A2ThreeD installation guide

Recessed Emitter Devices

Hasbro 1984 Proton Pack LED Replacement Kit

Replace the factory cyclotron LEDs with four recessed RGB LED modules in reflector cups for a deeper, more focused cyclotron effect.

Start installation Watch the LED video View product

Four recessed LEDs

Install one reflector cup in each cyclotron opening.

Two wiring methods

Use the supplied solder-seal connectors or solder directly.

PixelBro-ready

Connect the completed lid to the PixelBro controller inline.

Before you begin

Prepare the pack and your work area

Disconnect pack power before opening the lid or changing any wiring. Work carefully around the original plastic pegs, circuit boards, and ribbon cable.

Tools and materials

Automotive panel pry tools or similar non-marring prying tools
Flush cutters and wire strippers
Electrical tape; hot glue is optional
Heat gun for solder-seal connectors
Optional soldering iron and solder

Basic Recessed Emitter Devices kit with four reflector cups, LED wiring, connector, and solder-seal connectors — Basic kit contents. The complete kit also includes the optional emitter cones shown above.

Video walkthrough

Watch the LED installation

This video demonstrates the recessed LED installation. A separate PixelBro connection video will be added in a future update.

Open the LED installation video on YouTube

Installation

Install the recessed cyclotron LEDs

Follow the steps in order. The current guide includes photos for the kit, reflector placement, and wiring stages; more step photos can be added as they become available.

Remove the cyclotron lid

Unscrew the shock mount/bellows and slide off the bumper. Then remove the cyclotron lid from the pack.

Split open the cyclotron lid

Carefully use automotive panel tools or similar prying tools to pop the two lid halves apart. During seperation, you may break some of the pegs that hold the halves together. However, the lid will still be able to go back together later. There are also other community noted modifications you can do to make re-assembly via screws or glue should this concern you.

Cut the original cyclotron LED wires

Cut the wires for the original cyclotron LEDs about 2–3 inches away from the small circuit board with the pegs on the opposite side.

Remove the original LED modules

Using flush cutters, cut only the tops of the mushroom-shaped pegs on each original cyclotron LED circuit board. Lift or pry all four modules out with their wiring intact.

Do not remove the rest of the black plastic pegs. They are used to locate and secure the replacement reflector cups.

Cyclotron lid with the four original LED modules removed and the remaining black plastic peg mounts visible — Original LED modules removed while the remaining peg mounts stay in place.

Install the reflector cups

Install each reflector cup in its correct position. Looking down at the inside of the lid with the PCB, peg, and original wire on the right:

Cup 1: right bottom
Cup 2: left
Cup 3: upper left
Cup 4: upper right

Carefully twist each cup into position so its holes line up with the remaining pegs, then press it into place. Watch the wiring and route it through the slots. Secure the wires with tape. Hot glue may also be used to hold the reflector cups in place.

Reflector cup 2 being positioned over its cyclotron opening — Position reflector cup 2 over its opening.

Reflector cup 2 installed with its wires routed through the lid — Reflector cup 2 seated with the wiring routed.

Reflector cup 3 being positioned over its cyclotron opening — Position reflector cup 3.

Reflector cup 4 installed in the cyclotron lid — Reflector cup 4 installed.

All four white reflector cups installed in the cyclotron lid with their wires routed — All four reflector cups installed.

Four reflector cup wires secured to the inside of the cyclotron lid with black tape — Secure the routed wires with tape.

Connect the replacement LED wiring

Carefully separate the four original wires on the ribbon cable. Strip about 1/4 inch from each end to expose the copper conductors.

Option A · Supplied solder-seal connectors

Insert the wires into opposite ends of the connectors until the copper meets in the middle. Use a heat gun to shrink each tube and melt the solder in the center, fusing the wires together.

Black wire with the white stripe → yellow wire
Middle black wire → orange wire
Black wire on the end → both red and brown wires together

Insert the red and brown wires together into one end of the connector for the final connection.

Option B · Direct soldering

Instead of cutting the ribbon cable, you may desolder the original ribbon cable from the pogo-pin PCB. If you are looking straight down at the PCB where the four original wires were connected:

Solder the black wire with the white stripe to the left pad.
Solder the middle black wire to the next pad.
Solder the final black wire to both remaining solder pads.

Important: Bridge the final two pads together. Otherwise, lid detection will not work.

Solder-seal connectors joining the replacement LED wires to the original cyclotron wiring — Solder-seal connector method.

Close-up of three completed heat-shrink solder-seal wire connections — Close-up of the completed solder-seal connections.

Original cyclotron ribbon wires soldered to the pogo-pin PCB — Optional direct-solder connection at the PCB.

Completed solder-seal wiring connections taped and secured on the cyclotron lid — Completed solder-seal connections secured with tape.

Completed cyclotron lid installation with direct-solder wiring and taped wires — Completed direct-solder installation.

Remove the back of the Proton Pack

Remove the back cover of your Hasbro 1984 Proton Pack so you can access the factory electronics PCB.

Disconnect the factory cyclotron cable

Disconnect the cyclotron ribbon cable from the factory PCB in the upper right. The cyclotron LED connector is a four-pin ribbon cable with a ferrite bead and yellow, orange, red, and brown wires.

Connect PixelBro to the factory PCB

Plug the PixelBro controller’s female connector into the factory cyclotron port on the factory PCB.

Factory Proton Pack electronics PCB showing the four-wire cyclotron LED connector — Factory cyclotron LED connector on the pack PCB.

Connect the cyclotron wiring to PixelBro

Plug the factory cyclotron wiring into PixelBro’s female four-pin connector and secure the wiring so it cannot be pinched when the pack is reassembled.

PixelBro controller installed beside the factory Proton Pack electronics PCB with its connectors plugged in — PixelBro installed inline with the factory cyclotron connection.

Test before final reassembly

Put the cyclotron lid back on the pack before reassembling everything. Power on the pack and verify that the recessed LEDs and lid detection work properly.

Update firmware or configure PixelBro

Plug PixelBro into your computer using USB-C, then open pixelbroconfig.a2threed.com to upgrade the firmware or perform advanced configuration.

Install the upgraded emitter cones

If you purchased the kit that includes the emitter cone upgrades, you can install them at any time on the back of the cyclotron lid. Remove the four screws from each emitter top, then pop out the original cone and install the replacement.