Seriously - What's the best LED setup?

[Mayne]

good sht.

Most will just figure they paid so less for it, fk it, throw in the closet, and buy another.

thats what they bank on.

thats what i did, LOL.. I have a perfect sun mini ill probably never use again.

 

[loomis420]

Wish I knew. Been researching LED for a couple months and have received very
few concrete answers between the brands.

 

[Stunned]

stick to QB boards or strips or Cobs like Cree, Bridgelux, Citizen ect
the verdict has been in for some time and there are a wealth of testimonials as to how well these perform

 

[greensunshine]

Thing with LED like Heliospectra is a lot of them are around 1.5 umol/J which is actually less efficient than DE HPS, and a tiny bit more efficient than Single Ended HPS.

Another is that LED leaves out lots of colors important for plant growth like green, yellow, infrared etc which are important for good yields, which HPS has a lot of.

All that to say the right spectrum LED can definitely make big buds...

 

[Mayne]

QBs are 2.4 i think, they pretty much have the lockdown on the industry right now, my luminus cobs are 2.2 i was told.

 

[greensunshine]

QBs are 2.4 i think, they pretty much have the lockdown on the industry right now, my luminus cobs are 2.2 i was told.

QB's are decent, but don't put out a lot of red/infrared. Additionally, the light is not directed, so it goes horizontally and requires a grow tent to reflect down to the plants, losing about 20% efficiency at that point. Cobs are good as well.

 

[PurpleGunRack]

Thing with LED like Heliospectra is a lot of them are around 1.5 umol/J which is actually less efficient than DE HPS, and a tiny bit more efficient than Single Ended HPS.

Another is that LED leaves out lots of colors important for plant growth like green, yellow, infrared etc which are important for good yields, which HPS has a lot of.

All that to say the right spectrum LED can definitely make big buds...

What PPF/w you get @ source is not very useful, we need PPFD measurings from different distances on all areas of the grow surface.
A 1000w HPS might be +2000 PPFD just under the light at 15'' but in the corner of a 5x5 area you get 200-400 PPFD.
So you get more light than can be used just under the bulb and not enough at the corners
A mid-power diode might be 2,4 PPF/w or whatever, but if you use too few diodes the coverage might be even but the density will be too low.

Almost all blurples on the market have white/yellow/green etc. diodes, and ''white light'' LED is mixed spectrum (see chart below)
Spectrum is important, but the perfect spectrum means nothing without density and coverage

QB's are decent, but don't put out a lot of red/infrared. Additionally, the light is not directed, so it goes horizontally and requires a grow tent to reflect down to the plants, losing about 20% efficiency at that point. Cobs are good as well.

Mid-power diodes put out a lot of red and almost no Far Red/IR, and they're the light source with the biggest potential for even coverage and the light is very focused so nothing is required for them to work.

QB288_388_spectrum_85ab6da3-96b2-4c3f-afc7-3fb6601c32ea_1024x1024

• PurpleGunRack
• Jan 9, 2018

If mid-power diodes aren't the best LED setup, then what is? I would sure like to hear about it

Why do you want IR in your main light?

 

[Blew Hiller]

stick to QB boards or strips or Cobs like Cree, Bridgelux, Citizen ect
the verdict has been in for some time and there are a wealth of testimonials as to how well these perform

I had same questions, knew little about lights and became even more confused the more I read here...I ended up asking @SweetSue and she said "Timber". I ended up getting the 200W Cree Fixture from @TimberGrowLights and they have been working like a champ since I got them (last Nov). They sell kits as well as fixtures, based in California, and are a 420 sponsor.

I prefer to do summer grows, so I don't need a lot of capacity...but I wanted a winter grow (in a 2x4' space) to keep me sane and I am also using the lights to get a jump on Spring. Not all LEDs are equal...you definitely get what you pay for. Whoever said you don't get fat buds with LEDs has junk LEDs or can't grow. My autos had FAT buds...first time indoor grow for me below.

IMG_9452.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 21, 2018
• nlxbig bud auto harvest week 10.5

NLxBig Bud Auto Harvest week 10.5

IMG_9448.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 21, 2018
• nlxbig bud auto harvest week 10.5

NLxBig Bud Auto Harvest week 10.5

IMG_9462.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 21, 2018
• nlxbig bud auto harvest week 10.5

NLxBig Bud Auto Harvest week 10.5

Timber 200W.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Mar 25, 2018
• 2
• timber grow lights

Timber Grow Lights

 

[Tattoodlineman]

Hey bud did you use those timber Crees through veg as well as flower?

 

[Blew Hiller]

Hey bud did you use those timber Crees through veg as well as flower?

Yes, 20/4 for autos straight through.

 

[Old Salt]

Man you are not kidding there my friend.
Each light I purchased was researched far and wide, read reviews, studied their charts and footprints, researched the companies, looked at grows of particular lights on you tube, exc.... I have a folder stacked full of tests I’ve done and lights I’ve returned, it’s pretty sad. Not saying some of the products couldn’t get the job done, but when they lie and misrepresent what you believe you are paying for, that’s enough for me to return it, and call them the fuck out.
The misrepresentation is horrible in this market.
I’m just glad I finally found a really good product with accurate readings. I got what I actually paid for for. It took a while tho, and a lot of headaches buying and returning products.

That misrepresentation is why I chose to build my own. I've ordered 8 Citizen CLU048-1216C4 for a 2 X 4 space. My setup will provide up to roughly 62W / sq ft. I don't think I'll need it, but it will be available. The purpose of the light is to test and prove it.

 

[Old Salt]

why not just do the research first?
then you only buy once
also keep in mind a good full spectrum PAR meter is 500 bucks or more
plus, if you stick to QB boards, strips and COBS like Cree, Bridgelux, Citizen ect
there is no dispute what their values such as wattage draw, PPFD ect are
Cheap is a relative term

You can get just the sensor for about $160 on Amazon. It outputs a voltage that's directly proportional to the PAR value.

 

[Blew Hiller]

You can get just the sensor for about $160 on Amazon. It outputs a voltage that's directly proportional to the PAR value.

Hydrofarm on sale today @ $127

 

[Blew Hiller]

I am convinced LED's are way better grow lights. But one has to change the way they grow.

Very true...depends on your particular circumstances.

One went to HPS they other went to grow outdoors.

Can't beat the sun!

I have a couple of guys who swear LED's will not produce fat dense buds.... I am planning/hoping to prove them wrong with my next grow with which I'm planning on growing larger plants compared to my previous microgrows.

Nothing says "told you so" like a dish of fat, dense buds!

IMG_9487.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 27, 2018

NLxBB harvest Feb 2018

 

[Mayne]

Hydrofarm on sale today @ $127

Yeah, but i hear they are 90% fault.. Alot say they are garbage. If you can risk to toss $126 out the window, awesome, lol..

I heard they just convert numbers of the lux, like the manual conversion. I use 2x 3500Kcri90 and 2x4000Kcri80, and just use the factor of 65 for my lux conversion.

If your cri is based around 80 cri, use a division conversion of 60, and if its based around 90cri, use 70.

so, if your running COBs at 80 cri, your 50,000 lux will be around 830 and if your using 90 CRI, your 50,000 will be around 715.

70,000 lux, 1080PAR
60,000 lux, 920PAR
50,000 lux, 780PAR
40,000 lux, 615 PAR
30,000 lux, 460PAR
20,000 lux, 305PAR
10,000 lux, 155PAR

 

[Tattoodlineman]

Yes, 20/4 for autos straight through.

Thanks for the info
My friend has a killer grow happening now with their 600W Redwood VS.
Absolut incredible footprint, my meter tested his set up @ 917 PPFD @18” with 311W. Unreal penetration through canopy.
He is (was) die hard HPS 15yr grower, he’s now phasing his rooms out with Timber LED lights. Coming from a stubborn ol’prick who cursed LED’s for years, this says something about the Timber product.

 

[greensunshine]

Why do you want IR in your main light?

IR #1) Is the color that passes most through the plant #2) IR activates more photosystems in the plant a-la the Emerson Effect. HPS is very good at growing plants for this reason.

 

[TTKlaus]

Thing with LED like Heliospectra is a lot of them are around 1.5 umol/J which is actually less efficient than DE HPS, and a tiny bit more efficient than Single Ended HPS.

Another is that LED leaves out lots of colors important for plant growth like green, yellow, infrared etc which are important for good yields, which HPS has a lot of.

All that to say the right spectrum LED can definitely make big buds...

There are now several LED grow lights which include the spectrum in the middle (green and yellow). One unknown company has been including green for 3 years now. Phenomenal seedling and clone light!

 

[TTKlaus]

What PPF/w you get @ source is not very useful, we need PPFD measurings from different distances on all areas of the grow surface.
A 1000w HPS might be +2000 PPFD just under the light at 15'' but in the corner of a 5x5 area you get 200-400 PPFD.
So you get more light than can be used just under the bulb and not enough at the corners
A mid-power diode might be 2,4 PPF/w or whatever, but if you use too few diodes the coverage might be even but the density will be too low.

Almost all blurples on the market have white/yellow/green etc. diodes, and ''white light'' LED is mixed spectrum (see chart below)
Spectrum is important, but the perfect spectrum means nothing without density and coverage




Mid-power diodes put out a lot of red and almost no Far Red/IR, and they're the light source with the biggest potential for even coverage and the light is very focused so nothing is required for them to work.

QB288_388_spectrum_85ab6da3-96b2-4c3f-afc7-3fb6601c32ea_1024x1024

• PurpleGunRack
• Jan 9, 2018

If mid-power diodes aren't the best LED setup, then what is? I would sure like to hear about it

Why do you want IR in your main light?

This is my lights spectrograph. I like it a lot! Next time around, I think I will go a bit closer to 700nm on the red spectrum though.

Spectrograph.jpg

• TTKlaus
• Mar 26, 2018
• broad spectrum

TTKLaus Spectrograph

 

[TTKlaus]

Very true...depends on your particular circumstances.



Can't beat the sun!



Nothing says "told you so" like a dish of fat, dense buds!

IMG_9487.jpg

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 27, 2018

NLxBB harvest Feb 2018

Love it!