RGB LED strip controller and RGBW LED strip controller

1. The difference between RGB and RGBW LED strip controllers

The RGB LED strip controller differs from the RGBW strip controller by the number of color channels. Their common color channels are red, green, and blue.

The RGBW controller is different in that it has one more white light channel than the RGB controller. This channel is used to adjust the white LED node on the RGBW LED strip to produce true white light and add richer saturation to the other colors of the RGBW LED strip.

Since the RGBW LED controller has one more white channel than the RGB controller, the power of the RGBW controller is generally larger than that of the RGB controller.

The RGBW controller can control RGB/RGBW LED strips. In the case of controlling the RGB strip light, only the three channels R, G, and B are used, and the white channel of the controller is not used. In turn, an RGB LED strip controller cannot be used with an RGBW strip because it lacks a white channel and cannot control white LED nodes on the RGBW strip.

2. How do you connect an RGB strip to an RGB LED strip controller

The way to connect the RGB LED strip to the RGB controller is different depending on the connection interface of the controller and the lead type of the LED strip.

The first case is when the RGB LED strip controller has a 4-pin connector. This connection varies depending on the leads of the RGB strip. If the lead wire of the LED strip also has a 4-pin connector, it can be inserted directly into the 4-pin male or female connector for connectivity. If the LED tape has four leads, consider connecting the four leads to a 4-pin connector and then connecting it to the controller. It should be noted that the correct correspondence between the positive and colored negative electrodes should be ensured.

The second case is when the RGB strip controller has four connected terminals. The four terminals are generally V+, R (red), G (green), and B (blue). If the LED strip has a 4-pin lead, simply connect the 4-pin lead of the LED strip to the terminal of the RGB strip controller. If the LED strip has a 4-pin connector, you can also cut out the 4-pin connector of the RGB controller so that there are 4 wires that can go directly to the 4 terminals of the controller.

When the RGBW LED controller is used as an RGB LED controller, its wiring is similar to the RGB controller wiring. The only difference is that the white light channel is not used, as shown in the image below.

3. How do I connect the RGB LED strip controller to the power supply

There are two ways to connect RGB controller to power supply. Some controllers have DC plug-in terminals. In this case, we only need to plug in the male plug of the LED power supply. If the output of the LED power supply has a screw terminal, connect the power supply to the DC male connector using the LED wire and the DC male coaxial connector screw terminal, then plug the DC male connector into the DC plug-in terminal of the RGB strip controller.

Some RGB LED strip light controllers have screw terminal for wiring. In this case, we only need to connect the RGB controller to the power supply using LED wires. Make sure to match the positive and negative values on the LED controller and power supply.