Info on wiring VDM to dimmable Meanwell needed

[ToLearn]

I have begun purchasing some LEDs from several companies to test out including some from Ecoxotic. I purchased them with their “Dimmable Remote 60 watt LED Driver” which it turns out is a MeanWell ELN-60-24D. I am trying to figure out how many of these power supplies I can dim separately using a single VDM. I’ll also need to figure out if I will have to make a DIYS cable and how to program them.

From a friend of mine, ”
“The VDM is two channels - I believe you can put up to 3 drivers on each channel.”

Is this correct? How would I wire this if so.(the “2 Channel Dimming Cable” I purchased has..2 channels. Would I need to go DIYS to do more modules? If so any info on how to do this?)

[RussM]

Originally Posted by ToLearn

How would I wire this if so.

Just tie the wires together with a suitably-sized wire nut (or if you can, preferably use solder and heatshrink).

[aquamanic]

that's a cool diagram Russ. Did you get that from someplace or do it yourself?

[RussM]

Originally Posted by aquamanic

that's a cool diagram Russ. Did you get that from someplace or do it yourself?

I just learned about this great thing called Visio - much better than the Crayolas I've been using.

I was already working on "work" work in Visio... I just whipped that up in a few minutes. You know that old saying about a picture...

[ToLearn]

Hey Russ, thanks a lot for taking the time to make that.

I have never crimped network cables or anything like that, but I am guessing if I took one of my spare patch cables and cut it in half and stripped things back I could take an orange and white wire and tie it to the white wire on a meanwell and then tie the orange wire to a blue wire on the meanwell?

[RussM]

Originally Posted by ToLearn

I am guessing if I took one of my spare patch cables and cut it in half and stripped things back I could take an orange and white wire and tie it to the white wire on a meanwell and then tie the orange wire to a blue wire on the meanwell?

Probably. There are two types of typical network cable pinouts, called TIA-568A and TIA-568B. The diagram shows the more-common one, 568B. Compare the wire colors with your cable to verify.

[ToLearn]

Thanks Russ.

[ToLearn]

How can I test that I have it wired right? If I leave the VarSpeed ports all in Manual On will that = 100% power?

[ToLearn]

I created a profile called "100" that has
Ramp time 0
Start 100
end 100

Then programmed the varspeeds to:
Set ON
Fallback ON
If Time 23:00 to 22:59 Then 100

No light.

[aquamanic]

Just turning the varspd ports MANUAL ON would work but your profile should work also. and there's no need for Fallback on VS ports - that only applies to EB8 outlets. Doesn't hurt anything but doesn't do anything either. And your program should have a Set OFF otherwise once your If Time statement concludes, the lights will be left at whatever they were which is 100%.

But the point of your post is, your lights should be on and if they're not, you've got a problem someplace in your wiring.

[RussM]

First question that comes to mind... do the lights light @ full intensity when the dimming cable is not connected?

[ToLearn]

I have two meanwells(well a lot more then two), but when the none dimmable meanwell is connected they light up fine at 100%. I have not yet seen any light out of them since I connected the dimmable meanwell. I am using the 2 channel cable made by Neptune. I'll give it another look over in a moment, but I thought the wiring was fine last night.

[RussM]

Originally Posted by RussM

First question that comes to mind... do the lights light @ full intensity when the dimming cable is not connected?

Sorry, my brain is not adequately caffeinated yet this morning.
I was thinking of HLG-series when I asked this; which go 100% without any dimming control. ELN-D series will have no output if there is no dimming signal.

[ToLearn]

My first 4 outlets on my Apex Status screen(in a browser) are
VarSpd1_I1
VarSpd1_I2
VarSpd1_I3
VarSpd1_I4

and I haven't yet set up the ability to control 5-8. Isn't there a way to do that so with the Apex base unit you can control 8 different varspeed devices? If so how do I do this again?

[RussM]

What do you mean by 5-8? Do you have a VDM? That's the only way to get 4 more VS ports.

[ToLearn]

Oh? So ports 3,4, 7,&8 in the diagram above that you didn't wire to in your diagram above can not be used? I thought I had read different elsewhere I guess I mixed things up.

I am having 0 luck getting this thing hooked up. I believe I had read your diagram backwards the first time, but believe I have it right now, but still 0 light comes out of the module I am trying to dim. I've tried to set it up a ton of different ways.

All of my VarSpeed ports say they are at 100 by the programming I've always had them at.(and tried to switch to manual on as well with no change)

The cable I received from Neptune has different colors. I believe their white orange, which you have labeled as 1 is black and then the coloring goes as follows:
1. Black
2. Red
3. Green
4. Yellow
5. Black
6. Red
7. Green
8. Yellow

I tried running the Red - White and Black - Blue and then the reverse and neither seemed to work.

Figuring it would be easier to copy exactly what you have show above I cut a new either net cable in half and ran the WhiteOrange to the White on the dimmable ballast and the Orange to the Blue on the ballast and no light comes out of the module.

Repeatedly I unplug the module and plug it into a non-dimmable ballast and it still fires on normal, so it's capable of putting out light.

I have the ballast on an outlet on the EB8 and plugged a power head into it and it runs fine so there is power to the outlet.

I'm just stumped at this point.

[RussM]

Those are pins in a jack, not ports/outlets.

[RussM]

Post a close up pic of the plug on the cable you received.

[ToLearn]

Blue cord is a network cable I had around the house, black cable splits into two black cables and is the one I got from Neptune.

[SC Reefaholic]

If your cable goes Black, Red, Green, Yellow then The BLACK should be connected to the WHITE on the ELN and the RED to the BLUE on the ELN. Ignore the Black/Red in Russ' drawing. Those colors dont mean anything. What he is trying to show is that the first wire is connected to the White which is the -Dim and the 2nd wire is connected to the Blue which is the +Dim wire. Yours sound like they are backwards.

[SC Reefaholic]

Looks like on the Neptune cable the Black wires are your -Dim and the Red wires are your +Dim. Also remember that each cable is odd or even meaning one cable controls v1 and v3 while the other cable would control v2 and v4.

[ToLearn]

Originally Posted by SC Reefaholic

Also remember that each cable is odd or even meaning one cable controls v1 and v3 while the other cable would control v2 and v4.

Is this with the VDM or the full Apex controller? I'm assuming you mean with the VDM and the Neptune cord(that has one plug that kind of splits into two cables), but just want to make sure.

[RussM]

Originally Posted by SC Reefaholic

Ignore the Black/Red in Russ' drawing. Those colors don't mean anything.

The colors *were* accurate, and did mean something... that drawing was done as part of an actual build using the Neptune-supplied cables and Meanwell driver. On the Neptune cables I used, black was + and red is - (yeah, I know... doesn't follow usual conventions). Apparently Neptune has changed the wiring of the dimming cable.... the ones I worked with were RED-BLACK in pins 1-2 and then again RED-BLACK in 5-6.

reverse RED and BLACK from my drawing, and it should work.

[RussM]

Originally Posted by ToLearn

Is this with the VDM or the full Apex controller? I'm assuming you mean with the VDM and the Neptune cord(that has one plug that kind of splits into two cables), but just want to make sure.

This applies to VS ports regardless of whether they are in a full Apex base unit or in a VDM.

[SC Reefaholic]

Gotta love it when they pull the switch-a-roo. Must have gotten a good deal from a new supplier. I understand why they would use the unconventional colors due to the purpose of the cable but consistancy would be good.