DiY LEDs - How to Power Them

nevergoodenuf

nevergoodenuf

Well-Known Member
The outdoor flood lights I am using came with 2 meanwell cen-100-36 and 4 bridgelux COBs, not Veros. It was running 3 different color temps. I used them for over a year before I upgraded the chips in it for Veros. The light was already wired in parallel. I have, since then, ran 4 on one driver and 2 on a driver without any problems. All I have to think about when I build my lights is what wattage driver I want, not how many COBs I can fit on a driver. Also, with a couple Y adaptors I can easily switch up and an add another driver. I found these push-in plugs at Homedepot. Until I have problems with this setup I will continue to do all my builds in parallel. Sorry, I know nothing about 2 drivers per COB.
 
robincnn

robincnn

Well-Known Member
speedyganga said:
I have designed a lamp for a 2x4x5 recently,
If you want to go cheap : 2 arctic cooling or any other good CPU cooler, 2 LPC 150-1750, 2 vero 29. Plug the 2 driver in // and then the led in serie. It would give you aprox 315W of led at 37% efficiency (veros driven @3,5A)
Click to expand...
Just checked here. The efficiency will be little less than 35%. The higher case temp due to high current will further reduce efficiency.
I am not sure if connecting output of 2 drivers in parallel is good idea. I would have chosen LPC-150-3150 for each vero 29 if i wanted to drive Vero at high power with a cheep power supply
Also I am not sure if Arctic alpine 11 CPU coolers are designed to handle 157.5 watts each. Good to know they are working fine for you.

Just saw LPC-150 is only 180~305VAC

@GFS_Nic, Not sure about Inventronics
ELG-150-C1400B looks like a nice dimmable option. Why not HLG-120H-C1400 instead, little more expensive, 7 year warranty and higher efficiency
HLG-120H is a 150 watt driver 54~108V, 1400mA
LPC-150-1400 is cheaper but not dimmable.


@Solandras
Why CXA2540, why no CXB 3070
Where did you see CXA2540's @ 56.2% efficiency ?
Here is spreadsheet for best bins in 3070 and 3590
For flower 30W - 50W per sqft
Not sure but for veg 15W per sqft should be good.
Solandras said:
Would it make more sense to run 16 @ 500ma with 2 HLG-120H-C500 drivers? I think the dimmable option might make sense, but I'm running into issues concerning how much dimming capability there is, the range, and the lumen output along the capacity of the driver..
Click to expand...
HLG-120H-C500A 50% - 100%
HLG-120H-C500B 10% - 100% requires external pot. Read here for detail

OrganicCanuck said:
Hello everyone, I decided to go with vero 29s, (12)-3000k + (3)-4000K. 3 separate heat sinks 36"length by 8" width. 5 leds/ Heat sink, with switch Veg/Bloom, Bloom being all lights On, and veg being 2 led per Heat sink (1)3000k + (1)4000k. Couple Fans each heat sink. Driven by HLG-185H-C1050ma 191Vmax, 5 LED/ String @ 38W per Led. With a grand total of 570W Bloom, 342W Veg. To be Hung In a 4X4 Tent each units spacing to be
6" 8" 6" 8" 6" 8" 6" - 8" being the width of the heat sink and 6" being the space between heat sinks. 36" length heat sink with 6" space in front and behind.
Does this sound alright? Any suggestions would be grand
The reason I am using so many Led is for future if I want to upgrade to larger space, I just have to upgrade the drivers and push the leds more.
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Sounds good. Vero 29's at 1amp should give 44% efficiency. Veros have build in holder and good for first DIY
CXB 3070 is around 54% efficiency. that's 22% more light. see here I think vero 29's are like $30 each and CXB is like around $37.50 (plus cost of cob holder) at Jerry
 
OrganicCanuck

OrganicCanuck

Well-Known Member
Thank you Robincnn : ) . So 10% increase in efficiency equates to 22% more usable light? or does this have to do more with the binning of the available cxa3070's.

I have read the Vero's when pushed a little harder say 2 amps+ are more efficient, so at first with the set up I have I may be at a loss of efficiency , but if I were to upgrade my working space and drive the veros harder. Than I would technically be on the other side of the fence.

Thank you for your input! I will check out that Jerry link you sent, I have found the Cree chips to be harder to come by for orders under say 20-50, It may even be wise to order more than I need anyways.
 
A

array

Member
Hi Supra, or anyone else, what is the formula you use to make those spreadsheets with the different lum/watt at different currents and different heat? How do you come up with the numbers?
 
robincnn

robincnn

Well-Known Member
array said:
Hi Supra, or anyone else, what is the formula you use to make those spreadsheets with the different lum/watt at different currents and different heat? How do you come up with the numbers?
Click to expand...
check the Math Behind thread
We also have www.cree.com/pct for lm/w at different current and case temperature

Seriousbuds said:
Anyone know a good driver to run 2x Vero 29s at for vegging?
I'm not sure if I can run two on a Meanwell LPC 150-1750
Click to expand...
Yes LPC-150-1750 (43V ~ 86V) can power 2 veros in series. May be around 130-135 watts total. But remember LPC-150 is 180 - 305 V AC Only. So will not work with US standard voltage.
Vero spreadsheets are here .

OrganicCanuck said:
Thank you Robincnn : ) . So 10% increase in efficiency equates to 22% more usable light? or does this have to do more with the binning of the available cxa3070's.
I have read the Vero's when pushed a little harder say 2 amps+ are more efficient, so at first with the set up I have I may be at a loss of efficiency , but if I were to upgrade my working space and drive the veros harder. Than I would technically be on the other side of the fence.
Thank you for your input! I will check out that Jerry link you sent, I have found the Cree chips to be harder to come by for orders under say 20-50, It may even be wise to order more than I need anyways.
Click to expand...
10% Increase in efficiency is not always 22% more light. here is the calculation
Assuming vero 29 is 44% efficient and 3070 is 54%
Then How much more usable light = (54-44) /44 = 0.227 or 22.7% more light

If you compare top bin 3070 spreadsheet here with Vero 29 spreadsheet here
you will see that 3070 looks efficient than vero 29 even at 2.8 amps
but problem is the higher thermal resistance of ceramic cxb increases case temperature and you get a big decrease in efficiency called temp droop at higher current
but since you powering it at 1050ma you can increase to 1400ma or even 1750ma if you want more light. I dont know what is other side of fence as it depends on cooling and other factors. My guess it is when current is over 2.1Amps

If you worried about intensity. Instead of 5 on a single 1050ma driver. You can do 4 (3070 or 3590 but not vero 29) on a single 1400ma driver.
With 1400ma you can always dim it down it its too much light. For dimming read here
30-50 watts per sqft for flowering.
 
disengaged

disengaged

Member
answered my own question below...
I have a chinese power supply / cc led driver for driving a chinese cob. Input wires for AC are brown, yellow, blue. Don't know what goes to what for 120 volt AC. Input is listed as 90-266V AC. Output states 36V 900mA
Anyone know the answer for wire color? Is it hot, netural, ground and if so which goes where? The label makes no sense, mentions all of those colors on the DC output side right next to the red and black which ARE one the DC side as expected.
I'm not even sure how to test it with a MM.
EDIT
I should have read more before asking. The Meanwell pdf indicates these are European colors and (yes, I have one of their drivers but have not opened the box)
live = black = brown
neutral = white = blue
ground = green = green/yellow

good to know, it helps with other projects I'm working on to keep standardized.
 
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robincnn

robincnn

Well-Known Member
bong_wather said:
I think i would like to use a separat drives at biger amp. Someone in forum whrote that MW LPF-90D-42 would be good for the job ?
I'm aiming for biger yield not efficientsy.
Click to expand...
All these can power single vero 29
Lpf 90d 42 will give 2.25A max. Is dimmable.
Npf 90 42 can dim 2.25 A
Npf 120 42 can dim 2.99A
hlg 120 42 can dim 2.99 A
Lpc-100-2100 no dimming 2.1A

Target 30 to 50 watt per sqft
 
S

Seriousbuds

Active Member
robincnn said:
All these can power single vero 29
Lpf 90d 42 will give 2.25A max. Is dimmable.
Npf 90 42 can dim 2.25 A
Npf 120 42 can dim 2.99A
hlg 120 42 can dim 2.99 A
Lpc-100-2100 no dimming 2.1A

Target 30 to 50 watt per sqft
Click to expand...
Which one of these will work in American sockets?

Thanks for that too by the way I never would have considered European outlet models!
 
smokehog

smokehog

Well-Known Member
Hi,i have bought 6 x cxb3590, 6 x holders. I am having 4 on one heatsink and the other 2 i am thinking of putting in 2 x led security lights to spread the light in the room.

If i run 1 x cxb 3590 36v 3500k on 1 of the secuity lights, will i need a fan or is the heatsink big enough?

new2.JPG new1.JPG
Power: 50W
Emitting Color: Cool White
LED Color: 6000K-6500K
LED Form: 60 SMD
Beam Angle: 120°
Input: 85-265V
Lumen: 4000-4500 Lumens
Size: 225mm*185mm*100mm (LxWxH)
Life time: 50,000h
Lens covered with waterproof material
Shell material: Aluminium

I am hoping the ideal holder fits in the middle of the light, its a cheaper option.

cheers
 
Andrew2112

Andrew2112

Well-Known Member
Anyone know how or if repurposing cheap chinese led panels is possible? Some bulbs have burned out and I wanted to replace them.
 
disengaged

disengaged

Member
On the home stretch of my build.
What is an inexpensive method of powering / driving three strings of "2-3w" LED's and having them dimmable for supplemental spectrum for a Vero 29 4,000K cabinet?
For my requirments, from least important to most important...

string 1, for that end of day effect - far red:
- Forward Voltage is 2.35V @ 350ma, 2.6 @ 700ma
- Max current - 700ma
how many required? this would only be used ~20 minutes a day and not that often, still reading up so cheapest driver

string 2, deep red, maybe mixed with red
They vary, but usually 2 to 2.2V

String 3, royal blue
I have considered using 2-4 of the 12W Phillips Luxeon ES Royal Blue. Fewer wires and they would fit on the build I have going.
This cabinet will largely be used for growing leafy vegetables with maybe one grow per year for medicine.
It is my hope the COB's at 4,000K plus royal blue is a pretty good all around spectrum.

This is for a 2x3' cabinet that already has 4 Vero 29's 4,000K at 1050mA (plus a single blurple "30W" at 700mA)... or it will after I finish wiring the fixture.

I have a few laptop power supplies, the largest are 20V 6A. They are constant voltage and I assume the LED's will just draw their full current if I match up the expected voltage for the LED's ???

Is this an application where a PWM controller would work?
 
robincnn

robincnn

Well-Known Member
Lower Power, Low Cost, Single COB Meanwell PLM-40 Driver, PFC function, 88% efficiency, $16-$20/ driver
upload_2015-10-28_21-58-11.png
Cheep good quality driver if you want to power a low power single COB. Great price and comes with Power Factor Correction.
To connect AC or DC side wire, just unscrew cover, and then press lever, insert wire and release. Done
Tested this driver (500ma version) with a 72V CXA 3590 AD 2700K. This cob was lying in my toolbox for 6 months and works perfect. Cree is more tough than i thought.
upload_2015-10-28_22-6-22.png
COB is 2700K, too much red. I can keep it for supplement light in flowering. The driver is 500ma so I can add 2 or 3 blue from Rapid LED if needed

This driver has a unique feature that is awesome for home lighting but may not be useful in grow room. You can switch the power off and then on quickly and it dims the light.
upload_2015-10-28_22-8-33.png
 

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