The driver belongs to the spot and is included when you buy it. You only choose one yourself if you are replacing it or feeding loose LED strips. Then three requirements apply: the power has to match, the voltage has to be right, and if you want to dim, the driver has to be dimmable.
What a driver does
An LED does not run on 230 volts alternating current. The driver converts that mains voltage into the low direct voltage the LED does run on, and keeps the current stable. Without a driver an LED burns out or flickers along with the mains.
That is also the difference with an old halogen transformer. That supplied a voltage, while most LED drivers keep a current constant. They are not interchangeable: a halogen transformer on an LED spot gives you flicker, or nothing at all.
Separate driver or loop-through driver
Our range holds two designs, and that difference determines how much room you need above the ceiling:
- Separate driver — one block per spot. The Lesto 5W in silver and chrome come with a separate Triac dimmable driver per spot in the box. Ten spots means ten blocks.
- Loop-through driver — you chain the spots one after another onto a single driver. The Lesto 5W in black works this way. Less clutter above the ceiling, but the spots do hang off each other.
In a suspended ceiling with a few centimeters of room, a loop-through driver is almost always more practical. If you have generous attic joists, it makes no difference.
Dimmable is a property of the driver
This is where most mistakes are made. A spot is not dimmable because you put a dimmer in front of it — it is dimmable because the driver can do it. If it is not stated, it cannot be done, and a dimmer will only buy you flicker.
For the Lesto 4W/6W it is stated explicitly: Triac dimmable driver. The Lyvo, the Warmo, the Marlo and the Vigo come with a driver as well. Choose a Triac dimmer for those, because that is the type these drivers are built for.
Working out the power
A driver has a minimum and a maximum. Stay below the minimum and it will not engage; go above it and it drops out or gets hot. Add up the consumption of every spot hanging off it.
With the wattages from our range the sums are quick: eight spots of 6 watts is 48 watts, ten of 5 watts is 50 watts. Leave 10 to 20 percent of headroom at the top and the driver will run cooler and last longer.
The exception: 12V sets
Not everything in the shop runs on 230 volts. The Dovo sets are mini spots with a cut-out size of Ø28 mm that work on low voltage and come with their own power supply and remote control. Do not replace that supply with any random driver: voltage and connection have to match exactly.
When the driver fails
In practice the driver is the part that gives out first, not the LED. If one spot goes dark while the rest keep burning, with a separate driver that is almost always the block. With a loop-through driver several spots drop out at once — that is your diagnosis right there.
Replace it with a driver of the same specifications, and check all three: power, voltage and whether it is dimmable. More about choosing the matching dimmer is in the dimmer guide, and the dimmers themselves are with the accessories.
Do your recessed spotlights come with a driver?
The spots with an integrated LED do; it is listed per product. On spots with a GU10 socket the electronics sit in the lamp itself.
Can I reuse a halogen transformer for LED spots?
No. A halogen transformer supplies voltage, an LED driver keeps the current constant. The combination gives flicker or does not work at all.
How many spots can go on one loop-through driver?
That depends on the maximum power of that driver, divided by the wattage per spot. Leave headroom at the top.