QB96 Elite V2 w/ SSTX heatsink question

yummy fur

Well-Known Member
@Or_Gro , I finally found the right video that gave me exactly what I needed to know about the type A. It was halfway through the 4th part of the series.
I see that I can set it up to use the voltage as the dimmer. I'm wondering if I can get 4A from a 185H 54A is I max the voltage, LED gardener seems to have gotten 2.7A from a 120H that's supposed to be 2.3A
 

Or_Gro

Well-Known Member
They are on the way. I'll pm you tracking.
@Stephenj37826

Received the replacement 96s and pads, thank you.

I will be sending the three defective 96s back as soon as i figure out how to use these new pads.

The pads have clear plastic on both sides. One of those clear sides is thicker and comes off easily, the other, thinner clear plastic side doesn’t seem to detach.

So, four questions:

1. Is the thinner clear plastic cover supposed to remain attached to the pad?

2. If it is supposed to remain attached, which side goes against the circuit board: plastic or pad?

3. If the thinner clear cover is supposed to be removed, how do you recommend that be done?

4. Why isn’t there a set of instructions regarding proper application of the pads included with the replacement pads?

I’d prefer not to have to changeout these pads again.....
 
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Or_Gro

Well-Known Member
@Or_Gro , I finally found the right video that gave me exactly what I needed to know about the type A. It was halfway through the 4th part of the series.
I see that I can set it up to use the voltage as the dimmer. I'm wondering if I can get 4A from a 185H 54A is I max the voltage, LED gardener seems to have gotten 2.7A from a 120H that's supposed to be 2.3A
Like Mr. Connery said, YMMV...

I use individual 240h-54A. All can run higher than max rating, some higher than others.

I’m no expert on drivers, but if 3.86amp is the max rating, you could probably squeeze an extra 3.5% out of them, when needed.

However if i were planning to run them consistently above rating, i’d move up to a higher rated driver.
 

Randomblame

Well-Known Member
thanks for the input, i have been doing my research and i think i have a pretty good handle on it all.

which ever route i went i would take the "more 301b strips/301b boards/qb96 and drive them softer" approach.
and if you go the strip/board route you start to get to quite a large, dense build almost like an artificial ceiling which might start messing with air circulation. i think i can build a more minimal neater rig with the qb96's that will allow for better room circulation.

as for controlability i think thats defo where the market is going, chilled led are going in the right direction with thier boards and controllers with the separate channels.
is their controller currently about the best that is available?

I wound'nd call it the best! There are lots of reef-controllers available one can also use to dimm HLG and ELG-series B drivers but the controller needs 10v pwm compatibility. So for some controllers an additional 0-10v to 5v pwm extension board is needed. The HurricaneX controller for instance..
There are also LED controllers especially made for growing; they control water, nutes, light, enivomental conditions, mimic sun rise/sun set, have a smartphone interface, etc. etc.
Project Kiasmos for instance has its own thread here and as far as I know the controller is already in the beta stage and should soon be available. Maybe is already?? Simple search the LED forum..

And a huge fixture is not really a problem in terms of heat and moving air. The exaust fan will remove the heat anyway and up to 1000μMol/s/m² carries more than enough energy to heat up the grow space to the desired 28-30°C.

I've only a 2" gap around the strip/COB based fixture in my 10sft area but the heat itselfs cause more than enough airflow between the c-channels because of natural convection. And the c-channels have just 10-20mm spacings (see signature)...
Even with a closed board above the canopy it's not a problem. The light in my little veg area has 10mm along the sides and 80mm on each end (again, see signature). So you can safely forget it..
 

Randomblame

Well-Known Member
@Or_Gro , I finally found the right video that gave me exactly what I needed to know about the type A. It was halfway through the 4th part of the series.
I see that I can set it up to use the voltage as the dimmer. I'm wondering if I can get 4A from a 185H 54A is I max the voltage, LED gardener seems to have gotten 2.7A from a 120H that's supposed to be 2.3A

Like Mr. Connery said, YMMV...

I use individual 240h-54A. All can run higher than max rating, some higher than others.

I’m no expert on drivers, but if 3.86amp is the max rating, you could probably squeeze an extra 3.5% out of them, when needed.

However if i were planning to run them consistently above rating, i’d move up to a higher rated driver.
+1!!
A a version driver at the absolute maximum output gets pretty hot and can lose the ability to run in constant current mode. If you set the voltage higher like nominal the driver is also forced to work in CV mode. Depending on the circuit design this can become an issue. But to be honest, not that often because we usually don't push the diodes to the limits. But when the boards or strips already run at max current and one module fails the remaining modules would get even more current so this can cause a cascade.
 

grotbags

Well-Known Member
I wound'nd call it the best! There are lots of reef-controllers available one can also use to dimm HLG and ELG-series B drivers but the controller needs 10v pwm compatibility. So for some controllers an additional 0-10v to 5v pwm extension board is needed. The HurricaneX controller for instance..
There are also LED controllers especially made for growing; they control water, nutes, light, enivomental conditions, mimic sun rise/sun set, have a smartphone interface, etc. etc.
Project Kiasmos for instance has its own thread here and as far as I know the controller is already in the beta stage and should soon be available. Maybe is already?? Simple search the LED forum..

And a huge fixture is not really a problem in terms of heat and moving air. The exaust fan will remove the heat anyway and up to 1000μMol/s/m² carries more than enough energy to heat up the grow space to the desired 28-30°C.

I've only a 2" gap around the strip/COB based fixture in my 10sft area but the heat itselfs cause more than enough airflow between the c-channels because of natural convection. And the c-channels have just 10-20mm spacings (see signature)...
Even with a closed board above the canopy it's not a problem. The light in my little veg area has 10mm along the sides and 80mm on each end (again, see signature). So you can safely forget it..
thanks for the input... i have seen the hurricanex but thought i had read it couldnt turn off meanwell drivers or something? to be honest i cant quite remember now, i read that much stuff over the last few weeks that its all a bit hazzy now trying to remember haha.
i have followed hyakutak koada project and it looks good its just not quite finished yet. i have also seen some diy arduino projects but i think i would rather just buy something, i have enough projects on the go without try to learn all that arduino stuff lol. also seen vegaswinners growgreen controller looks ok but he mentions 8 channels at 200w how would this work with 2 large led lights of say 800w each?, maybe i didnt read it right...

as for the air circulation stuff, yer your probably right i was just thinking out loud. i still think i can build a more attractive minimal fixture with the qb96's.
 

Or_Gro

Well-Known Member
thanks for the input... i have seen the hurricanex but thought i had read it couldnt turn off meanwell drivers or something? to be honest i cant quite remember now, i read that much stuff over the last few weeks that its all a bit hazzy now trying to remember haha.
i have followed hyakutak koada project and it looks good its just not quite finished yet. i have also seen some diy arduino projects but i think i would rather just buy something, i have enough projects on the go without try to learn all that arduino stuff lol. also seen vegaswinners growgreen controller looks ok but he mentions 8 channels at 200w how would this work with 2 large led lights of say 800w each?, maybe i didnt read it right...

as for the air circulation stuff, yer your probably right i was just thinking out loud. i still think i can build a more attractive minimal fixture with the qb96's.
The diodes and their spectral selection now cover evenly and intensely enough that they are no longer the limiting factor for cannabis yield & quality.

They are also now available in large enuff quatities that any company wishing to make kickass boards can do so.

In other words. the diodes are now commodities.

Over on GC there are hints of the competition to come from those making the same or better boards than HLG, like invisible sun (uk). I am aware of others who are not yet in the market. Competition in this space will be heating up.

Like i indicated earlier, imo, the next big step forward will be ac to dc controllers, on-board or stand alone, specifically designed for switching, dimming, and spectrally tuning multiple source growleds.

I do this now manually, can’t wait for a good and affordable plug-n-play solution...made for growleds...
 
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yummy fur

Well-Known Member
Like Mr. Connery said, YMMV...

I use individual 240h-54A. All can run higher than max rating, some higher than others.

I’m no expert on drivers, but if 3.86amp is the max rating, you could probably squeeze an extra 3.5% out of them, when needed.

However if i were planning to run them consistently above rating, i’d move up to a higher rated driver.
I gave some serious consideration to the 240 but in the end I decided that I want to keep this simple and not have to have active cooling. I'm happy to run more of these if they perform as expected.


@Randomblame, I'm happy to run cooler.


Just found the ideal little angle bracket that fits onto the heat sink using the four larger spare screws. As a bonus I disovered that it protrudes just enough to protect the diodes if placed face down.

IMG_2058.JPG IMG_2059.JPG
 

yummy fur

Well-Known Member
Thosee angle brackets open up a lot of possibilities.Nice find.
Yeah I just returned from the local hardware store rabbit hole, and after lots of permutations I have come up with what seems to be the simplest way to hang while also having some side ways tilting capability.

I proudly present version 2.0... the top bar will self level if attached at corners allowing light to swivel left or right by loosening wing nuts.

IMG_2061.JPG IMG_2062.JPG IMG_2063.JPG IMG_2064.JPG
 
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Randomblame

Well-Known Member
thanks for the input... i have seen the hurricanex but thought i had read it couldnt turn off meanwell drivers or something? to be honest i cant quite remember now, i read that much stuff over the last few weeks that its all a bit hazzy now trying to remember haha.
i have followed hyakutak koada project and it looks good its just not quite finished yet. i have also seen some diy arduino projects but i think i would rather just buy something, i have enough projects on the go without try to learn all that arduino stuff lol. also seen vegaswinners growgreen controller looks ok but he mentions 8 channels at 200w how would this work with 2 large led lights of say 800w each?, maybe i didnt read it right...

as for the air circulation stuff, yer your probably right i was just thinking out loud. i still think i can build a more attractive minimal fixture with the qb96's.

Yeah, the hurricaneX needs a little 10$ extension board to work with 10v PWM Meanwell's. (stevesled has it)
Only HLG-320 and above can be dimmed to off for the smaller ones you would need an additional relay to switch them off. But that's a driver limitation so its the same with the more expensive controllers.

Gogreen is almost the same and if its still the same rev. it also needs such extension board for 10v PWM compatibility. And believe me, vegaswinner is not the easiest person to work with. He was member of this forum and many remember him and his permanent whining.
 

Or_Gro

Well-Known Member
Yeah I just returned from the local hardware store rabbit hole, and after lots of permutations I have come up with what seems to be the simplest way to hang while also having some side ways tilting capability.

I proudly present version 2.0... the top bar will self level if attached at corners allowing light to swivel left or right by loosening wing nuts.

View attachment 4271637 View attachment 4271638 View attachment 4271639 View attachment 4271640
A borg 96! Luv it
 

grisbi

Well-Known Member
I would still call it an all-in-one spectrum because it has already enough blue for compact growth and good branching. (It needs only ~10PAR/w/m² blue wavelength to get compact growth)
I'm using 3000°k only as all in one since 2 years now and I really like this spectrum. The plants look like grown under natural sunlight. With colder spectrums 5000-6500°k the plants look almost like grown under blurples. Extremely short and branch growth is almost horizontal(70-80°). For height limited areas this may offer benefits but for "normal" heights I prefer longer internodes and branches at least at a 45-60° angle to the trunk.
But like ever there are exceptions.
For example for haze strains a 5000°k spectrum used as all-in-one can make sense and with the new purple/nearUVA + phosphor whites the sprectrums get better and better.
Nichia Optisolis 5000°k/CRI99 spectrum looks very good and achieves 61% efficiency(RFx00, RFx0f, based on purple 420nm pumps, no 480nm hole).
It sounds funny but purple wavelength are optimal for purple strains because they help to emphasize the colors, the taste and the aroma of the plants. In commercial horticulture purple and UVA are used for purple basil but also for medicinal herbs as it enhances flavonoids, antioxidants and other ingredients of medical use.
Combined with the extremely efficient Osram Square deep-reds (3.91μmol/j at 700mA) that would be the non-plus-ultra in my opinion.
Also the 3000°K/CRI98 looks very promissing for plant lighting( peak at 660nm, also RFx00, RFx0f ) and is even more efficient like 5000°k because the blue diodes used for the lower kelvins are a little more efficient like the purple ones in 5000°k diodes.
But like ever with the good stuff both diodes are not cheap. Cutter.com.au has already Optisolis diodes available and offer them for strips and boards and LED-tech.de has the Osram diodes. Grow strips with Osram Oslon and Square diodes are available and you can ask them for customizing because they are fully equipped from pick and place bot to an integrating sphere. Many customer designs are already available and they are also contractual partners of Nichia.

@Randomblame
thanks
i m thinking exaclty same about you, strip or board with nichia 5000°k + Osram Square deep-reds should (dimable) should be the perfect combo! i made strip from cutter with those nichia + xqe660 and also nichia 2000k + cree xd16 3500k and will tell you how its work in few month when i will install them ;)
i reallly neeed to get a provider even on alibaba to get those nichia optisolis 5000k 97 cri , do you know where can i buy them?? ( not cutter, im from europe and its realllly tooo expensive the tax from them :'( , the quality is amazing but tooo expensiv tax!)
i found the osram square deep red on mouser :
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/OSRAM-Opto-Semiconductors/GH-CSSRM224-VMVO-1?qs=sGAEpiMZZMvVL5Kk7ZYykfR0dfvFIxRBqA8XDCqXG1bBMRD%2b7V%2bzFQ==
but not the nichia
can someone help me to find them?

and what about the LUXEON 3535L HE Plus ??? loooks amazing! espacialy the
LUXEON 3535L HE PLUS 4000k 70cri @200lm/w ! :D




https://www.digikey.fr/en/datasheets/lumileds/lumileds-ds203-pdf
 
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grisbi

Well-Known Member
i m thinking exaclty same about you, strip or board with nichia 5000°k + Osram Square deep-reds should (dimable) (i found them also on green, uv and far red, a disco strip with all of them should be perfect) is the perfect combo! i made strip from cutter with those nichia + xqe660 and also nichia 2000k + cree xd16 3500k and will tell you how its work in few month when i will install them ;)
i reallly neeed to get a provider even on alibaba to get those nichia optisolis 5000k 97 cri , do you know where can i buy them?? ( not cutter, im from europe and its realllly tooo expensive the tax from them :'( , the quality is amazing but tooo expensiv tax!)
i found the osram square deep red on mouser :
https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/OSRAM-Opto-Semiconductors/GH-CSSRM224-VMVO-1?qs=sGAEpiMZZMvVL5Kk7ZYykfR0dfvFIxRBqA8XDCqXG1bBMRD%2b7V%2bzFQ==
but not the nichia
can someone help me to find them?

and what about the LUXEON 3535L HE Plus ??? loooks amazing! espacialy the
LUXEON 3535L HE PLUS 4000k 70cri @200lm/w ! :D




https://www.digikey.fr/en/datasheets/lumileds/lumileds-ds203-pdf
 
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