mars hydro 480.

danny2980

Member
Hey I'm thinking of switching to led from 600w hps. Loving the results from mh and hps but the electricity cost is ridiculous on my country. Anyone have any experience with led. I was looking at the mars hydro 480 which is ment to replace a 400w hps. I only really do 4 plants every grow. Any advice would be appreciated.
 

Stephenj37826

Well-Known Member
Hey I'm thinking of switching to led from 600w hps. Loving the results from mh and hps but the electricity cost is ridiculous on my country. Anyone have any experience with led. I was looking at the mars hydro 480 which is ment to replace a 400w hps. I only really do 4 plants every grow. Any advice would be appreciated.
Better off sticking with hid than those. Look into a quality cree cob led light found here in the forums.
 

SupraSPL

Well-Known Member
Mars Hydro model 480 = $180, actual power consumption claimed 205W. Subtract fan and driver losses and maybe 165 dissipation W in the LEDs.

Assuming 20% LED efficiency you get 33 PAR W emitted = 30 PAR W in the canopy. 30 PAR W is good for a 1'X2' flowering space at 750 PPFD. 170W+ of heat into the grow space.

So that works out $5.45/PAR W, the same cost as premium CREE and Vero fixtures that are at least twice as efficient. On top of all that there may be reliability issues, there is a chance the LEDs or driver can literally burn out and require repair.
 

sunny747

Well-Known Member
Mars Hydro model 480 = $180, actual power consumption claimed 205W. Subtract fan and driver losses and maybe 165 dissipation W in the LEDs.

Assuming 20% LED efficiency you get 33 PAR W emitted = 30 PAR W in the canopy. 30 PAR W is good for a 1'X2' flowering space at 750 PPFD. 170W+ of heat into the grow space.

So that works out $5.45/PAR W, the same cost as premium CREE and Vero fixtures that are at least twice as efficient. On top of all that there may be reliability issues, there is a chance the LEDs or driver can literally burn out and require repair.
Wow. Well said Supra.
 

TJ baba

Well-Known Member
Hey I'm thinking of switching to led from 600w hps. Loving the results from mh and hps but the electricity cost is ridiculous on my country. Anyone have any experience with led. I was looking at the mars hydro 480 which is ment to replace a 400w hps. I only really do 4 plants every grow. Any advice would be appreciated.
I just got this 600w Mars hydro, I would suggest it over the 480w just for the extra power. It's still in the mail for me so I can't tell you how it performs yet
Screenshot_2015-12-02-22-43-05.png
 

az2000

Well-Known Member
I just got this 600w Mars hydro, I would suggest it over the 480w just for the extra power. It's still in the mail for me so I can't tell you how it performs yet
Unless you're on a budget, I would cancel the order, refuse delivery. I don't think you'll be happy with that light. It's the same problem as Supra said above: just more of it. Chinese epi-whatever LEDs aren't very good. You'd do better with T5HO in a short space, or CMH in a tall space (or spend the $ for Area-51 LED).
 

az2000

Well-Known Member
$139 is a good price for about 280w. I retract my "cancel your order" comment. It might be worth the experience for that price (as opposed to a fight with the eBay seller). I didn't notice the price when I posted. I was thinking it was the typical $220 or so I recall seeing.

I don't even see it on their web site. It looks like they've changed their cases and this is a closeout of the prior model. So, that might be worth the experience.

The only thing I like about MarsHydro is that they have a support forum on 420mag. I think having some public visibility to resolve a problem is a huge asset compared to buying from less-known eBay and Amazon sellers. A lot of those guys (JoyHydroGrow comes to mind) are scammers. They sell you stuff at an incredibly low price like you're getting, then you find it doesn't put out the power they claimed, and they require you to send it back to China (for twice what it costs) "or, we'll give you a 10% refund and you can keep the light."

On a different note: their MarsHydro's website is incredibly annoying. It's like a slow teevee show. (Try scrolling with your mouse wheel. Whoever designed that site doesn't intend to use it themselves. I better shut up. I'm starting to have my wiki reaction. :lol:).
 

doz

Well-Known Member
$139 is a good price for about 280w. I retract my "cancel your order" comment. It might be worth the experience for that price (as opposed to a fight with the eBay seller). I didn't notice the price when I posted. I was thinking it was the typical $220 or so I recall seeing.

I don't even see it on their web site. It looks like they've changed their cases and this is a closeout of the prior model. So, that might be worth the experience.

The only thing I like about MarsHydro is that they have a support forum on 420mag. I think having some public visibility to resolve a problem is a huge asset compared to buying from less-known eBay and Amazon sellers. A lot of those guys (JoyHydroGrow comes to mind) are scammers. They sell you stuff at an incredibly low price like you're getting, then you find it doesn't put out the power they claimed, and they require you to send it back to China (for twice what it costs) "or, we'll give you a 10% refund and you can keep the light."

On a different note: their MarsHydro's website is incredibly annoying. It's like a slow teevee show. (Try scrolling with your mouse wheel. Whoever designed that site doesn't intend to use it themselves. I better shut up. I'm starting to have my wiki reaction. :lol:).
420mag is a joke of a website. Many of us have been banned for promoting COB lighting rather than MarsHydro. MarsHydro makes garbage lights. Look at Supras post above. He speaks the truth. On that panel that draws 278w, you might be lucky to receive 45 PAR Watts to your canopy. They are no more efficient than HPS lighting. Oh but its LED so it does not get as hot.......... No, you are just not putting as much wattage on your canopy. Equal watts with MarsHydro and HPS means equal the heat and equal the PAR Watts (if not better iwth HPS).

I would take a $150 HPS 400w setup over that piece of shit.
 

az2000

Well-Known Member
420mag is a joke of a website.
I don't want to disagree with what you said. But, in fairness, I was on there and was pushing the envelope with smokesara and the fanbase (who I often wonder aren't Mars employees using IDs to "astroturf" because they really were disgustingly True Believers). No moderators contacted me. No bans. Even when the fans were complaining that I was upsetting their love fest.

So, I understand it's a pay-to-play situation and they won't tolerate other products being promoted (perhaps even homemade COBs?). But, they took a lot from me. I stand by my assertion that a public forum where a warranty claim or something can be publicly hashed out is a net positive (compared to knuckleheads like JoyHydroGrow, and many other anonymous eBay/Amazon sellers). Of course, you have to maintain a sense of decorum. They're not going to take a flamer for long.

That's just my experience.
 

doz

Well-Known Member
I was banned for posting my Homemade COB light and suggesting that people should build their own rather than buy MarsHydro and Platinum LED. Was not promoting products, just suggesting people try DIY COB lighting as its far more efficient, cost effective, and about the best production available right now.

Neither here nor there. I understand that SmokeSara is a great rep and she tries hard. Its not her fault she promotes a shit product. She obviously does her job well as she has many people believing that MarsHydro lights are actually worth something @REALSTYLES will show you how much they are worth :D
 

az2000

Well-Known Member
MarsHydro lights are actually worth something @REALSTYLES will show you how much they are worth :D
I remember that. I argued with him for awhile. He's an alright guy (for being able to grow by candlelight. :) Remember him throwing that down when he was getting creamed about his Mars lights?).

I don't recommend them. It's just, some people are stuck on doing something. If they really must buy that class of LED, Vipar(eBay) or Mars are what I would steer people to (the best of the worst. Some knowledgeable people here like Vipar under those qualifications, "don't do it... but..." I think Mars fits because of the public forum.).

I have considered Blackstar is next on the list because of the on-shore warranty (and Victor's nice). But, for $180 (85w actual UFO) a person can get A51's 90w. Lifetime warranty, better lumens/watt. So, that doesn't make sense anymore. (Although, I really like that Blackstar UFO in a short space. I don't think the A51 could do that unless dimmed, and then you have to have more of them, I think....?).
 

TJ baba

Well-Known Member
420mag is a joke of a website. Many of us have been banned for promoting COB lighting rather than MarsHydro. MarsHydro makes garbage lights. Look at Supras post above. He speaks the truth. On that panel that draws 278w, you might be lucky to receive 45 PAR Watts to your canopy. They are no more efficient than HPS lighting. Oh but its LED so it does not get as hot.......... No, you are just not putting as much wattage on your canopy. Equal watts with MarsHydro and HPS means equal the heat and equal the PAR Watts (if not better iwth HPS).

I would take a $150 HPS 400w setup over that piece of shit.
I definitely gotta look into DIY COB, sounds like something I would like to incorporate. Although I know nothing about it right now. But as for the mars hydro 600w, I'm hoping that it will be an upgrade from my 4 CFLs.
 

az2000

Well-Known Member
I definitely gotta look into DIY COB, sounds like something I would like to incorporate. Although I know nothing about it right now. But as for the mars hydro 600w, I'm hoping that it will be an upgrade from my 4 CFLs.
Maybe better spectrum than CFL. In terms of energy use. Almost everyone describes their fixtures using the rated capacity (5w chips x number of chips, even through they're not driven at 5w). So, say 300w (you can buy a Kill-A-Watt meter to see). I usually go by actual draw without differentiating the expense of the internal fan, etc.). In that case, I'd say 50-55w per sq. ft in flower. It will veg well at 35w/sq ft (but everything vegs well).

What I would recommend is that you use it for veg and you'll be really happy. It will cover almost 3x3 at that power requirement. In flower, you'll need to lower it to cover 2.4x2.4 to have 50w/sq ft. You could add some Cree lightbulbs around the edges to maintain the 3x3 coverage. That would leverage what you probably have already with your CFLs. You could redeploy that equipment, just replacing the CFL bulbs with Cree lightbulbs (and/or spots/floods). That would be an easy way to scale up to better light.

Later, if you replace the Mars with something better (DIY, A51?) you could still use it as a veg light. And, the side lighting is *always* handy to have. I think side lighting is one of the best things that can be done in flower.
 

doz

Well-Known Member
I definitely gotta look into DIY COB, sounds like something I would like to incorporate. Although I know nothing about it right now. But as for the mars hydro 600w, I'm hoping that it will be an upgrade from my 4 CFLs.
Just get a 400w HPS and be happy. It will probably last longer and produce better. DIY COB is super easy but if you dont think you can, there are companies selling good fixtures at decent prices. That MarsHydro600 (its not 600w, they call it the 600 because they THINK it can out perform 600w of HPS which it cant) can easily be outdone by a 200w CXB3070 setup. With 4x CXB3070 AD bin, HLG185-1400c driver, you can push ~200w (about 80 PAR WATT after loss) which is nearly double what that MarsHydro600 can output PAR wise. Order from Jerry and you can make a DIY setup for $270 with all the supplies needed (including heatsinks).
 

daillman

Member
I just got this 600w Mars hydro, I would suggest it over the 480w just for the extra power. It's still in the mail for me so I can't tell you how it performs yet
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I've watched plenty of grows on the tube and those guys get great results,I think you'll be happy. I'm going with two of the 300w 60x5 leds just for more placement options.
 
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