Night Rider Led Project

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BigE4u

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https://www.bit-tech.net/modding/2002/06/22/knight_rider/2 ... granted this was posted back in 2002 and i find that LM4558 dual opamp IC shown is no longer in production. So my question is this, could i substitute it for a LM1458 chip and instead of using the shown 1/2w metal film resisters, could i substitute them for 1/2w carbon type? thanks
 

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Use 1/4W carbon film resistors.
I used 1/2W resistors 44 years ago with vacuum tubes.
 
So use the LM358 and 1/4w carbon film resistors as suitable replacements... gotcha. thanks

Ps- I did come accross an MC1458P chip, will that work as well?
 
Nice to see i got updated options for yesturyear projects... this little number is going to be mounted to an optical drive cover on my computer. So when my PC is turned on, the lights will flash back and forth just like K.I.T.T car. Not sure if i want to stick with regular RED colored LEDs or go with the more fancier and brighter blue LEDs.
 

I saw an interesting K.I.T.T PC mod recently on YouTube. Shame there are no links to any circuit diagrams etc.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNRZgVxr6fc
 
The back and forth of the Knight Rider lights should be syncronized to the beat of the music.
 
Yes you could use the LM1458 or the **broken link removed** which is essentially the same and is still in full production.
 
Circuit works like a charm with the substituted MC1458 and the the 1/4w 5% resistors. I couldnt find the 15turn potentiometers needed and used single turn instead, harder to adjust and not as accurate, but it works.

Edit: Thanks to everyone for their help
 
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Ok, i finally came across all the required 15turn potentiometers, still a pain in the behind to adjust correctly. So i decided to go with this and used bright blue l.e.ds and i must say, it looks phenominal...
 

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audioguru said:
Use 1/4W carbon film resistors.
I used 1/2W resistors 44 years ago with vacuum tubes.
Click to expand...

Why carbon? I use metal film.
Aren't the 1458, 1558, 4558 all basically multiple 741's? Just about any op-amp could replace these. TL072, TL082 FET input op-amps - and that's just parts available since the early 80's.

I'd really like to have my memory refreshed about the old Night Rider Camaro/Firebird. Didn't it just have 6 lights, not 10? And didn't the flash sequence work with more than one on at a time like chaser lights? (I know the pilot for the new TV program uses a Ford Mustang. The lights work differently.)

Bob
 
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Carbon film are noisy but it doesn't matter here.

The 1458, 1558, 741 etc. are all pretty noisy and slow but that doesn't matter here.

The TL072 and TL082 would both work but won't make any difference here.
 
The original KITT Knight Rider used incandescent light bulbs that took time to brighten and turn off so they faded between each other.
LEDs immediately turn on and turn off and don't fade. They just jerk on and jerk off abruptly.

Maybe big capacitors can be used in parallel with the LEDs to fade them on and off.
 
Given that the OP is a display buff perhaps he would be interested in using a PIC with PWM to simulate the bulbs.... ?
 
Wal-Mart had a Mood Light that jerked in 32 steps of brightness.
It must have used a microcontroller.

My mood lights dim very smoothly because they use linear triangle generators.
 
This thread is looking very familiar. . .

You could probably use a microcontroller but use more steps so you won't be able to notice them.
 
audioguru said:
Wal-Mart had a Mood Light that jerked in 32 steps of brightness.
It must have used a microcontroller.

My mood lights dim very smoothly because they use linear triangle generators.
Click to expand...
Was it wall-mart, microcontroller in general, or the design engineer who was at fault ?
 
The microcontroller was also playing birds chirping and ocean surf sounds so it was probably taxed to over its limit.
 
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