Best LED for 3x3 flowering

SchweeDubz said:

but what exactly makes the DIY lights better quality wise?

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The components used - Samsung LED's are quality. Design - the guys at HLG have kept it simple and focused on what is needed for growing, not for looking good/shiny. Research - the best layout and PPF readings.
I think it is possible to make the decision harder than it actually is.

Any led light that says some wattage and then lists a different actual wattage is a scam. That is the real litmus test. The companies previously listed use quality components with zero marketing BS. Take your mars hydro as an example. It lists itself as 900 watts but certainly doesn't pull that from the wall. Mars, and companies like them, use inferior components and then lie to you about what is inside. They then either write their own reviews or hire a company to do it for them.

This light is hlg550 4 x quantum boards
Each board is approx 7" x 12"
It is 20" x 26"

I agree that some of these companies are a bit misleading, but the G8 450 for example, the name suggest 450w, then they say its comparable to a 600w HPS, but then the specs say actual power draw is 245w. So, sure, its a bit confusing and misleading, but I ultimately know it is pulling 245w while using 3w chips. So, what exactly is bad about this? Is 245w not enough for 3x3 like they say it is? Is the spectrum wrong? Are the LEDs 'cheap'? What are the consequences exactly from using these so called cheaper LEDs?

Yes the leds are cheap. Without even looking up the specs I know due to their, as you say, confusing labeling they are purposefully trying to mislead you.

The only thing I'd say @QuarksRSmall is that "Equivalent to" has been used in lighting for the past 40 or so years, since the 'new' bulbs came out in the 70's. This was because when someone replaced an old 100W bulb they wanted the same brightness and were told the new bulb, say 60W, is equivalent to 100W. It's just been carried on by the industry. I don't think there is an attempt to deceive in many cases, although in some I'm sure there are. A lot of people used Mars Hydro and had good results. Just be sure to know what Wattage your unit pulls from the wall.

Moflow said:

This light is hlg550 4 x quantum boards

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I'm sooooo jealous!!

Yeah I have to disagree @QuarksRSmall because, while you can argue there is misleading in the name, the site clearly states, in bold, that the actual power draw is 245w. And I guess I'm not exactly convinced that the 'cheap' LEDs are a scam without a better explanation. The most I can say about my Mars 900 is that some of the LEDs burn out. Is that what you mean by cheap? Or are ther other factors such as distance covered or what not?

You are free to disagree as you like. I feel as if I failed in convincing you, and that is fine. I wish you the very best of luck and would just like to leave you with the phrase, caveat emptor.

Check out the Amare SE-250 or 450.
They are allot less $ then their listed price when buying direct. $1.65 a watt.
Good luck choosing. There's so many.

I am certainly interested in a DIY setup now after doing some research today, but I am just remaining skeptical for the sake of getting the best information possible. I don't doubt that some brands are misleading etc but I am still not getting the understanding I'd like on why lights from Platinum LED and G8 lights are inferior products.

SchweeDubz said:

I am certainly interested in a DIY setup now after doing some research today, but I am just remaining skeptical for the sake of getting the best information possible. I don't doubt that some brands are misleading etc but I am still not getting the understanding I'd like on why lights from Platinum LED and G8 lights are inferior products.

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#1 they're burple
2 inadequate coverage
3 less efficient then HPS or equal
4 not as good results as you could get
5 you'd do better w/ HPS
6 low quality components

SchweeDubz said:

I am certainly interested in a DIY setup now after doing some research today, but I am just remaining skeptical for the sake of getting the best information possible. I don't doubt that some brands are misleading etc but I am still not getting the understanding I'd like on why lights from Platinum LED and G8 lights are inferior products.

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You can try visit ledgardener.com
to make the story easier I would say high quality cobs like citizen and others have an higher lm/w output and by going diy you can choose how to design your fixture, many advantages like maxing the PPFD on your growspace.
Because they have higher efficiency you can run less watts and get the same yield.

EDIT: I have run both hps (250/300w) and a mars panel (135w) in my 2x2 but I got far better results with cobs(150w).

I thought "burple" was a good thing to avoid wasting lumens that aren't necessary for photosynthesis?

As for the rest of your points, some are very vague, and it seems they'd only apply to certain companies and models. I know my Mars II 900 is made with cheap parts, but I imagine brands such as Kind LED are made with quality components. I would hope so based on their price range...

And coverage, isn't that going to depend again on the specific model? Ex. Platinum LED offers the P300 and P4-XML2, with the latter giving better coverage in a square area.

And yeah @Nutria the Mars seems relatively decent for their pricing, but my buds last round weren't very dense. I feel like the Mars II 900 will make for a decent enough veg light though.

SchweeDubz said:

I thought "burple" was a good thing to avoid wasting lumens that aren't necessary for photosynthesis?

As for the rest of your points, some are very vague, and it seems they'd only apply to certain companies and models. I know my Mars II 900 is made with cheap parts, but I imagine brands such as Kind LED are made with quality components. I would hope so based on their price range...

And coverage, isn't that going to depend again on the specific model? Ex. Platinum LED offers the P300 and P4-XML2, with the latter giving better coverage in a square area.

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That burple spectrum stuff isn't true. It actually lacks the full spectrum our plants need & get from wh/. Sure, it would compliment white but burple itself generally doesn't do well.
Check out my first thread using a burple Hydroponics Hut 535 w light vs My 450w Amare. The burple yielded 11 bag oz. less in a 4x4 using the same cuts n plants. Bids never even filled In. Maybe super highly efficient burple could do ok, But those are big bucks & few & far between.
Kind is no better then Mars. Total junk & they don't stand by there sales. Plat will prob give decent results & stand by their product, but doubtfully better then HPS.
Amare, Tasty, Plc, Timber, HLG or Johnson,
Fluence Bio, Chilled for your burple, ect...
There's plenty of good ones out there.

SchweeDubz said:

I am certainly interested in a DIY setup now after doing some research today, but I am just remaining skeptical for the sake of getting the best information possible. I don't doubt that some brands are misleading etc but I am still not getting the understanding I'd like on why lights from Platinum LED and G8 lights are inferior products.

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They are working on old ideas that a specific colour is all you need to grow plants. It does, but not great. You have to consider plants have evolved for millions of years under the sun, so many parts of the spectrum are important to so many aspects of plant growth.
They use cheap diodes ran hard which means they don't last long
For the same reason they are very inefficient so your getting less light per watt.

Its the lack of light that makes airy buds.
Kind, Blackdog and most of the high priced ones use almost the same stuff as the cheap LEDs but they come up with some sales pitch and slap a crazy price on them.
The only place you will see the grows using these types of light is youtube, where some soulless creature is paid to push the product.
If they were anywhere near as good as suggested every weed forum would be full of grow journals showing the results. But there not, except for that forum which is sponsored by Mars!

That is what I'd like to think. Some brands are good, some are crap, some are good but overpriced, just like with anything. When people in this thread are saying DIY is the only way to go, it just leaves me skeptical. Though I admit, either way, it incentivized me to do some research and now I have a better understanding of what I am buying.

Platinum LEDs P4-XML2 uses 100x3w and 8x10w CREE XM-L2. I guess the question for me here is, are the COB options better than a bunch of 3w? Another thing I am iffy on with this light, is the options it offers in terms of veg and bloom. It seems to me that this is a bad option to have if I am looking for a light purely for blooming. Aka theres 93 watts of 'veg lighting' that is going to waste.

I think the 400w Vero setup from Timber is appealing as well, as it's in the similar price range. This also seems to have the avantage of customization, ie if a part breaks, I can replace it myself.

Search for the Bridgelux EB series related threads, a very good starter option for DIY LED builds.
Imho.

I recommend Checking out SunCloak too.