12V LED Sign Dimmer with Wireless Remote, Inline PWM

A lit sign that looks right on a storefront at night can be too bright in a small lobby, a salon or a bedroom. This dimmer lets you turn the brightness down, and back up, from a wireless remote.

It is an inline PWM dimmer for single-color 12 V LED signs. It goes on the 12 V side, between the power supply and the sign, with barrel connectors for plug-in signs or screw terminals for signs with bare leads. Nothing changes on the 120 V side.

PWM (pulse-width modulation) dims the LEDs by switching them on and off faster than the eye can see. The longer the off part of each pulse, the dimmer the sign looks. Because the LEDs always run at their normal current while they are on, the color of the light stays the same as you dim: warm white stays warm, and white does not turn yellow.

The remote is RF (radio), not infrared, so you do not have to point it at the dimmer, and it can work when the dimmer is hidden behind a panel or a wall.

Use it with:

• Indoor lit letters and logo signs on a plug-in adapter.
• Halo-lit letters that throw too much glow on a light wall in a small room.
• Desktop letters and small lightboxes.

It is not for RGB color-changing signs: they have four wires and need an RGB controller, which already includes brightness control.

Do not try to dim a sign with a regular wall dimmer on the 120 V side. A standard sign power supply is not built for that and can flicker, hum or fail. Dimming on the 12 V side with this dimmer, or using a power supply made for wall dimmers, is the way to do it.

One dimmer works after one power supply. If your sign has several supplies, each needs its own dimmer; tell us the setup and we help you plan it.

Check three things on your sign. First, the voltage: the label on its adapter or power supply must say 12 V DC. Second, the color: the dimmer is for signs with one light color; a sign that changes color needs the RGB controller. Third, the connection: a sign with a plug-in adapter uses the barrel connectors, and a sign with bare 12 V leads uses the screw terminals.

If your sign runs on one adapter or power supply, one dimmer is all you need. If it has several supplies, plan one dimmer for each, or send us photos of the setup and we suggest the simplest way.

Ordering new indoor letters? Many of our styles list a dimmer with remote as an option in the price estimator.