What's your preferred LED colour ? [Archive]

istari_knight

12-04-2014, 13:30

Just out of interest... What's your preferred LED colour on hifi front panels for power indicators & the like ? It shouldn't be a big deal but is for me. I detest blinding bright blue light burning my retinas and will always replace them or cover up with blutak :D

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c129/istari_knight9/RBG-LED_zps732e5188.jpg

kininigin

12-04-2014, 13:33

Where's the option for no LED's? I do the same and cover anything that is remotley bright!

istari_knight

12-04-2014, 13:35

Where's the option for none?

Ha ! There isnt one... Other will have to do ;)

Macca

12-04-2014, 13:41

You can't have equipment with no LEDs. How would you know if it was powered up or not?

Typical that with something this important that people are not taking it seriously :(

kininigin

12-04-2014, 13:50

You can't have equipment with no LEDs. How would you know if it was powered up or not?

Typical that with something this important that people are not taking it seriously :(

Taking it seriously!!! It's a poll which has no bearing on anything! Calm down dear! Or are you joking?

Macca

12-04-2014, 14:02

I'm joking. I'm nearly always joking it is my default setting.

Mr Kipling

12-04-2014, 14:59

Green

Red just looks too… too common.

costerdock

12-04-2014, 15:17

Blue - no - Red - Doh!

.mus

12-04-2014, 15:32

Green, every time. Indeed, I like to play my TT with the tapedeck switched on and in 'source' mode, just so I can watch the green peak meters dancing away.

istari_knight

12-04-2014, 17:23

Blue is the favourite at the moment :stalks:

The Barbarian

12-04-2014, 17:46

Anything but blue

:steam:

anthonyTD

12-04-2014, 17:46

Its Green for me personally...:)
Or, second choice, if i were allowed,;) Orange!
A...

archiesdad

12-04-2014, 18:14

Frankly orange would be a nice change, my kit has BRIGHT blue leds but I have fixed small circles of coloured tape over them with has changed them to a turquoise/green that is a lot subtler.

Macca

12-04-2014, 18:27

Blue is running away with it. What is the matter with you people?

Mr Kipling

12-04-2014, 18:51

I wish you could get pink ones.

shevans

12-04-2014, 18:51

White especially on black kit.

Magna Audio

12-04-2014, 19:07

Green, then red, blue last!
I have 5 amps with F off bright blue!
Diy build dsp x/o dac I use is green;).
I should change the amp less as blue us evil, hard to focus on and even worse in low/chilled out lighting conditions,
That said, front end green, power end red, for me.

kininigin

12-04-2014, 19:13

I'm joking. I'm nearly always joking it is my default setting.

That's good to know,thought you lost the plot for a moment!

The Grand Wazoo

12-04-2014, 20:08

I wish you could get pink ones.

Seek and ye shall find Mr Kippers!

Lo, and then there was (pink) (http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-1000-pcs-LED-5mm-Straw-hat-Pink-LED-2000mcd-Wide-Angle-/291123571084) light

Sovereign

12-04-2014, 20:34

I really don't like blue. I almost always listen in the pitch black and blue just seems way too bright. Red is a lot more relaxing.

RMutt

12-04-2014, 21:05

Got to be red. Rega know design. I even changed my Cambridge Audio transport from green to red just so it would match.

YNWaN

12-04-2014, 21:14

White LEDs for me

jandl100

12-04-2014, 21:26

Blue is the favourite at the moment :stalks:

:yay:

http://www.architectural-scalemodel.com/photo/pl344270-md01_016_5mm_blue_strawhat_led_light_architectural _model_building_supplies.jpg

Macca

12-04-2014, 21:49

Twice as many prefer another colour other than blue than prefer blue though...

Stratmangler

12-04-2014, 21:55

Sky blue pink, with orange spots :)

nat8808

13-04-2014, 00:55

I like retro amber/orange.. (I'm thinking retro industrial computer equipment here..)

Does depend on it's use though... for a power amp, I think red is good and strong. Amber is good for source components.. red is good on my Threshold pre but amber could be good for others.

Something about green for me.. I've just seen it too often and is so often washed out.

Blue was once novel, but it's just common, bling, cheap and nasty - might as well aspire to drive around in a white Ranger Rover Sport and wear a gold watch.

I do like the mix of colours used on the Emmlabs gear:

http://www.lyrics.it/image/cache/data/emm%20labs/DCC2%20SE-800x600.jpg

Nice when out of focus and with a red one lit:

http://audiofederation.com/dealership/images/dcc2-at-night.jpg

jandl100

13-04-2014, 06:04

Twice as many prefer another colour other than blue than prefer blue though...

;)

You should be a spin doctor for the political party of your choice. :eyebrows:

Macca

13-04-2014, 08:13

;)

You should be a spin doctor for the political party of your choice. :eyebrows:

Funny you should say that....

Macca

13-04-2014, 08:16

I .

Blue was once novel, but it's just common, bling, cheap and nasty - might as well aspire to drive around in a white Ranger Rover Sport and wear a gold watch.

]

I wear a gold watch and like white cars and Range Rovers but I hate blue LEDs so there is that theory shot. Unless I do just have bad taste and the blue LED thing is an aberration :)

vinylspinner

13-04-2014, 08:28

Blue for me, green would be my second choice, red is off the menu.

Nigel

jandl100

13-04-2014, 08:30

II do like the mix of colours used on the Emmlabs gear:

http://www.lyrics.it/image/cache/data/emm%20labs/DCC2%20SE-800x600.jpg

To me that looks like something from Toys R Us -- you should get a plastic hammer to hit it on the top and the different lights then start to twinkle and a wobbly nursery rhyme tune starts to play. :eyebrows:

-- I like the blue lights and numbers though :thumbsup:

This is from when Meitner made proper looking kit - shame about the red LEDs though :(, but then back in the day they didn't know better. ;)

http://i262.photobucket.com/albums/ii114/jandl100/MeitnerPA6i_zpsda02e8ad.jpg

Tarzan

13-04-2014, 08:38

Blue all day long for me.

Joe

13-04-2014, 08:59

Blue, of course. it's the choice of all the cool, modernist types.

anthonyTD

13-04-2014, 09:38

:eek::lol:
I wear a gold watch and like white cars and Range Rovers but I hate blue LEDs so there is that theory shot. Unless I do just have bad taste and the blue LED thing is an aberration :)

Tim

13-04-2014, 09:59

So a blue LED is "common, bling and nasty" is it? What a load of bollox, made me laugh though :lol:

Macca

13-04-2014, 10:04

Well if there was a general election tomorrow blue would win by a landslide. Looks like we may have to revert to plan B and bribe an E.U official to get them banned. We'll just say they cause cancer or something...

istari_knight

13-04-2014, 10:11

Just caught up with this thread :mental:

Welcome to AOS, the home of bad taste.

shane

13-04-2014, 10:20

LEDs? Pah!

http://www.jeffreywjackson.com/images/Al_GM70_PP_VIII.JPG

Mr Kipling

13-04-2014, 10:30

Gordon Steadman

13-04-2014, 10:33

I think clear does it for me although I don't object to the green ones on my Creek stuff. I suppose some add on lenses in various colours could be produced for those who obsess about such things.

Does any colour sound better than others?

Mr Kipling

13-04-2014, 10:42

Avoid anything using blue ones - everything sounds depressed.

anthonyTD

13-04-2014, 11:15

Green,Definitely Green, everything sounds better with Green!!!
I think clear does it for me although I don't object to the green ones on my Creek stuff. I suppose some add on lenses in various colours could be produced for those who obsess about such things.

Does any colour sound better than others?

RichB

13-04-2014, 11:19

Got to be red. Rega know design. I even changed my Cambridge Audio transport from green to red just so it would match.

Yep, Rega red for me too. Looking at 4 of them right now...

Stratmangler

13-04-2014, 11:22

Putting on my serious hat on for a change, I prefer green LEDs.
I have them on my amp and my DAC, and they're not too annoying or intrusive.
The red strobe light on the Techie doesn't bother me either.
My cure for the far too bright blue LEDs that are on a couple of bits of kit is simple - a blob of blutack stops the bloody things from showing :eyebrows:

Gordon Steadman

13-04-2014, 11:32

Green,Definitely Green, everything sounds better with Green!!!
:lol:

Just looked inside my Marantz CD63 (SE natch) and its all GREEN inside. See, even us old septics went through all this baloney!!

PaulStewart

13-04-2014, 14:42

I like blue, red or green but the blue ones on my DAC are subtle the one on the phonostage I was trialing a while back and on the LPSU I use for the energiser on my Stax headphones are like retina searing lasers... Way, way too bright, at night I like to use the 'phones in a darkish room and these things are like martian death rays blasting across the room and I don't want lumps of tape stuck on the front, it looks unsightly. :mad: Rant over, i'd go and lie down in a dark room if I could turn these ruddy LEDs off, don't get me started on kit with no power switches :lol:

Naughty Nigel

13-04-2014, 16:32

You can't have equipment with no LEDs. How would you know if it was powered up or not? (

Because you can see the valves glowing in the dark. :lol:

Peter Walker didn't have any need for indicators of any colour, and I am sure he would turn in his grave at the thought of Chavvy blue LED's on his equipment! :)

Nigel.

Gordon Steadman

13-04-2014, 17:28

Because you can see the valves glowing in the dark. :lol:

Peter Walker didn't have any need for indicators of any colour, and I am sure he would turn in his grave at the thought of Chavvy blue LED's on his equipment! :)

Nigel.

Oh yes he did... those nice little QUAD signs light up with a soft white light, very subtle. However, as you say, he would probably turn to gardening rather than have a flashing blue light on top of his ...hi-fi.

synsei

13-04-2014, 18:14

Of course it all depends on implementation: Any nude LED is an eyesore regardless of colour but employ a little lateral thinking and the resulting subtle glow can be attractive. Take the Amptastic Mini-T for example, it sports yer typical modern, retina burning blue LED but it has been pushed backstage behind the volume knob therefore it throws out a subtle electric blue corona around the volume control which looks quite cool to my eyes. Blue it is then, if done properly... ;)

anthonyTD

13-04-2014, 19:41

Seriously though,i have to admit to using quite a lot of blue LED's on the Soul range of products in the early 2000's, not particularly my choice, but the choice of the day really,and i agree, when set behind the acrylic knobs [to light them] they looked rather more subtle, [especially when the light was deferred] than they did glaring straight at you, However, i used red on some too, and i much preferred these to blue.
A...

anthonyTD

13-04-2014, 19:47

anthonyTD

13-04-2014, 19:50

:eyebrows: The theory is, Green light is supposed to absorb stray reflections/light from the laser/disk combination. its another good reason for choosing Green...;)
:lol:

Just looked inside my Marantz CD63 (SE natch) and its all GREEN inside. See, even us old septics went through all this baloney!!

Stratmangler

13-04-2014, 19:53

I have just noticed that there seems to be more than four people in this thread who's personal choice is Green, i smell a rat! or is it that they just haven't voted, if so come on, your letting blue get away!!!:eyebrows:

I wasted my vote by voting other.
I lied.
Sky blue pink with orange dots is not my preferred colour.

Any chance of correcting this mistake? :please:

Mr Kipling

13-04-2014, 20:00

And when I'm set to do some Serious Listening, I also dress accordingly:

12057

nat8808

13-04-2014, 22:09

And I can say that without fear of contraception.

Uhh? :scratch: Don't know that expression!

nat8808

13-04-2014, 22:14

So a blue LED is "common, bling and nasty" is it? What a load of bollox, made me laugh though :lol:

Yeah! Common as muck - on every cheap and nasty Chinese or wherever product just to make it look 'modern' and latest tech. If a blue LED is the finishing touch to the cheapest of cheap products then there's something wrong...

Of course it's bollox really but definately common ad nausium !

Mr Kipling

13-04-2014, 22:18

Uhh? :scratch: Don't know that expression!

Hylda Baker sound familiar? Or are you not as old as I thought you were?

SLS

13-04-2014, 23:21

My amp starts Orange in soft start, then goes green. Don't mind either, as long as they don't go red, which means tubes are dead and €600 bill.
So it's green for me, but I did once turn down a job because the guy offering was wearing a green suit and tie, so I won't be dressing to match.

nat8808

13-04-2014, 23:30

I would NEVER (EVER) own ANY item of hi-fi that looked like it had a row of Jelly Tots on its display. And I can say that without fear of contraception.

Jelly Tots? haha..

They are very same LEDs as on every other bit of gear but different colours - one for every person! They are just assembled together..

Maybe non-matching is grating for some. For me can be a sign of a functional bit of kit, something from a lab, something retro-industrial computer, military even - having the same colour LED for every function means you only rely on position for it's meaning. Different colours are there for quick glance, effective reading of a display using both colour AND position. Of course if could be the result of some random handful of LEDs!

nat8808

13-04-2014, 23:33

Hylda Baker sound familiar? Or are you not as old as I thought you were?

Ah well... that depends what you thought! A quick wiki says she died before I was 10..

Mr Kipling

14-04-2014, 00:01

And there was me thinking you were an old man Nat.

Hylda B was well-known for her malapropisms - and that was one of them.

Gordon Steadman

14-04-2014, 06:33

And there was me thinking you were an old man Nat.

Hylda B was well-known for her malapropisms - and that was one of them.

I don't know, kids these days!! They don't know nowt.:rolleyes:

Naughty Nigel

14-04-2014, 07:13

Oh yes he did... those nice little QUAD signs light up with a soft white light, very subtle. However, as you say, he would probably turn to gardening rather than have a flashing blue light on top of his ...hi-fi.

How right you are! I only use the Quad II power amps, and had forgotten about the Quad sign.

But to be serious for a moment, I think it depends a lot on the colour of the chassis. To me, red and amber look nice against black, whist blue and green look better against silver. There is also something deep and mysterious about a non-illuminated red LED in a black chassis that makes you want to see it lit. The LED on the top of my old Olympus OM4Ti camera body is one such example.

Red is predominant because red LED's were available years before any other colour (green came second by about five years), and is still the cheapest to bulk buy. Blue and white LED's were much later developments, and for a while were hideously expensive. (The first blue LED I came across cost £37.50 + VAT.)

However, there is also the matter of meaning. Red usually means 'warning' or 'danger', whist green means the opposite, although there are probably few reasons to use multi-colour systems on HiFi equipment. Nevertheless, most cars nowadays reserve red lamps for warnings of danger, such as low oil pressure or low brake fluid level, whilst amber is used to warn of lesser dangers such as engine malfunctions or low fuel.

Nigel.

anthonyTD

14-04-2014, 08:46

Have you been Walter,,, what are you doing stood standing there...
Nelly Pledge, what a character.
And there was me thinking you were an old man Nat.

Hylda B was well-known for her malapropisms - and that was one of them.

stupinder

14-04-2014, 09:52

Rbb 250, 4, 254 :-)

Frazeur1

14-04-2014, 10:26

I have always preferred green, unobtrusive, unlike most of the nasty eyeball burning blue ones on most gear these days. I tend to like my listening space dark. The blue wouldn't be so bad if one was able to tone intensity down-or off. My Plinius integrated has blue, but they are tiny pin-pricks and are very easy on the eyes.

I admit, nothing much can beat the soft glow of fire-bottles in a darkened room, but it has been awhile since I have enjoyed that.

I guess too, I have become accustomed to green over the years as most of my gear is Naim....uh-oh. Well, nevermind, I will move along now. Tim

shane

14-04-2014, 10:47

I like blue LEDs, partly because they're one of the few modern inventions that can be directly attributed to the hard work and persistance of a single individual. Eventually, he did rather well out of it!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuji_Nakamura

Naughty Nigel

14-04-2014, 10:51

I have always preferred green, unobtrusive, unlike most of the nasty eyeball burning blue ones on most gear these days.

I gather a former Paralympian, Mr O. Pistorius had difficulty sleeping with the blue LED on his Pioneer amplifier........... :(

Nigel.

AlexM

15-04-2014, 20:05

Amber isn't hard on the eyes, unlike blue.

I like the amber LEDs on my CJ kit.. Works fine as an indicator, but doesn't ever draw your eye to it. Looks nice against a champagne gold facial too.

Frazeur1

17-04-2014, 16:19

Nothing like a champaign gold facial....Yikes!

Yomanze

17-04-2014, 16:21

Blue sounds the best, red is too warm-sounding for me.

The Black Adder

17-04-2014, 16:31

All kit should have the power LED to be flashing cyan, green, purple, pink with a loud 'beep' every time it changes, just to let you know that it's changed colour again... Superb!

It could also have a frequency change button to say 22khz to send your dog potty! :)

istari_knight

17-04-2014, 16:34

All kit should have the power LED to be flashing cyan, green, purple, pink with a loud 'beep' every time it changes, just to let you know that it's changed colour again... Superb!

I expected you to want some nixie's spelling "ON" or "ACTIVATED" :D

http://www.ineedcaffeine.com/content/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/flwk2_jazzc.jpg

The Black Adder

17-04-2014, 16:39

I expected you to want some nixie's spelling "ON" or "ACTIVATED" :D

http://www.ineedcaffeine.com/content/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/flwk2_jazzc.jpg

Ah.. yes. Or flashing 'HELLO'... and flashing 'GOODBYE' constantly, even when it's turned off!

lol

AlexM

17-04-2014, 20:36

Nothing like a champaign gold facial....Yikes!

LOL! I think that's a damnyouautocorrect.com moment!

awkwardbydesign

20-04-2014, 09:15

Purple. I change mine from the relentless blue ones whenever I have to open anything up. And add a voltage didvider to dim them down, and match levels. Or if I can't change them, a little circle of yellow film turns them green.
And if blue LEDs beam, then rubbing them down with fine wet and dry will blur them. Don't try this without removing them first!

MikeMusic

21-04-2014, 16:34

Black is my favourite

Not listed though...

roob

22-04-2014, 10:01

I like blue on my bite alarms :)

PaulStewart

22-04-2014, 11:24

Remembering that LEDs that beam all have an optical axis, I opened my MCRU linear power supply (it of the pre mentioned retina searing blue emissions) and using two pairs of miniature needle nose pliers, angled the thing to point slightly down into the case. I now have a subtle, soft blue glow that is richer in colour and approved of by Mrs. S. :) Looking at the system now the Grant head amp has very subtle red, the Quintet has two low level reds the VPS has a soft start that flicks between red orange and finishes green, again low level and red again on the Stax energiser. Blue if done subtly, looks the best me and the Mrs.

MikeMusic

22-04-2014, 12:06

Marco

22-04-2014, 12:21

I like brown LEDs

Marco.

istari_knight

22-04-2014, 12:40

I like brown LEDs

Marco.

http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c129/istari_knight9/poo_zpsedf6de89.gif

This thread is dead.

:closed2:

Marco

22-04-2014, 12:58

:D :D

Marco.

PaulStewart

22-04-2014, 13:17

Ooh top man Paul
I have mine covered in black card

Wonder if it's worth looking inside the Chord to angle the 'bright as the sun' LEDs they have in there.....

It's worth a look, however I take no responsibility for whatever you break :lol: After I left the living room door open one night and the bloody thing shone down the corridor of our flat, dazzled the Mrs. on her way to make tea an she stubbed her toe, she put masking tape on it..... No the LED not the toe (try and keep up there), we both thought it looked tatty and unplugged it when not in use. Now all is bliss :)

Naughty Nigel

13-05-2014, 21:14

One final note from me on LED's.

Most LED's are used only as indicator lamps, but once in a while a designer will try to save a few pence by using an LED as a voltage reference - similar to a Zener diode, for which purpose they can work perfectly well. (These will usually be mounted on the main PCB rather than on a flying lead.)

However, the forward voltage (Vf) of LED's changes according to their colour, and sometimes their intensity, so changing an old red LED to a sexy new blue one might just cause unexpected problems!

As an example, many of the original red LED's had a Vf of just 1.6 volts. Green was slightly higher at about 2.5 volts, whilst newer white LED's have a Vf of 3.6 volts and blue 4.0 volts respectively. There are also many LED's now with built in current regulation, whilst others use two diodes in series for higher intensity (therefore doubling the Vf).

I came across this problem on a model railway switching circuit where somebody had replaced the original red and green LED's with all new blue ones - and couldn't get it to work. In this case the LED's were fitted in series with relay switches, and whilst the LED's lit up the current was no longer high enough to operate the relays! :)

Nigel.

istari_knight

13-05-2014, 21:18

Good point Nigel, I came across this in a Cambridge Audio A3i which uses 8 of the little buggers.

Techno Commander

13-05-2014, 21:38

I like these LED switches. The light is much more diffuse than a straight LED.

http://d114hh0cykhyb0.cloudfront.net/images/uploads/LED-Push-Button-Indicator-Illu-Colors-xPBT-SPx.jpg

Techno Commander

13-05-2014, 21:43

This will take some beating though. :)

http://kipgen.com/radios/sale/images2013/six-a-gone-radio-3.jpg

Naughty Nigel

14-05-2014, 07:28

This will take some beating though. :)

http://kipgen.com/radios/sale/images2013/six-a-gone-radio-3.jpg

I like those LED switches. Where do you get them from?

I haven't seen a valve tuning indicator like that for at least twenty years. They always fascinated me. I presume they are still available for a price?

Even my old Quad FM2 tuner used two neon indicators rather than a valve as a tuning indicator, so I feel a bit deprived. :)

Nigel.

anthonyTD

14-05-2014, 09:03

337alant

14-05-2014, 10:12

green for me :eyebrows:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/69508926@N05/6960403792/in/photostream/
Alan

Barry

14-05-2014, 10:21

I like those LED switches. Where do you get them from?

I haven't seen a valve tuning indicator like that for at least twenty years. They always fascinated me. I presume they are still available for a price?

Even my old Quad FM2 tuner used two neon indicators rather than a valve as a tuning indicator, so I feel a bit deprived. :)

Nigel.

Buy yoursef a Leak 'Thoughline' tuner - they used a valve tuning indicator. So did the Quad AM1, AM2 and AM3 tuners.

istari_knight

14-05-2014, 10:34

green for me :eyebrows:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/69508926@N05/6960403792/in/photostream/
Alan

Thats pretty.

Naughty Nigel

14-05-2014, 11:59

On a serious note, those of you who prefer Blue Led's, there are health reasons, ie; related negative affects of blue light, do a search if your interested. One of the more serious aspects is [apparently] induced sleep deprivation.
A...

I heard about that. I believe it was also a blue LED that stopped Oscar Pistorius from sleeping!

Presumably the blue light is only a health hazard during the hours of darkness when we should be sleeping? And presumably LED computer monitors and television screens are equally harmful?

Perhaps system builders should fit multi-colour LED's that change to softer, warmer colours at night. :)

Nigel.