QB324 Warning
- Thread starter Prawn Connery
- Start date
419 got a minute
Member
Agreed goofy81. Finding the screw to be the problem after every step of the build is what's weird. Especially for non no name top of the line leds. I think its bad luck of the draw that a few screws worth a few cents given for free with boards can possibly cause an issue. I only encountered two screws that did cause issues. Awesome boards as far as 288 boards go.....purchase a multimeter you must. 
speedyganga
Well-Known Member
Any board designer knows that this is not conform with electrical security norms...
Copper plane should have 3mm distance to any metallic part, screw head, holes and board outline included !
Copper plane should have 3mm distance to any metallic part, screw head, holes and board outline included !
Prawn Connery
Well-Known Member
That's exactly what I did before powering up to test if there was a short. There wasn't, and all the boards powered up. It was only after about a week of running that the heat cycles took their toll and the matrix mask started to rub off around the screw edges and make contact. I still should have known better, so wear part of the blame.
Goldy
Well-Known Member
Would you still recommend the QB324 & slate combo - based on how it is now being sold, and how yours are currently performing - ignoring the issues you personally experienced that are now sorted? (Is the problem sorted?). Would really like to grab a couple..but kinda unsure now...
Rocket Soul
Well-Known Member
+1! Sorry to hear about the issues you had @Prawn Connery , but this was my first reaction aswell: how do they grow, in comparison to straight 3000k-80cri if youve been able to compare.
Prawn Connery
Well-Known Member
They seem to be doing OK. We won't know until the plants have finished flowering - another 5-6 weeks away - but with 400w running through each double-board frame (200w per QB324), they are easily keeping up with the 600w HPS plants next door.
The main reason I chose the QB324 boards was the spectrum: on spectrum alone, they beat the QB288/304 boards.
The Nichia LEDs in the QB324 are not as efficient as the LM301Bs, and you do not have the option of a CV driver or running in parallel, as the boards are about 108v each - 216v in series.
That said, the QB324s can be driven - in theory - twice as high as the QB288s. That is 300+W compared to 150W (QB324 uses 6.5v/150ma Nichia 757 series leds; QB288 uses 2.9v/180ma LM301B - although that max rating may have gone up to 3.1v/200ma, as I might be looking at an older spec sheet). HLG states maximum 250W for the QB324, which is really a limit of the board design, not the LEDs.
HLG also advises running the QB324s up to 160W with the Slate 2 heat sinks, but we have fans and aircon running in the room, so have pushed this to 200W without any apparent issues. At 200W per board, the LEDs are running at just over 60% of their max duty cycle, so this makes up somewhat for the reduced efficiency compared to the QB288/LM301Bs.
So, would I recommend them?
Yes and no. The combo boards with Slate 2 heatsinks are good value at their current price, and if you have active cooling, you can run them appreciably higher than the QB288/304 boards - so even better bang for buck.
The flowering spectrum is possibly the best on offer - though we will only know this for sure once we have finished flowering.
The caveat is, it also depends on your style of grow. Our plan is to use two Quantum Boards over 1 plant to replicate a 1 plant/600W HPS grow (we are trying to limit numbers for legal reasons).
However, if you scrog, then I like strips, as they offer better light distribution and heat dissipation. The new H inFlux Samsung strips look awesome - though they're not cheap. The F Series still offer great value. But by the time you have mounted them on aluminium U-channel etc, you may not be saving as much over the QB324 combo offer, and this also doesn't take into account the amount of time you spend sourcing and building the frames. The QB324s are easy to mount.
The only real killer for me is shipping cost: US$85 for four boards and heatsinks compared to free shipping from Arrow/Digikey. If you are in the US, it's a no-brainer - the QB324s are excellent value, IMO.
As for results, I'll let you know in a few weeks how we're doing. If it's successful, as I mentioned earlier, we may buy a bunch more of these boards - so that's probably your answer there!
The main reason I chose the QB324 boards was the spectrum: on spectrum alone, they beat the QB288/304 boards.
The Nichia LEDs in the QB324 are not as efficient as the LM301Bs, and you do not have the option of a CV driver or running in parallel, as the boards are about 108v each - 216v in series.
That said, the QB324s can be driven - in theory - twice as high as the QB288s. That is 300+W compared to 150W (QB324 uses 6.5v/150ma Nichia 757 series leds; QB288 uses 2.9v/180ma LM301B - although that max rating may have gone up to 3.1v/200ma, as I might be looking at an older spec sheet). HLG states maximum 250W for the QB324, which is really a limit of the board design, not the LEDs.
HLG also advises running the QB324s up to 160W with the Slate 2 heat sinks, but we have fans and aircon running in the room, so have pushed this to 200W without any apparent issues. At 200W per board, the LEDs are running at just over 60% of their max duty cycle, so this makes up somewhat for the reduced efficiency compared to the QB288/LM301Bs.
So, would I recommend them?
Yes and no. The combo boards with Slate 2 heatsinks are good value at their current price, and if you have active cooling, you can run them appreciably higher than the QB288/304 boards - so even better bang for buck.
The flowering spectrum is possibly the best on offer - though we will only know this for sure once we have finished flowering.
The caveat is, it also depends on your style of grow. Our plan is to use two Quantum Boards over 1 plant to replicate a 1 plant/600W HPS grow (we are trying to limit numbers for legal reasons).
However, if you scrog, then I like strips, as they offer better light distribution and heat dissipation. The new H inFlux Samsung strips look awesome - though they're not cheap. The F Series still offer great value. But by the time you have mounted them on aluminium U-channel etc, you may not be saving as much over the QB324 combo offer, and this also doesn't take into account the amount of time you spend sourcing and building the frames. The QB324s are easy to mount.
The only real killer for me is shipping cost: US$85 for four boards and heatsinks compared to free shipping from Arrow/Digikey. If you are in the US, it's a no-brainer - the QB324s are excellent value, IMO.
As for results, I'll let you know in a few weeks how we're doing. If it's successful, as I mentioned earlier, we may buy a bunch more of these boards - so that's probably your answer there!
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Prawn Connery
Well-Known Member
Just remember, don't do this! One of the confusing things about the HLG website is the sample photo shows the boards mounted with the old-style black screws with no nylon washers - which we now know is a no-no!
Rocket Soul
Well-Known Member
Thx PC.
As im EU based qbs are not my first choice due to shipping. May wanna do some spectrum tweaking with boards/strips and vesta strips. Having your 90 cri on a separate strip means you can control a bit where you want your plants to stretch. And also get some 5000k for kicks.
Please keep on on updating the pics as we really see so little of mixed CRI grows nowadyas, im glad you got yourself sorted out w HLG
As im EU based qbs are not my first choice due to shipping. May wanna do some spectrum tweaking with boards/strips and vesta strips. Having your 90 cri on a separate strip means you can control a bit where you want your plants to stretch. And also get some 5000k for kicks.
Please keep on on updating the pics as we really see so little of mixed CRI grows nowadyas, im glad you got yourself sorted out w HLG
Goldy
Well-Known Member
Is the shipping directly from HLG more than the amount stated? It already has an amount given which seems reasonable
*edit..it sounds like a weird question, but I mean do you get an email with an updated (rest of the) cost?
Prawn Connery
Well-Known Member
There is a shipping option during checkout and it should be that amount. As I said, I'm in Australia so shipping is a lot more for me. If you're in the US, I'm sure it's a lot cheaper.
OneHitDone
Well-Known Member
Hey guys, got my QB288's installed
https://tenor.com/view/mike-pence-electric-electricity-shock-gif-8499167
https://tenor.com/view/mike-pence-electric-electricity-shock-gif-8499167