Kindly Morrow
RGB LED Nixie Tube Clock Simulator 6-Digit Compact Desktop
Nixie tube glow without the 170V supply, fragile glass envelopes, or neon. Six individually addressable RGB LED digit tubes scatter warm, retro light through acrylic diffusion panels, mimicking the depth of a real nixie envelope. Seven display modes run standalone over USB-C. Hook up a microcontroller and take full control.
Each tube is driven with 24-bit color independently, so you can run gradients, color-coded thresholds, or per-digit animations in software. Communication is over UART, compatible with Arduino's Serial library and any 5V-tolerant microcontroller. At 268 x 69 x 79mm, it sits on a desk without crowding your keyboard.
Things to build with this
- Connect to an ESP32 and use its hardware UART to push live CPU and RAM usage from a Python psutil script over serial, then map each of the six digit tubes across a green-to-red 24-bit color gradient as system load climbs past defined thresholds
- Wire to an Arduino Nano and drive a Pomodoro timer that displays 25-minute work countdowns in amber per-tube color and pulses all six tubes in slow blue breathing during the 5-minute break, triggered entirely from one tactile button on a GPIO pin
- Use the individual per-tube color control to build a six-character cryptographic entropy visualizer: pull random bytes from an ESP32 hardware RNG, map each byte to a hue value, and update each tube independently at a timed interval to show live randomness as shifting color
Key Features
- Six RGB LED digit tubes: 24-bit color per tube, individually addressable brightness and hue
- Seven factory display modes: clock, countdown, cycling digits, and more, active with USB-C power alone
- UART serial interface: send digit values and color commands via Arduino Serial library or any microcontroller with a hardware UART
- USB-C 5V power only: no external supply, boost converter, or high-voltage rail required
- ABS housing with press-fit acrylic diffuser panels: removable for custom laser-cut tinted or frosted replacements
- Arduino IDE compatible: includes example sketches, works with ESP32, Uno, Nano, and most 5V-tolerant boards
- Dimensions: 268 x 69 x 79mm
Frequently Asked Questions
What communication protocol does it use?
It uses a UART serial interface compatible with Arduino's Serial library. The included example sketches cover sending digit values and per-tube color commands, so adapting them to any microcontroller with a hardware or software UART is straightforward.
Can I set a different color on each tube independently?
Yes. Each of the six tubes is individually addressable with full 24-bit color. Hue, saturation, and brightness are set per digit in software, which is what makes gradient animations and color-coded data displays possible.
Does it do anything useful without a microcontroller connected?
Plug in USB-C power and it cycles through the seven built-in display modes automatically. No microcontroller needed unless you want custom animations, external time sync via NTP, or data-driven color control.
Can the acrylic diffuser panels be swapped out?
They are press-fit into the ABS housing and can be removed carefully. Some builders replace them with laser-cut custom panels in different tints or frosting levels to shift the apparent color temperature of the tube glow.
Why we stock this
Curated by Kindly Morrow. We test and vet every product before it hits the store. If we wouldn't use it in our own builds, we don't sell it.
Things to build with this
Fun projects to try once you get your hands on it.
Split-flap board connected to Claude
Hook up a display to the Claude API and have it show you a new message every morning. Motivational quotes, weather, or passive-aggressive reminders to drink water.
Spotify now-playing display
Show the album art and track name on your desk display. Looks incredible on e-ink. Updates every time the song changes.
Real-time crypto/stock ticker
Pull prices from an API, show them on the display. Flip between assets. Try not to check it every 30 seconds.
Ambient room dashboard
Temperature, humidity, air quality, and time on a bedside e-ink screen. Updates every 5 minutes, uses almost no power. Looks like a museum label.
