Bridgelux eb strips Gen 3

Isawthelight

Well-Known Member
Hi guys, very confused here so if anyone can help it would be much appreciated,

I'm wanting a driver for 1ft EB3 strips (slim)

I only really need a small max amount of light coverage (1.6m2) so 7 strips running @700ma would give me 53.2 watts, this is probably the max I'd run them as @ 35w per m2 I need 56 watts? Is this correct?

I want to keep heat low, so would running 7 underdriven strips be better than 5 or 6?

Reason for 7 strips is according to chart it's 7.6w per led @ 700ma.

Now I'm confused as to the driver I need, I was thinking of HLG-60H-15B, it's rated at 60w, and 4A, it says constant current, does this mean it will only provide 4A? And divided by 7 would mean approx 570amps, it also says CV, constant voltage which is what I need, I think, as I need to drive them between 10.9-11.7 volts, so will this driver be sufficient?

I will connect in parallel, as it's only 7 strips.

Does using a potentiometer control the current (amps) or the watts? I'm so confused by this bit especially, how do I dim the lights? Do I need CC or constant voltage? Or both?

If anyone can point me in the right direction for the correct driver I need, it would be massively appreciated, I've been reading through forums for about a week and struggling to grasp it properly
I'd wire those strips in series and drive them with an HLG-60H-C700A. This saves a few bucks by not needing to buy the Wago Lever-Lock connectors used for parallel panel builds. This will drive up to nine 340mm EB3 slim strips. The driver will crank out 98.1 Volts DC to light nine strips ( 76.3 VDC with seven strips) with 0.70 Amps. The driver's max output voltage is 100 VDC.

https://www.google.com/search?q=HLG-60H-C700A&sxsrf=ACYBGNTa13KdRlgHT_ZuHaAtR8-4r-w-qA:1568919033631&source=lnms&tbm=shop&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj17rjtxt3kAhXKQkEAHfluBZ0Q_AUIEigB&biw=1920&bih=937#spd=0

The dimmer pot controls both current on constant current drivers and voltage on constant voltage drivers. Power (watts) = Volts x Current. So the dimmer pot also controls watts, because Watts is directly proportional to voltage across the LEDs and current flowing thru the LEDs.

If you go with seven 320mm strips, you could use one far red strip to boost your spectrum.
https://horticulturelightinggroup.com/collections/all/products/qb-3-far-red
 
Last edited:

Saad786

Member
I'd wire those strips in series and drive them with an HLG-60H-C700A. This saves a few bucks by not needing to buy the Wago Lever-Lock connectors used for parallel panel builds. This will drive up to nine 340mm EB3 slim strips. The driver will crank out 98.1 Volts DC to light nine strips ( 76.3 VDC with seven strips) with 0.70 Amps. The driver's max output voltage is 100 VDC.

The dimmer pot controls both current on constant current drivers and voltage on constant voltage drivers. Power (watts) = Volts x Current. So the dimmer pot also controls watts, because Watts is directly proportional to voltage across the LEDs and current flowing thru the LEDs.

If you go with seven 320mm strips, you could use one far red strip to boost your spectrum.
I will take this advice and go with your recommendation, thank you so much for your help, honestly appreciate it so much,

I definitely had misunderstandings with regards to voltage, didn't realise voltage could be split between the strips. I will connect in series, seems a lot simpler too,

Do you know is the pot tells me the current/voltage currently being set? Or do I need multimeter to see exactly how much voltage/current I am passing through the LEDs? I am worried about light burn by powering them too high of current or too high of voltage.
 

Isawthelight

Well-Known Member
I will take this advice and go with your recommendation, thank you so much for your help, honestly appreciate it so much,

I definitely had misunderstandings with regards to voltage, didn't realise voltage could be split between the strips. I will connect in series, seems a lot simpler too,

Do you know is the pot tells me the current/voltage currently being set? Or do I need multimeter to see exactly how much voltage/current I am passing through the LEDs? I am worried about light burn by powering them too high of current or too high of voltage.
I mounted my dimmer pot with a paper disk behind the pot's knob. Plugged the driver into an kill-a-watt meter to calibrate the paper disk. Starting with the pot counter-clockwise, read the kill-a-watt, and recorded the kill-a-watt readings onto the paper disk, turn it clockwise and record the knob settings at different power levels.

Have fun and enjoy the fruits of your labor.

EDIT. The A version of the meanwell driver does not use an external dimmer potentiometer, the pots are built in. The B versions use an external pot dimmer.
 
Last edited:

Grow for fun only

Well-Known Member
just finished my new light.
56 bridgelux EB3 slim 340mm 3000k 80cri on a t.slot frame, no heatsink.
Maxed out a HLG320 2100mA (14S 4P), 525mA each strip, roughly 5-6W.
View attachment 4399565
went with a slight logarithmic arrangement, spread is very nice n even.
Output is insane.

View attachment 4399566

What the actual power for this lamp and it also installed Meanwell driver there , looks like 2 n 1 on the board , can they be parted in two ? the QB light to be most growers's choose now, i have the TS-1000W marsled it's little small but it performance well in my room. love qb tech .:P
 

Grow for fun only

Well-Known Member
the power draw is 320 watts at the wall, using a meanwell hlg320.
You can mount the strips however you want, can be parted etc., for me these fit well, wanted a square.

with no airflow at all at 86F ambient i get arround 110F on the strips.
This will improve in a real world setup a lot, with fans on etc.
It's cool in such design, the board can be parted and combined, i do like it and would considered try out this one, while due to the price point i went with the ts2000 one few months earlier,, it a square one but cannnot parted,for me it's fine. i love try new led tech, next i may check out the hlg one. :P
 

cobshopgrow

Well-Known Member
thanks.
I plan to use it at roughly 12", but it is not in the tent it will be in the end.
Think 12" is absolute max for me at full power, easily get above 60k lux there, more then 800ppf.
Even with CO2 i could fullfill all demands in a 3x3.
 

cobshopgrow

Well-Known Member
pretty impressed by the eb3 slim strips so far.
made some rough comparsions with a lux meter to a similar sized similar wattage 6 boards lm301b setup.
the strip light wins, better spread and more lumen.
one reason is of course also the better utilisation of the driver with the eb3 setup, but still, these chips do well.

btw, the slims are all in stock again.


even the 3000k 340mm :oops:
 

Warpedpassage

Well-Known Member
pretty impressed by the eb3 slim strips so far.
made some rough comparsions with a lux meter to a similar sized similar wattage 6 boards lm301b setup.
the strip light wins, better spread and more lumen.
one reason is of course also the better utilisation of the driver with the eb3 setup, but still, these chips do well.

btw, the slims are all in stock again.


even the 3000k 340mm :oops:
Is that a 3x3 tent? Nice job.
 

Saad786

Member
Hey guys, so I finished building my 7 strips Eb3 wired in series with HLG-60H-C700A, but my lights flash on and off, consistently 1 flash per second, even when I turn the dimmer screw up to max they maintain the constant flash, I removed one of the strips, from 7 to 6, and the same thing happens, they're all flashing so I'm guessing my connections are fine?
 

Rocket Soul

Well-Known Member
Hey guys, so I finished building my 7 strips Eb3 wired in series with HLG-60H-C700A, but my lights flash on and off, consistently 1 flash per second, even when I turn the dimmer screw up to max they maintain the constant flash, I removed one of the strips, from 7 to 6, and the same thing happens, they're all flashing so I'm guessing my connections are fine?
That sounds like too much voltage for the driver, whats the voltage calculations look like for your build? Looking at the blux datasheet tht driver will only power 4, possibly 5 strips, depending on the size. Are they 1,2 or 4 feet?
 

Saad786

Member
That sounds like too much voltage for the driver, whats the voltage calculations look like for your build? Looking at the blux datasheet tht driver will only power 4, possibly 5 strips, depending on the size. Are they 1,2 or 4 feet?
Ah okay,

It's the 1 foot strips, here's a quote of the advice I took from earlier in the forum, as I really wasn't sure about which driver I would need:

"I'd wire those strips in series and drive them with an HLG-60H-C700A. This saves a few bucks by not needing to buy the Wago Lever-Lock connectors used for parallel panel builds. This will drive up to nine 340mm EB3 slim strips. The driver will crank out 98.1 Volts DC to light nine strips ( 76.3 VDC with seven strips) with 0.70 Amps. The driver's max output voltage is 100 VDC."

I thought I could drive 9 strips with the driver? And since I only have 7 it would be fine?
 

Moflow

Well-Known Member
The hlg 60h 700a has a voltage range of 50-100V.
The 1ft strips are ~20V so 4 or 5 strips

BXEB-L0280Z-xxx1000-C-C3.... are these the strips?
 
Top