new GN LED lights?
REALY hyped by AFN forums and wondered if the mods are just salesmen for them or if they are any good
Many non-mods at AFN own the lights. IMO, the original MS modular series falls into the category of cheap Chinese light (Cidly Apollo) imported and marked up, paying for the brand. But, Grow Northern publishes their spectrum/ratio (even exact part numbers for their Rebel upgrade module). That's not indicative of most of the big names who resell cheap Chinese lights for a premium, using "secret sauce" hype to justify the markup.
GN's new lights aren't available yet. I've read it will use the Rebel spectrum/ratio. Looks like they're changing from Apollo's modular design to a different Chinese source (Evergreen?).
GN has had 3 spectrum/ratios I'm aware of. They've consistently increased the amount of their white light. Rebel has 20% (in terms of ratio of chips. I think the whites are brighter, giving the overall appearance of white even though 60% is deep red 660nm, 13% blue 450nm.
I wanted to sample the Rebel spectrum before investing in an actual GN. (Now they're in a transition period where no lights are available. So, not much choice.). I ordered an Apollo 4 from "Thunder Lighting" on AliExpress for $150 free shipping. I specified this ratio:
Code:
7% 1x IR 730
60% 9x deep red 660
13% 2x blue 450
White avg 5116k
7% 1x white 3350k (3200-3500k)
13% 2x white 6000k (5500-6500k)
That's basically the Rebel spectrum with 900k whiter light. I could have had the exact avg white color if I did 2 warms and 1 cool. But, Cidly's warm led looks funky to me. I'm not yet ready to try 2:1. 1:2 is working well.
It's not a perfect comparison. GN Rebel uses Phillips and Everlight chips. Can't know for sure how Cidly's white chips compare to Phillips.
I'd say Grow Northern's strong point is that they're transparent about the spectrum/ratio they're asking you to invest in. I think that's a trait worth supporting. It has been a reseller of a cheap light at a premium (assuming the original MS series was a typical Apollo with Epi chips.). But, if the new light uses Phillips and Everlight (like the Rebel module does), that puts them in a different category (in the same way their transparency about spectrum does).