's length of red wire to the positive side of the two LED's and black wire to the negative side.
Also take this time to solder two resistors together. Just use enough of the leads to get them together.
Push your LED's into the holes from inside making sure that the Positive side lead on on the right and the negative is on the left. Tack them in with some thick CA from the inside. Run the black wire down the left side and solder to the charging plug lead shown below in the picture.
Run the red wire down the right side. Before soldering, inline the resistors and cover with heatshrink. Solder the red wire to the buddy jack lead shown below.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_5.JPG
Solder the negative lead to this post on the charging jack
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_6.JPG
Solder the positive lead to here on the buddy port jack
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_7.JPG
That's it. Simply put the cover back on and you should be good to go. Wired this way the lights will go on either when you turn on the radio, or if you plug into the buddy port.
Enjoy
SB's mod works great, (http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=49174) I just thought I post how to wire a LED so that they will come on even if using the buddy port when using a sim.
Here's what my DX7 looks like. I chose to place them at the top so the lights were not facing my eyes, and so they could be seen easily from any angle. Plus you can access that area of the radio without having to take anything else apart, or out of the radio. :thumbup:
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_2.JPG
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_1.JPG
Blue LED. Rated from 3.8V to 15V
Here's an extremely useful tip. Frost the outside of the led by lightly sanding the whole outside with some very high grit sandpaper (like 1000). This will cause the light to diffuse around the whole LED. If you don't you will not be able to see it nearly as well. Also note the LED's do have a positive and negative lead and cannot be reversed. Make sure to pay attention to what side is what when wiring.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_3.JPG
470 Ohm resistor. Use 1 per LED. You can just series them in line on the positive lead side of the LED.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_4.JPG
First mark where you want the LED's to go on the case. Drill out the holes with a 3/16" drill bit. Assuming your LED's are the same size as mine (which I think they are basically standard) that size hole will fit them nice and tight. Be carefull when drilling and make sure the drill doesn't get pulled into the radio and start drilling into things in there ;)
Next wire your LED's together in series. Use a small bit of wire and solder the positive lead from one LED to the negative side of the other. Then solder about a foot's length of red wire to the positive side of the two LED's and black wire to the negative side.
Also take this time to solder two resistors together. Just use enough of the leads to get them together.
Push your LED's into the holes from inside making sure that the Positive side lead on on the right and the negative is on the left. Tack them in with some thick CA from the inside. Run the black wire down the left side and solder to the charging plug lead shown below in the picture.
Run the red wire down the right side. Before soldering, inline the resistors and cover with heatshrink. Solder the red wire to the buddy jack lead shown below.
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_5.JPG
Solder the negative lead to this post on the charging jack
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_6.JPG
Solder the positive lead to here on the buddy port jack
http://razaland.com/helifreak/pics/dx7_7.JPG
That's it. Simply put the cover back on and you should be good to go. Wired this way the lights will go on either when you turn on the radio, or if you plug into the buddy port.
Enjoy