So I may get flamed for this but I would genuinely appreciate some help. I was looking to upgrade my lighting to the HLG 550 V2 Rspec but when it came down to buying it the price just seemed really high. I stumbled upon this thread and was wondering if anyone can recomend a a reputable chinese supplier that allready has the same type in stock or has the component pieces available to build my own. I see some people recomend meiju lighting and others are not too happy with them. My overall goal is quality and drastic reduction in energy costs. Right now im using a 1000W hps in a 4x4x8 tent.
The Chinese Quantum Board Knock Off Builds
- Thread starter zypheruk
- Start date
Rocket Soul
Well-Known Member
ThisKingbrite, R2T or Meijui is your best bet.
If possible just order the boards and heatsinks from China and purchase your drivers locally.
2 x 240 watts are more versatile than 1 x hlg550. Better spread of light.
Or the FOTOP boards
The china R-spec: i doubt it will match hlgs efficiency but you can allways get over that buy using more boards. If you can source alu sheet easily you can make your own heat sink which makes your purchase only really some boards. It pays of spreading the boards a bit more. Board prices are usually around 25-30 for the qb clones. So its its q easy to just size up to 6 or 8 spread out instead of 4 really cramped in the centre. Best to buy the driver from somewhere you can get warranty. Warranty on the chinese goods are exceptions rather than rule.
Edit: and yet another way of getting "r-spec" would be adding red diodes separately. Cutter.com.au would be a good place, they stock the new cree xpg 660nm
Last edited:
Terps420
Well-Known Member
My suggestion wood b ditching the 550 idea and get 4 sets of qb132's with 4 lrs-350-36 drivers. If your trying to get quality at cheapest cost... The boards wood b 400-500 bucks. Drivers cost wood b 150-175 bucks. For 16 boards and 4 drivers wood b 600-700 bucks.. Each driver wood run each board at max of 75 watts each. 1 driver to control 4 boards in parrellel. This way ud get twice the watts of qb550 for bout same price. I had 8 qb132's on a diy alum angle frame that was 5x5 square. Also i had a mars hydro ts-1000 light that was very surprising on good of light it was for 110 bucks. Basically a Chinese quantum board that was 150watts. Crisp light to eye. 342 diodes of epistar with 18 660nm reds added. The big thing with any pcb quantums is air flow across backs of lights. My room is a 6x8 and i had around 900 watts of led and was happy with the final product. If u or anybody else wants info on doing a diy build using qb132's i got all my info saved just hit me on here. Doing the diy route is easy and will save u alot of money. But in your 4x4x8 tent u could put 8 qb132's on each side of tent. 8 qb132's at max of 600watts for each 4x4 will do quite well.. With air movement u can put boards close to top of canopy in flower for good penetration without burning or bleaching.. Just my opinion to try and help u out with gettn the most bang for buck. Good luck
Attachments
WeedSexWeightsShakes
Well-Known Member
Next run going
Yesyes3000
Well-Known Member
You should purchase from cutter led
Yesyes3000
Well-Known Member
I think that buying the quantum boards 132v2 or v1 or buy a bunch of quantum board 120v2 is the best way to spend your money. The boards on alibaba are just not the same. And to find one the same as HLG is difficult. I’ve seen pictures of the leds on the popular company’s selling quantum boards on alibaba next to HLG boards and some of them literally looked different but claimed the same chip.
Yesyes3000
Well-Known Member
If your trying to save money a 4 pack of the 120 or 132 plus LRS-350 driver is the way to go I believe
Yesyes3000
Well-Known Member
If you had to fill your room with quantum board 132v2 how far apart would you keep them ? Say a 5 ft by 8 ft space
Rocket Soul
Well-Known Member
The qb 132/120 is a really good alternative to china boards like the FoTop which also works without heatsink. The 132s got an advantage in being more easy to distribute the light to your space while the Fotops and china versions give you more diodes for your dollar. In US the qb132 with free shipping and no customs the qb132 is a superior option.
A 5x8 space: 1200 w of power. Id spread that over rows of 4 boards, for 5' dimension and about 5-6 of these 4 board row fixtures to cover the 8' dimension. That would mean running the boards between 50-60w each.
Id use 2 x hlg600s to power this: use one hlg 600 (slightly dimmed) to power the 2 middle boards of each row, the other (not dimmed for more even cover of the edges) to power the 2 side boards. Good luck, ymmv
With all these low chip density boards: try to get as much of your cannopy directly under board. Light levels fall of very quickly on the sides.
A 5x8 space: 1200 w of power. Id spread that over rows of 4 boards, for 5' dimension and about 5-6 of these 4 board row fixtures to cover the 8' dimension. That would mean running the boards between 50-60w each.
Id use 2 x hlg600s to power this: use one hlg 600 (slightly dimmed) to power the 2 middle boards of each row, the other (not dimmed for more even cover of the edges) to power the 2 side boards. Good luck, ymmv
Terps420
Well-Known Member
I had boards bout a foot apart on my fixtures. Let me go search my pics and il post my set up so u can get a idea on spacing. Also home depot or lowes has all the materials needed to build your own framing for boards. But let me get back to on pics. But without doubt the qb132's and lrs-350-36 driver is cheapest way to get most out of your money. You wil pay twice the amount of money for a reg meanwell a or b driver compared to lrs-350-36 drivers. Lrs drivers are cheaper, dispurse heat better, and allow u to run qb132's at max 75 watts, and meanwell makes them to so its not a cheap junk product. I had my boards full blast the whole cycle without any issues. The hlg meanwell a&b drivers get really hot. Lrs-350-36 drivers barely get warm at full blast. But il search my pics for u. I no that theres no other set up u can get today with top notch diodes and 300 true watts for 175 bucks for lights and drivers. For 5x8 id at least get 3 sets of qb132's and 3 lrs-350-36 drivers. But 4 sets wood b the best imo. But 3 will stil get u very good final product in that space.. Wil get back to with my pics
Terps420
Well-Known Member
This is good suggestion except a hlg600 driver cost bout 150 bucks a pop. Id buy 4 lrs-350-36 drivers and 4 sets of qb132's. Get more control with 4 lrs drivers compared to 2 hlg600 drivers. U can get 4 lrs drivers for the price of 1 hlg 600 driver. Plus hlga&b drivers get hot. Lrs doesnt with built in fan. But ive bought and ran these set ups and cheapest way for 1200 watts is 4 sets of qb132's and 4 lrs-350-36 drivers period.. Less heat and cost and capable of everything the hlg600 drivers can do just controlling 4 boards.
Cannademik
Active Member
Do the kingbrite qb132's need a heatsink? I'm looking into your setup.. I kinda like it, only thing is dealing with 4 boards.. lol, kinda just want 1 huge ass light in a big tent.
Terps420
Well-Known Member
U can do one huge ass light using qb132's.. Im not sure bout kingbrites quantums so id havta check em out b4 hand to let u no.. But hlg's qb132's& qb120's dont require heatsinks so kust a breeze on back of lights will b sufficient even if running lights at max. You can save a bunch money if ud just purchase ur lights as diy. Just buy quantums from hlg and drivers from another usa company called TRC electronics.. Very good prices and customers are treated as gold. Ive dealt with trc a couple times and had issue my first order. They quickly fixed the problem plus refunded my money. So it was easy to choose them for my other orders... I was lucky enough to get a chance at testing these new lights that arnt out on the market yet for the first company to come up with idea of quantum board style led grow lights. And whats funny is everybody assumes HLG are first ones to come out with quantum board lights... Well there wrong.. And b4 i tell u the company's name that was first to start quantums, tell me who copied off of who idea...? My quantums i get to test here soon is from a another usa company called HGL or HYDRO GROW LIGHT.. So HGL WAS FIRST and HLG wasnt the founders. Look how they just switched the L & G in name..HGL& HLG.. LOL its just funny to no how close the name is of each. But just to put it out there who was the og of the quantum technology for indoor growing. I dont care if hlg copied their idea or not , just wanted to share facts bout quantums. I beleave hgl startd in 2010. Hlg started in 2016. Both companies have pcb that bout same sizes with same amount of diodes( total# per board).. Where they differ is in spectrums used in diodes. Hgl's is a 75% red-15% green-& 10% blue blend of light targeting 6 major peak points in usuable light that plants can absorb.. So ya i cant wait to see what light produces the best final results.. Hell after i test 1 round i get tp keep lights for testing them for HGL.. Cannot wait to get em.. The lights il b gettn for free as long as i do journal is called the Penetrator XB140 from HGL. Will post more on them when i no more details.. Just thought id share sum info. Thx
Terps420
Well-Known Member
Just by what i seen online any generic quantums u buy from Alibaba or china is a gamble.. U never no if u actually wil get what u pay for and shipping kinda scared me also.. For a small amount more u can buy worry free and get a better product usually over all quality of light and parts used to build light. But for me i dont care bout buying cheaply as possible cause i love my bargins too and am not a rich person but i try to give my money to other usa companys all tho all quantums are usually chinesse anyways but u will b better off to buy from a American company if your in the usa.. Just my opinion tho and its your coin just voicing my opinion. The ones i no of in usa are HGL, HLG, Atruem, theres others i cant remember & also cobkits.com sells good stuff too. But the way i look at it is being lights are a key factor to a indoor grow, if buy quality lights and skimp by as cheap as possible on everything else it makes more sense. Grower skills, lights, media used to grow, and nutrients , & environment are top things to b successful. Just my 2 cents.
Rocket Soul
Well-Known Member
Oh god, HGL, even here...
Please read up on cameron mackenzie/led girl/ Hydro Grow led...
https://www.thcfarmer.com/threads/fraud-cammie-mckenzie-fraud.26178/
I cant confirm the details in the link but its clear she aint right. Even after 10 years she is not able to face up to and adress these acusations, she simple states its all made up by KKK and Bigotts. Also credibly accused for calling the cops on her clients. I would not feel safe with my adress in her possesion. I dont want to flame this thread, there is currently 2 threads going about her lights here in the led section where you can read and post about these lights.
Im fairly sure they aint super bad, the spectrum looks really nice. But chance after chance she passed up on providing ANY detail, spec or info a profesional lighting company would use to measure their light. Theres side by sides from 10 years ago that look unimpressive to me. Theres small bud timelapses. But nowhere do i see some solid proof. And after only a couple of months of her latest run on icmag shes allready
in conflicts with her new x-fanboys. Stay away.
If you like what she put together spectrum wise: you can build that yourself, cheaper and more efficient using white led base and some red. Ymmv
Please read up on cameron mackenzie/led girl/ Hydro Grow led...
https://www.thcfarmer.com/threads/fraud-cammie-mckenzie-fraud.26178/
I cant confirm the details in the link but its clear she aint right. Even after 10 years she is not able to face up to and adress these acusations, she simple states its all made up by KKK and Bigotts. Also credibly accused for calling the cops on her clients. I would not feel safe with my adress in her possesion. I dont want to flame this thread, there is currently 2 threads going about her lights here in the led section where you can read and post about these lights.
Im fairly sure they aint super bad, the spectrum looks really nice. But chance after chance she passed up on providing ANY detail, spec or info a profesional lighting company would use to measure their light. Theres side by sides from 10 years ago that look unimpressive to me. Theres small bud timelapses. But nowhere do i see some solid proof. And after only a couple of months of her latest run on icmag shes allready
in conflicts with her new x-fanboys. Stay away.
If you like what she put together spectrum wise: you can build that yourself, cheaper and more efficient using white led base and some red. Ymmv
Go go n chill
Well-Known Member
Is “Hydro Grow lights” on RIU? It is a woman ? Correct?U can do one huge ass light using qb132's.. Im not sure bout kingbrites quantums so id havta check em out b4 hand to let u no.. But hlg's qb132's& qb120's dont require heatsinks so kust a breeze on back of lights will b sufficient even if running lights at max. You can save a bunch money if ud just purchase ur lights as diy. Just buy quantums from hlg and drivers from another usa company called TRC electronics.. Very good prices and customers are treated as gold. Ive dealt with trc a couple times and had issue my first order. They quickly fixed the problem plus refunded my money. So it was easy to choose them for my other orders... I was lucky enough to get a chance at testing these new lights that arnt out on the market yet for the first company to come up with idea of quantum board style led grow lights. And whats funny is everybody assumes HLG are first ones to come out with quantum board lights... Well there wrong.. And b4 i tell u the company's name that was first to start quantums, tell me who copied off of who idea...? My quantums i get to test here soon is from a another usa company called HGL or HYDRO GROW LIGHT.. So HGL WAS FIRST and HLG wasnt the founders. Look how they just switched the L & G in name..HGL& HLG.. LOL its just funny to no how close the name is of each. But just to put it out there who was the og of the quantum technology for indoor growing. I dont care if hlg copied their idea or not , just wanted to share facts bout quantums. I beleave hgl startd in 2010. Hlg started in 2016. Both companies have pcb that bout same sizes with same amount of diodes( total# per board).. Where they differ is in spectrums used in diodes. Hgl's is a 75% red-15% green-& 10% blue blend of light targeting 6 major peak points in usuable light that plants can absorb.. So ya i cant wait to see what light produces the best final results.. Hell after i test 1 round i get tp keep lights for testing them for HGL.. Cannot wait to get em.. The lights il b gettn for free as long as i do journal is called the Penetrator XB140 from HGL. Will post more on them when i no more details.. Just thought id share sum info. Thx
Go go n chill
Well-Known Member
Ya she called me a dumbass on another thread, twisted shit around and kept ranting. No I would not buy her shit for NOTHING! I wouldn’t even use it if it was free. Plenty of good options out there, No need to give her my fucking money
sourdieselyumyum
Well-Known Member
I ordered 4 of these for my veg room. Is it safe to run the driver on top of the heatsink like you would with the traditional hlg 550? I have a hlg 600h and it works just fine but I think the heatsinks on these are a thinner and different design. Anyone running these mounted on top safely?
PSUAGRO.
Well-Known Member
It's not a good look rocket, never has been...... I have thought about the new influx of hgl threads, it saddens me tbh. This sub-forum has always been about pushing efficiency/innovation from the start. All the riu led founders believed this was the future of indoor growing(a dozen started their own companies )! not by some red painted zinc alloy shell with substandard diodes/modules and light bleeding into the fixture.
I understand that "she" offers $$/% for successful runs/sales, but they will never see a penny as the vet icmag members will tell you from the past. The honest HID guys knew right away(in flower) the lights wouldn't match it and were threatened with the unimaginable for just a full refund on a supposed 120day trial!! NOT for keeping her cheap rebranded lights w a 35% bs restocking fee. They didn't fucking want them obviously. I would love to hear from illegal growers (I'm one ) who like to lay on their beds at night wondering if they would get flash banged in their underwear over a fucking led light reimbursement? shame on hgl IMO. Growers pimping her shit now? I'll leave that to the community to judge ; )
The new board knockoff, just like they did with kessil, advanced, etc., looks like it was made at the Hasbro toy factory....when a grow light "company" can't even afford US warehouse space and R&D consists of a lone laptop (in sunny FLA) emailing China factories to slap it together @ the cheapest price. Conveniently ignoring umol/j, ppf/w because it significantly adds to the BOM, nothing more......blaaahhhh, garbage epi fixtures.
Rant over.....