ledstrip 12V ledstrip doesn't work with powerbank

[Cyborgium]

So in short, I have a 12V LEDstrip and a powerbank that has a 9V/12V USB port and if I connect the LEDstrip to that port, it doesn't seem to work.

The powerbank I use is the aukey 10000mAh. The LEDstrip is just a cheap RGB LEDstrip that works with 9-12V. It does work when I power it with a 12V adapter that I just plug into the wall, but because it needs to be portable, I want to power it from a powerbank. So I just cut open an old USB cable and connected the VCC and the GROUND cables to the breadboard, but the LEDs simply do not turn on. What am I doing wrong here? 

 

I did test the USB cable, that is not the problem.

[19_blackie_73]

12V DC or AC?

[Cyborgium]

1 minute ago, 19_blackie_73 said:

12V DC or AC?

On the technical specifications it says "DC 12V=1.25A". So DC.

[mariushm]

The power bank has USB ports which support fast charge. Basically the power bank sends 5v through the USB cable on the other end of the usb cable there has to be a chip which "talks" to the power bank and tells it that it can handle higher voltage, it can charge batteries at higher voltage, so the power bank "understands" that it can raise the voltage to 9v or 12v for faster charging and only then the power bank will switch from 5v to 9v or 12v.

 

By default, without some chip telling the power bank to raise the voltage, the power bank will default to 5v.

Your power strip has no such chip on it, so the power bank will always output 5v.

 

You can buy dc-dc converters that work in step-up mode  (also called boost converters) or in SEPIC mode (buck/step-down or boost/step-up) which can convert the 5v to 12v , plenty of them on eBay and other stores.

[Cyborgium]

8 minutes ago, mariushm said:

The power bank has USB ports which support fast charge. Basically the power bank sends 5v through the USB cable on the other end of the usb cable there has to be a chip which "talks" to the power banks and tells it that the chip supports charging batteries at higher voltage, so it can raise the voltage to 9v or 12v for faster charging and only then the power bank will switch from 5v to 9v or 12v.

 

By default, without some chip telling the power bank to raise the voltage, the power bank will default to 5v.

Your power strip has no such chip on it, so the power bank will always output 5v.

 

You can buy dc-dc converters that work in step-up mode  (also called boost converters) or in SEPIC mode (buck/step-down or boost/step-up) which can convert the 5v to 12v , plenty of them on eBay and other stores.

Alright, that wasn't the answer I was hoping for... but thanks anyways 

 

Those step-up converters won't fit inside my budget so I'll probably end up buying a dedicated LEDstrip powerbank.

 

Thanks for the quick reply.

[Hackentosher]

Can the battery bank supply enough current at the right voltage?