Pinout
WS2812B / NeoPixel addressable LED strip pinout
Pins
- GND
- DIN (data in — from the MCU or the previous segment's DOUT; follow the printed arrows)
- +5V
- DOUT (data out — to the next segment in the chain; the three output pads mirror the input ones)
- A ~300–500Ω series resistor on DIN and a bulk capacitor across +5V/GND are recommended for longer strips
Specifications
| LED | WS2812B, 5050 package with built-in driver |
|---|---|
| Supply voltage | 5 V (chip rated 3.5–5.3 V) |
| Data input high | ≥ 0.7 × VDD (3.5 V at 5 V supply) |
| Protocol | Single-wire, 800 kHz |
| Colour depth | 24-bit (8 bits per channel) |
| Current per pixel | ≈ 60 mA at full white |
| Common densities | 30, 60 or 144 LEDs/m |
| Series resistor on DIN | 300–500 Ω recommended |
| Bulk capacitor | ≈ 1000 µF across +5 V/GND recommended |
Notes
- ~60mA per pixel at full white (20mA per color channel × 3) is the standard budgeting figure — a modest 60-pixel strip at full white wants up to 3.6A, far past what a microcontroller’s own 5V pin (or its USB port) can supply.
- Past a handful of pixels, inject power directly into the strip’s own VCC/GND (not through the microcontroller) from a supply sized for the worst case — every pixel at full white — even if the actual animation rarely reaches that; a strip that browns out mid-animation is a power problem, not a code bug.
