Is A Mars II 400 Worth a Crap?

[Zulunature]

Greetings when your light went out ,mars wouldn't honor their warranty

That's my experience, they even banned me from purchasing more through ebay because I insisted they are breaking the law in Australia in regards to defective products...
So when you buy them u need to factor that in... One of our 700w Mars hydro's lasted three months and now at two years we have lost three of seven...

You can not trust them regarding warranty it's that simple.

 

[ray2013]

That's my experience, they even banned me from purchasing more through ebay because I insisted they are breaking the law in Australia in regards to defective products...
So when you buy them u need to factor that in... One of our 700w Mars hydro's lasted three months and now at two years we have lost three of seven...

You can not trust them regarding warranty it's that simple.

I have an email from someone that's in their services department. In it she explains their warranty. If at anytime they don't stick to it, can I sue them???

 

[medicalMonster]

To answer the question. I would shit in a bucket and exchange it for a mars 400 yes.

LED tech is exploding. Just lighting in general. I'm waiting a year then re doing my fixtures.

 

[PSUAGRO.]

Had a change of heart recently in regards to leds. Going to try a newer one out to see how well it performs. I've ordered a Mars II 400 from Mars Hydro. I'm not sure what to expect with this type of light because yes, its one of those "blurple" "disco lights".
I see almost everybody bashing Mars lights, are they really that bad? I mean, they come with a 2 year warranty...? I know they are far from top of the line and probably more upper level low-end lights but I have seen some better reviews on the Mars II leds. I imagine the Epistar™ 5watt single Chips are Chinese but are they worth a damn? What can I expect from my new purchase? Waste of money or good entry level led?

probably using epileds(highly doubt 100% epistar) or whatever generic encapsulated leds that the PRC are pumping out by the thousands this month....... it's NOT worth a damn. You can expect premature failure due to over-driving crappy chips and inadequate cooling. YES, it's a waste of money for a long term lighting investment..........good news is you can gut it and add 4 cxb 3070 down the line...

good luck grower

 

[hillbill]

When considering waiting a period of time to upgrade to cobs, the loss of increased production and increased quality during that waiting period should also be included to get a fuller picture. The increased efficiency of the cobs can either give more bud for the same power or the same amount of bud using less power. You decide.

 

[Humanrob]

My first LED was a Mars light, used it for one full run and then kept it in storage as a "back up" light, in case something came up and I was in a bind and needed another light. I'm on my 5th run (two or more spaces each cycle), and I've had reason to take it off the shelf twice so far. I was glad to have it.

So, I would humbly suggest that you don't pull a realstyles and smash it -- as soon as you've done the research and are ready -- get a better light and put this one on the shelf for a rainy day.

 

[superbak3d]

Just finished a mars300 grow in a 2x2. 1 plant.

Wet weight = 400 grams
Dry weight = Pending





I'm still upgrading to cxb, but the mars held it's own and did much better than what many claim in this forum. And no, the unit hasn't had a single failure yet.

I think it's a decent low cost, entry level light, that does ok in small spaces. Would I fill up a bigger tent with them? No.

 

[hillbill]

It is it is what it is. Good grow! Great plans!

 

[superbak3d]

It is it is what it is. Good grow! Great plans!

In this tent 2x2 I've tested the 150w AIO HPS, a single 250w CFL, and a mars300.

I think the mars and the cfl are pretty much equals, and are in the same price range.

The 150w hps are fucking garbage.

Next round is going to be a tastyLED, and I'll have a journal for it soon.

 

[hillbill]

Tasty looks good. Have no need, damn it!

 

[Future Skills]

Just finished a mars300 grow in a 2x2. 1 plant.

Wet weight = 400 grams
Dry weight = Pending



View attachment 3599503 View attachment 3599504 View attachment 3599505 View attachment 3599506

I'm still upgrading to cxb, but the mars held it's own and did much better than what many claim in this forum. And no, the unit hasn't had a single failure yet.

I think it's a decent low cost, entry level light, that does ok in small spaces. Would I fill up a bigger tent with them? No.

That thing is a fucking Beast! I wish I knew I could do that with a 2x2 when I was in college. I might have even had friends....

 

[frica]

Just finished a mars300 grow in a 2x2. 1 plant.

Wet weight = 400 grams
Dry weight = Pending


I'm still upgrading to cxb, but the mars held it's own and did much better than what many claim in this forum. And no, the unit hasn't had a single failure yet.
I think it's a decent low cost, entry level light, that does ok in small spaces. Would I fill up a bigger tent with them? No.

100x3 Mars I guess.
Probably 100 gram dry, if the average weight loss is 75% for everyone.
100x3 Mars is +-175-180 watt

That's an ok harvest but doesn't really compare to Veros/CXBs

And it's mostly the higher powered Mars 2 panels that seem to be very failure prone, probably also dependable on climate.

Edit:Also they're noisy as hell

 

[Future Skills]

I think when shopping for commercial lights you can safely eliminate any LED that lists wattage significantly higher than what it draws at the wall. That's the first and biggest indication of how reputable a company is without digging too deep. They either deliberately misrepresent what they're selling or they are targeting a market that is not educated enough to know the difference between HID and LED "wattage" considerations. Whatever their reasons for labeling incorrectly, I would take it as a very bad sign overall.

 

[Humanrob]

100x3 Mars I guess.
Probably 100 gram dry, if the average weight loss is 75% for everyone.
100x3 Mars is +-175-180 watt

That's an ok harvest but doesn't really compare to Veros/CXBs

That sounds about right, I would bet the final g/w comes in around .6 -- kind of respectable for what it is.

 

[superbak3d]

100x3 Mars I guess.
Probably 100 gram dry, if the average weight loss is 75% for everyone.
100x3 Mars is +-175-180 watt

That's an ok harvest but doesn't really compare to Veros/CXBs

And it's mostly the higher powered Mars 2 panels that seem to be very failure prone, probably also dependable on climate.

Edit:Also they're noisy as hell

No it's 60x5w

130-140w draw.

And yea, final weight I expect to be around 120-140 grams. I'll hit my 4 ounce target.

 

[superbak3d]

I think when shopping for commercial lights you can safely eliminate any LED that lists wattage significantly higher than what it draws at the wall. That's the first and biggest indication of how reputable a company is without digging too deep. They either deliberately misrepresent what they're selling or they are targeting a market that is not educated enough to know the difference between HID and LED "wattage" considerations. Whatever their reasons for labeling incorrectly, I would take it as a very bad sign overall.

How LEDs are marketed is an issue. People aren't aware the diodes don't run at full capacity, otherwise they'd burn out in an instant.

So they see a 400w led panel and compare it to a 400w HPS, when the reality is they're not even close to being the same. So if you wanted to replace a 400w HID, you'd really need like a 800-900w panel. Needless to say the price difference between a 400w hps and a 900w+ panel is a huge difference.

I would never touch one of the big panels. Cost to coverage isn't worth it.

 

[hillbill]

Top Cree and even vero LEDs, cobs will do what 600 watts hps does with about 400 watts at the most. Game Change!

 

[Future Skills]

How LEDs are marketed is an issue. People aren't aware the diodes don't run at full capacity, otherwise they'd burn out in an instant.

So they see a 400w led panel and compare it to a 400w HPS, when the reality is they're not even close to being the same. So if you wanted to replace a 400w HID, you'd really need like a 800-900w panel. Needless to say the price difference between a 400w hps and a 900w+ panel is a huge difference.

I would never touch one of the big panels. Cost to coverage isn't worth it.

I agree the marketing is an issue. I'm not certain I understood the other part of your post to be honest. My experience is that a decent commercial LED running at an Actual wattage of 400 would decisively outperform 400 hid.

*edited Cob to commercial*

 

[superbak3d]

I agree the marketing is an issue. I'm not certain I understood the other part of your post to be honest. My experience is that a decent commercial LED running at an Actual wattage of 400 would decisively outperform 400 hid.

*edited Cob to commercial*

I was referring more to the 5w diodes that are used in just about every panel available. Yes watt for watt the cobs destroy the epistar diodes. I was just stating, that in order to match watt for watt you would need a BIG, expensive panel, and those are simply not worth it.

To match a 400w hps, you'd need a mars 900 for example, not a mars 400 like many people would assume.

 

[Future Skills]

I was referring more to the 5w diodes that are used in just about every panel available. Yes watt for watt the cobs destroy the epistar diodes. I was just stating, that in order to match watt for watt you would need a BIG, expensive panel, and those are simply not worth it.

To match a 400w hps, you'd need a mars 900 for example, not a mars 400 like many people would assume.

I understand now, and Completely agree.

It would be much simpler if light companies marketed in PPFD instead of Watts