Hey fan, wondering if you had time to check those boards out. I gotta order couple drivers. Do you think I should control each color or just run all together. Thanks
I like them and hate them at the same time. Keep in mind that I haven't used them so my info is based off of what I see, what I know and what I feel.
From them:
175W PCBs: 16 square feet x 0.238 PCBs per square foot = 3.808 PCBs, round to nearest whole number = 4 175w PCBs needed to get 1,000 micromoles PPFD average in 4 x 4ft (16sq ft) area.
So in a 4x4 you need to be using 700+ watts to hit 1000 micromoles average? That's 4 of their panels at $342.39 each so $1370 just for the kit to build yourself? Then you need more $$ for the rest of the parts/frame? For a 4X4? That's stupid expensive! You can go 1 cob per square foot with CXB's and frame, drivers and all be at about a grand. Especially for just enough to hit 1000 micromoles. I know I can go downstairs and do every bit of that or more with my array in my 4.5 X4 with 700 watts.
Now. That being said I love the way you can tune the spectrum to anything you want at any time. Keep in mind though that different color temps will provide higher or lower par at the same power level too so that gives me a few more questions about the ppfd rating. That must be the rating with all parts of the spectrum to the max.
My other concern would be the par numbers rapidly falling with added distance to get close to even ppfd across the canopy.
Heres my final conclusion.
I don't think they will be a huge success unless they find a way to drop their prices about 40%. I know I would never build a room full of them for several reasons. 1 is because having 4 boards in a 4X4 will never have the even canopy ppfd you could do with cobs every square foot. More light sources over a given canopy = more even canopy coverage unless you raise the boards up so high it all blends as good as it can but then what kind of ppfd will you have. 2 is the price. While everyone here should sure know by now that I'm not afraid to spend money I find doing a whole room in these boards unjustifiable.
Especially when you could do 1 Cree CXB per square foot in the same room for way less $$. Now that says something. Cree's aren't cheap!
3 is that I don't see a power savings vs going cobs. Especially when you consider 700w in a 4x4 plus fans etc. Nope
Now, if you can afford a few boards to add to a cob array for certain stages of a grow then hell yeah, why not? I could see using 2 boards in 4x4 to add something to the spectrum especially late in the grow. Myself though I would probably be only using the deep red for flower. Then again, just a few 90CRI 3000k chips will do it as well so there is more then one way to skin a cat lol
I'm not meaning any of this to slam them, I'm honestly not. I just cannot see doing it myself. No way I could justify spending way over what Cree cobs cost and for what to gain I don't know.
I'm sure they grow damn fine plants man. I'm sure they would smoke almost any blurple panels on the market. I just know I will never go back to blurple unless the laws of physics get broken and something amazing comes out..
Would I use them as a whole room light? NOOOOO
Would I use them with a great cob array? HELL YES!
If you are doing it I want to see it for sure! They are cool as hell man. Just outrageously expensive. I would look at the light ShiggityFlip built man. I don't know what he has into it but it's sweeet as hell.
