Leds: Cobs And Quantums, Diversity Of Angle And Penetration

[DGP]

I have been on a soapbox about the myth that LEDs don't have good penetration but I had a problem with my COB fixture and had to back up the flower room with two quantum arays while repairs were completed.

I learned something during this process that valadates what I have been saying. A COB array of 15 lighs has a nice diversity of angle but also has the advantage of being more focused than Quantums and of course Quantums are good for tents and small rooms where reflectons off the walls help redirect some of the high angle light that would other wise be wasted. However, the bonus of Quantums is the hundreds of light sources because the panels have 120 or more on each panel.

When I look at the floor under my HPS I see deep shadows and dark areas. When I look at the floor under the COBs I see a lot more light getting in due to the multiple light sources and diversity of angle produced tends to get light in under the canopy where a single bulb cannot. However, when looking at the floor under the Quantum panels I see a lot more light getting through the whole canopy. Between my two fixtures I have 1440 LEDs and I can see clearly what is happening. Now my flower room is a little big for Quantums (not the ideal close walls for reflections) so i will go back to my COB array as soon as repairs are complete but it was good to actually see the effect.

HPS: deep shadows
COBs: less defined shadows and shadows overlapping but clearly light penetration is better
Quantums: Floor looks like it is illuminated as if an overcast day interior canopy is seeing lots more light.

I think more light sources is definitely much better.

Dee

Dee

 

[scubascrog]

I agree. my mylar seems like its working better this round than my hps

 

[PhatNuggz]

I have a BML SPYDR 600 (~ 330w) with mixed mono spectrums. 6 bars can slide in/out on the backbone from 2 x 4 to 4 x 4, currently ~ 3 x 4. I also have an Amare Technology SE 250 (actual watts) which consists of 4 CoBs each surrounded with a ring of r/b/ir monos: 8" on center. 4 plants from same seeds. All 4 look neary identical

 

[Buzzer777]

I agree. my mylar seems like its working better this round than my hps

My Bath Tub grows always amaze me..I think the highly reflective tiled walls are doing it for me.

 

[MIMedGrower]

I don’t see any shadows under my 2 600 hps’ reflectors over a 3.5’ x 7’ flowering area.

And the results are fantastic.

That said. I have already tried cmh and will surely try cobs or quantum’s in the future. Unless I wait long enough for decent priced fully engineered led’s With uv and far red included and a tailored light spectrum for cannabis.

Specific crop lighting is next. Just like we have specific crop fertilizer ratios. Being researched at the university of Michigan now.

 

[Shadrock5]

I have been on a soapbox about the myth that LEDs don't have good penetration but I had a problem with my COB fixture and had to back up the flower room with two quantum arays while repairs were completed.

I learned something during this process that valadates what I have been saying. A COB array of 15 lighs has a nice diversity of angle but also has the advantage of being more focused than Quantums and of course Quantums are good for tents and small rooms where reflectons off the walls help redirect some of the high angle light that would other wise be wasted. However, the bonus of Quantums is the hundreds of light sources because the panels have 120 or more on each panel.

When I look at the floor under my HPS I see deep shadows and dark areas. When I look at the floor under the COBs I see a lot more light getting in due to the multiple light sources and diversity of angle produced tends to get light in under the canopy where a single bulb cannot. However, when looking at the floor under the Quantum panels I see a lot more light getting through the whole canopy. Between my two fixtures I have 1440 LEDs and I can see clearly what is happening. Now my flower room is a little big for Quantums (not the ideal close walls for reflections) so i will go back to my COB array as soon as repairs are complete but it was good to actually see the effect.

HPS: deep shadows
COBs: less defined shadows and shadows overlapping but clearly light penetration is better
Quantums: Floor looks like it is illuminated as if an overcast day interior canopy is seeing lots more light.

I think more light sources is definitely much better.

Dee

Dee

I have a queastion and hope tou might be able to help as simply as you can - could you tell me what driver would be optimal to run these f strips at approx 1.2-1.5 amp and get around 220 w in a 7 sq ft area i jave been told 185-24b / 240- 24b and
320 -36C i want to ba able to run 8 strips in series but i may have to run in parallel what would you suggest. Everyone wants to digress into micromanaging wall space and doing calculus its frustrating to not just get a straight answer. Any help would be so welcome

 

[Shadrock5]

I have a queastion and hope tou might be able to help as simply as you can - could you tell me what driver would be optimal to run these f strips at approx 1.2-1.5 amp and get around 220 w in a 7 sq ft area i jave been told 185-24b / 240- 24b and
320 -36C i want to ba able to run 8 strips in series but i may have to run in parallel what would you suggest. Everyone wants to digress into micromanaging wall space and doing calculus its frustrating to not just get a straight answer. Any help would be so welcome

 

[DGP]

I prefer parallel for these open systems. In other words these systems that have exposed potential. Reason being if you stay under 60 volts it is considered non-hazardous or non-lethal. I would pick a constant current constant voltage driver. 7 sq feet is a small area so you would want about 35 to 45 watts per foot so that would be about 280 watts. So pick a 24 volt 320 watt CC CV driver that is dimmable. So like a HLG-320-24B, or the HLG-240-24B if it is for veg.

Dee

 

[Shawnery]

I've never run HPS or any other bulb except for LEDs but the Samsung f564b that I run are basically a DIY Quantum board. I've always believed that coverage is much better with these but penetration falters in comparison. I remember reading somewhere on the net that there are covers that narrow coverage but increase penetration.

They really aren't that hot so I'm going to try running them much closer this time and see what happens