Types of Channel Letters
What are Channel Letters?
Channel letters are 3D custom-made signs or letters fabricated from aluminum or plastic and are typically exterior signs. A few customers have used them for lobby signs. The majority of channel letters are illuminated, but not all.
Day and night photos of typical channel letters. The Jointed Cue: red channel letters. Sacramento Scream Park: red and white channel letters. Subway: white and yellow channel letters.
The most common type of channel letter is front-lit, illuminated internally with LEDs lighting the face. Faces for channel letters usually are acrylic. The color elements of the logo are translucent vinyl, or the color of the acrylic itself can be a specific color, as long as it matches the standard colors available.
When we do quotes for individual channel or channel letters that are front-lit, we generally go with a five inch depth coil (channel letters are commonly 3-5” in depth). This gives us a five-inch depth on our returns (The side of a channel letter is known as a return), and our faces are all acrylic. So in that essence, that would be our standard sizing and materials.
Dover Saddlery, for example, uses front-lit white channel letters on expanded aluminum backer (Raceway).
Halo-Reverse Lit Channel Letters
Halo or reverse-lit channel letters create an effect of a light cloud behind the letters. Some customers prefer this style over front-lit letters, as it gives a nice pop of color behind the sign.
As the old saying goes, there is more than one way to skin a cat. That can be true for creating halo channel letters.
Cajun Feast is one example of a halo effect channel letter sign. For this job, we mounted the letters on an aluminum pan backer. The backer panel covers up the brick and allows the light to reflect off the pan rather than the brick. In doing so, the halo effect is cleaner and leads to a brighter pop. To make it pop even more, they chose to do amber lights instead of the standard white LED’s.
Why Do People Choose Halo Lit or Reverse Channel Letters?
People Choose Halo Lit or Reverse channel letters over front-lit because they feel it looks nicer during the day and at night. During the day, it appears like you have a thick deep aluminum channel letter with metal faces. At night the sign comes to life with the glow behind it.
Channel Cloud / Cabinet
Customers will choose to have a channel cloud when they want the look of individual channel letters but are on a tighter budget.
Café Yum – Same great look as individual channel letters but budget-friendly.
As an example, Café Yum is a client of ours who chose to go with a channel cloud. Going this route allowed them to maximize the size of the sign and budget. Instead of fabricating each individual letter, we are bending one large shape, which outlines the letters in their name.
A time crunch can also play a role in a customer deciding to do a channel cloud. The turnaround time for a channel cloud could be closer to a week, whereas a standard channel letter set could take a couple of weeks, depending on the design and number of letters or elements.
Just like any sign, it’s the customer’s preference on what they desire, what they have in mind, or what their budget dictates.
Front and Back Lit Channel Letters
This type of channel letter combines the standard front lit letter with the qualities of a reverse-lit channel letter. Wine & Spirit was looking for something to pop and catch people’s eyes when entering the winery. Their desire was for the sign to be lighted at all times.
The front of the sign has white lighting that illuminates the vinyl print on the face, and the back is lit with creates a halo effect behind the logo. It’s something different but delivers a clean, sharp look.
Non-Illuminated Channel Letters / Signs
Non-Illuminated Channel Letters are channel letters that don’t light. Various factors go into the decision of whether or not to go with illuminated vs. non-illuminated. Four major factors seem to be jurisdictions, budgets, landlords, and the environment.
Cross Dental, for example, went with Non-Illuminated channel letters. Their main reason for going with non-illuminated is because there isn’t a lot of traffic at night. That’s not to say they can’t at a later date go back and add LEDs to the project. At the time it didn’t make much sense to light the sign. It’s still a great look and a feasible option for about 15-25% lower cost.
Rock Mama Gallery is another example where they are just starting out and wanted to save a little money. Instead of channel letters they opted for flat-cut 1/8” thick dimensional letters, It’s still a great look and a feasible option for about half the cost.
For other dimensional signs, visit here.
Price Differences
Lowest to highest in price: Non-lit channel letters - > Cloud Channel Letters - > Front-lit Channel Letters - > Front & Back-lit Channel Letters -> Back-lit (Halo) Channel Letters
Making the Final Decision
When it comes to deciding which style of channel letters to use it’s the customer’s preference. Once we know what the customer desires, what their budget dictates, and what is permitted by both the jurisdiction and landlord, we will guide them down the path that best suits their needs. Our goal is to maximize their budget and get them the best-looking sign possible. At the end of the day what makes us happy is seeing our customers happy.