CableMod's WideBeam RGB-LED Strip Works With Asus RGB Motherboard

Just over a year ago, CableMod was born in the UK, and since then the company has been working hard to build some very high-quality aftermarket cable sets to spice up your system’s looks. Today the company has a new announcement, but it isn’t a cable – CableMod is getting itself into PC lighting with its new WideBeam LED strips.

The LED strips will exist in various shapes and sizes. They will come in two lengths -- 30 cm and 60 cm -- along with two different forms of adhesion. The WideBeam Foam variant comes with sticky 3M foam on the back, and the WideBeam Magnetic, is, well, magnetic. The foam version exists for those of us with aluminum cases to which magnets don’t stick.

For the single-color variants, color options will include red, green, blue, white and UV.

To power the strips, CableMod uses SATA power connectors, which we think is a wise decision – few devices use the old clunky Molex connector anymore, and with modular power supplies, it's annoying if you have to use a large Molex cable only for connecting a fan or light. Of course, the CableMod guys are cable guys, so they understand that. Additionally, the strips are expandable with simple connector bits.

But the fun doesn’t end there – CableMod is also selling an RGB variant. Included with this one is an IR receiver, a remote control, and an Asus compatibility adapter. This adapter allows you to connect the strip to the RGB header on the ROG Maximus VIII Formula motherboard.

The LED stips will be available on Performance-PCs.com in a few hours, with pricing ranging anywhere from $14.99 for a foam-backed 30 cm single-color variant up to $29.99 for the full-fledged 60 cm magnetic RGB unit.

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Niels Broekhuijsen

Niels Broekhuijsen is a Contributing Writer for Tom's Hardware US. He reviews cases, water cooling and pc builds.

  • thundervore
    For anyone that want to see it in action:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkvPUlsUBNQ
    Reply
  • Turb0Yoda
    I feel like they should have done it with both magnets and adhesive in case one switches cases and it is made of plastic when they bought the magnetic version... Then again, double sided tape
    Reply
  • bit_user
    They should have used USB for power... and also control! If the LEDs were individually addressable, then it'd be easy to add a control layer to simplify effects like throb and crawl. Then, you could just set a few parameters like: throb brightness, amplitude, & color; crawl speed & wavelength. Perhaps one could write an app that polls the system resource utilization (network I/O, disk I/O, CPU utilization) and alters different parameters to convey system activity.

    I'm not a big fan of case lighting (I always replace LED fans with unlit ones) and never buy windowed cases, but I might be seriously tempted by something like that.
    Reply
  • Chayan4400
    17370443 said:
    They should have used USB for power... and also control! If the LEDs were individually addressable, then it'd be easy to add a control layer to simplify effects like throb and crawl. Then, you could just set a few parameters like: throb brightness, amplitude, & color; crawl speed & wavelength. Perhaps one could write an app that polls the system resource utilization (network I/O, disk I/O, CPU utilization) and alters different parameters to convey system activity.

    I'm not a big fan of case lighting (I always replace LED fans with unlit ones) and never buy windowed cases, but I might be seriously tempted by something like that.

    NZXT already did most of this (Except for the system resources ultilization part) with it's Hue+:



    For me the Hue+ is a better choice, obviously because of the customisability, but also because it is better designed. For instance, it's LED strips attach via magnets, and the unit itself mounts in a 2.5" SSD bay. The main unit supports up to 8 seperate strips, with 4 included. I do however see a market for this; this is practically the only other mainstream RGB PC lighting aside from the Hue+ and since it's $20 cheaper it's a great add-on for those who can't afford the Hue+.
    Reply
  • MasterDell
    Cable Mod's kit is just a modified version of Sylvania's light kit.
    Reply
  • RGB LED
    Only with Asus Motherboard?
    Where I can use it? I saw nice using of this led strip lights in kitchen decoration. I think it is not the only one place at home where you can use it.
    Reply
  • Chayan4400
    17395206 said:
    Only with Asus Motherboard?

    It comes with a remote and IR receiver so you can remote control it as well.


    Where I can use it? I saw nice using of this led strip lights in kitchen decoration. I think it is not the only one place at home where you can use it.

    This particular product is specifically designed to be used inside PCs; there are many others meant for general applications like home decoration and automotive use.
    Reply