Hey,
nothing will truly compare to diy when talking bang for your buck. Im sure you know this already, just stating it again lol
The cheapest qbs that seem to be growing real well are the Chinese knockoffs(Fotops800). Theres a huge thread about them with many growers using the fotops and others. I cant speak to the Mars sp1000 or 2000, ive seen a few guys using them but havent followed along enough to know how they did.
With boards i would never buy pre built, theres barely any wiring to deal with and you really just need to make a frame, imo you should just buy boards from whoever( Chinese knockoffs,
@Prawn Connery(Highlites) or HLG, buy a driver from digikey or arrow and get yourself some U channel or angled aluminum or something for a frame.. You will have a light that will be as good as anything you can buy and for much cheaper than buying it pre built.
If you wanted to use strips and werent overly handy with electrical, id def reccommend buying, the wiring alone can be overwhelming depending on the size of lights you build.
Best of luck, sorry i couldnt offer more on the mars