The TLC59711 can control 12 separate channels of 16-bit PWM output. This is the highest-resolution PWM board we’ve seen!
The TLC5947 has even more channels. It can control 24 separate channels with 12-bit PWM output.
Both boards have a 2 or 3-pin SPI interface. Our library lets you use any two (TLC59711) or three (TLC5947) free pins to drive them. Best of all, you can chain multiple boards together to control hundreds or thousands of LEDs!
Outputs from these boards are constant-current and open drain. You can drive multiple LEDs in series. One resistor is used to set the current for each of the outputs, the constant current means that the LED brightness doesn’t vary if the power supply dips.
We supply these with a 3.3K resistor for about 15mA per channel. But you can solder a thru-hole resistor over it if you’d like to change that value.
Adafruit publishes a wide range of writing and video content, including interviews and reporting on the maker market and the wider technology world. Our standards page is intended as a guide to best practices that Adafruit uses, as well as an outline of the ethical standards Adafruit aspires to. While Adafruit is not an independent journalistic institution, Adafruit strives to be a fair, informative, and positive voice within the community – check it out here: adafruit.com/editorialstandards
Stop breadboarding and soldering – start making immediately! Adafruit’s Circuit Playground is jam-packed with LEDs, sensors, buttons, alligator clip pads and more. Build projects with Circuit Playground in a few minutes with the drag-and-drop MakeCode programming site, learn computer science using the CS Discoveries class on code.org, jump into CircuitPython to learn Python and hardware together, TinyGO, or even use the Arduino IDE. Circuit Playground Express is the newest and best Circuit Playground board, with support for CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino. It has a powerful processor, 10 NeoPixels, mini speaker, InfraRed receive and transmit, two buttons, a switch, 14 alligator clip pads, and lots of sensors: capacitive touch, IR proximity, temperature, light, motion and sound. A whole wide world of electronics and coding is waiting for you, and it fits in the palm of your hand.
Have an amazing project to share? The Electronics Show and Tell is every Wednesday at 7:30pm ET! To join, head over to YouTube and check out the show’s live chat and our Discord!
