Electroluminescent (EL) Panel - 10cm x 10cm Aqua (ADA623)

Support Adafruit
1

This is a placeholder topic for “Electroluminescent (EL) Panel - 10cm x 10cm Aqua” comments.

623-00.jpg970×728


EL panel is the big sister to EL wire - it has the same glow effect but with a flat shape instead of a round shape. This is a big sheet of flexible plastic coated … read more

Read more

1 Like
2

Hi there, I am looking for an EL panel that can be cut into different shapes. For example, I need to cut a panel into a smaller size, 2.5 cm x 6.5 cm. If I use a panel like this one, I can have 5 of the small size panels. Is it possible with this panel?

2 Likes
3

Hi Hiroshi,

Unfortunately not. You can cut this to the desired size (make sure to seal the edges, the high voltage of these panels will be a painful zap) however, the leftover pieces can’t be used as they won’t have a connector or anywhere to solder on power leads.

4

Thanks, so is there any Adafruit EL panel that can be cut freely? If I purchase an EL panel, I will be cutting into multiple of 2.5cm x 6.5cm and 3.1cm x 6.3cm. Of course, I will make sure that each cut panel has a terminal on each side (front and back) for AC input.

5

Just to clarify, does this EL panel have a single thin conducting metal strip covering around all edges on a light emitting side? If so, i should be able to cut it into multiple small panels, as long as both the front and backside have metal terminals for AC current. Can you post higer resolution images showing the front and back sides, so I can clearly see how metal terminals are positioned across its surface areas?

6

Hi Hiroshi,

There is only one connection point for these EL panels which is off the two provided leads.

7

Yes, nearly all the EL can be cut as long as the connection to power isn’t severed, it’s worth noting that most will only have one point that they’re powered from, so the other cut EL parts get scrapped after they’re cut.

Yep, unfortunately, I don’t have a better camera to take a photo with, but it’s a thin strip running the whole perimeter. If you’d like a photo from another angle not shown on the site we can get it added to the page for you.

Have a Merry Christmas!

1 Like
8

Hi Bryce, I was able to install an Adafruit EL panel into a vintage Sony Walkman with a lower AC voltage!. The new EL panel works great. Check my post in another thread for “Electroluminescent (EL) Panel Starter Pack - 10cm x 10cm Aqua #### SKU: ADA627”. Due to their ages, those Walkmans are showing greatly varying AC voltage from its inverter, ranging from 40 to 90 V AC. Those Adafruit EL panels work just fine even with those varying voltages.

1 Like
9

Hi Hiroshi,

I’ve just seen it, that looks excellent! Well done with the restoration! :partying_face: Let us know if you’d like to turn this into a project on the site, there’s a store credit reward available if your project write-up gets published :grin:

All the best with your future projects!

2 Likes
10

Thanks Bryce.

Here is the comparison of both aqua and white EL panels.

I tried those two EL panels and I definitely love the aqua EL panel better. Depending on how you cut and use the panel, you get slightly different colour. This photo shows more bluish colour, which I really love.

Well, I must say, I’m glad that I did a bit of research and found this Core Electronics website! I had no idea that, in 2021, I could buy an EL panel and cut into desired shapes and replace old and fading EL panels from those vintage Sony DAT Walkmans. I thought all technologies used in these vintage Walkmans are obsolete and I wouldn’t be able to get any of them.

But, a bit of fiddling to put an EL panel is really worth it at the end. Having a brand new blight aqua EL backlight panel really makes a big difference with those Walkmans. It’s almost like having a brand new one!!! EL technologies are really cool and I hope we will see more amazing things based on those technologies.

1 Like
11

Thank you Hiroshi,

Hopefully, this response will assist with other restorations in the future! If you have any questions regarding parts or putting together a project page on our website please let us know. Well done!

:grin:

12

Hi there! I am needing some assistance in calculating what type of inverter(s) I should get for my project using El Panels.

I am planning to purchase two 10cm x 10cm El Panels and I will be cutting both of them into circles approximately 4cm - 5cm in diameter (I’m using them as eyes on a puppet). I was wondering if I would still need x2 seperate inverters that each take x4 AAA batteries, or if I could get away with running both of the panels on a single x4 AAA inverter since they will be cut smaller? Or am I completely wrong and I need a different inverter? It’s all very confusing for me so any help would be appreciated!

Cheers!

13

Hi Jaymie,

Welcome to the forum :slight_smile:

Unfortunately EL panels are the most load intensive of the EL products so running just 1 panel will max out most inverters. Cutting the panel smaller should reduce the load but it’s hard to estimate how much.
Adafruit have written a killer guide on EL wire which goes into the math of how it works if you are interested.