IF you are new to LED and want help choosing what to buy, POST HERE!
- Thread starter SnotBoogie
- Start date
- Status
slaking
New Member
Hi, I am a new grower. I am planning to grow ~4 plants in my closet space (2' x 3.5' x 4.5') and was wondering if this 2 piece set of 135W UFOs would do a good job from veg to flowering? This seems to be legit and at bulk price it seems quite inexpensive.
gypsywoman13
Member
Gypsywoman13 here baring my heart ...newbie to growing in general, but plan to change that up as soon as i get myself an LED light, but would like some advice on autoflowering plants and LED lights...just growing a handful of plants in pots, with some Fox Farm soil and nutes..any advice on lights would be helpful.. appreciate any and all remarks that could make a difference in my new venture.
Tjingles
Well-Known Member
Okay so I don't own a LED yet BUT I plan on purchasing some(2) probably from area51 to replace my 600w phantom ballast and light in my 4 by 4 tent. In you're humble and experienced opinions should I go with the sgs160 or the xgs190(all white). I saw a post about the sgs being better but have also seen people say simply a51 improves with each new model. I know there are some real pros on this thread and would really appreciate some advice as this is goin to be a big investment for me and I don't want to end up kicking myself later on....thanks in advance!!!
Dutchy018
Member
Sup guys, I binged to about page 90 then skipped to the end lol.. total newb when it comes to LED in general. From what I gather, there are a few reputable brands to consider. Main reason I'm considering LED is the heat factor compared to HID, I don't have an exterior that I can vent to.. are there any kits out there comparable to a 400w HID that won't cost me an arm and a leg? Seeing the panels range from $300-500 for something decent, I was wondering what I could get for around $200 with a 2 plant setup in a 4x2x4 tent. The information on LED spectrums and power consumption alone is enough to keep me busy for weeks.. Any suggestions would be great, looking for something that will produce at least 2oz a plant and that I can use for seed/veg/flower while keeping it under $200, is that asking too much?
Mellodrama
Well-Known Member
If there was a quality panel that met your specs everyone would be buying it. I don't think there are any hidden gems waiting to be discovered. Everyone's charging what they think they can get for their product.
IMO aside from getting some sort of killer deal from someone who was selling all their used stuff, about the only way to get quality and take a significant bite out of cost is DIY. Most of us don't have the tools, ability, or knowledge to do that. I've been following DIY threads for weeks and just beginning to feel like I could pull it off.
Dutchy018
Member
Any comparable thoughts on Blackstar panels, actual wattage/intensity VS HID?
puffenuff
Well-Known Member
That's a large size area for a small size light. I'd recommend something in 150-200w range of actual power range to get similar results to a 250 hid. There's plenty to choose from in this range but will set you back anywhere between $300-600 for a good quality proven led.
See above.
I tend to stay away from cheap leds that don't have a proven track record. For you, I'd recommend 1 or 2 of the bonsaihero/hans panel considering the 4.5' height you are working with. You'll need to do some training to keep the girls in check no matter what you go with but I think these would be great in your situation.
I would seek the wisdom of the dawg here. I know he has several journals here with autos. as far as advice on lights, it depends on what's your grow area size and budget for lights.
it's true that area51 is always improving with each new year. that's a great thing for growers. I have an sgs which rocks so I'm pretty confident the xgs would is an awesome light too. I'm personally under the camp that prefers a little something extra besides all white in my lights so I haven't gone on to an all white led unit yet. I think you'd be golden to go with 2-4 of either or both in a 4x4.
I don't know of anything for around $200 that would get you anywhere close to covering your space short of buying a bunch of cree or philips screw in led bulbs from home depot or lowes and making it work out of that. I know there's a few threads on here where guys do it just like you've probably seen done with cfl's.
don't know much about how the new blackstar panels are running. blackstars were fairly commonly seen being used a few years back but have sort of lost track as other options starting looking more attractive. But for a cheap entry into led growing, and if you don't mind it being a potential throw away from malfunction or unhappiness with leds in general, then it wouldn't be a bad pickup.
That's a little hasty I think. I don't consider myself an expert but knowledgable enough to give solid advice. Hopefully some of this has helped at least one person out in some way.
wyteberrywidow
Global
This thread is helping a lot of people out on which panels to choose. I know it helped me make my decision on my first led purchase.
Dutchy018
Member
Thanks for the words of wisdom, do you have a few examples within the $300 price range that you would recommend?
Tjingles
Well-Known Member
Hey all.
Soooo I know there's a lot of people that have tried a lot of LEDS and this question goes to you. I'm rlly interested in a51's led but have also herd a lot and seen quite a few grows from growblu. Anyone familiar with them. I was looking at the 120×3w. They are supposto have a spectrum that is optimised specifically for all our favorite plant. The spectrum seems to be thier biggest selling point. Also thier wattage is sliggtly higher them a51's 190 all white model. But growblu doesn't provide any umole data which to my understanding is what you should look at (based off of a51's site). Theu seek to have roughly about the same coverage area even though a51s pulls about 60w less per unit and is $75 more per unit. Price is secondary to me but if I'm not taking a loss in qualty by going with the growblu then I'd really like to do that. There's just so many factors to think about with led and I have minimal experiance. Can someone help me to destinguish the differences and pros and cons between these two led providers. Ill, even name one of my plant after you lol. Thanks everyone and you all rock. Riu rocks peroiod!
Soooo I know there's a lot of people that have tried a lot of LEDS and this question goes to you. I'm rlly interested in a51's led but have also herd a lot and seen quite a few grows from growblu. Anyone familiar with them. I was looking at the 120×3w. They are supposto have a spectrum that is optimised specifically for all our favorite plant. The spectrum seems to be thier biggest selling point. Also thier wattage is sliggtly higher them a51's 190 all white model. But growblu doesn't provide any umole data which to my understanding is what you should look at (based off of a51's site). Theu seek to have roughly about the same coverage area even though a51s pulls about 60w less per unit and is $75 more per unit. Price is secondary to me but if I'm not taking a loss in qualty by going with the growblu then I'd really like to do that. There's just so many factors to think about with led and I have minimal experiance. Can someone help me to destinguish the differences and pros and cons between these two led providers. Ill, even name one of my plant after you lol. Thanks everyone and you all rock. Riu rocks peroiod!
Hgrow
Active Member
http://growblu.com/shop-led-grow-lights/apollo-led-grow-lights Check the Kind LED Grow light , Growblu LED lights , rebrand Chinese terrible Quality LED lights .
Scotch089
Well-Known Member
I want to make a few things very clear and set this straight...
THAT ^^^ is not a KIND LED panel, so your experiences with THAT brand (cidly, rebrand..) can be taken as much as that...
1.) Look at the placement of the cooling fans compared to the KINDs= different casing
2.) Look at the Sets of LEDs per cluster/module, only the LARGER (12 spot) GrowBlue's have the 15 LED clusters...the more realistic/higher sell rated panels are using the (cidly) other style= different setup of LEDs=differnet drivers....
3.) you have posted and posted (even went out of your way and PM'd..) to try and throw down KIND LEDs, if they are shit they are shit... but you trying to destroy even the IDEA of them, shows me you are just disgruntled...
4.) Your grammar is not quite...up to par, what kind of investment do YOU have in this? You had pushed CLW, Apache... but as soon as everything went quiet, you offered to sell products to ppl openly? hm..
I am not saying KIND could not have chinese components in them, they probably do, their fail rates may be just as high as any other company, or maybe their longevity trumps the others.
Who knows? Not THAT guy...
...THATS what Im saying.. get in contact with the company or any companies you are interested in, and ask them some very important questions, seriously...
-What kind of LEDs (if they say a single company, and offer a full custom spectrum... they're probably lying, like bridglux...)
-What kind of drivers to match up to the LEDs and make sure shit is going to run right, and last.
-WARRANTY, speaks for itself........
-return policy, let them know you are not fucking around if they are trying to fuck around with you...
All of this shit has been reiterated everywhere, all the answers in this thread all draw back to Efficient/Cost effective/Quality.... and there are a select few brands that hold true to that, again, those have all been spammed over and over again,
This thread was a great idea to consolidate.............
THAT ^^^ is not a KIND LED panel, so your experiences with THAT brand (cidly, rebrand..) can be taken as much as that...
1.) Look at the placement of the cooling fans compared to the KINDs= different casing
2.) Look at the Sets of LEDs per cluster/module, only the LARGER (12 spot) GrowBlue's have the 15 LED clusters...the more realistic/higher sell rated panels are using the (cidly) other style= different setup of LEDs=differnet drivers....
3.) you have posted and posted (even went out of your way and PM'd..) to try and throw down KIND LEDs, if they are shit they are shit... but you trying to destroy even the IDEA of them, shows me you are just disgruntled...
4.) Your grammar is not quite...up to par, what kind of investment do YOU have in this? You had pushed CLW, Apache... but as soon as everything went quiet, you offered to sell products to ppl openly? hm..
I am not saying KIND could not have chinese components in them, they probably do, their fail rates may be just as high as any other company, or maybe their longevity trumps the others.
Who knows? Not THAT guy...
...THATS what Im saying.. get in contact with the company or any companies you are interested in, and ask them some very important questions, seriously...
-What kind of LEDs (if they say a single company, and offer a full custom spectrum... they're probably lying, like bridglux...)
-What kind of drivers to match up to the LEDs and make sure shit is going to run right, and last.
-WARRANTY, speaks for itself........
-return policy, let them know you are not fucking around if they are trying to fuck around with you...
All of this shit has been reiterated everywhere, all the answers in this thread all draw back to Efficient/Cost effective/Quality.... and there are a select few brands that hold true to that, again, those have all been spammed over and over again,
This thread was a great idea to consolidate.............
ellydee
Well-Known Member
The Growblu lamp is a Cidly/Apollo product. (http://www.cidly.com/Apollo.html) As per Growblu's website, the umoles are 900-1ft, 450-2ft, 250-3ft.
They work great, but for how long? (hint...not very) I own a 180x3, it lost a cluster during it's second round of flowering. Growblu did send me a replacement cluster straight away though.
You can't go wrong with an Area51. All Cree diodes. I run 4 SGS-160s and easily get 1 gram per watt.
I'm also getting excellent results from AdvancedLed DS series lamps.(http://www.advancedledlights.com/)Not the latest tech or the most efficient, but just beautiful flowers. They are my personal favorites.
They work great, but for how long? (hint...not very) I own a 180x3, it lost a cluster during it's second round of flowering. Growblu did send me a replacement cluster straight away though.
You can't go wrong with an Area51. All Cree diodes. I run 4 SGS-160s and easily get 1 gram per watt.
I'm also getting excellent results from AdvancedLed DS series lamps.(http://www.advancedledlights.com/)Not the latest tech or the most efficient, but just beautiful flowers. They are my personal favorites.
Scotch089
Well-Known Member
Never supported grow blues or cidly or any cheap panel... I MYSELF have had these experiences, I was speaking to you trying to claim what you are showing is a KIND LED.
- Status