Ok, now am working with a 8x8 Matrix LED which as written in the subject field comes without the backpack.
Now I have also one with a backpack from Adafruit, and that baby is neat you just connect it with 4 pins (resistors are already in the backpack) and done.
But now I want to connect the one without the backpack, and the funny thing is as I was surfing the internet and the Arduino forums from what I found on the google search, what amazes me is that no one asked if resistors are needed for this to run, or am just plain retarded when it come for searching stuff on google. Well I found few places where people where questioning if resistors are needed and no one answered.
Anw, I found this: http://arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/RowColumnScanning but there's no resistors there, I mean what I just plug it in without the resistors? Isn't that going to drive the LED's, I mean I have personally burned dozens of LED's for fun and just plugging them in without resistors but I don't what that to happen to my 8x8 matrix of course.
Pretty much found two pictures how to connect them.
One is completely without resistors that's the official Arduino tutorial and the second one is here:
I have literally tried to do it as close as the picture, I cant believe there's not a normal tutorial out there.
Still no luck. :~ still trying to figure out how to connect it.
Have you considered MAX7219 to control it?
No resistors needed then, just 1 on the MAX7219 for max current flow control,
overall brightness controlled via a register setting.
too late I already burned one of the LEDS, my hears is broken, I have to get a new on now =(
And it was 1388BUR (written on the side) and from under M12088A/B.
Goxy:
too late I already burned one of the LEDS, my hears is broken, I have to get a new on now
Well do yourself a real favour and get a module using a MAX7219 this time. It is a total waste of time mucking about with using eight port pins, transistors, resistors and multiplexing when the MAX7219 does it all for you. And they are dirt cheap.
The thing is as i said i have an LED 8x8 with a backpack from Adafruit, but i want to learn to map the one without the backback for two reasons:
Mainly for my self to learn how to map stuff and get it right of course, i want to gain knowledge and become better with understanding electronics.
There's absolutely not a single normal tutorial explain how the 8x8 matrix LED works in detail. So I have literally learned how it functions and why and I want to upload it on my blog.
But somehow accidentally shorted one of the LED's and burned them.. But hey its process of learning, means am on the right track. I will probably be going tomorrow to get another one from the local story and continue my work!
