Hi all,
I've been doing a lot of research on LEDs for my indoor grow room and eventually supplemental greenhouse lighting because I'm currently using a cheap blurple and a 130w CFL that came with my tent.
I would like to go the Quantum Board route, but only the HLG 550 is available in Australia and is way outside of my budget. The Sol-Skin boards from Cutter Electronics are easily accessible, but I'm horribly confused by trying to pick a driver. Because I want a 2-channel board (3000k and 4000k), I need a way of powering both. I'd like to be able to dip them separately, but if I can get a cheaper 48v driver that will power both at full intensity, I'd rather do that for the time being. I am getting close to flowering, and I need a more powerful light and relatively soon.
Assuming I can't get a cheap driver for both channels, I may have to go with a single channel board or look into Chinese boards.
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Drivers for Sol-Skin 2 channel board?
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sdfoster22
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Do you have a link to the specs on the boards you have?
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alienfarts687
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Wow, that was quick!
Here are the specs: http://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut3358
They sell a 3-channel dimmer/driver controller, but it's a bit expensive and still needs a 48v power supply.
Here are the specs: http://www.cutter.com.au/proddetail.php?prod=cut3358
They sell a 3-channel dimmer/driver controller, but it's a bit expensive and still needs a 48v power supply.
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sdfoster22
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Are you looking to power these without a heatsink. It says that if you run the board 100w or lower that you don't need one.
How many watts do you want to get out of this board?
How many watts do you want to get out of this board?
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alienfarts687
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The idea is no heatsinking, or minimal heatsinking, such as an aluminium sheet. I can also have a fan blowing over them for some active cooling.
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sdfoster22
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How many boards do you plan to run? What size space are you working with?
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sdfoster22
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I was trying to research these boards a little and it took me to a thread started by the producer of these boards. His name is welight on the rollitup forums. This thread I was reading says they use lm561c diodes. The website says they use the nichia diodes.
Their website is kind of confusing with the specs, and doesn't really throw them out(maybe because they want you to buy their driver)
have you tried contacting the company and getting the exact specs on outputs. A good example, hlg provides minimum, typical, and max output data at different currents.
If you can get this info it would help identify drivers per channel, board, or however you want to wire them. It's kind of a guessing game with the specs they provide on the website(unless I'm missing something.)
Maybe someone here has experience with these boards, or if you can get more specs( and share with the community) you could help determine driver(s) for your needs.
Their website is kind of confusing with the specs, and doesn't really throw them out(maybe because they want you to buy their driver)
have you tried contacting the company and getting the exact specs on outputs. A good example, hlg provides minimum, typical, and max output data at different currents.
If you can get this info it would help identify drivers per channel, board, or however you want to wire them. It's kind of a guessing game with the specs they provide on the website(unless I'm missing something.)
Maybe someone here has experience with these boards, or if you can get more specs( and share with the community) you could help determine driver(s) for your needs.
NothinYet is my nickname
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alienfarts687
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I've tried corresponding with the manufacturer, but I haven't really received the specs straight up. From what I understand, each individual channel is 48v and meant to be run with a separate driver. I think the Samsung were an older model or a prototype, but they now offer models with both Nichia and Cree chips.
The manufacturer has also told me that they're configured to run at 150 watts max (50 watts per channel, I think) without heatsinking, but apparently they can be driven harder with heatsinking.
At this point, I'm starting to think I might be better off with a strip build than anything. Cutter has Bridgelux 1' and 2' strips for $4 and $8 respectively. Even Cree 3030 J Series strips. At least for the Bridgelux strips, there's a calculator on here that makes it ridiculously easy to choose a driver. I'm not afraid of some basic wiring.
The manufacturer has also told me that they're configured to run at 150 watts max (50 watts per channel, I think) without heatsinking, but apparently they can be driven harder with heatsinking.
At this point, I'm starting to think I might be better off with a strip build than anything. Cutter has Bridgelux 1' and 2' strips for $4 and $8 respectively. Even Cree 3030 J Series strips. At least for the Bridgelux strips, there's a calculator on here that makes it ridiculously easy to choose a driver. I'm not afraid of some basic wiring.
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sdfoster22
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Ok. With the info you just gave me I'll try to explain to you how to find the right driver. It says on the very bottom of the site you gave that 100w is max without heatsink.
50w per channel would be roughly 100w per board. So we can take 50w/48v to get the Ma, or amps needed to run each channel. That's about 1050Ma @ 48v = roughly 50w
The part that confuses me is the resistors on the boards. Most leds with resistors that I've seen were made for constant voltage drivers, so I'll give you some options with drivers per channel(s) or board(s). Going off of ledg's meanwell driver spreadsheet here.
http://ledgardener.com/mw-cv-driver-ref/
For a 1 board set up you could use two hlg-60h-48a or b dimmed down(one for each channel), for 100w. You could use two hlg-80h-48a or b slightly dimmed down for 150w(75w per channel) with heatsink. Or you could run both channels off of an hlg-100h-48(regular, a, or b.) Max of about 100w total. If you wanted both channels at 75w, or 150w total, I'd recommend the hlg-150h-48(regular, a, or b.) Just make sure if you choose the a or b version you have a multimeter to read voltage and current, because they drive a little harder than it states lol.
A 2 board set up you could do the previous or both boards and all four channels would run off an hlg-185h-48 a or b at about 200w(50w per channel) or the hlg-320h-48 a or b dimmed down, you can run 75w per channel(300w total)
I'll leave that at that. If you have a certain setup you prefer. Like 2, 3, or 4 boards, let me know and I'll try to figure something out.
The strip builds are really nice. I have all my stuff in for my current eb gen 2 build. I have to make time for it though lol(Damn spring cleaning and yard work.) Just make sure if you use the calculator for the eb strips you choose the right voltage driver. If you get the gen 1 strips with the A3 as the last two digits of the model number you get the 24v driver, and if you get the gen 2 strips with the B3 as the last two its a 20 v driver.
50w per channel would be roughly 100w per board. So we can take 50w/48v to get the Ma, or amps needed to run each channel. That's about 1050Ma @ 48v = roughly 50w
The part that confuses me is the resistors on the boards. Most leds with resistors that I've seen were made for constant voltage drivers, so I'll give you some options with drivers per channel(s) or board(s). Going off of ledg's meanwell driver spreadsheet here.
http://ledgardener.com/mw-cv-driver-ref/
For a 1 board set up you could use two hlg-60h-48a or b dimmed down(one for each channel), for 100w. You could use two hlg-80h-48a or b slightly dimmed down for 150w(75w per channel) with heatsink. Or you could run both channels off of an hlg-100h-48(regular, a, or b.) Max of about 100w total. If you wanted both channels at 75w, or 150w total, I'd recommend the hlg-150h-48(regular, a, or b.) Just make sure if you choose the a or b version you have a multimeter to read voltage and current, because they drive a little harder than it states lol.
A 2 board set up you could do the previous or both boards and all four channels would run off an hlg-185h-48 a or b at about 200w(50w per channel) or the hlg-320h-48 a or b dimmed down, you can run 75w per channel(300w total)
I'll leave that at that. If you have a certain setup you prefer. Like 2, 3, or 4 boards, let me know and I'll try to figure something out.
The strip builds are really nice. I have all my stuff in for my current eb gen 2 build. I have to make time for it though lol(Damn spring cleaning and yard work.) Just make sure if you use the calculator for the eb strips you choose the right voltage driver. If you get the gen 1 strips with the A3 as the last two digits of the model number you get the 24v driver, and if you get the gen 2 strips with the B3 as the last two its a 20 v driver.
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alienfarts687
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Thank you. This makes a lot more sense. I think I was confused by the fact that it has multiple channels. I managed to get my head around some calculations for other boards and follow the LED Gardener tutorials, but this Sol-Skin was confusing me! My room is 80cm*80cm, so I think the one board with 576 diodes would be perfect.
That being said, the Bridgelux strips still come out a bit cheaper, so I might end up doing that. I saw your build with a repurposed blurple. I might try something similar with mine if I don't just keep it for a smaller tent or a grow rack for something that doesn't need much light, like lettuce.
That being said, the Bridgelux strips still come out a bit cheaper, so I might end up doing that. I saw your build with a repurposed blurple. I might try something similar with mine if I don't just keep it for a smaller tent or a grow rack for something that doesn't need much light, like lettuce.