8'x8' grow tent lighting options

Hello RIU, i've been lurking for a couple of months now and i just can't make up my mind.
I have a 8'x8'x7' (240x240x200) grow tent, with 8" exhaust fan (1050M3/h)+8" carbon filter and 6" intake fan (850M3/h).
The tent is in a room with no A/C but i plan on running the lights from 9PM till 9AM with a big window opened, and the outside temps during the night are around 60F(in a couple of months it will drop down alot), so with decent ventilation i hope i'll be good?

My main question is what kind of light setup should i go with? I've been researching the DIY LEDs (COBS/QB/CREE) and im just 100% positive that i won't be making a light on my own or purchasing from someone that makes them. I'd rather pay extra, i know its not that hard to build one but i just don't want to do it.

My research led me to believe that currently the best option for me is COB LEDS, and the only ones that i can find premade from a real company that can easily be shipped to me (EU) are those:
https://www.mars-hydro.com/led-grow-light/mars-cree-cob-led-grow-light
16 of them would give me no heat problems+the option to add supplemental lights later on without having to worry too much about heat. Does anyone have any opinion on this particular light as i can't find many people that use them.

The other LED option that im considering is 4x MARS II 1600w or 4x MARS Epistar 320. They seem pretty straightforward but i'm seeing a lot of hate on the blurple type of panels, and some people are complaining with the quality of the panels (diodes burning out,whole sections going off) and the video with the guy that throws a MARS panel in the bin and hits it with a hammer doesn't help too.

After all that digging into LEDS i started to think that maybe an option that i won't be regretting later is going with some avarage good old HPS. The Maxibright 600w + sunmaster lamps is a cheap and reliable option as far as i can see. And the total setup would cost 5x less than the LED options.
What worries me with this option is mainly heat, will i be able to maintain low temps during the summer months.

And my last but not least "option" is the fancy HPS, the ones that are as expensive as the led lights, i don't know much about them but if someone has some input im happy to hear it.

Please post and correct me on my research.

Cheers!

edit: Can a mod move this thread to the general Indoor growing section please.

Stay FAR AWAY from Mars hydro. Epistar diodes are garbage, 10yr old technology.

Glad you came here first. There are muktipl companies you can purchase from that ship to EU. I'm not sure of then, but people will chime in.

Airwalker16 said:

Stay FAR AWAY from Mars hydro. Epistar diodes are garbage, 10yr old technology.

Glad you came here first. There are muktipl companies you can purchase from that ship to EU. I'm not sure of then, but people will chime in.

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What about their COB light? That seems legit and i've been talking to them they are willing to drop the price a little bit? Its a cree chip with some osram diodes for exta red/blue?

Mars is cheaply made. If you want quality prebuilt models, you'll have to shell out a bit more cash. Horticulture lighting group makes great lights. They compete with cobs very well.

soulpowerbg said:

What about their COB light? That seems legit and i've been talking to them they are willing to drop the price a little bit? Its a cree chip with some osram diodes for exta red/blue?

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Never heard of those. What type of driver do they use, and how hard are they driven is the question?

NothinYet said:

Never heard of those. What type of driver do they use, and how hard are they driven is the question?

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They are using a meanwell driver
https://www.mars-hydro.com/led-grow-light/mars-cree-cob-led-grow-light/buy-mars-cob-100w-led-grow-light-forsale

i'm just looking up HLG lights right now, 4x HLG 550 v2 seems like a dream setup but it is indeed pricey, i know gpw is pretty inaccurate but roughly how much could someone pull under HLG 550 with decent strain and conditions?

soulpowerbg said:

They are using a meanwell driver
https://www.mars-hydro.com/led-grow-light/mars-cree-cob-led-grow-light/buy-mars-cob-100w-led-grow-light-forsale

i'm just looking up HLG lights right now, 4x HLG 550 v2 seems like a dream setup but it is indeed pricey, i know gpw is pretty inaccurate but roughly how much could someone pull under HLG 550 with decent strain and conditions?

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Grand master level pulled 1.47gpw on his last run, or something close to that. He used all 550's with the 288v1 boards. I've seen a few grows pull close to 2 gpw. Leds are just like anything else. You have to learn your light. Most plants prefer temps around low 80's with led lighting from what most people report.

On those lights you posted, it doesn't say what kind of meanwell does it. I skimmed through and couldn't find it.

soulpowerbg said:

and the only ones that i can find premade from a real company that can easily be shipped to me (EU)

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Keep looking.There are plenty of companies.

Im starting to lean towards something like 4x lumii DE 600w, it's cheap, has good reputation and if it gets too hot i'll get spare 400w bulbs and just dim the ballasts? Gavitas seem bad for me (height) and i'm stuck between the really high end leds or much cheaper hps. Mars is tempting but im starting to realize that it's just cheap unreliable junk hidden behind marketing tricks. I wont make a mistake if i go for some hps lights can i? Much better than any mars option anyway?
@diyled can you point me to some decent options please.

Try todoledgrow.com or perhaps gpleds.com for pre-made COB lights.

Or follow one of the builds from here or ledgardner and build something yourself using 4ft led strips.

wietefras said:

Try todoledgrow.com or perhaps gpleds.com for pre-made COB lights.

Or follow one of the builds from here or ledgardner and build something yourself using 4ft led strips.

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the stuff from gpleds are beautiful man, but then again 350 euros for 200w i guess if u want quality u need to pay.

wietefras said:

Try todoledgrow.com or perhaps gpleds.com for pre-made COB lights.

Or follow one of the builds from here or ledgardner and build something yourself using 4ft led strips.

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I can't seem to find any reviews on the gpleds? Why is nobody using them?

You don't want to get quality lights from people who know what they are doing
but you would like getting a diy cob made by Mars
and you know that company makes "cheap" lights

So

why would you want to get led lights?
Because if you now come into with HPS I suppose you are more worried by initial front costs than the long run maintenance costs.
If you don't care about efficiency and life span and you don't want to spend, get the usual HPS system.
Maybe CMH.

You first have to decide what you want, cheaper front costs or low running costs?
Do you pay much for electricity?

Here in the EU you don't have many options, but there are some

Nutria said:

You don't want to get quality lights from people who know what they are doing
but you would like getting a diy cob made by Mars
and you know that company makes "cheap" lights

So

why would you want to get led lights?
Because if you now come into with HPS I suppose you are more worried by initial front costs than the long run maintenance costs.
If you don't care about efficiency and life span and you don't want to spend, get the usual HPS system.
Maybe CMH.

You first have to decide what you want, cheaper front costs or low running costs?
Do you pay much for electricity?

Here in the EU you don't have many options, but there are some

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Everything ur saying is true, im just torn apart between the options, few posts above i said that mars is out of the question.
The main reason i want led lights is not the electricity but the heat, i won't be able to put any ac unit, and right now and generally between may-September the temps can get quite high.
Electricity is no problem the price around here is 0.03-0.04$ per kwh.

If you can't use any AC at all, HIs bulb lights are out of the question. Period. You'll basically have to use LEDsm

soulpowerbg said:

I can't seem to find any reviews on the gpleds? Why is nobody using them?

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They are new. Before they were reselling Todoledgrow fixtures and recently they started making their own.

soulpowerbg said:

What about their COB light? That seems legit and i've been talking to them they are willing to drop the price a little bit? Its a cree chip with some osram diodes for exta red/blue?

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Just my opinion, I’d avoid those cheaply made blurple lights. Hlg or Timber if you’re serious. I purchased the hlg 550 and I’m very satisfied with the results thus far. good luck with your final decision.

wietefras said:

Try todoledgrow.com or perhaps gpleds.com for pre-made COB lights.

Or follow one of the builds from here or ledgardner and build something yourself using 4ft led strips.

Click to expand...

+1 todogrowled.com (not sure who has the right spelling on this shop)

Overkill setup : 4 x hlg 550
Alternative: 2 x hlg550 and 2 x 260w qb kits.

Double check what drivers they are using and check with the forum here: last time i looked i i did like how they matched drivers. Also: are you using 240v power in your country?

There are several very easy setups (as in just sticking some solid core wire in a board and hanging it) available aswell in the EU if you wanna go semi-DIY, would be a loooot cheaper and a lot easier with boards that cobs.
Search the forum for Board in europe or Eu or something like that for a resource.

Lol, yeah sorry got the name in the wrong order. Should be "TGL".