CANADUINO® 8x8 64-Dot-Matrix (Red) MAX7219, 4 Module Cluster

One of the reviewers mentioned that you need decoupling capacitors to get these to operate correctly for long periods of time. I agree with this, because in my experience, I observed erratic behaviour after about 24 hours of constant use. The driver chip seems to be very susceptible to interference or fluctuations in voltage. Unfortunately, every time this happens, the modules behave erratically until you reset your Arduino, so I wouldn’t use these modules in projects where you expect long-term reliability. In addition, it may be difficult to add capacitors or modify these boards because they are surface mount type components, so size and access will be an issue.

The four modules are all in one piece, the description did say they can be split up, I figured it would be easy to do, that was not the case.I had to take a sharp utility knife and carefully and I do mean carefully! Cut between each module on the board to seperate them. It worked but had I made a small mistake cutting, it would have rendered that module useless.It should be easier to seperate each module! The reason for my 4 stars

Good news:- Functional.Onto the problems:- There is unnecessary spacing between the matrices (unlike the DAOKI version of the same part).- The soldering on some of them is hideous.- There is no scoring of the boards between the matrices.- There is no ground-plane-free region between matrices to cut through safely.Overall? Difficult to recommend. Not worth the $3 saved.

The module came as described and on time. Needed to add some decoupling capacitors to start working correctly. Recommend this product.

One cable was broken, 2 days after use, 3 out of 4 strips stopped working, found one display had unsoldered pins. Repaired and still didnt work!