I have watched his video with cobs and stars but just wasn't sure if these strips can be powered directly with a driver or needed some of the pwm gear and other stuff. It looks like they can be powered directly with a meanwell driver.
@PicklesRus
I want to convert a 6 bulb t5 and put in 4 samsung strips and a new ballast for 2 t5 bulbs and use 2 UV hortilux bulbs, or maybe just go all 6 samsung.
The existing t5 keeps blowing bulbs. Just bought a new set 10 bucks x6 and in a week only 1 was working. Sick of buying t5 bulbs. Even if they were free it still sucks disposing of them.
Thanks for the link.
Since various strips are in different lengths/chip counts. Here is how you can figure out yourself what you need.
For a series configuration:
Take the voltage for a single strip. Ex: 20v
Multiple by number of strips you want to use. Ex: 6
Equals 120vdc.
Now, find a driver that has at least a 120vdc output within the drive current range you are looking to run. Ex: 700ma
HLG-120H-C700 = 107vdc - 215vdc (working constant current range) This would actually fit some additional 20v strips.
For 1050ma: HLG-120H-C1050 = 74v-148v
These are just a few examples, adapt them to your power requirements. There are higher wattage drivers that can generally drive more lights. Its just a game of fitting voltage to preferred drive current to your specific space. Keeping driver count low will keep up front costs lower. But, multiple drivers create a redundancy that can be advantageous for some situations/spaces.. See the game here? You decide what your priorities are, and design accordingly.
I see so many taking a 'cookie cutter', or 'copy someone elses design' approach to building lamps. Understanding the basics will help you design a lamp for your own specific needs.
My trick or tip is, use a spreadsheet to help out with the data and number crunching.
I have many cheat sheets to help me keep track of voltages and cost per. The DIY cob guys used to have some really good ones around for determining efficacy as well. I also keep a lot of MW pdf files around.