DIY with Quantum Boards

pop22

Well-Known Member
I figured with a heatsink, 75 watts was doable lol. The chinese driver was a 24volt, 5 amp, was running in parallel I think the driver had thermal runaway lol! Ohh well, it got my by a couple weeks...

Bet that chinese driver didnt like running them in series but i bet the meanwell does it for ten years+, ive mixed spectrum bin batches boards, broke all the rules still have not broke a board or driver, i ran a 304 on a hlg-185 1400a turned up to 200 watts for whole grow, plants loved it board got to 95 degrees with slate 2 with active cooling no thermal failure probably not the most efficable. Im also running two qb120s at 75 watts each on a heatsink just to torcher test them and one little plant tried to touch the sun and got burned, keep on pioneering popp
 

619kt619

Well-Known Member
My cheap Chinese driver ( here's a lesson for everyone... ) bit the dust this morning. it was severely over heating and then started acting like a strobe light lol. Having nothing else, I decided that running the boards in series on an HLG80H-54 to see if it would work. Being a cv driver, I figured it would be fine. I hooked them up and YES! working just fine. I adjusted the wattage to 85 watts, plenty for this little cab. Just for giggles, I turn it all the way up and hit 118 watts! I think I'll just get another of these for my QB 288.

Now, I'm probably also doing a no no... I have a 4000k and a 3000k in series on the same driver. Seems to be working just fine. I have a lux meter and I'm getting 24000 lux at the top of the plant. I put a piece of black tape in the center of the board and got readings of 37.4 C on both boards.

Two QB120 in a small cab. Yes at LOW power they can be run close to the plants. Mine are running at 42.5 watts each. The plant is withing 9" of the light. So yes, with the qualification that wasn't included in the original comment... they can be run close at low power. another 20 watts in there and that plant would be in trouble.

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Constant Voltage is the way to go. It is more expensive, but it is awesome to use with parallel wiring.
 

pop22

Well-Known Member
No, its favoring a good driver over a piece of crap...lol.I'm glad mine failed with me present. I opened the case and shit was melting inside! I had only planed to use it a month till I had money for a better ( Meanwell ) driver.............. it didn't cooperate.......

I'll take higher price for greater reliability. It just annoys me there's no middle ground on drivers, that and the fact that middlemen control pricing, there is no such thing as a sale price etc. Use findchips, you'll notice the price are exactly the same for several resellers, and maybe a dollar or two on others. That's price fixing. This industry gets away with it because there is no competition or regulation.

The computer business was the same way at one time. Just TWO middlemen controlled all the parts channels, until companies like Newegg came along. I ran a computer shop and trying to get prices on parts to be competitive was difficult. This industry doesn't give a damn about the DIY community, we are a drop in the bucket to them. I salute the people behind Cobkits and HLG for finding a way to do business in such a hostile market!



Why favor parallel wiring if it leads to more expensive drivers (for constant voltage, as per your post?).
 

Philip-O

Well-Known Member
So, what about those using HLG Meanwells? Why would one choose parrallel over series wiring?

No, its favoring a good driver over a piece of crap...lol.I'm glad mine failed with me present. I opened the case and shit was melting inside! I had only planed to use it a month till I had money for a better ( Meanwell ) driver.............. it didn't cooperate.......

I'll take higher price for greater reliability. It just annoys me there's no middle ground on drivers, that and the fact that middlemen control pricing, there is no such thing as a sale price etc. Use findchips, you'll notice the price are exactly the same for several resellers, and maybe a dollar or two on others. That's price fixing. This industry gets away with it because there is no competition or regulation.

The computer business was the same way at one time. Just TWO middlemen controlled all the parts channels, until companies like Newegg came along. I ran a computer shop and trying to get prices on parts to be competitive was difficult. This industry doesn't give a damn about the DIY community, we are a drop in the bucket to them. I salute the people behind Cobkits and HLG for finding a way to do business in such a hostile market!
 

pop22

Well-Known Member
Why would one choose series over parallel? Both have pros and cons, and one is no better than the other IMO. I use parallel wiring to keep line voltage down, but that's merely my preference. I also have lights wired in series. And for all the talk of thermal runaway, I've yet to see anyone having that issue. Its been said the disparity in voltage across cobs/boards in minimal and unlikely to cause an issue. Also, after seeing LED gardener fail to fry a board, and my experience of a wiring connection failure, leading to have 2800ma run through a single QB304 without ruining it, I'm confident in my lights reliability! Parallel wiring keeps things simple, and KISS is my guiding philosophy lol!

So, what about those using HLG Meanwells? Why would one choose parrallel over series wiring?
 

InTheValley

Well-Known Member
yeah, its definitely not more expensive. I run strips, got a cheap driver for $16 12V CV adjustable, 360watts. Till i can find deal on Meanwell. ( only need 300 ( 15watts x 20pc ) but then, i only run them at 210ish watts total. Just now, i scored a Meanwell HLG-320-15B for $30 new, included shipping. Mouser has them for $95=shipping

total score for me,
 

619kt619

Well-Known Member
Its not more expensive. CV drivers tend to be less expensive. Not sure why OP says its more expensive.
Sorry guys for the misinformation. I have not purchased constant voltage drivers and was under the assumption that they cost more. but constant voltage is good for parallel wiring to combat things like thermal runaway and other "cautions" that may arise from wiring schematics
 

nfhiggs

Well-Known Member
Sorry guys for the misinformation. I have not purchased constant voltage drivers and was under the assumption that they cost more. but constant voltage is good for parallel wiring to combat things like thermal runaway and other "cautions" that may arise from wiring schematics
Yup - Constant Voltage = Parallel, Constant Current = Series.
 

Budzbuddha

Well-Known Member
A little Quantum porn ....

Blue Glue ( blue dream X GG4 ) crossed a humboldt auto with that GSG pollen ( FEMMY ) - didn't give me many beans but at least I can try to save this mix.

nug ( grenade ) - cut this a couple months back - 100% perlite 1 gallon Hempy.

QB 288 rig :
DYNAGRO Nutes
1 gallon grow - 99¢ store sand bucket .... Lol
4 week veg , LST , 1 topping
12/12 DYNAGRO bloom and HYDROPLEX during water only
6.0 ph ...

It threw a little dark leaves but was a pistil heavy bitch. Got 2 1/2ish jars ... Not bad for personal use and stupid kids bucket.

Smell - woody / sweet
Not gonna make e juice got some RAW papers just screaming for it.
But if I could deep fry it .... I would eat it.

#Quantumlife
#weekendgoals


image.jpeg
 

pop22

Well-Known Member
Fine looking bud!

A little Quantum porn ....

Blue Glue ( blue dream X GG4 ) crossed a humboldt auto with that GSG pollen ( FEMMY ) - didn't give me many beans but at least I can try to save this mix.

nug ( grenade ) - cut this a couple months back - 100% perlite 1 gallon Hempy.

QB 288 rig :
DYNAGRO Nutes
1 gallon grow - 99¢ store sand bucket .... Lol
4 week veg , LST , 1 topping
12/12 DYNAGRO bloom and HYDROPLEX during water only
6.0 ph ...

It threw a little dark leaves but was a pistil heavy bitch. Got 2 1/2ish jars ... Not bad for personal use and stupid kids bucket.

Smell - woody / sweet
Not gonna make e juice got some RAW papers just screaming for it.
But if I could deep fry it .... I would eat it.

#Quantumlife
#weekendgoals


View attachment 4044336
 

Humple

Well-Known Member
Order just came in... YOU GUYS FUCKING ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE FREE Accessories!!
You guys are great to begin with your customer service is wonderful and to top it off opening that box and seeing that extra stuff just made my day!!

I am thankful for you guys @hlglighting



49 boards so far 81 more to go!
Holy fucking shit. 130 boards? Are you trying to put the sun out of business or something?
 

SensiPuff

Well-Known Member
2700k or 3000k for flower only tent?? Need help before ordering. It's my understanding 3000k qb is equal to 3500k cob cxb3590.
Does 2700k qb have sufficient blue?
 

Sickomindo

Well-Known Member
2700k or 3000k for flower only tent?? Need help before ordering. It's my understanding 3000k qb is equal to 3500k cob cxb3590.
Does 2700k qb have sufficient blue?
I dont know im in my first best run with these QB and Cob setup I got/made. My QB is 3000k 260w+ 300w 3500k Cobs.

Got 2-3 more weeks to go.
 

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