Resistor Color Code

There are many different types of Resistor available which

can be used in both electrical and electronic circuits to control the
flow of current or to produce a voltage drop in many different
ways. But in order to do this the actual resistor needs to have
some form of “resistive” or “resistance” value. Resistors are
available in a range of different resistance values from fractions of
an Ohm (Ω) to millions of Ohms.

The Standard Resistor Color Code Chart

Calculating Resistor Values

The Resistor Color Code system is all well and good but we

need to understand how to apply it in order to get the correct
value of the resistor. The “left-hand” or the most significant
colored band is the band which is nearest to a connecting lead
with the color coded bands being read from left-to-right as follows:
Digit, Digit, Multiplier = Color, Color x 10 color in Ohm’s (Ω)
For example, a resistor has the following colored markings;
Yellow Violet Red = 4 7 2 = 4 7 x 102 = 4700Ω or 4k7 Ohm.
The fourth and fifth bands are used to determine the percentage
tolerance of the resistor. Resistor tolerance is a measure of the
resistors variation from the specified resistive value and is a
consequence of the manufacturing process and is expressed as a
percentage of its “nominal” or preferred value.
Typical resistor tolerances for film resistors range from 1% to 10%
while carbon resistors have tolerances up to 20%. Resistors with
tolerances lower than 2% are called precision resistors with the or
lower tolerance resistors being more expensive.
Most five band resistors are precision resistors with tolerances of
either 1% or 2% while most of the four band resistors have
tolerances of 5%, 10% and 20%. The color code used to denote
the tolerance rating of a resistor is given as:
Brown = 1%, Red = 2%, Gold = 5%, Silver = 10 %
If resistor has no fourth tolerance band then the default tolerance
would be at 20%.

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Venture Goes Wr
ong
Resistors in Series
Resistors are said to be connected in “Series”, when they are daisy
chained together in a single line. Since all the current flowing through
the first resistor has no other way to go it must also pass through the
second resistor and the third and so on. Then, resistors in series have
a Common Current flowing through them as the current that flows
through one resistor must also flow through the others as it can only take
one path.
Then the amount of current that flows through a set of resistors in
series will be the same at all points in a series resistor network. For
example:

 
In the following example the resistors R1, R2 and R3 are all
connected together in series between points A and B with a common
current, I flowing through them.

Series Resistor Circuit

 
As the resistors are connected together in series the same current passes
through each resistor in the chain and the total resistance, RT of the
circuit must be equal to the sum of all the individual resistors added
together. That is
And by taking the individual values of the resistors in our simple
example above, the total equivalent resistance, REQ is therefore given as:
REQ = R1 + R2 + R3 = 1kΩ + 2kΩ + 6kΩ = 9kΩ
 

So we see that we can replace all three individual resistors above with
just one single “equivalent” resistor which will have a value of 9kΩ.
Where four, five or even more resistors are all connected together in a
series circuit, the total or equivalent resistance of the circuit, RT would
still be the sum of all the individual resistors connected together and the
more resistors added to the series, the greater the equivalent resistance
(no matter what their value).
Series Resistor Equation

Rtotal = R1 + R2 + R3 + ….. Rn etc.
Note then that the total or equivalent resistance, RT has the same effect
on the circuit as the original combination of resistors as it is the
algebraic sum of the individual resistances.
 

Series Resistor Voltage

The voltage across each resistor connected in series follows
different rules to that of the series current. We know from the above
circuit that the total supply voltage across the resistors is equal to the
sum of the potential differences across R1 , R2 and R3 , .
 
The equation given for calculating the total voltage in a series
circuit which is the sum of all the individual voltages added together is
given as:

Then series resistor networks can also be thought of as “voltage

dividers” and a series resistor circuit having N resistive components will
have N-different voltages across it while maintaining a common current.

Resistors in Parallel
Resistors are said to be connected together in parallel when both of
their terminals are respectively connected to each terminal of the other
resistor or resistors
 
Since there are multiple paths for the supply current to flow
through, the current may not be the same through all the branches in the
parallel network. However, the voltage drop across all of the resistors in
a parallel resistive network IS the same. Then, Resistors in
Parallel have a Common Voltage across them and this is true for all
parallel connected elements.
So we can define a parallel resistive circuit as one where the
resistors are connected to the same two points (or nodes) and is
identified by the fact that it has more than one current path connected to
a common voltage source. Then in our parallel resistor example below
the voltage across resistor R1 equals the voltage across resistor R2 which
equals the voltage across R3 and which equals the supply voltage.
Therefore, for a parallel resistor network this is given as:
In the following resistors in parallel circuit the resistors R1, R2 and R3 are
all connected together in parallel between the two points A and B as
shown.

Parallel Resistor Circuit

In the previous series resistor network we saw that the total

resistance, RT of the circuit was equal to the sum of all the individual
resistors added together. For resistors in parallel the equivalent circuit
resistance RT is calculated differently.

Parallel Resistor Equation

Then the inverse of the equivalent resistance of two or more resistors

connected in parallel is the algebraic sum of the inverses of the
individual resistances.
If the two resistances or impedances in parallel are equal and of the same
value, then the total or equivalent resistance, RT is equal to half the value
of one resistor. That is equal to R/2 and for three equal resistors in
parallel, R/3, etc.
Note that the equivalent resistance is always less than the smallest
resistor in the parallel network so the total resistance, RT will always
decrease as additional parallel resistors are added.

Various Parallel Resistor Networks

The five resistive networks above may look different to each other, but
they are all arranged as Resistors in Parallel and as such the same
conditions and equations apply.

This method of reciprocal calculation can be used for calculating

any number of individual resistances connected together within a single
parallel network.
If however, there are only two individual resistors in parallel then
we can use a much simpler and quicker formula to find the total or
equivalent resistance value, RT and help reduce the reciprocal maths a
little.
This much quicker product-over-sum method of calculating two
resistor in parallel, either having equal or unequal values is given as:

Currents in a Parallel Resistor Circuit

The total current, IT entering a parallel resistive circuit is the sum of all
the individual currents flowing in all the parallel branches. But the
amount of current flowing through each parallel branch may not
necessarily be the same, as the resistive value of each branch determines
the amount of current flowing within that branch.
Then by using Ohm’s Law, the current flowing through each resistor of
 The equation given for calculating the total current flowing in a
parallel resistor circuit which is the sum of all the individual currents
added together is given as:
Itotal = I1 + I2 + I3 ….. + In