Aeon v2 RGB switch changes (pic heavy)

[JediXIX]

Sometimes thoughts and visions in your mind don’t work out the way you thought . . .  

I’ve been planning this for a while, and I’ve had this dismantled for many weeks now and just wanted it finished . . . My Aeon v2 RGB is one of my fun sabers that gets lots of use when friends or family come over and want to duel . . . the kids especially love it, they all choose red and want to be Darth Vader  

So the idea has always been replacing the standard latching switches with red, green and blue 12mm illuminated av switches, and I found some latching ones so that made it easier to wire up . . . But, once complete, I wasn’t happy with it . . . here’s some pics and I’ll explain below . . .

Started with cutting out the wiring of my Aeon v2 RGB and some notes


drilling out the 12mm switch holes and wiring up to test out of the hilt before install . . . I’ve used the white micro JST 1.25 3 pin and 2 pin connectors because there’s not much room in an Aeon v2 RGB


installing the wiring




OK . . . looks great . . . (when the switches are off)


And . . . with a the switch combinations
red / green / blue




green and blue = AB


red and green = yellow (not quite the same as SY)


red and blue = magenta (not the same as BH)


and all 3 = a purplish white



And I’m not sure why, but I just didn’t like these switches illuminated like this . . . I also found some non-illuminated ones so wired those up with the same connectors and changed them over and really happy with the final result . . . these 12mm switches look and work great on the Initiate / Aeon v2’s with a low profile using the standard machining that US use for that recessed switch look  . . .










The great thing about pulling this apart and re-wiring is I now know how to wire an RGB saber, so as a bonus I wired up a small 3way dip switch and main switch, to connect to this RGB wiring, to test an "in-hilt" RGB setup for another future project and so far so good, its all working well, 1 is red, 2 is green and 3 is blue, and the main switch just turns it on and off, for whatever combination you set . . .

[Drahcir]

Very cool, I think you made the right choice swapping in the non-illuminated switches. As time has gone on I've grown to prefer non-illuminated av switches myself; They look more sleek to me.
Love the whole in-hilt RGB concept, point from me.

[hazard502]

Dude...+1  Great work here and so helpful to see the detail.  I like both looks but the final results are sure nice.  Your ambition is inspiring

[James Casey]

Both look awesome to me - Point for you!

[Dauntless Seven]

You know that I love my colors so the photo of all 3 av lit up is the one that I really like.  Too bad that they all couldn't stay lit but it's a good reminder for what color combo is being used.  Guess it draws from the battery life quicker.  The all silver look is uniformly sleek but the other to me has more fun factor.  +1 

[Lord Canterbury]

Dude - you're a nut.  I mean that as the highest compliment.    Gave you a point for that.

I agree with the Grunge King.  With a couple exceptions - I've done a 180 on illuminated switches; when I first found replica sabers, I couldn't imagine NOT having one.  Now - I greatly prefer non-illuminated ones.

[winter]

I have an Aeon v2 RGB, too, and I've been toying with doing exactly what you did. I duel with mine often - I like a nice, light, sleek hilt so I can move quickly. So the guarded switches are a bit of a drawback, and I'm thinking the a/v switches would be better.

Have you found any difference in how easy they are to trigger accidentally while you're using the saber?

[RevanReborn]

Both results look fantastic!  I'm a fan of illuminated switches for sure, but sometimes I do like the looks of non illuminated ones better too, so I guess it just depends on the saber.  Either way, super helpful post- point for you . 

[JediXIX]

Thanks for the points everyone

You know that I love my colors so the photo of all 3 av lit up is the one that I really like.  Too bad that they all couldn't stay lit but it's a good reminder for what color combo is being used.  Guess it draws from the battery life quicker.  The all silver look is uniformly sleek but the other to me has more fun factor.  +1  

That was my original thoughts exactly, but it just didn't do it for me, looked a bit too, um, "Priscilla Queen of the Desert", lol    Don't really know how to explain it, haha . . .

Have you found any difference in how easy they are to trigger accidentally while you're using the saber?

Good question . . . Had a duel with it just yesterday, and it does depend on your grip . . . mostly didn't have any issues, but my son did position his finger so he could manually do a FoC, lol, it was a bit funny . . . It was the top switch that might cause the issue, a light press with your first finger doesn't engage the latching but can flash the red . . . it happened once, then I adjusted the grip so it couldn't happen, and it was all good . . .

Love the whole in-hilt RGB concept, point from me.

Yep . . . It was very fun while I had it setup in that hilt (the Dark Initiate LE v4 is a gift for someone, so it was only a test for now), but I have plans for something more complex . . . I have an RGBA LED, and I've tested different resistor combinations and have dreams of a 6 switch in-hilt setup, with 2 switches for red and blue with different resistors in line so I can switch up all these colours, plus VA and SRD and also FO and Blood Orange . . . That paired with an obsidian v4 soundboard so I can switch blade colour and sound fonts on the go . . . That'll probably end up in one of my Sentinel hilts   . . . Its all working in testing, all I need is time to finish it . . .  

[JediXIX]

Dude - you're a nut.  I mean that as the highest compliment.    Gave you a point for that.

I agree with the Grunge King.  With a couple exceptions - I've done a 180 on illuminated switches; when I first found replica sabers, I couldn't imagine NOT having one.  Now - I greatly prefer non-illuminated ones.

Cheers Bro  

I'm on the same page too . . . I'm preferring the non-illuminated a lot more now, or just the white illuminated ones (like you suggested in the Graflex) . . . I've gone off matching blade colour and switches in some hilts also . . . Haz has (hehe) a yellow av in his BR Menace, and that combination looks sensational IMO . . .  I guess thats why I really enjoy press fitting these av's so I can swap them over if my taste changes . . . 

[Darth Calon]

Wow! That's cool! I have to say I liked the illuminated switches better though. It's your of course though so do whatever you like best. A well deserved point from me.

[winter]

Good question . . . Had a duel with it just yesterday, and it does depend on your grip . . . mostly didn't have any issues, but my son did position his finger so he could manually do a FoC, lol, it was a bit funny . . . It was the top switch that might cause the issue, a light press with your first finger doesn't engage the latching but can flash the red . . . it happened once, then I adjusted the grip so it couldn't happen, and it was all good . . . Smiley

Yeah, I get the accidental FoC with mine.  I generally have my dominant hand on the emitter, and the other at or near the pommel. Better control, I think, and less likely to get the occasional burst of an unwanted color - I mostly use blue because practically everyone else in my group is either red or green.

I'm thinking of getting another Aeon LE  in just a single color - probably a very bright blue, or maybe orange. I'd love to get it with an a/v switch but they only seem to offer those on Obsidian hilts, and all of those are thicker than I like.

[ChillyAleman]

Yeah, I get the accidental FoC with mine.  I generally have my dominant hand on the emitter, and the other at or near the pommel. Better control, I think, and less likely to get the occasional burst of an unwanted color - I mostly use blue because practically everyone else in my group is either red or green.

Perhaps a little off-topic, but I always put my non-dominant hand towards the emitter so that my dominant fingers don't get bruised when hit. It also allows me to use my stronger hand for leverage when quickly twisting, and it gives my non-dominant hand more control when wielding one-handed, as my left hand near the choke can spin as well as my right hand above the pommel.

To get on topic, I hope to be able to do an AV rgb sometime soon. I'm imagining what a bellicose would look like with all AVs. I would maybe wire them with all one color accent that is always on. That may look neat if they were all red dot LED switches instead of ring LED switches. Perhaps the next time they go on sale, whenever that is.

[hazard502]

Hi ChillyAleman point awarded for good hand grip advice and a really cool idea for the Bellicose rgb switch idea, I like it...sounds fun and unique.

[Antron007]

Points for the dip switch box. What a great idea!