RRD-6NA-LS

[Don]

I have a scene in a RadioRA 2 installation and the scene has two RRD-6NA-LS devices on it. One of the devices is a light with four halogen spot bulbs; the other is a magnetic 12v fixture with a single LED spot bulb. On the LED fixture, before the scene programming was added it wouldn't dim until the RRD-6NA-LS device was nearly all the way down but now that it has been added to the scene, it will not dim at all - well, maybe minutely but that's it. I am using Lutron's RadioRA 2 Essentials software and have not changed the Advanced settings but I am suspecting that it is because this light has such an incredibly low power draw that it is acting up. The Essentials software seems to have set it to a brightness of 100% when dimmed which makes no sense. Any thoughts on how to get it to work?

[Bailey]

First check the that the line and load leads are correctly wired. If they are backward the performance will be poor.

[hanshi]

Are both dimmers doing this or just the one controlling the LEDs?

[Bailey]

The LEDs are very particular about this thought the driver. I haven't seen this in magnetic low voltage.

[moulari]

I have seen this with a 6NA when using it with a remote switch (3-way). The 6na needs to be hooked up directly to the load - if you hook up the remote switch to the load and the 6na in the remote location then this is exactly what happens.

[Don]

I'll have the electricians check the wiring but, as the fixture is installed and all drywall up, I'm not sure what they can do. It is only the RRD-6NA that is connected to the single light that has the problem. It is only a single-location device and no 3-way switching as in-wall control pads are used for the primary control of the lighting devices and it's a very small house where 3-way is overkill (so is RadioRA for that matter but I wanted to do it!).

While I managed to finally get it to dim in the scene, it is very "touchy" with only a couple percent change causing much change in brightness. The LEDs on the RRD-6NA do not show any sign of dimming until near the bottom of the scale. I am wondering now if the RRD-6NA is the proper dimmer and maybe there is another that will better handle this configuration, which has only a single 6W LED. I can find no specs of the wattage of the magnetic transformer itself but it can handle up to a 50W light.

[Bailey]

D you have the manufacturer and part number for the LED in question? Also, have you checked the LED product selection tool?

www.lutron.com/en-US/Service-Support/Pages/Technical/Design-SelectionTools/LEDDimmerMatrix.aspx

Make sure the source is also dimmable. If not, replace the 6NA with a switch immediately. You can always try calling the Lutron LED hotline at 1-877-DIM-LED8

[Don]

Yes, good question but of course the fixture and the LED are both dimmable. However, I'm at the installation's site only a few hours a week until the construction is done I'm not sure a call would help.

The LED itself is an RL-6WMR16-38WW but Lutron's site is by brand and style so I was unable to locate it. This same bulb, though, was used in another "Classic" RadioRA installation that I did for my main home that works well.

[Bailey]

The manufacturer is Revolt per google. Unfortunately it does not come up on the LED product selection tool for that manufacturer. I would try the phone number above and see if they have seen it all ready, but I would not expect much. If this is from China (fairly safe bet) then there is no telling the drive source. Even if it were tested in the past, there's no guarantee that it remained to spec. I would run the 6NA or the 10ND. What was the part number of the Ra Classic dimmer that controlled the lamp before?

[Don]

Thank you for the help. Unfortunately without taking apart things I have no idea what the "Classic" RadioRA device is as it's an older installation. Most, as I recall, were RA-10D but I'm not sure in this case since it is a magnetic fixture and the RA-10D is for incandescent.

However, I am under the impression that "compatibility" is rather a moot point on a 12v lamp and really applies only to a 120v bulb's internal circuitry. A local Lutron dealer told me that and it does make sense.