Thoughts and opinions on COB lighting systems

Something different. Need help on new lights but first i would like as much information on the lights i am wanting to purchase. I like LED i have 2 300w fullspectrum lights and thy do a ok job however i would like to get more watts par etc and heard of cob a while back but thy were just new out so was a bit skeptical however now after using the led’s i do think cob is a good option for me to try this time and have saw a few different ones starting from 450w right up to 2000w full spectrum white sunshine light to naked eye but wen u check with a machine its full spectrum or so it says. And i still have trouble undestanding how watts and true watts or actual watts all fit into growing. But now with these cobs thy use even less actaual watt to power the actual light which puts out a higher wattage/par per light. So am confused because its said you need at least 250w to be able to grow canabis however i think with led’s its different yes thy may not be big or dense but still able to grow buds. Anyway i am looking for as much info and advice as i can get i have seen a few lights at very good prices tht if they are wat thy say thy are then thy are perfect for wat i want. At this moment in time i only have a 80cmx80cmx160cm tent with scrog net and i got 4plants i before in 5gallon pots but was a squeeze but wasnt autoflower strains. My nxt grow once i get my new light to start thm off in the tent i have but i am getting a larger tent 1mx1mx2m or 80cmx1.2mx2m so tht i can do 6plants. Which will be on another thread if you want to follow just leave your name and i will @mikos you so that you can follow my autoflower grow with cob lighting.

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What’s your budget? And are you planning on just trying to light your current tent?
@dbrn32

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Hehe. I love this moment. ‘Red pill or blue pill’ ‘To go down the rabbit hole?’ Anywho. Welcome to the matrix. Dbrn is Morpheus. Trust him

I realized i said NOTHING to help. A trustable qb company is Horticulture Lighting Group. Go take a peek. BEYOND worth it

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Yeah and i have saw the lights i fancy and are getting good reviews on youtube by growers and arent tht expensive infact an 1800w cob £130.00 thts just one of the 6 i have been looking at. @Drinkslinger

1800w cob for that little? Sounds too good to be true. :see_no_evil:

Definitely check Timber grow lights and horticulture lighting group. They make high quality, reputable, and proven lights.

If you want to save a bit of money there are a couple of diy threads around here using bridgelux light strips. I’ve got two lights I put together and both of them blow my blurple leds away.

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Cob not qb :man_facepalming:t5: I have to stop replying during wake n bake hours. Sorry

@Mikos I’m pretty sure I’ve already given you feedback on the lights you’re looking at in different thread. If I didn’t go into enough detail there, I apologize. But the reason you see different information is because there’s a big gap in performance from cheap leds to expensive leds. Most of the amazon panels aren’t much better than hps in terms of light output per watt. A watt is a unit of energy consumption, it doesn’t tell you anything about how much of that energy is turned into light. So using it to determine light output can be really foggy. 20 watts of really good leds can produce as much light as 40-50 watts of not so good leds. So you have to take into account for the quality of product you’re getting.

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Larger grow tent would make things easier. say a 1.5 meter x 1.5 meter x at least 2 meter tall

Here something i still struggle to understand is this full spectrum and par luminous lux etc. I still dont get it at all cause 600w hps/mh isnt the same as a 600w led of top quality thn you have the COB’s aswell which is now supposedly the nxt step up from the older LED set up. I just dont understand how it all works and wats the best option etc. I want to try a cob but i also like the viparspectra and theres plenty of info and growers used thm but i have read GREAT things with cobs even the cheap ones i read about the lights i asked about on a comparison web page along with other well known brands and thy all say thy are good tick all the boxes however it never once says its good for growing weed. I see all the charts etc but cant understand thm all i do know is the higher the colours reds and blues are better. And can i use a 1500w x5 sunshine full spectrum cob in a 80cm x 80cm x 160cm since the moer light the better isnt it. ?? @dbrn32 @FloridaSon @Countryboyjvd1971 @garrigan62 @Shuggz @Sasquatch any one be very greatful if anyone can help explain how to understand the spectrum charts etc so i can understand what the lights actually do put out.

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The term full spectrum means very little, so don’t let it confuse you. The biggest difference in the different types of light is there radimetric efficacy. Most hps bulbs are between .9 and 1.4 umol per joule. Coincidentally, so are most cheap led panels. That’s why you constantly see people recommend 50 watts per square feet of both. A cmh is usually between 1.7 and 1.9 umol per joule. And the top of the line leds are usually between about 1.9 to 2.5 umol per joule. So 1 watt of energy produces twice as much light or more in some cases.

There’s really nothing more to it than that. You can ask the same question as many different ways as you want, it’s not really going to change the answers. In most cases there’s a reason why the really good light fixtures cost a little more money. If you’re that skeptical, try to get your hands on a small quantum board and see for yourself before you spending a lot of money on anything. There’s plenty of awesome grows here to justify trying one out.

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I love reading your stuff dude!! @Mikos, @dbrn32 really knows his shit!! this dude lays down led and lighting knowledge! I would ask and learn as much as he is willing to teach you. Sorry @dbrn32 don’t me to man crush ya bro!! Hahahaha

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Well I see you got @dbrn32 on the job so I’ll go sit in the corner over here if you need me……. getting-stoned

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:popcorn: :dash: :eyes: get outta my spot @Sasquatch

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Still dont understand how u figure out how much light u need or the max light u can use in the space u have or doesnt it matter as long as its not damaging the plants. But i read tht u need a minimum wattage to be able to grow green so hw can u tell how much is enough or to much but didnt think there would be such a thing as too much as long as the plants are able to absorbe all or as much as thy can. For arguments sake in a 80cm x 80cm x 160cm whats the maximum and minimum watt i could use in my tent. Anyone ???

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There is no maximum or minimum watt, that’s what I’ve been trying to tell you. You’re looking for a ppf of about 400-600 umols per second in 32”x32” tent to maximize production efficiency. That would put you at a ppfd of 600-900 umols per second per meter squared. A really good light can hit that window under 200 watts. A shitty light can take more than 500 watts to get there.

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I think that in that area there are to many plants…ill go with 4"4 tent and 4 plants and 3 months veg… youll need more light and space to those girls you wanna grow…:v::v::v:

What is the timing sequence?

Wat do u meanby timing sequance @hvactech

@dbrn32 @Sasquatch @Shuggz @garrigan62 @FloridaSon can any you have a look at these light and tell me which one would be best for me plz. Hipargero 450w cob/ led , the x5 or x6 sunshine 1500w or 1800w full spectrum white light. Or a viparspectra 300w or 450w or cf grow 300w cob plz or anyone i want to order today but wont until i have got the info i need first before i buy. Bare in mind i will be getting a larger tent at a later date. 1.2m x1m or 80cm x 2m so need something tht will work in both area i will have. If anyone can help me decide i will be very greatful for your help.

I’em looking into it…so hang in there for a few ok

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