sixstring2112
Well-Known Member
You should make sure you have a dimming option with that setup because it will be bright as fuck wide open
DIY with Quantum Boards
- Thread starter robincnn
- Start date
Crazaer
Active Member
This is roughly the same size I am planning for, except I will be running 3x QB288 and a bar of 10x warm white xml-2 in a 2x4x7.
For drivers I am considering a 320 series, so if I want/need to exceed 250w I can. They are only 30ish more dollars.
GardenGuy
Well-Known Member
Yeah i saw some other posts about really bright QBs that made the plants unhappy. that sounds dope to my wallet!You should make sure you have a dimming option with that setup because it will be bright as fuck wide open
Do you believe i would be better to run them softer? i mean, could 250w @5.5sFt is too much light? I was about to go for 8 cxb3590s @1050 on two rows of 4 each with dimming.
Nice setup bro! i'll go back a few pages to get info about your setup. and to the NGL page for the smaller boards..
Crazaer what's the reason for the xml2s?
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BobCajun
Well-Known Member
You were kind of right. CC is recommended for COBs but you could use CV if you wanted, just that it's considerably trickier. Stikky was just busting your balls, that's all. He does that quite a bit.
1KTrees
Member
It depends on what you want. Do you want to run them hard or soft? If you want to run them hard you can use the -54B version. If you run soft I would run a constant current model or if you want to run in series.
Running the -54B model in parallel will get you to max output for either model 240 or 320. The 320-2800 and 240-2100 in series will get you close to max.
Crazaer
Active Member
I have them already, it gives better light spread in the 2x4, and it means I can run the QB288s softer and more efficiently.
pop22
Well-Known Member
Crazaer
Active Member
I agree that a 240 series (especially with a 250w output) are probably all I need. However, I would rather have room to grow (such as adding another QB to gain efficiency and light spread) than be limited. I will be getting an A series driver, with built-in dimmer, and plan to dim things from the beginning to ~80-90w per board.
Stephenj37826
Well-Known Member
You can use both types. Constant current preferable to prevent thermal runaway. That being said if using constant voltage in meanwell use type "a" and you can adjust voltage basically preventing thermal runaway with the voltage setting...... I utilize both with no worries .
GardenGuy
Well-Known Member
ok @Stephenj37826 i got it. i'm waiting for the new batch..
so, considering that 200+w are overkill for my tent then there are two options:
fix #1
3 288 qb in series with at least 162v @1050ma for 170w
fix #2
3 288 qb in parallel with at least 54v @1050ma for 170w
so, considering that 200+w are overkill for my tent then there are two options:
fix #1
3 288 qb in series with at least 162v @1050ma for 170w
fix #2
3 288 qb in parallel with at least 54v @1050ma for 170w
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Stephenj37826
Well-Known Member
I would go for 3 in series on HLG 185H-C1050
GardenGuy
Well-Known Member
in fix #2 maybe i meant 2800ma. but it was late for me...
is this the max for my tent? i did math with 54v bin boards and got 170w.
the HLG-185H goes 199.5w max and i was thinking for a future update with +1 board for even better spread and i won't be able due to the voltage.. should i consider that or is it an overkill that could harm the plants?
thanks @Stephenj37826
organic-mobo
Stephenj37826
Well-Known Member
in fix #2 maybe i meant 2800ma. but it was late for me...
is this the max for my tent? i did math with 54v bin boards and got 170w.
the HLG-185H goes 199.5w max and i was thinking for a future update with +1 board for even better spread and i won't be able due to the voltage.. should i consider that or is it an overkill that could harm the plants?
thanks @Stephenj37826
organic-mobo
If you want full driver utilization and are thinking parallel anyways I would go with HLG 185H-54..... It will give you around 225 watts at the wall and you can always dim it..... If need be you can add boards later and increase wattage. NapalmD is running 240 watts in a 2X2.5 on 4 boards of S5 and I think he loves it...... It is a lot of light though....... Check out his grow journal.
GardenGuy
Well-Known Member
found it. cool journal.
I sorta got what you suggest. Look, my biggest concerns are the temps ,efficiency and stealthness. i wanna run them soft cause my airflow won't be massive. outflow will be through 6" tube with 1 140mm silent pc fan at the in-the-tent end of the tube and 1 more at the wall, each supporting the other (maybe 24/7). Stealthness because... And effiency cause i want the maximum from my tent but i'm not wealthy enough to spend bucks to the bill without really needing them.
I also saw some other guys with unhappy plants (maybe cause of the sun-like light of the qbs) and that made me skeptical, again, about how many watts would be enough, but not an overkill for my fix. that's why i'm busting you.
i hope i'm understandable, not a native speaker.
Thank you Stephen!
Roger A. Shrubber
Well-Known Member
I'd like a little advice from some people who know what they're talking about. i got together with my friend whose an electrical engineer, and we built this pair of boards. its not the conventional layout, but it seems to be working pretty well. i was wondering if there's some glaring obvious problem with this compared to conventional drivers that we're not seeing for some reason? would there be some kind of huge improvement if i changed to a Meanwell driver instead of the layout we're using?
this is the power supply
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CLBZRO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
using two of these, one to control each board
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MSJQAKY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and we used this diode on the boards, because they had a very high lumen per watt rating
http://www.digikey.com/products/en?keywords=1510-1310-1-ND
heres a couple of pictures of the setup
i turned this light up too high and cooked it, we're replacing it with larger diodes, full heatsinks with fans.
the one thats still running i added halfass angle aluminum heatsinks, and i'm keeping it set to 2 amps, 2.5 cooked this one.
we're 3d printing some plastic frames with hinges so the outside panels can be adjusted if wanted, used the wood just to get them into service.
they seem to be working well for veg, not sure these smaller diodes would do it for flower, the new panel we're making right now is using this much more powerful diode,
https://www.digikey.com/products/en?keywords=1510-1467-1-ND
and like i said, we're adding full heatsinks and fans, so we can crank it up a lot higher.
so if someone knowledgeable would like to critique this, tell me any obvious problems i'm missing, tell me the huge benefits from doing it differently? all constructive criticism is welcome, haters will be exposed to a mirror.
this is the power supply
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005CLBZRO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o09_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
using two of these, one to control each board
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MSJQAKY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
and we used this diode on the boards, because they had a very high lumen per watt rating
http://www.digikey.com/products/en?keywords=1510-1310-1-ND
heres a couple of pictures of the setup
i turned this light up too high and cooked it, we're replacing it with larger diodes, full heatsinks with fans.the one thats still running i added halfass angle aluminum heatsinks, and i'm keeping it set to 2 amps, 2.5 cooked this one.
we're 3d printing some plastic frames with hinges so the outside panels can be adjusted if wanted, used the wood just to get them into service.
they seem to be working well for veg, not sure these smaller diodes would do it for flower, the new panel we're making right now is using this much more powerful diode,
https://www.digikey.com/products/en?keywords=1510-1467-1-ND
and like i said, we're adding full heatsinks and fans, so we can crank it up a lot higher.
so if someone knowledgeable would like to critique this, tell me any obvious problems i'm missing, tell me the huge benefits from doing it differently? all constructive criticism is welcome, haters will be exposed to a mirror.
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pop22
Well-Known Member
The reason you don't see many driving their lights this way is efficiency. You have losses in the DC power supply, then more losses in the buck converters. Meanwell drivers are 90-95% efficient. That alone makes them worth the price. And if you check right here on the forum, the reliability of the Meanwell drivers is outstanding! If you want the most lightl in the most effcient manner, Meanwell drivers are the way to go. There are other good brands, but I've personally not seen any that match for efficiency. I'm on a tight budget so investing in these lights is not easy, even at this price point. But I didn't even blink about buying Meanwell.