To match, or slightly exceed HID with LED, you have to use the best, of the very best Diodes.
Samsung, and Osram. Osram makes the best Far Red.
Consider Ive only recently started experimenting with LED, and am a long time skeptic, and still consideringfor the $$$$, if you can cool it HID cant be beaten for o the cheap vs really good top of the line LED Diodes ect… They aint cheap...
Im an HID user since they came out in 1977-78. The first ones High Times had available from the Navy Sub division where they grew veggies in the Nuclear subs, that come up only once every 9 months. It was very fragile, and they would not guarantee it would make it to you in 1 piece in the mail thus it had no warranty. It has Halide. 1000w
6 months later the Super Nova 1000w/Halide came out, and had a warranty in shipping.
Consider the Hortilux 1000w HPS is the most powerful 1000w Single Ended HID available at 1600umol, and is the lamp to all other 1000w HID are compared, and have been for 20 years.
Consider a 645w Gavita 1700e is 1700 umol
Consider a new Phillips 635w is 1800 umol.
New Spyder 2 Series is 1700umol x 631w
See where this is going???
The Gavita, and Phillips Spyder 2 Series all 3 put out more umol than the Hortilux, and use 1/3 Less Energy.
Umol are Umol, and 1700umol-1800umol are more than 1600umol everytime, and consumes 1/3 less energy, though are insanely more expensive at startup.
But if one ha the money for startup with LED< that's the way to go.
You can also use Quantum Boards, and use the same Diodes Samsung/Osram... as those other 3 lights, and save probably 50%, but you have to get the most powerful ones they make, and not cut corners.
I bought a Gavita 1700e 4 months ago, and we are now testing it for use in veg vs a 1000w Hortilux HPS, and can say it equals the HID in every way, and runs 15 degrees cooler 1 is used in a 4 x 4 area.
Gavita themselves say this light...1700e replaces a SE HID 1:1 in a 4 x 4 area.
We also flower with 2 DE 1150w Gavitas, and 2 1000w Hortilux HPS