DIY with Quantum Boards

[Airwalker16]

He already has an HLG-120. And in my opinion, dimming is very important; not only can it extend the useful life of your boards, it provides yet another facet of control over your garden.

Edit: Oh, and for the efficiency-heads out there, the HLG/ELG/XLG offer around 5 percentage points greater efficiency than the LRS. Last I checked, anyway.

Actually, the LRS series holds the spot of having thee most efficient driver MW manufactures. Can't remember which one it is exactly, but damn near every single one from 50-350 is 90% or higher.

 

[Humple]

Actually, the LRS series holds the spot of having thee most efficient driver MW manufactures. Can't remember which one it is exactly, but damn near every single one from 50-350 is 90% or higher.

Per the datasheet, the highest efficiency LRS-350 is the 350-48, at 89%; the rest range from 79.5 to 88.5. By contrast, the highest efficiency HLG-120 models are the 120-48 and 120-54, both at 93.5%; the rest range from 92 to 93.

 

[Airwalker16]

Per the datasheet, the highest efficiency LRS-350 is the 350-48, at 89%; the rest range from 79.5 to 88.5. By contrast, the highest efficiency HLG-120 models are the 120-48 and 120-54, both at 93.5%; the rest range from 92 to 93.

And it's quite similar in the LRS models in that lower wattage range of 100/150 as well. 89, 90's. You're comparing a 350 to a 120.

 

[2com]

Thanks! Should have said that too. I planning on running them in series. Thats how I have my other boards run. Using the 204W 24A driver would have limited me to parallel, which was another reason I decided to go with 2) 120W 54A drivers instead.

"QB 288 V1, QB 288 V2 and QB 288 V2 R spec have 50V-54V DC forward voltage and same driver options will work for all.

DO NOT wire different version boards in parallel. For parallel wiring it has to be all QB 288 V2 R spec or all QB 288 V2 or all QB 288 V1 boards on a driver."

Edit: From HLG qb guide page.

 

[Humple]

And it's quite similar in the LRS models in that lower wattage range of 100/150 as well. 89, 90's. You're comparing a 350 to a 120.

Yeah, I just grabbed the sheet for the 350, as that's the LRS most frequently put forward, but as you stated it's similar across the range; the LRS-150 tops out at 90%, for example. Have yet to find one in the series that exceeds the HLG models' efficiencies. Which one is "the most efficient driver MW manufactures"?

 

[2com]

Can anyone point me to a/the good thread or post that does well to explain the calculations for taking manufacturer specs (such as on hlg website) and calculating ppfd, etc (especially for custom builds). I'm just looking at the qb guide page and I need a refresher course.

Thanks.

 

[ilovereggae]

"QB 288 V1, QB 288 V2 and QB 288 V2 R spec have 50V-54V DC forward voltage and same driver options will work for all.

DO NOT wire different version boards in parallel. For parallel wiring it has to be all QB 288 V2 R spec or all QB 288 V2 or all QB 288 V1 boards on a driver."

Edit: From HLG qb guide page.

Yup that is why I said I am going to do them in series. A little further down that same page, it states:

"NOTE: Boards purchased in multiple orders may be from different batches may have different voltages and may not work share equal current if connected in parallel. Use them in series to avoid some boards pulling more current than others."

I am pretty sure someone on this thread asked this a few hundred pages back and someone from HLG said different versions would work fine together in series. Should I email HLG and confirm before I go this route? I guess I could order 2 more v2 boards for one of the shelves, wouldn't cost that much more.

 

[GBAUTO]

The spectrum will provide plenty of blue at 3000k even.
Also have flowered here with 3700k average often.
Have flowered under4000k vero.

The Vesta rig I use works out to about 3700k with both channels running and it produces some dank flower.

 

[Humple]

Can anyone point me to a/the good thread or post that does well to explain the calculations for taking manufacturer specs (such as on hlg website) and calculating ppfd, etc (especially for custom builds). I'm just looking at the qb guide page and I need a refresher course.

Thanks.

Something like this?

PPF to PPFD Calculator

Enter Total PPF output of Lamp in µmol or PPF. To calcualte this simply multiply the efficiency of the LED lamp with its power. A 2.5 PPF/W or 2.5µmol/j lamp with 480 watts will have 1200 µmol or PPF output. Enter Length and Width in feet. These are the dimensions of your target area. Percentage...

horticulturelightinggroup.com

 

[2com]

Yup that is why I said I am going to do them in series. A little further down that same page, it states:

"NOTE: Boards purchased in multiple orders may be from different batches may have different voltages and may not work share equal current if connected in parallel. Use them in series to avoid some boards pulling more current than others."

I am pretty sure someone on this thread asked this a few hundred pages back and someone from HLG said different versions would work fine together in series. Should I email HLG and confirm before I go this route? I guess I could order 2 more v2 boards for one of the shelves, wouldn't cost that much more.

Honestly, I'm not sure.
So there could be issues if you make an order of several boards, then 6-12 months later order more of the same boards, and end up using some from each order to make a parallel build? Fuck sake. Hah :/

 

[HolyAngel]

Yup that is why I said I am going to do them in series. A little further down that same page, it states:

"NOTE: Boards purchased in multiple orders may be from different batches may have different voltages and may not work share equal current if connected in parallel. Use them in series to avoid some boards pulling more current than others."

I am pretty sure someone on this thread asked this a few hundred pages back and someone from HLG said different versions would work fine together in series. Should I email HLG and confirm before I go this route? I guess I could order 2 more v2 boards for one of the shelves, wouldn't cost that much more.

You shouldn't have any issues at all running them in series. That's how I would wire them if you have multiple batches or different board types, and yeah, what HLG recommends.

 

[TWest65]

Yup that is why I said I am going to do them in series. A little further down that same page, it states:

"NOTE: Boards purchased in multiple orders may be from different batches may have different voltages and may not work share equal current if connected in parallel. Use them in series to avoid some boards pulling more current than others."

I am pretty sure someone on this thread asked this a few hundred pages back and someone from HLG said different versions would work fine together in series. Should I email HLG and confirm before I go this route? I guess I could order 2 more v2 boards for one of the shelves, wouldn't cost that much more.

Yes, you can mix boards with CC drivers, as long as your within driver specs.
For example, with an HLG-240H-C1400A, you could connect a QB96, a QB288 and the 24v QB18 in series, with no problem.

 

[ilovereggae]

You shouldn't have any issues at all running them in series. That's how I would wire them if you have multiple batches or different board types, and yeah, what HLG recommends.

I just realized something. The HLG120H-54A that I have that came with my original DIY kit, is what they recommend for parallel setups with multiple boards. For series they recommend the HLG120H-C1400. Can I use the 54A driver to run 3 288 boards in series? Or am I stuck with it as a single board/driver kit now since we can't mix boards from different orders to run in parallel?

 

[HolyAngel]

I just realized something. The HLG120H-54A that I have that came with my original DIY kit, is what they recommend for parallel setups with multiple boards. For series they recommend the HLG120H-C1400. Can I use the 54A driver to run 3 288 boards in series? Or am I stuck with it as a single board/driver kit now since we can't mix boards from different orders to run in parallel?

You can still run 3 boards in series off the 54A. they're only going to get like 40w each at most but yeah, should work just fine.

 

[ilovereggae]

You can still run 3 boards in series off the 54A. they're only going to get like 40w each at most but yeah, should work just fine.

Cool thats exactly my plan. Thanks!

 

[Chip Green]

Well I finally pulled the trigger today, ordered a 135 V1 kit.
I kept recommending that deal as of late, with the idea that "I can't even build from scratch, for that price right now"
Since I have a seed making project, about to start in a 2x2 tent, needing a light build, I recommended that kit to myself.
But damn those 96ers are tempting....

 

[Gond00s]

im tempeted to buy more qbs now upping my grow space gonna be nice but idk how many ill need so I think imma wait till I get my room setup and everything up to redo the room going from 32sqft to like 90sqft nice little upgrade for me

 

[HolyAngel]

Well I finally pulled the trigger today, ordered a 135 V1 kit.
I kept recommending that deal as of late, with the idea that "I can't even build from scratch, for that price right now"
Since I have a seed making project, about to start in a 2x2 tent, needing a light build, I recommended that kit to myself.
But damn those 96ers are tempting....

man, right? I passed on them for the 3rd time and picked up 2 of the v2 qb288 4k's for veg. Maybe one day..

 

[PJ Diaz]

Personally I think the QB96's are a better deal than the V1 kits. They are basically the same cost once you source the parts, but they include some red diodes, and you can crank them up higher than 288's if you want to use a bigger driver.

 

[Chip Green]

That's exactly why I didn't get those (yet)....I didn't want to get power hungry (I would have) and be stealing the light from my seed maker!