Replacement of the TS-930S meter backlight with new bright LEDs. 3 July 2018

The incandescent meter backlight had failed and required replacement. While a simple like-for-like replacement was possible, there was a much superior solution available with bright LED (Light Emitting Diodes) lamps. LEDs, with their many superior characteristics compared to traditional incandescent lamps, particularly in terms of reliability, are not always ideal. One key performance difference that can make LEDs less suitable for display backlighting is their forward radiation of light in a narrow beam of between 10 and 20 degrees, compared to the more omnidirectional pattern of most incandescent globes. Therefore, if the backlight, as is often the case, relies on a more omnidirectional light, the replacement is not as straightforward as simply replacing the existing incandescent globes with the newer LED lights. Fortunately, the TS-930 radio is well suited for LED backlighting for the meter, and in fact, the 5mm LED is almost a perfect physical fit. That being said, the two LEDs required for this job produced two intense spots on the dial. This problem was solved by scuffing the LED lens with fine sandpaper to create more light diffusion, and the value of the LED current limiting resistor was significantly increased to reduce the LED brightness. See below photo.

Photo:  TS-930S with new bright blue LED meter back lights installed.

The TS-930 radio's dial light is powered by a 28V DC supply. It was found that using two 1.8k (3.6k) ohm 0.5 Watt resistors in series with each of the 5mm Blue, 23500mcd LED gave good results. However, adding a bit more resistance may potentially provide a slightly better result, which, of course, is subject to personal preference.