It happened again

Once again, Sure Electronics modified their 32x16 3mm LED display, and this time not only cosmetically.
The two 16-pin shrouded male connectors have been replaced with 10-pin connectors. And the worst thing is that the display now requires 12V for power! Maybe these new displays are intended for use in vehicles powered by 12V batteries. Or maybe designers thought a 12V power source is easier to access than a 5V one. In any case, the display has an on-board DC-DC switching regulator (with XL4013) to make the required 5V.

For someone who needs to replace the older model with the new one, the immediate consequences are:
  • the connector between the driver board (e.g. Wise Clock 4) and the display won't work; connections must be re-wired, probably using an adapter cable;
  • either supply 12V to the board through the connector, or hack the display by soldering the 5V wire directly to the board (see the photos);
  • the holes won't align anymore.

The good news is that the display is electrically compatible with the old one. With the correct re-wiring, the display should work without any software changes.

The following photo shows the testing of the display with the Wise Clock 4 board (and it works just fine).


The display has a series of rail bars that can be used for soldering the 5V power wire, as shown below.


A new design based on this display should (or must) use a 12V power supply. Powering from the USB is not an option any more. This would require a re-design of the Wise Clock 4 board as well (USB connector would be useless now; the FTDI cable won't be able to power the display).

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