LED Help - Please don't hate me ;-)

[littlejacob]

I think to understand this forum, it's necessary to know some basics of electricity...

https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/voltage-current-resistance-and-ohms-law

There's value here for those of us who aren't that familiar.

Bonjour
So finally did you choose to go with 5 cxb3590 @1400 or 1050mA?
If you want a bigger area later just double it and do the same panel again
CU

 

[giantsfan24]

Bonjour
So finally did you choose to go with 5 cxb3590 @1400 or 1050mA?
If you want a bigger area later just double it and do the same panel again
CU

I did settle on the 5 cob, 3590 but I've got till November before I need to build it. I've seen the hlg 320 is coming out in April so it could still change. Till then I'm studying everything I can find and waiting on legalization here in California. Thanks for checking in bud!

 

[giantsfan24]

You know, I see a lot of the info relating to the amps each driver is driving each cob but I don't know how it relates to the wattage of the driver.

For instance, what's the difference between 6 cob's being driven by 2, 185-1400 vs. the 240-1400? This is a point of confusion for me. Both are driving at the same amperage but the 185 will drive 4 and the 240 will drive 5, 3070's. I know there is a correlation but I just can't find what that is.

Looking at the spreadsheet and the pct...it's just not clear the difference the wattage makes in this equation.

 

[BOBBY_G]

its fundamental

watts - volts x amps

not sure i understand your question

hlg240h-c1400 cannot drive 6 3590s, youd need 2 with 3 on each

3 3590s on a hlg185h-c1400 drives the cobs a the exact same amperage, wattage, and luminosity of a hlg240h-c1400

might be a shade more efficient on the 185s vs the 240s as in general they are slightly more efficient, and also youre loading he driver closer to max where its more efficient

 

[giantsfan24]

its fundamental

watts - volts x amps

not sure i understand your question

hlg240h-c1400 cannot drive 6 3590s, youd need 2 with 3 on each

3 3590s on a hlg185h-c1400 drives the cobs a the exact same amperage, wattage, and luminosity of a hlg240h-c1400

might be a shade more efficient on the 185s vs the 240s as in general they are slightly more efficient, and also youre loading he driver closer to max where its more efficient

So are you saying that the wattage really isn't the main concern?

 

[VegasWinner]

I used2

How about 5 3070's vs 5 3590's on a 240-1400? It's slightly less efficient but what would the par watts and ppf difference be there?

Would 5 cob's in a line affect my spread? What about a wider heatsink with the cob's staggered one left edge, one right edge for example?

I used 2 18" hs separated by a12" hs making a18" square holding 8 cobs well spaced.
Peace

 

[Rahz]

Both are driving at the same amperage but the 185 will drive 4 and the 240 will drive 5, 3070's. I know there is a correlation but I just can't find what that is.

The 240 has higher voltage (179) compared to the 185 (143). In a series circuit the voltage is split between the cobs. The 240 has enough voltage for 5 CXBs at 1.4 amps, while the 185 only has enough voltage for 4.

 

[ThaiBaby1]

The 240 has higher voltage (179) compared to the 185 (143). In a series circuit the voltage is split between the cobs. The 240 has enough voltage for 5 CXBs at 1.4 amps, while the 185 only has enough voltage for 4.

Hi Rahz,
How would an 8 cob panel running at 350 milli amp compare to a 4 cob panel running at 700 mil? Just curious, I know the cost would outweigh the benefits if any

 

[Rahz]

Hi Rahz,
How would an 8 cob panel running at 350 milli amp compare to a 4 cob panel running at 700 mil? Just curious, I know the cost would outweigh the benefits if any

CXB 3590, would be a 70% efficient lamp compared to a 64% efficient lamp. There have been a few 700ma lamps built, no 350 that I know of.

 

[giantsfan24]

The 240 has higher voltage (179) compared to the 185 (143). In a series circuit the voltage is split between the cobs. The 240 has enough voltage for 5 CXBs at 1.4 amps, while the 185 only has enough voltage for 4.

Ok so the wattage is more about capacity than anything else? The higher the wattage the more voltage, the more cob's will fit. The egg carton analogy.

 

[ThaiBaby1]

CXB 3590, would be a 70% efficient lamp compared to a 64% efficient lamp. There have been a few 700ma lamps built, no 350 that I know of.

There was a guy on saying he ran his at 350 In the summer,700 in winter my real question is how many par watts would they generate and would it be enough

 

[BOBBY_G]

CXB 3590, would be a 70% efficient lamp compared to a 64% efficient lamp. There have been a few 700ma lamps built, no 350 that I know of.

thats because once you get below 700 mA your money is better spent on more lights

it costs twice as much in cobs to get from 64 to 70% efficiency. Wouldnt you really have double the garden size at 64%?

the 'break even' point of array cost vs efficiency is different for everyone, i personally think 60% is the saweetspot

when i make a spreadsheet and look at overall system cost for a 5x9 tent i see:
18 cobs - 44.1% eff., $1800, $2.26/ PAR W
24 cobs - 49.6% eff., $2216, $2.48/ PAR W
48 cobs - 60.25% eff., $3900, $3.59/ PAR W
70 cobs - 63.7% eff., $4673, $4.07/ PAR W
96 cobs - 67.1% eff., $6388, $6.61/ PAR W

or in other words, 3 tents at 50% eff vs 2 tents @ 60% eff vs 1 tent at 67% eff

 

[BOBBY_G]

CXB 3590, would be a 70% efficient lamp compared to a 64% efficient lamp. There have been a few 700ma lamps built, no 350 that I know of.

3590 cd bin is hitting 68.7 by my calcs. you'll need the DBs to hit 70 which prob wont be widely available for 2 more mos

my advice to op is to order some heatsinks and holders and get drilling. its cheap and will keep you busy. if you dont need your rig till nov. hold out till sept before ordering your cobs. they wont be any more expensive or any less efficient than whats out there now, thats for sure

 

[Rahz]

The real kicker is that it's not a whole lot more light for the extra money. At some point the return on investment is going to drop off. Electricity would need to be pretty expensive to justify going below .7 amps.

 

[ThaiBaby1]

3590 cd bin is hitting 68.7 by my calcs. you'll need the DBs to hit 70 which prob wont be widely available for 2 more mos

my advice to op is to order some heatsinks and holders and get drilling. its cheap and will keep you busy. if you dont need your rig till nov. hold out till sept before ordering your cobs. they wont be any more expensive or any less efficient than whats out there now, thats for sure

Thanks Bobby, Yeh I realize it's not worth the expense, just wondering if it would make sense if cobs were something like 10 bucks apiece

 

[ThaiBaby1]

The real kicker is that it's not a whole lot more light for the extra money. At some point the return on investment is going to drop off. Electricity would need to be pretty expensive to justify going below .7 amps.

Right. I'm not concerned with the cost of electricity . I just want to keep the bill below a certain point to avoid suspicion while getting the maximum light

 

[Rahz]

Ok so the wattage is more about capacity than anything else?

Generally speaking, if you know your cobs are going to run at 50 watts, and you know the driver is 200w, or 250w, then you know on the 200 you can fit 4 and on the 250 you can fit 5, but it's the voltage rating that we're really concerned about. When you divide the max voltage by the number of cobs the figure needs to be greater than or equal to the cobs voltage requirement. For instance, a HLG-185H-C1400 can supply 143 volts. 143/4=35.75 and since the 3590 needs about 34.9 volts each at 1.4 amps we can put 4 of them on that driver. 143/5=28.6 and since this is below the operating voltage of the 3590 at 1.4 volts, 5 cobs will not run on that driver.

 

[OLD MOTHER SATIVA]

i am concerned about different cob efiiciency ..Bobby g's math was an eye opener..

ie. if i can get 500w of cobs to do what 1000 w of hps does i save 600$ per light per year

but other than that i am lost with the hydro cost vs different efficiency %'s

 

[Rahz]

Right. I'm not concerned with the cost of electricity . I just want to keep the bill below a certain point to avoid suspicion while getting the maximum light

I would be surprised if anyone ever built a 3590 lamp that maxed out at .35 amps but for any particular wattage a lower current will always provide more light. I would work out a couple models on paper to see the amount of light -vs- the initial cost, and make a decision based on what I felt comfortable spending.

 

[BOBBY_G]

i am concerned about different cob efiiciency ..Bobby g's math was an eye opener..

ie. if i can get 500w of cobs to do what 1000 w of hps does i save 600$ per light per year

but other than that i am lost with the hydro cost vs different efficiency %'s

you can but again equipment costs

would you rahter have two gardens replacing 2 1000W@ 600W each, or one garden replacing 1000W @ 500W for the same cost (as the 600W cob arrays, not the same cost as hps)