Best Top of Line LED For 4x4 or 5x5?

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Bzy

Bzy

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I will answer you but first I'm asking you since you made the statement stay FAR away from and said that the hlg are the same as the alibaba boards. I can assure you they aren't but with such a strong statement I would think you have a good understanding of the components and differences. So again I'm asking what the difference you are claiming is.

Already stated it.. same boards, same diodes, same driver.. what else is there that can differ? basically same umols too. but for half the price, thats why stay far away from hlg.
 
Bzy

Bzy

25
3
Using the same components doesn't always equate to the same product. That being said, sometimes the savings for the budget brands make sense depending upon the circumstances of the end user.

LED lights have been making huge improvements in the last decade. I'm sure I will I want to upgrade in a few years regardless of what I buy today.

Maybe not but I dont see HLG being twice the price good... ill stick with my Kingbrites until I can afford Thinkgrows.
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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Already stated it.. same boards, same diodes, same driver.. what else is there that can differ? basically same umols too. but for half the price, thats why stay far away from hlg.
They are not the same... same brand yes. Top bin diodes.... no and mixed bin is common and even cases of not the diodes claimed. Heat sinks are much better on hlg and that's a large part of the cost. Hlg also have much more diodes which increase efficacy and in turn lowers heat and improves light spread, not to mention should increase lifespan. The number of diodes used also adds to the cost and is a huge factor when selecting a light. The drivers may be of the same brand but often not the same quality and there are many differnt models

Infact the Scorpion diablo kills gavita in efficacy and number of diodes nevermind the kingbrites.

Gavita does not have a built in dimmer and it's about $300 more to get it. Add to that the controller actually reduces the wattage pull from the wall.

Just to add not the same umols and they don't do independent testing... just saying

Now am I saying any of these are crap? Absolutely not... but your statement is not true and is oversimplified. So I hope that gives you some insight as to why they are not the same... because they Absolutely are not the same
 
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DreamwalkerJ

DreamwalkerJ

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They are not the same... same brand yes. Top bin diodes.... no and mixed bin is common and even cases of not the diodes claimed. Heat sinks are much better on hlg and that's a large part of the cost. Hlg also have much more diodes which increase efficacy and in turn lowers heat and improves light spread, not to mention should increase lifespan. The number of diodes used also adds to the cost and is a huge factor when selecting a light. The drivers may be of the same brand but often not the same quality and there are many differnt models

Infact the Scorpion diablo kills gavita in efficacy and number of diodes nevermind the kingbrites.

Gavita does not have a built in dimmer and it's about $300 more to get it. Add to that the controller actually reduces the wattage pull from the wall.

Just to add not the same umols and they don't do independent testing... just saying

Now am I saying any of these are crap? Absolutely not... but your statement is not true and is oversimplified. So I hope that gives you some insight as to why they are not the same... because they Absolutely are not the same
There he goes again, hitting us with the facts. @Aqua Man - you should end your posts with a mic drop 🤣🤯
 
Aqua Man

Aqua Man

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There he goes again, hitting us with the facts. @Aqua Man - you should end your posts with a mic drop 🤣🤯
Lol he'll no. Not a competition we all on the same page. Just wanted to clear up a statement or atleast give an explanation on the difference.

Will add that while IR is a good addition to many of these fixtures... UV is not, UV diodes are just not where they need to be yet to provide a significant amount to make a difference. The very few that are capable are roughly $20/diode and you would still need alot of them. Unfortunately for now florescent tubes are the best and imo only effect source for UV that fits our needs.
 
DreamwalkerJ

DreamwalkerJ

424
93
Lol he'll no. Not a competition we all on the same page. Just wanted to clear up a statement or atleast give an explanation on the difference.

Will add that while IR is a good addition to many of these fixtures... UV is not, UV diodes are just not where they need to be yet to provide a significant amount to make a difference. The very few that are capable are roughly $20/diode and you would still need alot of them. Unfortunately for now florescent tubes are the best and imo only effect source for UV that fits our needs.
So im not the only one that has a rave in his grow tent for the last 2 weeks? 🤣
 
Smokey0418

Smokey0418

615
143
If I had to fill my 5x5 I would want a horizon. Maybe even csa approved as the rest of the line is.
 
badbluerubi

badbluerubi

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13
Screenshot 20210809 171558 Chrome

I have this and their controller in a 4x4 and love it. It's 900 watts.
 
MIGrampaUSA

MIGrampaUSA

3,732
263
Let's see, where do I start? I've got six kingbrite 240w boards. Two are 3500k vegging boards. It's all I use them for. I also have four 240w 3000k + 660nm + uv + ir kingbrite boards. I have those in one of my 5 x 5's. All of my kingbrite boards work well and grow great bud.

I also have the Grower's Choice ROI-E720. It has 660nm red, I believe IR but no UV. I have $1000.00 in this light. It's currently in use in my other 5 x 5. I prefer this light over the kingbrite boards. The quantum boards don't fill the space as well as the E720. I have to run 960w of quantum boards to get the same results. The Kingbrite Quantum boards are good boards, but the E720 is clearly better.

HLG Scorpion Diablo is not an ordinary quantum board. If you were to look at the diode counts between a kingbrite board and the HLG Scorpion Diablo, you'll see it has about half as many diodes as the HLG board. This means that the Kingbrite board is driven harder and it still doesn't reach the numbers of the Scorpion Diablo. The higher diode count allows HLG to drive them softer which is what makes them so efficient in comparison.

When I outfitted my second 5 x 5, my choices were the Diablo and the E720. I chose the E720 because it was $400 cheaper, was a bit higher in wattage, and according to the salesperson I bought it from ... runs cooler than the HLG board. Most likely I would have been happy with the other one too, but I really like my E720.

With that said, buy the best light your budget can afford. Just keep in mind what is best isn't always the most expensive.
 
ImpulsiveGrower

ImpulsiveGrower

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Love my kingbrites but recently I’ve been researching a lot about making your own bar style led fixtures. I’m using 4 pacific light solutions photo boost strips and 2 sunboard LH351H red booster strips giving me more deep red and far red. 6 strips total on a 240 watt driver for a 2x2 space. There’s so much information out there to build your own lights but I love spider farmer, Mars, and kingbrite as I own all 3 brands of fixtures.
 
MIGrampaUSA

MIGrampaUSA

3,732
263
Love my kingbrites but recently I’ve been researching a lot about making your own bar style led fixtures. I’m using 4 pacific light solutions photo boost strips and 2 sunboard LH351H red booster strips giving me more deep red and far red. 6 strips total on a 240 watt driver for a 2x2 space. There’s so much information out there to build your own lights but I love spider farmer, Mars, and kingbrite as I own all 3 brands of fixtures.
If you don't mind me asking, can you post some links to the materials? I have thought about adding more red/far red and UV to my setup. I'm actually waiting for a seller to get back to me with a quote.
 
ImpulsiveGrower

ImpulsiveGrower

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If you don't mind me asking, can you post some links to the materials? I have thought about adding more red/far red and UV to my setup. I'm actually waiting for a seller to get back to me with a quote.

You’re welcome! They got drivers with ore wired dimmers as well. All the info is there or just email the guy and he will set you up with wut you need. They got uva, far reds, and all kinds of combos. I also bought strips from pacific light concepts. Com for some dope strips as well but check out the first one
 
MIGrampaUSA

MIGrampaUSA

3,732
263

You’re welcome! They got drivers with ore wired dimmers as well. All the info is there or just email the guy and he will set you up with wut you need. They got uva, far reds, and all kinds of combos. I also bought strips from pacific light concepts. Com for some dope strips as well but check out the first one
Thanks a bunch ...

@ImpulsiveGrower are you running your strips 2 board series (80watts per series) and running 3 series in parallel off of a 48v 240w dimmable driver? If so, this is exactly what I'm after right down to the heatsink and Meanwell driver
 
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ImpulsiveGrower

ImpulsiveGrower

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Thanks a bunch ...

@ImpulsiveGrower are you running your strips 2 board series (80watts per series) and running 3 series in parallel off of a 48v 240w dimmable driver? If so, this is exactly what I'm after right down to the heatsink and Meanwell driver
Honestly not sure about that part yet but I’ve come far in a few days but the wiring will be the step I need to learn. Pacific lights concepts has builds on YouTube step by step so I bought his strips but then found the daddyled. So I’m combining 2 of his far red/deep red booster boards. The PLC boards have the same diode count and they have reds too but they are a single row of diodes instead of 2 rows like most of the others on that website. PLC boards are almost 2 ft long while the others are 16in. So many factors but I love how completely customizable the spectrum is it’s nice having full control. I’m making mine for flowering.
 
ImpulsiveGrower

ImpulsiveGrower

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I’m also using aluminum extrusion for this full build. It has T-slots on each side and flat on one side so I can attach the strips. The pic is basically what I’m getting for my frame except for one side will be flat with no T-slot
27F9A4AB 4C5B 427B BC1C D134FAFC76EC
 
MIGrampaUSA

MIGrampaUSA

3,732
263
Honestly not sure about that part yet but I’ve come far in a few days but the wiring will be the step I need to learn. Pacific lights concepts has builds on YouTube step by step so I bought his strips but then found the daddyled. So I’m combining 2 of his far red/deep red booster boards. The PLC boards have the same diode count and they have reds too but they are a single row of diodes instead of 2 rows like most of the others on that website. PLC boards are almost 2 ft long while the others are 16in. So many factors but I love how completely customizable the spectrum is it’s nice having full control. I’m making mine for flowering.
I think I have it figured out. This is what I put together.

Lighting idea


I need to think on it a day or 2 before I pull the trigger.
 
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