TS-2000 Blue Display Light

[KK0G]

Just finished reassembling my TS-2000 after replacing the burnt out display lamps with blue LED's (why oh why would any manufacturer in this day and age install incandescent lamps hard wired to the board that requires an hour of disassembly to access!?!? >:( ).  Doesn't look too bad if I do say so myself and the real beauty is the LED's I replaced the lamps with should last almost indefinitely.


So why Blue? Because I think it looks cool and I was tired of looking at an amber display all these years.  8)  Of course I was more tired of looking at a display with half the bulbs burnt out more than anything.

[crash54]

So, how difficult was the operation to change them out?
I have a TS-2000LE and I don't like the yellow display, even though it still works just fine.

[KK0G]

So, how difficult was the operation to change them out?
I have a TS-2000LE and I don't like the yellow display, even though it still works just fine.

Not too difficult if you're handy with a soldering iron.


http://www.n1eq.com/tech/page_04.html


http://www.k2txb.com/changing.htm


I did have to modify how they're wired. There are 6 lamps consisting of 3 series pairs fed in parallel, the LEDs would barely illuminate when wired in series so I paralleled them all and fed them with the full 5 volts of the lamp circuit with some jumpers. Sounds way more complicated than it really is and none of the modifications are permanent, I could easily return it to original but I can't imagine why I'd ever want incandescent lamps again.


Mouser part number for the LEDs is: 638-329415SUBCS400A6      $0.68 ea. x 6
1/2 W 150 ohm resistor P/N 279-CBT50J150R                                             $0.16 ea. x 3


There's a guy on e-Bay that sells a kit to do the same thing for $25, I like my $4.56 option better. 8)

[cockpitbob]

Looks cool.  Personally I stay away from blue.  The typical human eye has the worst time focusing blue and I think my eyes are worse than typical in that category.