LED Neon Glossary — every term explained in plain English

The world of illuminated signage comes with its own vocabulary. This glossary explains the 25+ terms you will encounter most often when ordering an LED neon, channel letter sign or light box from Omineo. Each definition is written for human beings, not engineers — but the technical accuracy is intact.

Product types and styles

LED Neon Classic

The flagship Omineo product: a flexible silicone tube housing a continuous strip of high-density LEDs, mounted on a laser-cut acrylic backplate that follows the shape of your text or design. LED Neon Classic produces the warm, even glow associated with vintage glass neon, but at a fraction of the energy use, with no fragile glass and at safe low voltage. It is the default choice for bedroom signs, café decor, weddings, retail interiors and shop windows.

Frontlit

A type of 3D channel letter sign in which the light source sits inside the letter and shines outward through a translucent acrylic face. Frontlit letters are bold, highly readable from a distance and ideal for shopfronts, supermarket facades, petrol stations and any environment where the sign needs to grab attention. The metal returns (sides) of the letter are typically painted to match the brand colour, while the face glows brightly.

Backlit

Sometimes called halo-lit. A 3D channel letter where the LEDs sit at the back of the letter and shine onto the wall behind, producing a soft luminous halo that outlines each character. Backlit signs are elegant, architectural and refined — favoured by hotels, design studios, law firms and premium retailers. They look spectacular at night against a dark facade and add a calmer, more sophisticated feel than frontlit signs.

Halo Effect

The visual outcome of a backlit channel letter: a soft circle or aura of light glowing on the wall around each character. The intensity of the halo depends on the gap between the letter and the wall (deeper letters create wider halos), the colour and brightness of the LEDs, and the surface behind. White or pale walls reflect the light most strongly, dark walls give a more dramatic, narrow halo.

Channel Letters

Three-dimensional individual letters fabricated from metal returns (typically aluminium) and an acrylic face, with LEDs mounted inside the cavity. Channel letters are the international standard for outdoor business signage — used by every major franchise from McDonald’s to Apple. They can be frontlit, backlit, or both at once. Each letter is mounted separately to the facade, giving a premium architectural finish that flat signs cannot match.

Light Box / Kaseton

A rectangular illuminated sign consisting of an aluminium frame, a translucent acrylic or PVC face printed with a logo or message, and LEDs mounted inside that light the face from behind. The Polish term "kaseton" is widely used across Central and Eastern Europe for the same product. Light boxes are used for shopfronts, cinema marquees, pharmacies and large directional signage where uniform brightness is more important than 3D depth.

XPS Letters

Lightweight letters cut from extruded polystyrene foam (XPS), often coated in paint or adhesive vinyl. They are not always illuminated, but they can be combined with LED backlighting for events, exhibitions, photo backdrops and temporary installations. XPS is much lighter than acrylic or metal, easy to transport and surprisingly durable for short-term use. Popular for wedding receptions, conferences and pop-up retail.

Custom Neon

Any LED neon sign designed entirely from scratch to a customer’s specification rather than chosen from a catalogue. This includes bespoke text, custom fonts, unique shapes, brand logos and one-off art pieces. Almost everything Omineo produces is technically a custom neon — we work to your dimensions, colours and design rather than a fixed product line.

Brand Logo Neon

A custom neon sign built from a company’s existing logo. We start from your vector artwork (SVG, AI, EPS, PDF) and translate it into a manufacturable LED neon, advising on minimum line thickness, colour matching and structural feasibility. Brand logo neons are popular in restaurants, gyms, salons and corporate reception areas — wherever a consistent brand image needs to project authority and warmth.

Wedding Neon

An LED neon sign designed for use at a wedding reception, typically displaying the couple’s initials, surnames, a meaningful date or a romantic phrase. Wedding neons are usually executed in elegant cursive script and warm white or pink LEDs to flatter photography. Many couples re-use the sign as a permanent keepsake at home after the event, hung in a hallway, bedroom or living room.

Technology and components

RGB

Red, Green, Blue — the three primary colours of additive light mixing. An RGB LED contains three tiny coloured emitters in a single package; by adjusting the brightness of each, the LED can produce millions of different colours. RGB neons are controlled by a remote or smartphone app and are ideal for entertainment spaces, gaming rooms, bars and venues that want changeable mood lighting from a single sign.

RGBW

Red, Green, Blue, White. An upgrade on RGB that adds a dedicated white LED to the package. Pure RGB struggles to produce a clean, neutral white — the result usually looks slightly pink or blue. RGBW solves this by giving the user a separate, properly colour-balanced white channel alongside the colour-mixing capability. The result is a neon that can do both vibrant party colours and soft everyday white at the touch of a button.

Pixel Pitch

The distance, measured in millimetres, between the centres of two adjacent LEDs on a strip or display. Smaller pixel pitch means LEDs are packed closer together, which produces a smoother, more continuous glow. For neon flex used in signage, pixel pitch is typically very small (under 10 mm), so the eye does not see individual diodes — just a seamless line of light. Lower numbers are generally better for tight curves and small text.

Lumen

The standard unit for measuring the total amount of visible light that a source produces. The more lumens, the brighter the sign. A typical Omineo LED Neon Classic produces around 100-200 lumens per metre of strip — bright enough to be clearly visible in a normally lit room without dazzling the viewer. Outdoor commercial signs use higher-output strips of 300+ lumens per metre to compete with daylight and ambient street lighting.

Color Temperature (Kelvin)

A measure of how warm or cool a white light appears, expressed in degrees Kelvin (K). Lower numbers are warmer and more orange (2700K resembles a traditional incandescent bulb), middle numbers are neutral (4000K), and higher numbers are cool and blueish (6500K resembles daylight). Most Omineo bedroom and hospitality signs use warm white at around 3000K because it flatters skin tones and feels welcoming.

IP Rating (IP65, IP67)

Ingress Protection rating — an international standard (IEC 60529) that describes how well an electrical product is sealed against solid objects and liquids. The first digit (0-6) rates dust resistance, the second (0-9) rates water. IP20 is fine for indoor use only. IP65 is dust-tight and survives water jets — suitable for outdoor walls and covered terraces. IP67 survives temporary immersion. Higher is better but more expensive.

Acrylic / Plexi / PMMA

Three names for the same material: polymethyl methacrylate, a transparent thermoplastic used for the backplates of every Omineo LED neon. Acrylic is lighter than glass, virtually unbreakable, optically clear and easy to laser-cut into intricate letterforms. Cast acrylic (the kind we use) is more UV-stable than cheaper extruded acrylic and will not yellow over years of indoor or outdoor use. It is also fully recyclable.

PVC

Polyvinyl chloride — a tough, lightweight plastic used in some signage applications such as the printed faces of light boxes or rigid backing panels. PVC is cheaper than acrylic but less optically pure, so we use it selectively. For most LED neon products we prefer cast acrylic; for printed light box faces, transparent PVC sheets can produce excellent results when uniform colour is more important than crystal clarity.

Power Supply / Adapter

The transformer that converts 230V mains electricity into the safe low voltage (12V or 24V DC) required by the LEDs. Every Omineo neon ships with a CE-certified power supply matched to the wattage of the sign. Smaller bedroom signs use compact plug-in adapters; larger commercial signs use enclosed metal drivers that can be hidden behind the sign or in a service area. The transformer is the part most likely to need replacement after 5-10 years.

Remote Control

A handheld or smartphone-based controller used to switch the sign on and off, dim it or change its colour. Single-colour neons can include an optional in-line dimmer or remote on/off; RGB and RGBW models always come with a multi-function remote that lets you select colour, brightness, fade speed and pre-set scenes. Many of our remotes also support smart-home integration via apps such as Tuya, WLED or Home Assistant.

Distance Brackets / Spacers

The stainless-steel stand-off screws used to mount an acrylic neon backplate to the wall, holding it 2-3 cm proud of the surface. The gap creates an attractive floating effect and conceals the cabling that runs from the neon to the transformer. Distance brackets are included as standard with every Omineo wall-mounted neon, along with the wall plugs and screws needed for plasterboard, brick or wooden surfaces.

Wall Mount

A general term covering any method of fixing an LED neon sign to a vertical surface. Standard wall-mount uses distance brackets through pre-drilled holes in the acrylic backplate. Alternatives include hanging chains (popular for renters and exhibitions), strong adhesive tape (light signs only), or recessed bracketry for premium architectural installations. The right method depends on the size, weight and permanence of the sign — we always supply the appropriate hardware.

Outdoor vs Indoor

Indoor neons (IP20) are designed for dry interior spaces such as homes, restaurants and shop interiors. Outdoor neons (IP65 or IP67) are sealed against water and dust, use UV-stabilised acrylic that does not yellow in sunlight, and have weatherproof connectors throughout. The price premium for outdoor specification is usually 10-20% — well worth it if your sign will face the elements, even under a covered terrace or porch.

Energy Consumption (Watts)

The rate at which an LED neon draws electrical power, expressed in watts. A small bedroom sign draws around 8-15 W; a large commercial logo might draw 40-80 W or more. To estimate annual running cost, multiply watts by hours-per-day, multiply by 365, divide by 1000 to get kWh, and multiply by your electricity tariff. Even a generous 60 W sign running 10 hours a day costs only around 50-70 EUR per year on average European tariffs.

12V / 24V LED

The two safe low-voltage standards used in modern LED signage. 12V systems are common for smaller signs and consumer products, while 24V systems are preferred for larger installations because they suffer less voltage drop over long cable runs. Both are entirely safe to handle — you cannot get an electric shock from 12V or 24V DC. The mains-to-low-voltage conversion happens inside the CE-certified transformer that ships with every neon.

Flexible LED Strip

A bendable strip of small LEDs spaced evenly along a flexible printed circuit board, usually encased in a silicone or PVC jacket for protection. Flexible LED strip is the building block of LED Neon Classic — when housed in a translucent silicone tube, it creates the smooth, continuous line of light that distinguishes neon from spotty bulb-based signs. Modern flexible strips are dust- and water-resistant when sealed and can be safely bent into tight curves without damaging the diodes.