DIY with Quantum Boards

Humple

Humple

Well-Known Member
Anyone using the QB11 in 660nm? What driver, how hard are you pushing it, do you heatsink it, how much space are you covering per, etc.? Curious how peeps have been implementing these boards, as there appear to be a lot of options (based on the specs on HLG's site).
 
ilovereggae

ilovereggae

Well-Known Member
Making progress on my new build. Custom heatsinks will be in this week, and I just ordered 2 HLG-240H-C1050B series drivers.

Can someone recommend some potentiometers on Amazon that I should order? I found an older thread where people were discussing it, but want to make sure I pick the right ones. A lot of the stuff on Amazon have reviews saying they are cheaply made etc.

Seems like I want 100K ohms / 0.5W / Linear taper. A 10K resistor was also recommended to make sure they dont get turned all the way off.

Last thing is I eventually want to be able to control these by an Arduino so is there anything I need to do differently when wiring them up this time around, to make that easier later down the road?
 
SCJedi

SCJedi

Well-Known Member
ilovereggae said:
Making progress on my new build. Custom heatsinks will be in this week, and I just ordered 2 HLG-240H-C1050B series drivers.

Can someone recommend some potentiometers on Amazon that I should order? I found an older thread where people were discussing it, but want to make sure I pick the right ones. A lot of the stuff on Amazon have reviews saying they are cheaply made etc.

Seems like I want 100K ohms / 0.5W / Linear taper. A 10K resistor was also recommended to make sure they dont get turned all the way off.

Last thing is I eventually want to be able to control these by an Arduino so is there anything I need to do differently when wiring them up this time around, to make that easier later down the road?
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I built a dimmer and when it failed it was shorted out and dimmed my light for a while before I noticed. I replaced it with this:

www.rapidled.com

Cased Potentiometer with Knob

.
www.rapidled.com www.rapidled.com
 
SCJedi

SCJedi

Well-Known Member
Anyone have a replacement heatsink source other than heatsinkusa? I need to find something long and narrow like the Slate 6.
 
ilovereggae

ilovereggae

Well-Known Member
SCJedi said:
Anyone have a replacement heatsink source other than heatsinkusa? I need to find something long and narrow like the Slate 6.
Click to expand...
This is the place I used.

1064AS

Type: Heatsink Extrusion Material: Aluminum 6063-T5 Surface: Black or Natural Anodised
alberko.com alberko.com

Cant speak to quality yet as it wont be here for a few days. But the price was right! Not sure of what width you need but once you find the one that you want, they will cut it to any length. Not sure about shipping prices, I am picking mine up at the warehouse since its pretty close to me.

One other note, they say they are anodized but they only do that for larger orders. Small spec orders they just come in a mill finish.
 
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pop22

pop22

Well-Known Member
When doing a DIY project, you need to gather information first, about the components you want to use. If you had actually read the specs of the QB96, you would have known that the driver you posted cannot be used. Unless you want to burn your house down..... don't be messing with electronics if you don't know what you are doing and don't take the time to learn. And stay away from cheap no name drivers. We all ( or mostly all ) use Meanwell drivers for a reason, they are safe and reliable, have a 7 year warranty, and the company has excellent customer service.
If you want a good light, use GOOD components!


@EastCoastGenetix said:
Can I pair the driver pictured with a QB96 elite v2 @224 watts safely
Click to expand...
 
ilovereggae

ilovereggae

Well-Known Member
SCJedi said:
I built a dimmer and when it failed it was shorted out and dimmed my light for a while before I noticed. I replaced it with this:

www.rapidled.com

Cased Potentiometer with Knob

.
www.rapidled.com www.rapidled.com
Click to expand...
Those look very nice. I would like to order them from Amazon though bc I have a gift card I am trying to use up. It doesn't look like Rapid LED sells their stuff on there. Any other idea or suggested brands I could try with something similar?
 
Z

Zappa66

Well-Known Member
ilovereggae said:
Those look very nice. I would like to order them from Amazon though bc I have a gift card I am trying to use up. It doesn't look like Rapid LED sells their stuff on there. Any other idea or suggested brands I could try with something similar?
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I used the same one on my recent build, seems to be high quality.
 
@EastCoastGenetix

@EastCoastGenetix

Well-Known Member
pop22 said:
When doing a DIY project, you need to gather information first, about the components you want to use. If you had actually read the specs of the QB96, you would have known that the driver you posted cannot be used. Unless you want to burn your house down..... don't be messing with electronics if you don't know what you are doing and don't take the time to learn. And stay away from cheap no name drivers. We all ( or mostly all ) use Meanwell drivers for a reason, they are safe and reliable, have a 7 year warranty, and the company has excellent customer service.
If you want a good light, use GOOD components!
Click to expand...
I didnt understand the lingo when talking about power supply and how it actually worked. So just to update what I learned since posting. I was paying attention more to watts. But now I know that you want to look for volts and amps. The reason for buying components before starting with a kit is to save some dough. They dont give you specs on the power supply that's in kit that replaces a 315 CMH. I have 24 QB96 elites and trying to find the cheapest way to power them at 225 watts. Basically buying components it's looking like $150 per fixture. So any financial help or full sponsorship would be appreciated. The boards and heat sink was $70 each and looking at $80 drivers on top of that puts the led conversion out of my range. But I already have the boards and heatsinks.
 
@EastCoastGenetix

@EastCoastGenetix

Well-Known Member
pop22 said:
When doing a DIY project, you need to gather information first, about the components you want to use. If you had actually read the specs of the QB96, you would have known that the driver you posted cannot be used. Unless you want to burn your house down..... don't be messing with electronics if you don't know what you are doing and don't take the time to learn. And stay away from cheap no name drivers. We all ( or mostly all ) use Meanwell drivers for a reason, they are safe and reliable, have a 7 year warranty, and the company has excellent customer service.
If you want a good light, use GOOD components!
Click to expand...
Just checked I did post the specs about the qb96 but you didnt realize I didnt know how to read the information and interpret it. That's different then like you said "IF" I would've read the information. I would've known. And just so you know,that driver is meanwell LRS series. Just because I'm trying to save a few dollars doesn't mean I won't keep a standard and go for cheap unbranded chinese stuff.
 
daveybc

daveybc

Well-Known Member
HLG 185H 54A or B is recommended. Yes you can do a 240H 54A but the lights may need a fan on the heatsink depending on wattage. Invertronics is another supplier of quality drivers but they will cost you as well. Others on this thread pulled up those same drivers and the consensus was "no". I don't have deep pockets but doing it the right way pays off in safety, failure etc. I was running 1 185h per qb96e but find now that 2 qb96e per 1 185h driver more than enough power w my footprint and light count.

@EastCoastGenetix said:
Just checked I did post the specs about the qb96 but you didnt realize I didnt know how to read the information and interpret it. That's different then like you said "IF" I would've read the information. I would've known. And just so you know,that driver is meanwell LRS series. Just because I'm trying to save a few dollars doesn't mean I won't keep a standard and go for cheap unbranded chinese stuff. pop22 has been on here a while and I would personally take his recommendation.
Click to expand...
 
C

chinaCat86

New Member
I am purchasing 4x Qb132 and have a question about the driver. The manufacturer along with most discussions are powering them with some variation of HLG-240H-36 or HLG-240H-C1400. But this would mean 60watt per board instead of 75w for which they are rated. Why?

Could I not purchase the HLG-320h-36 and a dim it down about 5-10%?

I ask because I am already under powering my 4x4 grow area. With only these 4 qb132s and one qb120 that I already have. I plan to add more in the future, but I like to make the most of what I’m purchasing.

Finally, I’m not seeing good options for these drivers on amazon. Is mouser a good alternative? It says products in stock so I can ignore the lead time?

Recap:
1. Why do most people seem to run these at 60w instead of 75?

2. Can I safely power 4 of these with a hlg-320h-36 and just dim it slightly?

3. Is mouser a reputable place? Does this community have a preferred driver vendor? (Time is of the essence, would like to switch to 12/12 ASAP)

4. Bonus: could someone explain the difference between a and b models? I don’t plan to dim them more than once, so saving money on an additional remote dimmer would be ideal.

5. Bonus: I grok the difference between series and parallel but what do most of you prefer. Series seems the safer option.
 
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