Running RGB in serial vs parallel?

[maxwellbbeaton]

I have an Asus Rog Strix Z270I mobo, which has 1 12V, 2 Amp RGB header. I want to use it for lighting, specifically with an RGB four-way splitter with individual RBG strips attached to each splitter. I'm seriously confused as to how many this can handle. If a strip is 12V, and you're attaching them in serial, wouldn't that double the voltage to 24V, 36V, etc? As for amperage, how many can be run in parallel before overloading the mobo? I can't wrap my head around the way to do this properly.

 

[Paperdoc]

The LED Splitter is designed to connect all of its output ports to the source power in a PARALLEL fashion. Thus all of the RGB strips receive the same Voltage, and the total power consumed is the sum of the Amps consumed by each RGB strip. The mobo RGB header's specs say that current max is 2.0 A. So, you need to know the amps (max) used by each RGB strip you plan to plug in, and add them up. You're OK as long as that total does not exceed 2.0 A.

 

[maxwellbbeaton]

I thought so, just wanted to make sure I was following along right. I have had trouble with finding manufactures of four-pin RGB lighting advertising their Amp-draw on their products, but will continue to look until I locate a reputable seller with good data on their products.

 

[Paperdoc]

Good luck, and thanks for Best Solution.

 

[maxwellbbeaton]

Just in case anyone has a similar question in the future, here is how I eventually worked the math out:

On most 12v LED strips, each 3-bulb section, pushing maximum output (white light, full brightness) use 60mA of power, or about 20mA per bulb.

I bought strips of 18 bulbs, 30cm each, times 4. Therefore:

20mA per bulb x 18 bulbs per strip = 360mA per strip.

4 strips x 360mA per strip = 1440mA, or 1.44 Amps.

So, even compensating for any electrical sag or other discrepancy in the leads, I am well under the 2 Amp limit, even at maximum brightness and power usage.

Anyone who notices anything wrong with my math, or conclusion here, please feel free to educate myself or anyone else reading further on the matter. Thank you very much.

 

[Paperdoc]

Looks right to me.