Mars II upgrade with COB's

[Archiweedies]

I copy and pasted this post that I made on a different forum. I hope it helps someone.

Hey guys, gonna be as short and sweet as possible here. I purchased my first autocob from @BigSm0 and wanted to convert my Mars LED immediately. He hooked it up with three 1812's after having me photograph the drivers lurking inside.

What follows is my upgrade and the method I used.

The parts! I didn't use half the tools I thought I'd need.

Sexy!

First and foremost, unplug the light!
Important!

First and foremost, unplug the light!
Go ahead and unscrew the light and in unclip the leads running to the drivers.

Cut these leads and leave them long. You'll be slicing back into these in a few.

I don't need any excuses to lose stuff!
Clean all this stuff off but leave it on the original heatsink. Unless you have a tub of this Pate laying around.

Take your time and use alcohol to get the white paste off!
Try to color in the lines when you transfer the mounting holes!

Drill your holes and cut your aluminum. I used tin snips.

Reattach the heat sinks and drill and tap the M3 screws straight through the COB and into the heatsink.

Clean the lens, check your wiring and make sure it works before closing it up.

Take it to tent and enjoy your snack!

Finally, here's a little before and after for comparisons sake.

This upgrade was cheaper than my nutes for a grow and it was completed in less than two hours. I want to thank cob shop.net and BigSm0 for the know how and for designing such a sleek product.
For now, I plan to finish this all Mephisto grow and then see if I need any more light. Thanks for looking and if there are any questions don't hesitate!

 

[AnimaSola]

You forgot to wash your hands.
Haha, nice diy.

 

[Archiweedies]

You forgot to wash your hands.
Haha, nice diy.

Haha thanks man!

 

[TorturedSoul]

Got cats, huh? Fill a spray bottle (or Super Soaker squirt cannon if you're a prick ) with a 20:80 mix of white vinegar : water (or - again, if you're a prick - 100% white vinegar) and spray them when you catch them tearing hell out of your furniture. It's harmless, but it pisses 'em off like you throwed 'em in a lake or something, lol. Couple of "lessons" and you can then spray whatever you want them to leave alone with a very, very dilute vinegar solution. You won't be able to smell it, but the furballs can. They'll go use Aunt Nancy's leg for a scratching post before they go back to something that (to them) smells like vinegar after suitable training. And, hey, Aunt Nancy should have gone for the composite model instead of the wooden leg, so no worries.

Very important for when it gets dicey!

'Cause everyone knows that electronics always work better when they're full of cookie crumbs, lol?

Clean the lens, check your wiring and make sure it works before closing it up.

Instead of cleaning that glass, take a hammer to it. BANG, you've just gotten 9% more available light to your plants - and free stress relief, too! Maybe even more than 9% if the glass was also made in China.

Thanks for the pictorial DiY! I'd heard about turning those things into something decent by adding COBs, but I didn't know how it was done.

 

[imtoasted]

Sweet archi thanks for posting this here.. doesnt look to hard. Just need a drill and some tin cutters.. i love the before and after pics. Blurples are so ugly compaired to the white light of those cobs. Great build man!!

 

[Archiweedies]

Got cats, huh? Fill a spray bottle (or Super Soaker squirt cannon if you're a prick ) with a 20:80 mix of white vinegar : water (or - again, if you're a prick - 100% white vinegar) and spray them when you catch them tearing hell out of your furniture. It's harmless, but it pisses 'em off like you throwed 'em in a lake or something, lol. Couple of "lessons" and you can then spray whatever you want them to leave alone with a very, very dilute vinegar solution. You won't be able to smell it, but the furballs can. They'll go use Aunt Nancy's leg for a scratching post before they go back to something that (to them) smells like vinegar after suitable training. And, hey, Aunt Nancy should have gone for the composite model instead of the wooden leg, so no worries.



'Cause everyone knows that electronics always work better when they're full of cookie crumbs, lol?



Instead of cleaning that glass, take a hammer to it. BANG, you've just gotten 9% more available light to your plants - and free stress relief, too! Maybe even more than 9% if the glass was also made in China.

Thanks for the pictorial DiY! I'd heard about turning those things into something decent by adding COBs, but I didn't know how it was done.

Haha too funny man! You should be a detective homie! I need to apply some thermal paste to the heatsinks. I didn't have enough at the time. So I might get rid of that glass after all!

 

[Archiweedies]

Sweet archi thanks for posting this here.. doesnt look to hard. Just need a drill and some tin cutters.. i love the before and after pics. Blurples are so ugly compaired to the white light of those cobs. Great build man!!

Yea and hey man, if you decide you want to upgrade but aren't ready to diy, PM me maybe we can work something out.

 

[Booseyboo]

Hey Archi, can you help me convert my viparspectra? I only have a 60cm x 60cm area to cover
This is what i have.....

 

[bignugz420]

I copy and pasted this post that I made on a different forum. I hope it helps someone.

Hey guys, gonna be as short and sweet as possible here. I purchased my first autocob from @BigSm0 and wanted to convert my Mars LED immediately. He hooked it up with three 1812's after having me photograph the drivers lurking inside.

What follows is my upgrade and the method I used.

The parts! I didn't use half the tools I thought I'd need.

Sexy!

First and foremost, unplug the light!
Important!

First and foremost, unplug the light!
Go ahead and unscrew the light and in unclip the leads running to the drivers.

Cut these leads and leave them long. You'll be slicing back into these in a few.

I don't need any excuses to lose stuff!
Clean all this stuff off but leave it on the original heatsink. Unless you have a tub of this Pate laying around.

Take your time and use alcohol to get the white paste off!
Try to color in the lines when you transfer the mounting holes!

Drill your holes and cut your aluminum. I used tin snips.

Reattach the heat sinks and drill and tap the M3 screws straight through the COB and into the heatsink.

Clean the lens, check your wiring and make sure it works before closing it up.

Take it to tent and enjoy your snack!

Finally, here's a little before and after for comparisons sake.

This upgrade was cheaper than my nutes for a grow and it was completed in less than two hours. I want to thank cob shop.net and BigSm0 for the know how and for designing such a sleek product.
For now, I plan to finish this all Mephisto grow and then see if I need any more light. Thanks for looking and if there are any questions don't hesitate!

Dude that is dope as hell I have a reflector 192 and I have a couple dead diodes I might change to a COB unit

 

[pino0911]

Hey wondering if anyone could help me. I have a mars hydro 600 watt. Jus the regular one and i see a lot of 300 watt changed to cobs but cant find no info on doing a 600 watt. I really want to do this cause i dont care for the light and dont use it so would love to change to cobs so i can get some use out of it.

Hiw many cobs should i hook to each driver? Does anyone have or know where to find instructions on how i can do this to my 600 watt mars hydro light. Thanks and hooe to hear back soon!!

 

[SwAggNiFiCeNt]

So this is what it has come to when you own mars hydro lights huh. Hear soooo many ppl with burnt out diodes. Glad I don't own one. Very very nice diy Archie.

 

[LedGuy74]

So this is what it has come to when you own mars hydro lights huh. Hear soooo many ppl with burnt out diodes. Glad I don't own one. Very very nice diy Archie. .

Eh if I had the money for the cob they recently put out id buy it thats a neat looking little light for a decent price considering the parts its a very well assembled light from the looks of it and initial reviews... the mars 300's and 600's are beasts as well they may be older technology but they are built well and tend to last which is an upside for 50cent a watt lol... Ive seen tons of success with plenty of their lights... it does tend to be the mars II that has the problem... which is they are finally discontinuing it and coming out with a replacement series or model I believe... I also believe they ran it at a slightly lower wattage after the initial complaints of diodes burning out though... All I know is most of the time a customer does have a problem it's usually just a driver lol or some other very simple fix that you could do at home via mars hydros instructions/consultation which if the light is relatively new theyll promptly send out replacement parts as well. Then you do have people that feel as if they shouldnt have to touch the light and that's fine and entirely their right which is why mars is 100% fine with customers sending theirs lights in but shipping may or may not be worth it depending on the brand...

All in all I think they are worth it mainly because I do like their customer service even though some dont... it seems very fair to me and its very easy to contact them as they pay to be sponsors on many platforms so they are always a private message away instead of relying ONLY on email which can be a pain sometimes. Thats all my opinion though and we are all entitled to one lol... I am also giving quantum boards a try here in a week or two when it makes it in as ive been hearing great things.. purchased a QB120 (10-60W) as well as a meanwell 60W 24V driver and all in all ill have a badass 60W QB light for 60$ lol and they are supposed to be some efficient little bastards...

 

[SwAggNiFiCeNt]

Eh if I had the money for the cob they recently put out id buy it thats a neat looking little light for a decent price considering the parts its a very well assembled light from the looks of it and initial reviews... the mars 300's and 600's are beasts as well they may be older technology but they are built well and tend to last which is an upside for 50cent a watt lol... Ive seen tons of success with plenty of their lights... it does tend to be the mars II that has the problem... which is they are finally discontinuing it and coming out with a replacement series or model I believe... I also believe they ran it at a slightly lower wattage after the initial complaints of diodes burning out though... All I know is most of the time a customer does have a problem it's usually just a driver lol or some other very simple fix that you could do at home via mars hydros instructions/consultation which if the light is relatively new theyll promptly send out replacement parts as well. Then you do have people that feel as if they shouldnt have to touch the light and that's fine and entirely their right which is why mars is 100% fine with customers sending theirs lights in but shipping may or may not be worth it depending on the brand...

All in all I think they are worth it mainly because I do like their customer service even though some dont... it seems very fair to me and its very easy to contact them as they pay to be sponsors on many platforms so they are always a private message away instead of relying ONLY on email which can be a pain sometimes. Thats all my opinion though and we are all entitled to one lol... I am also giving quantum boards a try here in a week or two when it makes it in as ive been hearing great things.. purchased a QB120 (10-60W) as well as a meanwell 60W 24V driver and all in all ill have a badass 60W QB light for 60$ lol and they are supposed to be some efficient little bastards...

Great points and I appreciate you sharing your thoughts and experiences. I always try to look ahead so when I started i knew hps hid were 100% NOT an option so I went led. Then I hear problems with mars so I stayed clear. Last thing a grower wants is weeks into flower and the light shits the bed. Easy fix or not, there shouldn't be so many ppl with the exact same problem over and over again. But on the other ad you also mentioned there's Tons of fully satisfied customers, and return customers at that, who love thier product line. Hell if I had a product that treated me well I'd be willing to go back for more too. And now there's cob and quantum lights. So perhaps I will soon be looking into that direction. But I'd like to get a couple grows under my belt with the baby setup I have and let it all pay for itself while I learn then explore other setups. Bigger tent, better lights, etc etc.

 

[illizm775]

Ah twice so far ive been in flower and my mars shit on me. So onward and forward. Something new is on the horizon.

 

[SwAggNiFiCeNt]

Ah twice so far ive been in flower and my mars shit on me. So onward and forward. Something new is on the horizon.

Wow. That's sucks dude. Sorry to hear that. Hope the girls didn't suffer from that. That's really unfortunate. I hope thier new line solves some of these common issues they seem to be having. Never owned one but like I said I just browse the forum and read and that's kind of the impression I got was they have alot of issues which I'm not interested in having. My hydro store owner doesn't seem to like them very much either lol. We talked about light a few weeks ago for like an hour or something. His "top" picks however I think we're at least partly based on him wanting to sell the more expensive stuff. I think. Kind and California light works were the ones he kept mentioning. But if you compare them just based on the wattage on the box, no other specs just the watts they advertise, the price difference is crazy and I fully understand why ppl would gravitate to mars rather then the calis or the kind. Price of the mars was something like 4 or 500 bucks and the other 2 were over a grand

 

[LedGuy74]

Wow. That's sucks dude. Sorry to hear that. Hope the girls didn't suffer from that. That's really unfortunate. I hope thier new line solves some of these common issues they seem to be having. Never owned one but like I said I just browse the forum and read and that's kind of the impression I got was they have alot of issues which I'm not interested in having. My hydro store owner doesn't seem to like them very much either lol. We talked about light a few weeks ago for like an hour or something. His "top" picks however I think we're at least partly based on him wanting to sell the more expensive stuff. I think. Kind and California light works were the ones he kept mentioning. But if you compare them just based on the wattage on the box, no other specs just the watts they advertise, the price difference is crazy and I fully understand why ppl would gravitate to mars rather then the calis or the kind. Price of the mars was something like 4 or 500 bucks and the other 2 were over a grand

Yeah some LED's charge insane prices for no reason other than greed... again I like the mars hydro 300's Ive grown some dank buds off of them and two have been doing great in my 4x2 cant wait to add the 60W of QB when it gets in lol then I can judge the hype myself... Ill be tossing it up as my center lighting and the mars 300's will be on the sides which will work best because even though its only 60W the fixture is something like 12"x11" or something of the sorts from what a member on GC was telling me so thats a nice spread... COBS are badass too and I would of/will eventually go that route but the QB120 doesnt require a heatsink (only model that doesnt require a heatsink) so that was a very big sell point lol but whenever/if ever one of my mars hydro 300's goes I'll definitely switch it to a cob light conversion lol.. ive also seen the very small cob light setups where they are mounted on those round heatsinks and individually mounted per light and they look badass and efficient...

I am glad mars is getting rid of the series II finally lol... I personally think they should of awhile back but then again I do see people grow great buds with some of the larger series II lights with no complaints so it just depends but I agree with you it does happen more than it should but they are making things right and listening to customers... the cob lights they made recently they used quality parts that any DIY'er would of purchased to make the same exact build at a very fair price and they even built a very neat looking shell lol. So I definitely cant wait to see what the plan to put out to replace the series II as im hoping they stick with how they built their cob and stick with QUALITY... it may require a slightly higher cost but customers will pay... and the ones on budgets will continue to buy their proven 300 and 600 budget models off of ebay or amazon lol...

Also idk about on 420mag but on grasscity a lot of the people that complain about mars tends to be the same ones over and over.... as there are quiet a few on grasscity that will continue to cry on every mars related thread even though theyll of already gotten a complete refund and most likely allowed to keep the light lol...

 

[TorturedSoul]

QB120

I'd like to see someone do a journal using only that (in finished, usable form, of course) as the lighting. Multiple units, if needed to properly illuminate the space - but no other lighting products involved anywhere within that space.

I am glad mars is getting rid of the series II finally lol... I personally think they should of awhile back

It's understandable that they didn't. After all, they were able to build the things cheaply enough that their profits were high enough to cover the cost of repairing/replacing/shipping the ones that partially or fully crapped out and still leave enough left over for... profit. It's like laptop computers (or any other product). It doesn't matter what the failure rate is, as long as you're making enough off of each one to be able to consider the cost of dealing with any failures... just another business expense. In some ways, lol, this can even improve your company's standing/reputation. After all, it gives you all those chances to display your customer service and willingness to honor warranties. I've read many reports of how happy the company was to repair a customer's light (sometimes, multiple times ) while it was under warranty.

And lots of people were lining up to buy them. Where's the downside with such a product?

The way I feel about this particular sponsor is... Much the same that I feel about many companies. That is to say, I have found things that I like and things that I don't like. I'm neither a "fanboy" or a "hater," IMHO. They are a for-profit company, selling products. Some of which I wouldn't mind trying, and some that I'd pass on. Again, just like many companies.

Aside from that, I am appreciative (as I am with all of our sponsors) that they have chosen to enter into a relationship with the owner of this forum so that it remains in existence and continues to be free for all of us to use.

a lot of the people that complain about mars tends to be the same ones over and over.... as there are quiet a few on grasscity that will continue to cry on every mars related thread even though theyll of already gotten a complete refund and most likely allowed to keep the light lol...

Some people like to b!tch and moan. I have to admit that I do a fair amount of that. But I try not to harp on the same thing over and over. For one, it sort of dilutes the message. And there are so many things to gripe about in this world, why confine myself to just one?

Also, while I am only a member of THIS cannabis-related forum, I do occasionally perform web searches in order to increase my knowledge. So I've read posts/threads from most such forums. Some of them seem to not only condone... negativity, but to actually tacitly encourage the behavior. I suppose this is one way to increase your forum's activity.

Here at 420 Magazine, POSITIVITY is encouraged. That doesn't mean we cannot present facts, or even to a very great degree, our opinions about a thing. But flaming - other members, sponsors, et cetera - is not considered to be acceptable behavior here. And if a member posts the same complaint over and over, or spams multiple threads with the same post almost (or, in some cases, exactly) verbatim... It tends to cross the line. I've seen complaints about a sponsor get dealt with. And I've gotten the feeling that much of that process goes on behind the scenes. I don't think it's "all about the money," lol. I have always had the impression that such concerns have been merely having enough coming in to cover the not inconsiderable expenses involved in running a high-traffic website/forum like this. No, the motivation is - and always has been, AfaIK - to spread cannabis-awareness.

The way I've always looked it is... Well, I generally speak my mind, lol - but at the same time, I try to remember that I'm "in someone else's house" (so to speak) and attempt to behave as if I really was visiting them in their own home.

I'm just rambling (as per usual :rolleyes3 ).

 

[LedGuy74]

I'd like to see someone do a journal using only that (in finished, usable form, of course) as the lighting. Multiple units, if needed to properly illuminate the space - but no other lighting products involved anywhere within that space.



It's understandable that they didn't. After all, they were able to build the things cheaply enough that their profits were high enough to cover the cost of repairing/replacing/shipping the ones that partially or fully crapped out and still leave enough left over for... profit. It's like laptop computers (or any other product). It doesn't matter what the failure rate is, as long as you're making enough off of each one to be able to consider the cost of dealing with any failures... just another business expense. In some ways, lol, this can even improve your company's standing/reputation. After all, it gives you all those chances to display your customer service and willingness to honor warranties. I've read many reports of how happy the company was to repair a customer's light (sometimes, multiple times ) while it was under warranty.

And lots of people were lining up to buy them. Where's the downside with such a product?

The way I feel about this particular sponsor is... Much the same that I feel about many companies. That is to say, I have found things that I like and things that I don't like. I'm neither a "fanboy" or a "hater," IMHO. They are a for-profit company, selling products. Some of which I wouldn't mind trying, and some that I'd pass on. Again, just like many companies.

Aside from that, I am appreciative (as I am with all of our sponsors) that they have chosen to enter into a relationship with the owner of this forum so that it remains in existence and continues to be free for all of us to use.



Some people like to b!tch and moan. I have to admit that I do a fair amount of that. But I try not to harp on the same thing over and over. For one, it sort of dilutes the message. And there are so many things to gripe about in this world, why confine myself to just one?

Also, while I am only a member of THIS cannabis-related forum, I do occasionally perform web searches in order to increase my knowledge. So I've read posts/threads from most such forums. Some of them seem to not only condone... negativity, but to actually tacitly encourage the behavior. I suppose this is one way to increase your forum's activity.

Here at 420 Magazine, POSITIVITY is encouraged. That doesn't mean we cannot present facts, or even to a very great degree, our opinions about a thing. But flaming - other members, sponsors, et cetera - is not considered to be acceptable behavior here. And if a member posts the same complaint over and over, or spams multiple threads with the same post almost (or, in some cases, exactly) verbatim... It tends to cross the line. I've seen complaints about a sponsor get dealt with. And I've gotten the feeling that much of that process goes on behind the scenes. I don't think it's "all about the money," lol. I have always had the impression that such concerns have been merely having enough coming in to cover the not inconsiderable expenses involved in running a high-traffic website/forum like this. No, the motivation is - and always has been, AfaIK - to spread cannabis-awareness.

The way I've always looked it is... Well, I generally speak my mind, lol - but at the same time, I try to remember that I'm "in someone else's house" (so to speak) and attempt to behave as if I really was visiting them in their own home.

I'm just rambling (as per usual :rolleyes3 ).

Yeah unfortunately I dont see much talk of it here as yall have tons of other light sponsors lol.. but on GC and RIU id say it is more popular and seeing how the latest restock of the qb120's came in 3k and 4k instead of the normal 4k only veg supplement it was labeled as... so now people are buying 4+ at a time to make 240W+ fixtures with a very nice spread that requires no heatsink lol and when running 4 fixtures together you can bump the price down to around 50-55$ a working board.. I am excited to start seeing some journals of them myself lol and Ive seen a few people already order the 3k versions to do just that on GC so hopefully by the end of the year there will be completely journals on the web with multiple units ran together like you mentioned. As for me im on a budget but I do grow the same strain my special queen clone so im used to the development in her and the end results so im hoping to see a noticeable positive effect obviously a larger yield but denser buds as well... only time will tell.. next grow after (whenever that is as ill have to take a small break) I would like to add more QB120's and switch my mars 300's to veg and supplement whenever I dont need them for veg to bump up yield.

 

[TorturedSoul]

Feel free to invite someone who's doing a grow with those things to come here and share via a journal. Not an "abandon ship" invite, lol, because that's not cool. But it'd be nice to expand our knowledge.

 

[LedGuy74]

Feel free to invite someone who's doing a grow with those things to come here and share via a journal. Not an "abandon ship" invite, lol, because that's not cool. But it'd be nice to expand our knowledge.

Yeah definitely... A lot of the GC members also have 420mag accounts... Ill see if anyone thats planning on documenting the qb120's would be interested in also documenting on 420mag. This time HLG must of ordered a decent amount as they've had stock for a week+ now lol they are usually sold out in a day or two.. Ill have to see how impressed I am with my first one then Ill definitely pick up a second if its like expected... Ideally id like 6 in total but as I said im taking a small break after this grow so im not trying to invest to much just to have them laying around for who knows how long.