DiY LEDs - How to Power Them

caverage

Active Member
Perfectdeal_US got 50W drivers back in stock but unfortunately they are different :(
1.26A and 88.5% efficient, non power factor corrected. Hopefully they will refund but it was a deal outside of eBay.
View attachment 3324232
Can these still be used safely on cxa3070s ? I bought 4 of them from the same seller. I was hoping to use them until I get the better drivers

I'm trying to wrap my head around pfc and what it means to use a driver that isn't
 

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UKpeanuts

Well-Known Member
@ Supra - I've been lurking these forums for a while. NO doubt you're a font of knowledge, but I'm not sure I agree with your statement about PFC (I probably don't understand it correctly....)

"Non-PFC in a nutshell draws more current but not more Watts"

We pay for Apparent Power (VA), but we only see useful work done from Real Power (W)

Lets say that for example that this image represents a device with PF of 0.8.
if we reduced the PF to 0.4 then Q would double (ish) and so VA increases, if VA increases we pay more.

Please correct me if I'm wrong, I am doubting myself know...



Kind Regards,

UKP
 
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Greengenes707

Well-Known Member
I tested 4 cxa3070 on a hlg185h-c1400. They lit up no problem. But there definitely is a cap on the voltage and it doesn't just give take with current. It was only drawing 150w max... pushing 980ma. I didn't test the voltage. I didn't want to damage anything so I shut it down since it wasn't going any higher current wise.
 

Abiqua

Well-Known Member
@SupraSPL posted about these a few weeks ago. Seems the only thing he reported out of the ordinary was when less than all 4 channels were hooked up, did it act funny...87-89% efficient I believe is what he measured....

I attached the datasheet if anyone is interested. I was interested in these awhile back and poked around for the datasheet....when searching, I saw the same model at Sears of all places and they were asking $200+!!!!!!!!

[ps when you 1st open the PDF it says it is for the 160DT, but on page 3, it also has specs for the ST, so this is the correct datasheet :peace: ]
 

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stock

Well-Known Member
i hook up today 4 cxa3070 ab to this driver hlg185h-c1050b and then check draw volts ,it was approximately draw 136 volt ,which seems strange to me ,i know each diode should be able draw 38.5 volts at least ,but somehow driver acting weird or may be i do something wrong ? then i pull my apogee par meter and check reading at 24 inches and it show me 90 par :roll: on 12 inch it was around 320 par .Is this numbers seems ok to you guys ?Seems to me it is very weak ... May be i bought wrong drivers ?
 
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AquariusPanta

Well-Known Member
i hook up today 4 cxa3070 ab to this driver hlg185h-c1050b and then check draw volts ,it was approximately draw 136 volt ,which seems strange to me ,i know each diode should be able draw 38.5 volts at least ,but somehow driver acting weird or may be i do something wrong ? then i pull my apogee par meter and check reading at 24 inches and it show me 90 par :roll: on 12 inch it was around 320 par .Is this numbers seems ok to you guys ?Seems to me it is very weak ... May be i bought wrong drivers ?
Sounds about right to me
 

SupraSPL

Well-Known Member
PAR meters, even apogee, unfortunately cannot see red, deep reds and blue as well as it can see greens/yellows etc. So the measurements are not absolute figures, but they can be used for relative comparisons. However, at 24" you would need a good reflector, which would very significantly boost the light, maybe 30%. Even at 12" a short reflector would be a nice boost.

136V is a strange reading for sure, 34V each, what method are you using to dim it? Do you have confidence in the accuracy of the voltmeter? And were you able to check the current of the LED string and/or power draw at the wall?
 
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Greengenes707

Well-Known Member
The 34v a piece is strange. And the par reading is low imo. COBs are not intense as we usually know it...par numbers and distance form source. Then spread/desing plays a big roll in PPFD readings.
Apogee uses the worst of the quantum meters sensors. The others are more accurate...specially the one li-core uses. But they over estimate for the lack of sensitivity in the upper ranges. So it does even out if the spectrum is somewhat sun like(like WW leds).
The only absolutes are spectroradiometers...all the others are great practical ways to get consistant and fairly accurate measurements. I have tested apogee vs licore vs spectroradiometer...they are all very similar, specially apogee vs licore(even using illumitex spectrum...very 660 heavy, as well as AT an IG spectrums)...but spectroradiometer gives the highest and most accurate readings.
With all that said about meters...the meter is not the problem I guarantee. You need to find out the current that is goign into them for us to really know where is issue is.

I have 6 cxa's(4K AD bin) somewhat clustered on a heatsink using a hlg120h-c700...and I get >600µmols at 18"
My drone is has 6 cxa(3K AB bin) spread out but driven 2X as hard(1400ma) using 2 hlg185h-c1400...and I get good numbers at ~12"

Here is my drone at 12"(3x3) and 24"(4x4) for reference. 1400ma ~10" on center
IMG_3757.jpg IMG_3758.jpg IMG_3737.jpg
 
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stock

Well-Known Member
The 34v a piece is strange. And the par reading is low imo. COBs are not intense as we usually know it...par numbers and distance form source. Then spread/desing plays a big roll in PPFD readings.
Apogee uses the worst of the quantum meters sensors. The others are more accurate...specially the one li-core uses. But they over estimate for the lack of sensitivity in the upper ranges. So it does even out if the spectrum is somewhat sun like(like WW leds).
The only absolutes are spectroradiometers...all the others are great practical ways to get consistant and fairly accurate measurements. I have tested apogee vs licore vs spectroradiometer...they are all very similar, specially apogee vs licore(even using illumitex spectrum...very 660 heavy, as well as AT an IG spectrums)...but spectroradiometer gives the highest and most accurate readings.
With all that said about meters...the meter is not the problem I guarantee. You need to find out the current that is goign into them for us to really know where is issue is.

I have 6 cxa's(4K AD bin) somewhat clustered on a heatsink using a hlg120h-c700...and I get >600µmols at 18"
My drone is has 6 cxa(3K AB bin) spread out but driven 2X as hard(1400ma) using 2 hlg185h-c1400...and I get good numbers at ~12"

Here is my drone at 12"(3x3) and 24"(4x4) for reference. 1400ma ~10" on center
View attachment 3332334 View attachment 3332335 View attachment 3332336
May be hlg185h-c1400 is more powerful option than hlg185h-c1050 ? I don't use anything to dim it .Right i place 12 cxa 3070 ab h on 3 drivers hlg185h-c1050 ,and draw from wall was 509 watt , 4.4 amp . When i use damn apogee meter :) now on 12 inches it shows 684 umol ,i guess :) ,so compare to at600 seems my light still have long way to go :) May be i need to add lenses or reflectors ? I saw at600 have some type of lenses. Or i need to use different drivers to drive them harder ?
Thank you in advance
 

SupraSPL

Well-Known Member
Very cool setup, but to give fair warning, those heatsinks are going to get super smokin hot. Each will be trying to get rid of 21.5W of heat and since the fins are so close they need more than just convection they need "pressure" between the fins. In my testing I measured CXA3070 AB @ 1.05A on CPU cooler with no fan - heatsink temps reached 55C and rising so I stopped the test. Temp droop was 12.7% and rising.
 
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