# anyone ever try a led bulb conversion



## GKF (May 11, 2007)

i'm using a older infocus sp4805 with a ;paint on screen paint kit at 96" wide screen.
lamps are wicked pricey and the off shore lamps don't work that great in this projector anyway.
i have tried several and they all do the same , after about 100 hours will not start right away.
so i'm just wondering if anyone has tried a super bright led and make a lamp out of the stock lamp plastic cage?
i have been tossing around this idea for a while.


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

Sounds pretty cool. If you do this, and it works, make sure you take pictures and do a write-up for us! :T


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

yes when i do go ahead i will show lots pics. i can't believe no body has tried this yet.
i have been playing around with cree leds and a few cheap china based ones.
at first i was so feed up with stock lamp021 bulbs not starting. so i put a jumper across the lamp switch so i could fool the projector to think a bulb was there.
i had a 3w cree 10000k white led and just held it in the opening. just to see what it looked like and i was shocked how it looked. not at all bright enough but still enough to get my mind rolling.
the one thing i think it will need is some type of optical reflector to focus the beam forward.
my next step is to try a par30 style, cree make a 15w 800 lumen screw base thats 3.25 long and may fit the lamp021 plastic housing perfectly, thats what i'm after.
problem is these lamps are 3500k or 5500k not clear as what one to go with. these lamps are about $80 here in canada.


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## informel (Jun 21, 2011)

Is the 800 Lumens bright enough?

As your choice btw 3500K and 5500K look at a white image if image is reddish go higher and if it is too blue, do the opposite

Remember Led can last a very long time, but need to stay cool, if they get too hot, they might not even last as long as the old lamp.

once you have found the intensity and the temperature, you can always go to www.alibaba.com, do a search and ask for samples


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

informel said:


> Is the 800 Lumens bright enough?
> 
> As your choice btw 3500K and 5500K look at a white image if image is reddish go higher and if it is too blue, do the opposite
> 
> ...


thanks
well 800 lumens is what the stock sp4805 is rated at and i only watch at night in a attic built theater.
so no windows and very dark.
thats why the 3w cree still showed a image. i played with a benq 2000 lumens projector at first and in a pitch black room way to bright. 
the par 30 has a finned aluminum backing and if the stock plastic lamp housing is used it will still tell the projector the lamp is there and the built in fans run so cooling is not a issue.
just brightness and color of led lamp .

also understand my only issue with stock style lamps is there is no way to be shure when a new lamp is bought,that it is not a import lamp.
infocus lamp 021 is $379. i bought one from advanced lamp and the first lasted 38 hours. they replaced it and now the new one has 108 hours and same thing, might start first time now and next time will go through the cycle startup 2, 3 even 4 times till the red led comes on. turn off the projector and wait, turn back on and lamp starts right up.
looks like a lamp ballast problem right? bought a new infocus ballast board from a infocus repair shop.
and same thing. i asked the guy at the repair shop who told me he has seen this before and is real problem.
he said the market is flooded with cheap off shore lamps that all fail randomly.


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

Look at the markings on the lamp reflector itself and look carefully at the construction. You can usually tell if the lamp is the same or not. Most servicers know not to trust any but the most reliable suppliers, and AL was never on my short list. There is also the unknown of some lamps having specs that are never released and what may appear to be the same lamp may have some differences such as start voltage.

As for the LED, it is important to match the spectrum, not just the color temperature. They are not the same.


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## informel (Jun 21, 2011)

GKF said:


> the market is flooded with cheap off shore lamps that all fail randomly.


Even the good one are produce offshore, you just have to find a good supplier.


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## informel (Jun 21, 2011)

lcaillo said:


> As for the LED, it is important to match the spectrum, not just the color temperature. They are not the same.


You are right about the spectrum (color rendering index), not sure you will find that infor from the original projector lamp


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

No, but you can measure it with a spectrophotometer and decent software.


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## chris71478 (Dec 2, 2011)

UHP lamps use a very high striking voltage before lowering to operating voltage. I'd be concerned about this damaging the LED, or at least shortening it's life.


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

chris71478 said:


> UHP lamps use a very high striking voltage before lowering to operating voltage. I'd be concerned about this damaging the LED, or at least shortening it's life.


sorry
i should have said this, i'm planning to by pass the ballast by jumping the lamp door switch.
this tells the projector the lamp is there.
then the projector cycles up on its own. the led lamp will be connected to a socket , if a par 30 is used or by a driver source and power supply for led lamps.

currently i'm playing with a phillips 6500k par30 and also a china cheap 50w led claimed to be 10000k


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

I don't recall for sure, but there may be a lamp lit signal from the ballast when the lamp starts drawing current. You may need to assure that the signal is present.

I would hope that anyone attempting a modificaiton like this is very careful to isolate voltages and current sources and to only apply a power supply to a device that meets the specifications of the manufacturer. Connecting a ballast to a LED device would likely destroy it and create a severe hazard.


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## Jasonpctech (Apr 20, 2010)

"i can't believe no body has tried this yet."

http://hackaday.com/2011/04/04/retrofitting-lcd-projectors-with-high-powered-leds/


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

well guys after the last few weeks of tinkering around with leds i found the best results was the cheap china made 50w led. it was rated at 1000 lumens and 10000k white.
i found it to be good and bright but picture color was not as it should be.
i tweaked the red green blue settings to get a better skin tone effect.
all this leads to maybe find a high quality maker of a high end led like cree.


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## Jasonpctech (Apr 20, 2010)

Keep trying Gordy have you asked Meritline or deal extreme to source what you want?


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

Jasonpctech said:


> Keep trying Gordy have you asked Meritline or deal extreme to source what you want?


thank you for these names. i will contact them to see if they can supply a high end led.
i was shocked at how bright the 50w led was. i got a flashlight that had 3 d cells in it and with a dremal opened up the reflector to fit the 50w led. 
glued it to the led as a optics style. 
i'll keep you posted on the results. it would be nice to find out what commercial led projectors are using for led wattage.


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## NegativeEntropy (Apr 22, 2009)

LED efficiency has been improving at a rate of about 25% a year. That means they can get 25% brighter or use 25% less power, about every year, as the technology improves. That's about a 3x improvement every 5 years. IMO it's only a matter of time before they, or a follow on technology, replaces the existing lamp tech in projectors.


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## Twin_Rotor (Jan 1, 2012)

lcaillo said:


> ...
> 
> As for the LED, it is important to match the spectrum, not just the color temperature. They are not the same.


The last time I looked, about a year ago, they still havn't developed a "white" LED in the correct wavelength. "White" LEDs are actually in the blue wavelength. Most use phosphorus which drives the price up.

But it might not be enough to tell the difference.

To get the lumens you'll need, you'll be looking at surface mount LEDs to get enough packed into the space you have. That means pre-printed PCBs with extremly small solder joints. Plus you have to figure out your resistances and how many series/parrallel circuits and get that all to fit as well. 

BTW, what is the power source to the bulb in the projector? If its A/C, you'll need a transformer.

I think its possible, but I don't think the cost will make it practical. Wait a year and maybe the prices will come down. 1999 was the first year for a "white" LED and look how far they have come.


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## GKF (May 11, 2007)

i 've been playing with leds for my reef tank since 2005. this was way before it was cool and no help seemed to be out there. 
now there are lots of help and places to buy.
on my projector i'm bypassing the stock bulb.i have a meanwell led driver hlg-150h-24a that is running the 50w led. it's not mounted on the projector i just held it in the area to test. i'm not happy yet with the picture.
my first wish for led is just heat issue, the 200w lamp 021 will heat up my room a lot.


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