From my limited experience in this subject, having pulled a gpw on my first run with LEDs that I built myself with the help of the good people on this forum, and now just pulled 1.4 gpw on my second, and having read all the data from the various providers of this technology, the only reason you'd spend your money on the "high end" shit is because you had enough disposable (money) and you wanted to support a local business/man/woman.
Those latter two reasons are legit and I'm all for it. But then things start to take the piss a little bit, like charging people nearly two thousand dollars for the equivalent of a 1000w HID... for a technology which isn't even better
And this is where the debate can really be put into black and white context, because if you eliminate those other reasons (supporting local business) and you just compare the tech and the data, it is NOT like comparing any other technology. Not like it at all.
If you buy a Brand new TV for example, and it's got all the latest features, you will see it in the picture quality. Rather than using a basic backlight they'll be able to control individual pixels etc, and the contrast will be noticably different from one which is the cheaper end. Then it's a choice of a decent TV with a nice picture, or something which can do jet black next to bright white, perfectly.
That's a discernible difference. Then it's your choice as to how much you're into your home cinema and how much you want to spend on it.
Same with speakers. Or Ovens. Or cars. Or washing machines....
But not LED lights. No fucking way. They're not only not the same, they're the exact opposite.
They come from the same place, they do the same thing, and, unlike everything else mentioned, the cheaper ones actually in a lot of cases outperform stuff which costs more than double the price. Thank China for that.
Find me an electrical store where the same applies and I'm there now and replacing everything in my house.
I just bought a Geekbeast for example and the readings from it are sick.
Then I look at the HLG thread on this page and I click the link and on their website I see a big piece of aluminium with QBs on it which looks like any basic knock-together you'll find online, and a light spread data sheet which looks like you'd expect it to with such a design - a hot spot in the middle and a big drop off towards the edges.
You'll spend $600 on the Geekbeast and $1600 on the HLG. There's no comparison.
Your decision making revolves around two things: Supporting local business, and (possibly) having a safer guarantee. And that's it.
As far as the tech itself, if you're after constantly having the most efficient light, none of them are future proof.
Those latter two reasons are legit and I'm all for it. But then things start to take the piss a little bit, like charging people nearly two thousand dollars for the equivalent of a 1000w HID... for a technology which isn't even better
And this is where the debate can really be put into black and white context, because if you eliminate those other reasons (supporting local business) and you just compare the tech and the data, it is NOT like comparing any other technology. Not like it at all.
If you buy a Brand new TV for example, and it's got all the latest features, you will see it in the picture quality. Rather than using a basic backlight they'll be able to control individual pixels etc, and the contrast will be noticably different from one which is the cheaper end. Then it's a choice of a decent TV with a nice picture, or something which can do jet black next to bright white, perfectly.
That's a discernible difference. Then it's your choice as to how much you're into your home cinema and how much you want to spend on it.
Same with speakers. Or Ovens. Or cars. Or washing machines....
But not LED lights. No fucking way. They're not only not the same, they're the exact opposite.
They come from the same place, they do the same thing, and, unlike everything else mentioned, the cheaper ones actually in a lot of cases outperform stuff which costs more than double the price. Thank China for that.
Find me an electrical store where the same applies and I'm there now and replacing everything in my house.
I just bought a Geekbeast for example and the readings from it are sick.
Then I look at the HLG thread on this page and I click the link and on their website I see a big piece of aluminium with QBs on it which looks like any basic knock-together you'll find online, and a light spread data sheet which looks like you'd expect it to with such a design - a hot spot in the middle and a big drop off towards the edges.
You'll spend $600 on the Geekbeast and $1600 on the HLG. There's no comparison.
Your decision making revolves around two things: Supporting local business, and (possibly) having a safer guarantee. And that's it.
As far as the tech itself, if you're after constantly having the most efficient light, none of them are future proof.
What do the Dutch have to do with anything? Spend your money how you please, but you'll never convince me that knockoff Chinese manufacturers build better quality than we do here. There's a reason 1 out of 3 parts from your Auto Parts store is defective when brand new.
But when I see a knockoff that has all the new cool chips and latest stuff for a fraction of what a ChilLED light goes for...and likely will grow weed every bit as well as the ChilLED, it's a real temptation to try one or two of them. So I probably will do just that. But I also remember several years ago, when the cheap knockoff lights were being put down pretty hard and people were being advised to avoid them and buy something of a higher quality. Remember those days? Seems like the knockoffs have upped their game since those days....?
