LED FAQ) Building and DIY

[Dion]

You made me laugh here Dion
Welcome back again brother! And stay here, don't get banned please

The Katana sounds top, got any pictures?
Will they be plug-and-grow?

I was thinking not long ago of two-three supplemental strips(mostly res + little UV) for my cobs...glad to see you are thinking the same or similar.
A design idea for a red supplemental katana:


View Image


Cheers

hey mate,


funny you should ask coz im just trying to set up a photo shoot now lol


the final designs im going with(electrical design) is bassically a bunch of variations of 40-80w lights using strips.

eb gen 2 5000K is my primary source of white on these(ofcourse customers can get any kelvin they like and mix and match whatevr strips they please.


at the moment im just getting red strips made for me
the red strips use cree XQE top bin 630nm,660nm and 730nm reds in a ratio of 3:5:1 (your thoughts appreciated here) i used an older chip coz then we get more photons per $ in the final design and come up about 2% less efficient than using say xpg3 which would tripple the price


I've got some dimmable drivers here, 40w and 75w versions that are testing at 90-91% efficiencyon both 120v and 230v,

compare to king meanwell HLG which looks so sexy at like 93% and stuff....but if u look closer u will see that on 120v (usa) its not so sexy lol about the same as my drivers (sorry usa friends, take a look at the xlg, cheaper and runs good on ur lecky)



so in true dion style im going to create some cheap beasts here

im seeing both a 40w and 75w full red light for peeps who wanna suplement what they got as well as full white versions

there is a version with 40w of red and 40w of white each on a seperate dimmer


and ill be using meanwell 240s in 3500k+ 40w of 5000K+40w of red each on their own dimming as my workhorse for a 3x3

i figure 2 of the 75w does ur 2x2, so just go for a beast of a 3x3.


they look like a qb bro,

same style flatbar with driver mounted




and yes plug and grow %100


EDIT: also in regards to ur UV....well as you know the amount we need is debated highly, but we know it aint too much righT? and uv led are...well anyways what are your thoughts on uv?
and whats all the far red chatter? 840nm same story....how much u really need? wouldnt it be better if you could just have a few diodes on a puck that you could plug into a phone charger or smth?

 

[Boyd Crowder]

best bang for bux is arrows influx l09 strips - 301 based, 96 leds, i use the 2.075 profile sink and meanwells i built a 600w 9 strip light engine for about 350$ for a 2x4 area

 

[Dion]

best bang for bux is arrows influx l09 strips - 301 based, 96 leds, i use the 2.075 profile sink and meanwells i built a 600w 9 strip light engine for about 350$ for a 2x4 area

oh yeah?

thats cool, I'm not sure about ur number crunching though but I'd love to be wrong and learn of a better way

whats the part number u went with?(there are a few, plus gen 2 is out now) I'm curious to investigate this

and not to mention I dont need heatsinking with the eb series or my custom strips...and the samsung data sheets are optimistic lab results not field tests as bridgelux does... and they have less LEDs in them of relatively equal efficiency per strip.... and they cost double per strip which is less total watts than the eb...

So looks like they cost double per strip, run 5w less per strip and still gotta pay for heatsinks?


EDIT: oh no I was comparing the Australian dollar price of EB to the US dollar price of the h flux, so actually 3x the price

what did i miss?

 

[jikko77]

@Dion nice to see u are still around

 

[Dion]

You made me laugh here Dion
Welcome back again brother! And stay here, don't get banned please

The Katana sounds top, got any pictures?
Will they be plug-and-grow?

I was thinking not long ago of two-three supplemental strips(mostly res + little UV) for my cobs...glad to see you are thinking the same or similar.
A design idea for a red supplemental katana:


View Image


Cheers

Some photos

All my lights are infinitely scalable

All light bars click together
Mix and match options for Kelvin and nm

So the katana is a single strip bar can run 1 or 2 per driver max 36w depending on efficiency U want (each strip at 1.8a or .9a)
Will do red bars soon just that cutter electronics (3rd time in a row and last time I try do biz with Mark has stolen my ideas and listed them while refusing my orders)

So single bars can make a light
Or just use a bar for a veg is simple and cheap

 

[Dion]

Next model is called humble bee, it's a true 165watt to crush a 2*2 or 2 units in a 3*3 for 330w

Finally a similar light to the humbl bee is next, it will be 240w for a 2*4 or 2 units in a 4*4

So simple, cheap, elegant and scalable grow lights

Shipping will be around 30 USD worldwide

Will do custom kits and frames but sticking with this design footprint

Thanks for your interest

Don't mind the shitty rivots on those bars, I played around with the position on those prototypes

I'll post the product photos in the near future

 

[Loc Dog]

Are Cree Vero 29 Gen 7's still state of the art, or has something surpassed them. I built my lights 2 years ago, and have not been able to grow for 1.5 years.

 

[Koondense]

Are Cree Vero 29 Gen 7's still state of the art, or has something surpassed them. I built my lights 2 years ago, and have not been able to grow for 1.5 years.

The smd leds have better efficency but the veros are still and will be an excellent light for some more years. I use them constantly and my plants are very happy.



Cheers

 

[Mars Hydro Led]

Each bar should be installed more led chips to make the light more powerful?

 

[Loc Dog]

The smd leds have better efficency but the veros are still and will be an excellent light for some more years. I use them constantly and my plants are very happy.



Cheers

I checked the website where I bought them, and they say that the COB's have much deeper penetration into canopy and angle of light, but have to be backed off 18 inches from too much light and heat. I only did 2 runs, and first one had too close and had light bleaching. Second run had about 1.3 grams per watt after trim and dry to 63%. That was GG4, SCROG, everything trimmed under SCROG after 3 weeks into flower.

 

[Boyd Crowder]

oh yeah?

thats cool, I'm not sure about ur number crunching though but I'd love to be wrong and learn of a better way

whats the part number u went with?(there are a few, plus gen 2 is out now) I'm curious to investigate this

and not to mention I dont need heatsinking with the eb series or my custom strips...and the samsung data sheets are optimistic lab results not field tests as bridgelux does... and they have less LEDs in them of relatively equal efficiency per strip.... and they cost double per strip which is less total watts than the eb...

So looks like they cost double per strip, run 5w less per strip and still gotta pay for heatsinks?


EDIT: oh no I was comparing the Australian dollar price of EB to the US dollar price of the h flux, so actually 3x the price

what did i miss?

MOST of Icmag are americans bro
like our shitty v8's in our cars , we like cheap easy to find power over efficiency thats harder top source

lol
u are STILL a douche with a 'tude, so lemme drop some info on you , since u want to learn more

our suppliers like digikey, mouser,arrow dont stock these eb's
ones that do have them cannot compete w samsung prices , your ebs are double the price for your 200 efficacy strips

NONE of BLUX 2' EB (580mm) strips drops more than 2700 lms
on average, they are 4-6$ - thats 30% more expensive for the same light

the 2'ebs are 13.5W

im practical, im looking up the stuff you are using and , here in the states, its better to go with what we can get our hands on and be happy with 140 lm/w from the 301b's

i use the influx line , like my post said i like the L09's
i use the 2' 96 up 301b 3500-5000k
these are 47% efficient
these run at 65 watts, for 9.50$ ea
they now have the 3500k's in stock (8500 lms)
they run @1.38A at 48-52v
they MUST have a heatsink and a single honeywell fan will keep them comfortably in temp range with a 24" heatsinksusa.com 2.079 profile

so you need 4 2' strips to compare to one of these L09's,
Diom
here in USA thats $5.5 a strip or $22 to drop the same lumens

lets add your square Al profiles at 3.5$ per 2' section x 4 aka 15$ at our local bigboxhardware
and compare to
the 9.70$ from HSUSA for the 1 strip needed to compete w the 4 EB's thats a 5$ savings on Al costs.


3500k
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/sl-b8u7n90l1ww/samsung-electronics
5000k
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/sl-b8r7n90l1ww/samsung-electronics

these are $9.50 strips dropping 4x the light of your 2' strips
at 65W they MUST have airflow over them or they will delaminate

the inventronics drivers are about 107$ and i can get damn near any config from them by using the programming interface
(yes, u do run strips in series w these drivers)
the 600w and 1200 w models are hard to find tho

barring that the $180 meanwells are solid kit and everyone has em

so yeah , d10/\/ my rigs are cheaper and drop more light for my USA$

i wish u were less combative with your threads users, cause it takes more work to be a snotty douche back to you when dropping this info on you & ICMAGGERS, but it is what it is

 

[Dion]

MOST of Icmag are americans bro
like our shitty v8's in our cars , we like cheap easy to find power over efficiency thats harder top source

lol
u are STILL a douche with a 'tude, so lemme drop some info on you , since u want to learn more

our suppliers like digikey, mouser,arrow dont stock these eb's
ones that do have them cannot compete w samsung prices , your ebs are double the price for your 200 efficacy strips

NONE of BLUX 2' EB (580mm) strips drops more than 2700 lms
on average, they are 4-6$ - thats 30% more expensive for the same light

the 2'ebs are 13.5W

im practical, im looking up the stuff you are using and , here in the states, its better to go with what we can get our hands on and be happy with 140 lm/w from the 301b's

i use the influx line , like my post said i like the L09's
i use the 2' 96 up 301b 3500-5000k
these are 47% efficient
these run at 65 watts, for 9.50$ ea
they now have the 3500k's in stock (8500 lms)
they run @1.38A at 48-52v
they MUST have a heatsink and a single honeywell fan will keep them comfortably in temp range with a 24" heatsinksusa.com 2.079 profile

so you need 4 2' strips to compare to one of these L09's,
Diom
here in USA thats $5.5 a strip or $22 to drop the same lumens

lets add your square Al profiles at 3.5$ per 2' section x 4 aka 15$ at our local bigboxhardware
and compare to
the 9.70$ from HSUSA for the 1 strip needed to compete w the 4 EB's thats a 5$ savings on Al costs.


3500k
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/sl-b8u7n90l1ww/samsung-electronics
5000k
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/sl-b8r7n90l1ww/samsung-electronics

these are $9.50 strips dropping 4x the light of your 2' strips
at 65W they MUST have airflow over them or they will delaminate

the inventronics drivers are about 107$ and i can get damn near any config from them by using the programming interface
(yes, u do run strips in series w these drivers)
the 600w and 1200 w models are hard to find tho

barring that the $180 meanwells are solid kit and everyone has em

so yeah , d10/\/ my rigs are cheaper and drop more light for my USA$

i wish u were less combative with your threads users, cause it takes more work to be a snotty douche back to you when dropping this info on you & ICMAGGERS, but it is what it is

hey bro

loved your reply, and yes i am douche with a tude and a whole bag of mental health issues to go with lol

gotta accept who you are before anyone else will righT?


i am really trying to agree with you and have my mind opened but i just cant understand please help

suppliers like digikey and arrow do stock them, thats where i get em from, they easily achieve more than 2700lumens per strip, the diode they use runs up to 2800mA actually, but in the chip they say max 1400mA because then the strips need heatsinks...(ive tested this extensively dont recomend going above 2000mA without heatsink though...pop)

but anyways even if i run them at 1400mA and achieve typical 4600 (2390 lumens is at 700mA not max) odd Lumens per strip @ $4.03 BTW

( arrow.com/en/products/bxeb-l0280z-50e1000-c-b3/bridgelux )

so actually it looks like $8.06 compared to your $9.5 for the same light output but you still gotta add heatsink i dont
and you used 65w to get there, i only used 54w.


so....did i miss anythinG?

 

[Dion]

oops

 

[Boyd Crowder]

now that we got the old snotty douche bit sorted out , lets get down to specs
this strip is listed with 1230lm for ~14w on arrows quicspec

not sure if you measured the 2700lm on your own?
and im guessing you are overdriving these by double their rated currents?

i build lights like this, get 10 strips , calculate the requirements from whats listed in the manu pdfs. manu specs are usually a bit different than what arrow lists , ie samsung says drive to 48v but arrow lists 52v and choose a driver.

a 600w meanwell w run 9 strips full throttle , 48v x 1380ma x 9 influx i09 = 596Watts
i throw an extra strip in there and run them at 90% load

i havent had any issues wth meanwell drivers so far

but in reality , there is no free lunches
were comparing apples to apples

your lights , down under, sound just about the same $/lm as the lights up here
conversion rates and all.
at least you dont have to pay tarriffs down there

 

[Dion]

now that we got the old snotty douche bit sorted out , lets get down to specs
this strip is listed with 1230lm for ~14w on arrows quicspec

not sure if you measured the 2700lm on your own?
and im guessing you are overdriving these by double their rated currents?

i build lights like this, get 10 strips , calculate the requirements from whats listed in the manu pdfs. manu specs are usually a bit different than what arrow lists , ie samsung says drive to 48v but arrow lists 52v and choose a driver.

a 600w meanwell w run 9 strips full throttle , 48v x 1380ma x 9 influx i09 = 596Watts
i throw an extra strip in there and run them at 90% load

i havent had any issues wth meanwell drivers so far

but in reality , there is no free lunches
were comparing apples to apples

your lights , down under, sound just about the same $/lm as the lights up here
conversion rates and all.
at least you dont have to pay tarriffs down there

Cheers bro

 

[Boyd Crowder]

Cheers bro

Salute Mate

 

[marmarb]

just picked up 3 600w led systems from ucandewit wish i made the switch earlier the difference in heat and cooling is night in day. Gonna have to learn how to maximize growth with them looking forward to picking up some pointer from you folks.

 

[Dion]

My shout would be the 38mm 1825 purple or rose philips lumiled sunplus cobs. 2100 mah.

I didn't realise til just now but those cobs use the exact diodes I'm considering for my custom strips

Have U any experience with them or just looking at the specs?

The problem I have with supplemental spectrum Inna cob is the lack of spread

I'd be doing a similar set up as that cob but on a 280mm aluminium board


Talk to me about this bro, I wanna know everything

 

[gsxr97]

Got any pictures? How they working out so far

just picked up 3 600w led systems from ucandewit wish i made the switch earlier the difference in heat and cooling is night in day. Gonna have to learn how to maximize growth with them looking forward to picking up some pointer from you folks.

 

[gsxr97]

I Also got 2 lights from ucandlewit. More work then I thought to build but my first time .

So far I have half frame built out, need more free time !

You still liking the lights marmarb?