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I may have made mention of it in certain posts but never a single topic all to it's own. I've had some inquiries here and there, but yes, NC LED is no more. For the last couple of years it was hard to get NC LED to make modifications to existing lines or create new ones. NC was becoming a very stubborn company bent and dictated their product line to European sales. They had open ears at one time, but over time....well. High performance & High End demand for LEDs is so much more, and so different than European standards. So, slowly over time I became frustrated with NC LED. All they wanted to do was push existing lines and NOT change with the times, or demand, or for American demand...we became 2nd tier. I'm not striving to be 2nd tier or 2nd place.... This is one of the main reasons why we took the modifications we wanted to make into our own line. The BrightON Line is just so much more improved over the Reckless NC LED line that we promoted here. The Reckless NC LED line that we dedicated here was top of the line and ahead of it's time....at one time....and that time is long gone. With the BrightON line the user can get more linear light per string, better chip efficiency and get more light per watt, and at 24v the amperage is cut in half, you have lesser resistance and heat running across the system than you would with a 12v system...and have a wider 175˙ true optic lens over a 120˙ Korean module. The Korean typical wide optics for a supposed 140˙ lens was just a diffused lens...nothing more...nothing special. Sure the light spread more, but it was dimmer, it was like taking your hands and choking someone...it was just a matter of dispersing the pinpoint light, you might as well put a piece of diffuser film over the Korean clear lens. From what I'm told the NC LED Plant in Vietnam is closed. The plant in Korea is mainly closed and the company is under re-organization greatly in part due to the China Flu. I'm not sure what NC LED American in NY is doing, I hear it's just a matter of getting rid of depleted constant voltage NOT Constant Current LED stock, and that they may be selling some other LEDs from a company in Korea. Whatever stock we have left is limited. We can special order modules to match up whatever may have been put out before by users, but again it's special phone in order only. Our new and improved is our BrightON LED Line and it WILL change with the times keeping current with our American creativity that knows no bounds or ceiling. That's what we strive for, high-end products for high-end shops. There are plenty of cheap LED modules one can find on Amazon, Ebay, or Alibaba that we have been shocked to find out shops have been using them for their clients...but High-End Signage is not their forte, and best not to compete with that market and longevity is not their standard. Anyhow, thought I would spread the news about NC LED after getting so many inquiries lately BrightON LED Line Topics

Like everywhere else if you're very fortunate to be busy during this shut down, some business's are still willing to upgrade their branding in these slow depressing times We removed some outdated retail signage and upgraded them to their current look. I know, this is normally just an average channel letter sign....*Yawn*......but what's unique is the lighting system that powers it at night. The Illumination? BrightON II 24v constant current NOT constant voltage ....LEDs instead of the industry typical 12v LEDs for half the amperage across the wire and components which translates to less heat, resistance, and in return a MUCH better system for dependability. Not even to mention just how much light for very little power you get from the super high efficient BrightON II Chips with the added 175˙ high efficiency optics. Another advantage of 24V is the typical single channel power supplies are 96W, which means you can et LOTS of LED modules on a single power supply (less parts, less problems) which leads me to the next part... The system doesn't stop at the LEDs, it continues with France Lighting Solutions "True Power" LED Power Supplies. The Electric Sign industries unique and sole 100% load Power Supplies, no not 85%, not 80%.....100%. 5 year Labor / 5 Year Parts. If you've been in this industry long enough I don't even need to mention what "France" products mean....it mean Longevity & Dependability...just the BrightON II LEDs Front and Rear illuminated channel letters. France Westrim Pattern Paper 15" thick Tilt-Up Wall with plenty of rebar, WOOOHOOO!! France Lighting Solutions Power Supplies of course. The Atlas series with diagnostic LED lamp The Finished Day Look The Night Finished Look. For typical 5" deep return channel letters with front illumination light output measured right on the face for decent or as most LED MFG's like to say..."usable light"... if you have a light meter on hand ....."usable light" is right around 150 - 165 Foot Candles....that's just your typical even lighting number. The BrightON II at full stretch already exceeds that and with fewer modules compared to competitors using higher powered LED modules. This set right here gave us an average of 213 Foot Candles right on the face despite the light loss coming out of the rear. Brighton LEDs are "Competitive Light"...NOT "Usable Light" In the end? The client letting me know that they are VERY happy and that the sign looks AWESOME. These are the types of signs you flash to potential clients....Bright, Dependable, & Happy Reviews by Happy Customers. If this sign was in a shopping center the light output alone would stand out, and far above other competing signs. The Recipe: Autohaus Plexiglas MG 3M Translucent Films BrightON II 24v LEDs France Lighting Solutions LED Power Supplies Westrim Burroughs Pattern Paper Plasco Trim Cap Paige Wall Busters 3/16" Polycarbonate Plaskolite

Maybe I should have titled it "That BrightON Halo Illumination" Thought I would share a project where our new High-End 24 volt, .8watt BrightON II LED Modules were used. As I've discussed before in the past. There is a difference and a gap between "Usable Light" and "Competitive Light". The BrightON II is the most efficient (Light per power) LED Module in it's class, and it is the definition of Competitive Light. As explained here and suggested for spacing, it was chosen to use the 3" module spacer, and obviously you'll see as you scroll down the spacing could have even been much farther apart. Using the 3" spacers or 5" on center module to module spacing of the .8 watt will give you that extra punch for Halo and Day / Night faces, and you're looking at only $2 a foot buying a single bag of modules. Important note is what you're getting for that $2 a foot. Very easily module to module spacing could have been 7" OC, and a $1.45 a foot. The Grand Result? No over exposure here to make the lighting more extreme than "IRL"...in real life. because I have another picture to share here of a neighboring sign that is made up of your standard front illuminated channel letters. This is the very visual explanation of "Competitive Light". The BrightON II Modules will give sign shops more versatility with their lighting projects, eliminating a 3 diode module & eliminating stocking more various modules with just simple spacing making the BrightON II a more universal product in your shop. The reason? Because the BrightON II meets or exceeds the Performance of most 3 diode LED Modules on the market on Maximum Efficiency of 24V. Also, the long module to module wire leads. Could you just imagine for a second the BrightON II LED modules in the neighboring Coffee Sign at the maximum stretched module to module spacing of 7.625" or 1.57 ($1.33 a foot) modules per foot? I can! Something is being left out here and I have to discuss what completes this High-End system? That would be adding a France Lighting Solution LED Power supply of course In this case the 24V France Atlas with built in LED indicator light for proper function, bringing more Quality & Dependability to the project. The most important aspect of this job was the feedback from the client. They were VERY impressed with their sign when they drove by at night to see what their identity looked like. Their face will be your face. These are the types of results you will get with the BrightON II LED Modules. Finished jobs will sell themselves. Happy, impressed clients will sell, and market for you...provided you not only sold them a good product but good service as well. Come night, the mere visual can attract potential customers and a resume address can assure and close sales prospects, end results will be referral makers! FRANCE LED POWER SUPPLIES http://www.thesignsyndicate.com/forums/index.php?/store/category/22-led-power-supplies/

We always strive on information here on The Sign Syndicate. Everything from National Sign & Subcontractor Reviews on "payments & relationships" to "How To"...better ways to build sign systems and projects based on longevity & reliability . So, we're very, VERY excited (I want to say "Super Excited" but it's so over used) to announce our whole new upcoming Sign Syndicate 24V BrightON (Pronounced like the city) LED system just got even better. Better because we will be complimenting our High Powered, High Efficient LED Module system with France Lighting Solutions 24V LED Drivers. I have talked about France products quite a bit here over the years, mainly when it comes to Neon. The quality, that high bar of standards, most importantly....the "Reliability". From Neon to LED Power Supplies, expect nothing different, nothing less from France Lighting Solutions. But, actually here is something different about their LED Drivers, something "Cool". The France LED Drivers are the ONLY drivers that are "True Power". What is "True Power"? In short......It means they are the ONLY LED driver in the electric sign industry that you can load to the MAX. Not the typical load to 80% - 85% leaving room for voltage loss, wiring etc. Load to MAX.....if you want. We are just a month away from releasing the Sign Industries most light/power efficient LED Module on the market that will definitely put it's mark on this industry. You'll be able to get the most light for very little cost of operation. Get more for less.....be on a 24V system which give sign shops the unique ability to load more modules on a single power supply. A 24V system is half the amperage and reduces the heat, resistance, that run across the wiring and modules compared to a 12V system, improving reliability of your LED Lighting System. With a 24V system you're not restricted to 60 Watts per channel, BUT 96 Watts.....that's almost double! Complimenting our new LED System with France's "True Power" LED Drivers and adding them to your electric sign projects you'll be able to load 120 .8w BrightON 2 LED modules. That's 76.25 Linear feet of high powered LED modules for anything from everyday channel letters to cabinet & perimeter lighting. For our High Powered Sign Cabinet Lighting module, BrightON SunFire (3w), that France "True Power" LED Driver will give you up to 32 Linear Feet for your Sign Cabinets France Lighting Solutions DRV24100E Dry & Damp Location France Lighting Solutions DRV24100A Dry, Damp & WET Location Those Sign Face Foot Candle numbers!!! Look at the "Foot Candles Per Watt" (Higher is better) Our complete High Powered High Efficient BrightON LED System with France Lighting Solutions, that's DOUBLE reliability!!! Now Available!!! France "True Power" 24V LED Power Supplies http://www.thesignsyndicate.com/forums/index.php?/store/category/22-led-power-supplies/

So, we finally did it. It's been kicked around for months, prototypes, after prototypes and locked in on a configuration that we finally liked. As most of you know the Sign Syndicate we've been testing majority of the main stream LED's since 2008 in a unbiased benchmark comparison, tests such as "The Great White Hope....Project Tighty Whitey...Red Light District...Border Security & Blue Light Special". Over that time we've seen some characteristics that we liked, made sense, understood what will last and won't. What it means to be a High-End LED product. We have sold the NC LED's & Axioms for a few years now, as some of our favorites from the testing (Axioms no longer). But it's been time to do our own, make it more custom and more perfect for the Sign Industry. The Brighton line is made from those in the Sign Industry.....FOR the Sign Industry. It's BrightON, pronounced just like the city. So what so unique about the Brighton? For starters, we wanted it to be VERY efficient. I don't know of another more bright and efficient LED module in it's class. 155 lum/W and 124lum with a 170˙ Batwing optic lens, most importantly when it comes the sign industry the important number is 63.09 Foot Candles on a sign face per Watt The important aspects of long lasting LEDs is of course finding the "sweet spot", where it's driven just perfect for light and power. The Brighton is VERY under driven, less power, MORE light! These can be spaced out pretty far due to the optics lens, it's brighter in angles than it is straight on, or up. Under driving improves thermal performance, which extends life all while getting higher Lumens per watt. The Brighton LED is a High-End, High Performance LED module for High-End applications. For starters off the bat we will have a 2 Diode, (no need for a 3 Diode), 4 Diode, and our Sign Cabinet model 6 Diode (SunFire). Shops won't need to stock multiple module types, the Brighton-2 is so versatile, you can use it for almost anything, just adjust the spacing. It already comes with 7" inches of wire so jumping from one row to another is easy. Space the center to center at 6" for good light, 5" center for Better Light, 4" for Best Light. They're 1.7 mods/foot and work good for shallow 2" applications depending on face type to of course much deeper. Since these are driven so low, they don't generate a whole lot of heat, BUT, our Brighton-6 (2.8w) is Heatsinked on all Aluminum PCB for longer life. One of the biggest complaints we have received about LEDs when it comes to large projects like large letters or cabinets is......"We have to use so MANY Power Supplies!" A nice aspect about the Brighton is, it's a whole 24v system! Everything! As sign companies we are redistricted by the Class II regulation of no larger than 5A per channel. So 12v is restricted to 60watts, BUT....24v is restricted to 96watts. 24v will mean more modules per power supply. You're now getting almost double the amount of modules for a project. 24V cuts that amperage that runs across the wiring and module in half! It reduces the resistance, reduces the heat and most importantly IMPROVES reliability. I think we can all agree that LESS is BETTER, less moving parts, the less you have to worry. This is the first part of our Brighton Line, we'll continue to improve it widening the line and of course always always staying far ahead of the curve I'm including some rough test pics of our process and how they fair. We should have these available in the first part of Fall. And yes, we will still stock, and continue to sell NC LED Reckless LED Early Try Out's, various wattage and diode mfg's FRANCE LED POWER SUPPLIES http://www.thesignsyndicate.com/forums/index.php?/store/category/22-led-power-supplies/

**OUTDATED POST & INFORMATION** Our Current New & Improved LED Technology LED MODULE is the BrightON LED Series More Light per Watt, Longer Life, Lesser Modules & Cost... located Here Competitive Light NOT "Usable Light" As some of you may already know The Sign Syndicate has been testing NC LEDs since 2010 in Project Tighty Whitey, The Red Light District, & Blue Light Special and after the first 8,000 hours I was pretty impressed in "PTW", even in that short about of time we saw no light degradation (Lumen Maintenance). So I was always interested to see how they progressed, err....regressed in light as time went on. As many of you know, I don't use LEDs as a primary light source for channel letters unless I have too. When I have had to use LEDs over the years I've always been real careful about what LED manufacturer I use, and there is a VERY, VERY short list of who I use/used because I'm one of the few electric sign manufacturers that offers my clients a 5 year electrical "Worry Free" warranty that INCLUDES labor to change any electrical component out and I stress....."I"...chose to use for their sign. For this very reason you can pretty much chuck most LED marketing brochures in the garbage that states their LED's last 50,000+ hours of operation without loosing any light output. Most of the time they've never even tested their own to see how long they last of they take a result of 2 to 5 thousand hours and project to you the consumer those results which usually show little to none and project them in a slow gradual path of light loss. You can't do that that with LED's, but you can when it comes to light degradation with Neon & Fluorescents who have a much larger case history to go off of and it's just phosphor loss unlike LEDs which have so much more to loose. Most sign shops stick to the 1 year state mandatory (contractors licensing law) warranty, and "optional" or limited component warranty that does NOT include labor for up to 5 years. So should some component YOU chose crap out on your client then I guess they call you, you get a free replacement from the manufacturer and YOU end up charging YOUR client to replace something YOU specified out.....oh real nice!!! With my clients I put my money where my mouth is, so that's why my list of who to use is short, if it goes bad because of what I specified out I eat it, NOT my client!!! 5 years is a long time, and those who pay attentions to the 3rd party testing that The Sign Syndicate has been doing since 2008 knows most LEDs don't last as long as claimed, at least when it comes to "usable" light. I've been using NC LED for a particular program for a few years now where I have to use LEDs because the use of electrical component clearance is impossible for Neon. Over the years the results have been awesome using NC LED, and of course happy clients. The main reason why I choose to use NC LED for my program before we even started selling it here which is obviously recent, is because from the testing we have been doing here namely Project Tighty Whitey as it applies here.....there are a few things in common the brighter white LEDs in the comparison that last longer than others have in common. 1st....Their made in Korea, very tight quality control, think "Japan"!.......NOT China where they have quality control issues. Don't let anyone tell you different, there is too much of a track record and case history for INCONSISTENCY and manufacturers have to constantly hold the hand of the Chinese to make sure they're getting consistency and this is why American companies play musical chairs with Chinese plants who make their products. 2nd....Their constant current, or current regulated on each module...NOT constant voltage aka "Eco". So if you're not familiar with that term Constant Current just know each module is 12 volts from the first to the last on a string. A LED module that is ...NOT CC is constant voltage, aka "Eco"! Those are unregulated and the first LED module on a string is different than the LED on the last, or middle. It also means the first LED on the string could be taking a big hit from the power supply because it's not regulated and you'll get faster degradation as well as uneven lighting. CONSTANT CURRENT vs CONSTANT VOLTAGE This is not to say others that aren't with similar characteristics will last nearly as long (there have been exceptions), in past versions degradation over 15,000 hours or 5 sign years is left on 8 hours a day has been about 0 to 3% of the original illumination, that's something that should interest you and the end user, and newer versions only get better with heat dissipation. NC LED come with three different diode manufacturers, SOL, LG, & Samsung ("Reckless"). I took a personal hand for us to use SAMSUNG, their white is brighter than the other configurations, it's more of a true 6500 white, and you need bright! The LED colors that we stock are SOL chip. Every LED manufacturer has their marketing claims on Lumens, Viewing Angle, Lens..no lens, etc etc etc. From the Neon & LED testing we have been doing here on the Sign Syndicate they can throw all that out the window because it doesn't translate into anywhere when it comes to the sign industry, how we use them, and how it makes them last over time. 90% of the time it's just a sales pitch to throw at you on why you should buy their over another one. Who cares about Lumens when it comes to signs...we light up a sign face and only care about surface light! Viewing angle??? Don't get me started! What do we care about being in the sign industry? That it's bright, and most importantly it lasts over time....well...at least the client does more so than the sign sign shop because it's them who will have to pay to re-retrofit to something else. So, we're very happy to offer the NC LED "Reckless" light source product to our members that we know works as an option for your sign projects here on The Sign Syndicate. It's nice to add another High Brightness LED to our line up, AND the Reckless-2 is the brightest LED in it's class of under 1 watt per module and under 3 watts per foot than anything on the market today! If you're the type of shop that just likes to stick to big name LED manufacturers because you think you're playing it safe and you're also not too familiar with the testing The Sign Syndicate has been doing since 2008 let me just say this. From all the testing we have been doing with out benchmark testing, and we've talked about it a lot in the past. You pay a lot of money to big name LED manufacturers and the product itself is most of the time is average and most a lot of times subpar compared to what's out there from a few small select LED manufacturers. You pay a lot and you get very little. What I mean by that is, you don't get a whole lot of light in return and you could pay significantly less and get a brighter light output and a product that will even last longer. Not all big names, but you'll have to download the quarterly results that we have in the Board forum and judge for yourself. Like I said, there are VERY good results from a FEW select companies in Project Tighty Whitey and NC LED is one of those few, AND that's why I'm very proud to offer it to our members. Why leave money on the table choosing someone else and why not have a more satisfied client using NC LED? NC LEDs come in both forms, Constant Current "Reckless" as well as Constant Voltage "Eco"(ECO Series), we will be concentrating on the Constant Current versions of these LEDs Basic NC LED Specs • IP68 • 5 Year, 50,000 Hour Warranty • Constant Current (Regulated) not Constant Voltage like cheaper "eco" LEDs • Made in Korea.....NOT made in China • High Brightness LEDs • Samsung Diodes for white • Sol Diodes for color As I stated above, we're offering 100 of the most versatile NC LED "Reckless" Modules which is the two diode Samsung configuration, the Reckless-2 powered by Samsung for only $79.99 Specification Cut Sheets (Updated 4/25/16) NC SS Brochure.pdf Lastly I need to mention that I power up these bad boys with our also Korean made LED Power Supplies by Union Elecom So if you're burning out those cheap import Chinese LED power supplies, (even the so called "Engineered In America...Made In China.." type) and you can't figure out why after loading your power supply to a safe 50 watts on your 60 watt power supply which REALLY may only be able to handle a 40 watt load because of make, convection cooling, and due to the environment in which it's in you might want to get a hold of their derating curve chart and see what your product may be able to handle. Plastic power supplies = NOT good. So....we now stock the Union Elecom Class II, Listed, 60 watt and 120 watt (Dual channel) LED Power Supplies. These LED Power Supplies are IP68, and fitted with 1/2" nipples so you can simply hook up the primary with a junction box that has 1/2" thread knock-outs so you don't need a Transformer Box to house your power supply for remote installs. Again, why Union Elecom if you're not familiar with the name or company? First, their Korean, that means high quality standards. This is what they do, this is what they do best....they make power supplies.....solely! Unlike some other companies who offer power supplies but it's not their primary focus, they really make LEDs or other products as their primary. They just "offer" a power supply to go with their LED's. THAT can be bad and as we all know, we've seen plenty of failure on the field whr we have to come back and replace over and over again! UNION ELECOM LED POWER SUPPLY Members can purchase these LEDs by phone (858) 880-1400, emailing us orders@thesignsyndicate.com or use our online Shopping Cart LINK

THE WHITE HORSE NC LED Our White Horse NC LED is our Flag Ship wide angle 160˙ LED module for shallow, low profile, and general lighting projects. Shallow Lobby Signs, Channel Letters, Reverse Channel Letters, & Cabinet Lighting. The White Horse comes in both .92 watt (186 Lumen/ft) & .72 watt (150 Lumen/ft) high powered light output LED modules, both are constant current and high grade Samsung diodes. The White Horse is a high quality, low cost component for a lot of your Sign & Lighting applications. 100 modules per tray will give you 42 Linear feet of lighting • 160˙ Wide Angle LED Module • Shallow Projects, Sign Cabinet Lighting, & Channel Letters • IP68 UL/CE • 5 Year, 50,000 Hour Warranty • High Brightness Light Output • Constant Current NOT Constant Voltage • NOT Made in CHINA If you already like and use our Reckless NC LED Line, you'll LOVE these! 3" Depth Lobby Sign with Bright & Consistent Lighting (.92w Modules) To Place an order Online visit our Online Shopping Cart. Lower priced Discounts to our Sign Syndicate Patron's (The Order) For Inquiries, Questions, or to place Orders over the phone or email contact us at 858.880.1400 / orders@thesignsyndicate.com

Had a customer send this to us by email, maybe they'll chime in a tell us more but... It's simple, they're replacing cheap plastic LED power supplies made in CHINA with better quality, better thermal cooling LED Power Supplies...OUR Union Korean Made LED Power Supplies. Our 60 watt (displayed above) is IP68, Recognized by UL as Class II (SAM) and for Wet Location. These are versatile, you can use in a box or sign structure, or use externally. Most importantly you can breath easy when your UL Inspector surprises you with a visit and sees these units, including our 120watt version which is one of the few approved and listed in the SAM The cheap plastic Chinese LED Power Supplies by Principal LED & others are great for areas that have good cooling like external fans or for your kids school science projects but not in closed areas where ventilation is not great. The "cheapies" are attractive for the price at $12 or less, but not great for consumers who have to pay the service bill of a crane and labor to replace because as professionals we know these only last for short periods of time. "Buy the best and only cry once"

After so many re--re-retrofit jobs using failing or inferior Chinese LED products it's time to just cut their cord, untwist the wire connectors and disconnect the problem and replace with a superior LED product NOT made in CHINA!!! And of course I'm talking about our "Reckless" LED line by NC LED. This is one of those jobs where the client was sold on "Energy Efficiency" and "Saving" over Neon, which was the light source on their previous Channel Letter set. Well....after the original signs company who installed this set pulling out the original JS LED modules, replacing with their newer, then another company replacing the individual JS LED failures with another Chinese LED.....JT LED modules. Those savings turned into high Sign Repair costs and headache for repairs needed quite often for these Highway viewable signs that leaves this establishment a black eye. With all the benchmark testing we have done here on the Sign Syndicate we know what the Chinese LED modules measure up, and what we can expect from our NC Reckless LED's. Constant Current NOT Constant Voltage, Brighter true white 6500K and most importantly high quality standards because their NOT made in CHINA. End result, Brighter and Even illumination at night and NO return trips for a Loooooong time. Eventually and soon, all these letters will have to be replaced because the catastrophic failure is coming! UH OH REPLACING CHINA FOR MORE CHINA REPLACING CHINA WITH OUR NC RECKLESS LED'S. LESS MODULES AND BIGGER SPACING FAILING CHINESE LED LIGHTING (BEFORE) RENEW WITH NC RECKLESS LED'S (AFTER) HARD TO SHOW WITH A IPHONE SHOT, BUT IN REAL TIME THE DIFFERENCE IS DRASTIC. THERE IS ONE OTHER LETTER RETROFIT FROM OVER A YEAR AGO USING OUR RECKLESS....CAN YOU FIND IT? THIS LOGO HAS NEVER LOOKED THIS BRIGHT BEFORE YES, OUR AD. A Lot of our sales come from Sign Shops who's products have failed them in the past, and they've never been happier since making the switch to our NC Reckless LED line. Less hassle, their now more confident in the end products they sell, and their customers are excited about the Bright finished product that displays their identity / branding at night. For more Product info on our Reckless LED line: http://www.thesignsyndicate.com/forums/index.php?/forums/topic/7353-bright-long-lasting-channel-letters-and-what-it-takes/ For all Sales & Inquiry you can contact us at (858) 880-1400, or by email orders@thesignsyndicate.com

**OUTDATED POST & INFORMATION** Our Current New & Improved LED Technology LED MODULE is the BrightON LED Series More Light per Watt, Longer Life, Lesser Modules & Cost... located Here Utter Reckless Sign Making Got an opportunity to fabricate and install a reverse pan channel letter sign using the Reckless NC LED lines that we carry. Unlike most LED's on the market that are Constant Voltage, made in CHINA....unregulated, and short life for whites and especially color LED's OURS are ALL Constant Current, long life and of course rated for IP68...not that that was needed for this....but nice to have an know! Here we used our Yellow/Amber, Red, and our Reckless High Powered White (Amazing 3% Light degradation in 15,000 hours from our testing in Project Tighty Whitey). I have to reiterate again, it's only been the last few years that The Sign Syndicate got into Light Source Sales since we started out testing for the electric sign industry. We were amazed with our benchmarks on a few lines, and from someone who likes Neon over LED's I was impressed. Neon is still my preference, there are only about 5% of what we've tested that I would ever use when it comes to LED's. If you like LED's, then this is one of those lines. We started selling Axiom LED's for bright high powered white, and soon after I became so impressed with NC LED, it soon followed. I was asked for a couple of years to sell this line, and I finally gave in, here is a little of that "why". I like selling only what I use, and know to be quality. Their main focus was "eco", or constant voltage, I requested a constant current line when we first started testing, it wasn't something they focused on. But after seeing results of other similar make up we soon saw NC LED exceed those that came before it. When we finally picked up the line I wanted something even more different here in the U.S., I tailored a configuration that I thought best suited the needs of the American electric sign industry when it comes to LED's and what it was thirsty for. A product that also does not help financially support those across the ocean that aren't exactly our enemies, but NOT exactly our friends either. Enter the Reckless... High Powered White, high grade/tier Samsung diodes, Constant Current, high standards of quality control from Korea (think Japan) and here in the US hence the name #teamncled All that put together and we get a 100% Sexy...Bad Ass module, it's disgusting I know. The Reckless is my baby, it's Team NC's Baby, and we're going to treat her right. It appears in the last few months we've been doing almost too good of a job promoting her, and now many suppliers (reading this) are starting to flock to become carriers themselves. Guess their feeling that that what they've been pushing and promising is just not all that, and the failures are hitting them hard. But be assured, learning, seeing, and observing from what happens looking into the past with other mfg/supplier relationships, we've not going to let her be whored out and eventually cheapened #TeamNCLED is going to be taking very good control with all standards when it comes to this particular product, and who can offer it. What keeps great products going and preservation of that, is the team behind it. It's another reason why I'm proud to be apart of it, it's not just a business but it's a "family" of individuals that are and will stay strong, and stay together. That said, I have to say, I'm very proud how this particular job came out. It was going to have to be LED because of clearances, I could have made the "Orange" in Neon and I did think about it, EGL green pumped red. But I REALLY, wanted to see what the 1/2 watt Amber modules could do for halo lighting. From an optics standpoint, I love that the modules castings are the color of the light they will produce, no second guessing....easy! The wall the signs were going on was pretty VERY much appreciated. Flat, light colored, perfect for reflection. We we're lucky, some walls in the shopping center were dark brown, NOT good for halo lighting unless you install with some flat white reflectors flush on the wall. Easy wall to drill through, easy well enough access behind the wall but ALL Power supplies had to be centered on the wall because of access. If this was a Neon sign, it would be dreadful behind that wall. Behind the wall was one of our Union Elecom 120 watt (Dual Channel), and one 60 watt per sign, which totaled two signs. At a glance. Our Constant Current IP68 NC LED .48 watt Amber/Yellow Our Constant Current IP68 NC LED .48 watt Red The NC LED system engines, Union Elecom Power Supplies The Sign Day Shots Last but not least, and more important night shots to wrap it up Right now just about all of the signs are LED only, and all white. Some ugly gray looking white, cheap blue white, high kelvin I'm sure but sold as 6500K with a poor bin process, and probably 50¢ modules. There is only one sign what has a nice white like our reckless, a national chain. Other than that the colors involved for this sign REALLY make it stand out, which leads us to this. That's the point really, to stand out, to compete against our rival/competition (our customers too) and WIN! Winning brings you more clients/customers and referrals, and MORE future work. That is what you will get when your signs have our LED's integrated into them, it's all apart of "Making Long Lasting Channel Letters, and What It Takes" and the products are only going to get better...BELIEVE ME! One thing you have or haven't noticed, we've NEVER sold LED's with marketing statement such as "More Energy Efficient...Saving the Planet..Better than Neon or Fluorescent Lamps", those are myths and mis-information, we just sell better LED's than those that claim they do. This is also NOT my full time job, product sales is fun for me. Not being my full time job mean something of value to me and should for everyone else reading this. Not being full time for me means I don't have to lie or whore myself just to make a sale to float my boat. MANY do that because it IS their full time job. I'll just tell you it is a REALLY great product because we've tested it for years, and I myself use it. I can't bullshit for sales, I never have, never will, I never have with signs and I sure as hell won't do it with components....I'm not the type who can look at myself in the mirror if I did. "NOT made in CHINA!!!" Go #TeamNCLED

WARNING!! Thought I would put out a warning. There are a few distributors out there who carry NC LED's but be careful. There are a lot of different configurations and diode manufacturers configured in, on top of THAT...there are different diode grades. Our Reckless series is the one I curtailed here on the Sign Syndicate for the electric sign industry and is very unique compared to all others. Don't come to assume because it's NC, and constant current it's the same as we supply here. Noooooooooooooo! Ours is a VERY high grade Samsung, constant current NOT constant voltage or "Eco" Some of these distributors/suppliers not only use false pics for ads but also have freedom of picking configurations they want, some like to compete to the bottom of the barrel with other low budget LED manufacturers. Just know, when you buy it here it's "The Reckless" AND nothing but the cream of the crop. Best part about it? NOT made in CHINA!!!!

It really should make you wonder when you have a LED Sales rep / Lighting Engineer talking to you over the phone trying to sell you their LED's who are a Sign Company NOW also branching out to sell their LED's which I think everyone has seen in all the sign magazines now where they ship you off their little "light box". I'm sure you know who I'm talking about. I asked him where their LED's are being made, "China...they're the brightest....with very little light decay and will last 11 years" he replied. "I see........Uhh..who is the diode manufacturer?" I replied "I Can't tell you" he said. "You don't know?" I followed up with. "No, I know....I just can't release" he said. "Why is that?" I asked. "It's proprietary information...it's our secret sauce formula you know?" "It's a secret?....that makes me cautious actually. As you know there are a lot bad diode manufacturer's and grades of each Diode......that doesn't make me confident in not knowing who you are using" I ended our conversation with. For a LED product manufacturer not to tell you who they are using is NOT good, it also should tell you their not that confident either. It means you will be retrofitting your customers signs out shortly after! I'm VERY confident and PROUD to tell you what diodes we have in our products, Samsung and Nichia! Finally we can also proudly say that these products are NOT made in CHINA!!!!

We're doing WAY better than expected on the NC LED HLC Series that we can't even keep up with the demand so as of right now there is no HLC2 stock in America, LoL (Plenty of HLC3 & 4) I want to give a big sincere thank you to all those of our existing customers who have dared to try something new, once you did like myself there was no going back....sort of like coming into this industry, once you're in it's very hard to leave or go another direction. It' the growing pains we and NC LED are going through, we're asking for more than they can pump out and they had to grow with the American demand of an awesome product! More an more will be produce, and as of right now I'm having a few cases over nighted direct from Korea to ease the demand until the rest come by boat in a normal shipment which takes 2 weeks normal ocean travel. Anyhow, it's been a learning experience and I can't tell you how excited I've been bringing in a superior product, helping in it's configuration as a premium product to meet the demand for a high-end light source and for High-end customers. It's been an experience to see this go from an underdog product in our testing so many years ago to dominating the competition with their claims of "the brightest....the best.....the longest lasting" So many 6500K LED modules that never looked like a true white, the quality of NC LED is amazing an it's an amazing ride that I never want to get off of. Check out the lineup comparison below, yes....ALL supposed to be 6500K!!!! We will be doing better in availability and the quality will always be there. Go #TeamNCLED NOT Made In CHINA!!!!

**OUTDATED POST & INFORMATION** Our Current New & Improved LED Technology LED MODULE is the BrightON LED Series More Light per Watt, Longer Life, Lesser Modules & Cost... located Here NC LED Get's Better and Better $69.99! Introducing the NEW NC LED "White Horse" Wide Angle Constant Current Series. The White Horse CC series is a diffused lens LED module to better spread the light for shallow electric sign applications like 2" push thru architectural cabinets and channel letters available in 2, 3, and 4 chip diode configurations. The module is the same as the NC Reckless series discussed here http://www.thesignsyndicate.com/forums/index.php?/topic/7353-bright-long-lasting-channel-letters-and-what-it-takes/ • IP68 • 5 Year 50,000 Hour Warranty • 160˙ Wide Angle Diffused Lens • Constant Current, NOT Constant Voltage • High Brightness LED Module • Made in Korea NOT made in CHINA!!! • ONLY $69.99 per 100 WH2 Modules 42' Linear Feet NC LED DOWNLOADABLE SPEC SHEETS: NC-SS-0416-Brochure.pdf This White Horse series is a 160˙ degree light disbursement LED module and is the same chip for brightness as our Reckless series but because of the diffused lens the light is spread better for even lighting for shallow based sign faces for channel letters, dimensional letters or cabinets. As you know diffused wide angle modules won't be as effective for standard channel letter illumination as the Reckless series but great for shallow depth channel letters BUT, with the sick brightness of the NC Reckless LED series you can probably use this for both applications. Two great modules with the same makeup mixed with high Korean standards, with these standards think high, over engineered Japanese standards.... lastly..........say it with me.......NOT made in CHINA!!! For orders use our online shopping cart or to contact us call or email (858) 880-1400 / orders@thesignsyndicate.com

Just a heads up of what's to come. If NC LED wasn't already that sickeningly bright, have a beautiful nice white bin, and long lasting how can this product get better? Well.... Just played around with a new chip from Samsung that will be integrating into the NC line later this year, it's just as bright the real difference is BETTER heat dissipation. The NC LED HLC series already has been only 3% lumen maintenance (Light degradation) in 15,000 tested hours in the Project Tighty Whitey. These new chips (diodes) have small heat sinks built in, so this whole product is getting even grosser so much so it makes me wanna vomit in my mouth a little. The competitors who have flooded the market with their cheap, constant voltage "Engineered In America..Made in China" LEDs have been already for some time just thinking about NC LED and how theirs compares...We rent space in their heads for free...BUT now.....wait for it..... The NC LED HLC series line will ALSO be slightly cheaper!!! As if 100 premium HLC2 LEDs weren't a steal as is as for only $99.99 freakin dollars!!! Oh Damn....we may need to tie a bucket to the other LED reps necks to keep it from getting messy. This is JUST sickening I know, but until then, continue to enjoy the Kick Ass NC LED HLC line as is, it's not going anywhere we're not going anywhere....you're all witnessing the slow rise of a very powerful premium long lasting product and it's doing so without the expensive One-Page advertisements $$$$$$$ in trade magazines. After all, if we spend money it means you will spend money! Let's keep the cost low, we all already have other costs such as Rent, UL/MET, Insurance, Fleet Maintenance, etc etc etc just to play in the game. Let's make one of those costs go down, we WILL be able to make one of those go down.....how often does that happen?

Quality Long Life Channel Letters What does that take? The short answer is....always use the best light source according to the project application. I've been busy and took some time away from the Sign Syndicate to take care of a few accounts & live real life. I decided to maintain two good accounts and shut down my shop all the while turning down work from my regular clients and referrals until the jobs were done. The good thing was, I had some good loyal clients who waited for me until these projects were over. I had over 250 channel letters ranging from 12" to 46" and I did all of them myself and by hand instead of subbing them out. Why? I wanted something to do! On one of the accounts which I'll post soon I used LEDs for the obvious reasons, the stroke is too thin for Neon components, but there is something really awesome about these LEDs that I had a personal hand in but that will be a separate thread I'll post later. But for now I'm going to talk about this one, which is focused on Neon illumination. Neon illumination what??? A request by the client who owns a large national high end furniture chain that stems from the west coast to the east coast. I did their first job which was a entirely new location a couple of years ago which I posted here. They came to me by referral and they wanted Neon, NOT LED. They were real specific, reason been IS...they heard all the marketing claims made by sign companies who in turn heard it from the LED manufacturers about saving energy, prolonged life, yadda yadda over fluorescent lamps & Neon. A very topic we discussed in a topic "General LED Channel Letters On The Rise". They had a lot of signs made and retrofitted and well.......time went by and all the failures started to happen across multiple states in their wall signs and pylon signs. Enough was enough, they wanted to go back to light sources that they know always worked and never let them down , and that brought me to a group of stores right here in San Diego. They were making a name change re-brand over so I had to remove all the existing signs which were Neon illuminated. They were installed right for the most part and they didn't really have issues over time. I just improved what was used before, shorter runs, better material, making sure all circuits were properly loaded and going from single halo-phosphate (6500K) lamps to Tri-phoshor coated lamps. My first job for them I used FMS Neon's BL6500 in 12mm, I just continued that for this job. Wow, why 12mm? The Sign faces are day/ night, 3M perf over white. Using 12mm the appearance looked like 6500 white behind white acrylic, and it just a little more load than using 13mm. Seriously, it's that bright. I just happened to put these signs where a lot of the competitors also used 3M perf faces. They used LEDs, we used Neon, the result is now like someone sprinting past a jogger....with the jogger jogging backwards. No competition.....Truly! Using the Tri-Phosphor lamps each letter will be uniform in it's entirety, no need to worry about any individual letter light output degradation. When you have 15' of linear lamp for a letter you only have one single light source, or two depending on how you break it down per letter. For LEDs you would have over 67 individual modules with over 134 individual diodes that can break down, degrade, have irregular lumen maintenance and or fail showing uneven lighting over the years, which is not good for a high end furniture store This high end furniture chain wanted none of that, nor do I, especially with the spec of the sign having day night faces. Now, If I could have done some things different I would have used the Axioms AXLE 9XB's for one of the signs that was on a tilt up wall, that one would have been perfect because some of the letters also had a 1.5" stroke and the stroke was real small for the field installation as well is hitting rebar almost every 8", after all the Axioms are one of the rare LEDs thats as bright a 13mm Tri=Phosphor lamp running on 60ma. The Axiom AXLE9XB LEDs would be perfect, who wouldn't want Nichia of Japan LEDs in their sign? But, again...it was Neon specific so it just took longer to install, no biggy! Back to the illumination at night, it's even, it will stay even, the Tri-Phosphor lamps will stay whiter longer over time than the standard 6500 white. As if 6500 white didn't already stay white long enough. But Tri-Phosphor Whites can be 2 to 3 times brighter and stay white longer 2 to 3 times longer over time before the phosphor coats break down. I had a fun time on this project, 6 sign locations, plenty of 3'x16' monument aluminum faces and smaller to go with it. I had my kids who wanted summer money helping out in trim capping, channel letter fabrication, sign removal and installation. I can't post pics of all sign locations so I'll just keep it simple and it would just be redundant, I've posted this job before but on the initial job, this is more of the existing store chain locations making a rebrand. I'll start from the beginning. The removal My Second oldest getting involved Patterns on the wall Always double nut the system ground, bottom ground for the panel, top for the tranny! Plenty of head room for installation Part of my work organization Racks and boxes of Neon Load Plan Silicone GTO & electrode caps Letters and GTO up! C'mon Neon Day time shot Night time shot How the competition looks at night

General LED Channel Letter Failures On The Rise Been getting a lot of calls to retrofit channel letters that are having failures. It seems like that short time period of three to five years has finally come around to where the sign user who bought from the lowest bidder or bought into the idea of "saving money....more efficient mantra" is coming around to bite them in the ass as well as the sign shop who made a poor choice in using the inexpensive most likely Chinese LEDs. The reality is, there are very few LED manufacturers I would personally EVER use for sign projects that I build. I base that based on our very own Sign Syndicate Light Testing Projects where we test just about every LED on the market and have been doing so since 2008 The failures I see out on the field do nothing but support those results . LED Modules are great for peeling and sticking, spending more time in the shop than out in the field but they should not be used for everything. Too many sign shop are lazy, they look for an "easy way" to stay in business, that's the plain truth of our industry. The Sign Syndicate's Neon & LED Test Comparison "The Great White Hope" (2012 Shot) Our enabling of LED manufacturers inflated, exaggerated, and even misleading marketing points is what help kill our own industry, and now those chickens are coming home to roost. Those 100,000 hours, 80,000 hours, 60,000 hours, 50,000 hours that a lot of sign shops within our industry have financially sabotaged, and screwed the consumer. The LED powers supplies have gotten cheaper, so have the LED modules, shops scramble for the 50¢ modules, the plastic $20 power supplies and a few years later...Waalaa.... individual diode failure leading to inconsistent lighting and power supplies that truly couldn't handle the heat of the load. I've seen this rise in retrofit the retrofit and I'm only in 70˙F weather all year around in just that last couple of months. For Red LEDs that were supposed to last sooooo long, well now those same channel letter faces that were so evenly lit are now hot spotting. The LED Sign market if you don't know as it relates to the sign industry is a crap shoot. Very few reputable companies like GE and others, don't even want to be in it any longer, they would rather be in general lighting. Why? Too many cheap consumers, too many sign companies that don't make wise decisions get lured and duped by the ever growing and disappearing market of what was once here today is gone tomorrow. Sure, a lot of manufacturers tell sign shops their components are warrantied for 5 years BUT, do they, do YOU replace those parts for free to your client? Chances are like most of the scenarios that call me say no, "I still get charged labor" Shame on those companies and shame on you if you're one of those companies. You planned out your project, you spec'd out your project and there is absolutely NO reason why a electric sign should not carry a 5 year "worry free" electrical warranty. This industry has plenty of quality components that are built to last, and Neon is still a VERY viable option especially when it comes to consistency in longevity as well as lighting, unfortunately that is no longer an option for a lot of shops because they lack the "know how", or willingness to learn, even worse..they only posses the laziness and willingness to collect a check and walk away. Today I still continue to install the right light source based on the application, that goes for using LEDs, Fluorescent or Neon. 20+ years later I get very few failures , VERY few. I have signs that operated for 18+ without a single maintenance call. I know I may work a little harder, pay a little more, even spend a little more time with each project BUT...I do sleep easier at night, I don't have to worry about taking those calls about having to come back, and I have happier clients that have stuck with more for my 20+ years that I've been in business. Just some Thursday food for thought to chew on.