Ahh well it was a cheaper light lol wasing a 1000 doller one so far the advance is running my tent much cooler than my other led systems. Its so quite And my hid system was 6months old and the bulb was brand new when i did the led comparrason. I believe from the leds ive fully tested led are on par ( not the PAR lol) with hids tho looking at the numbers and PAR from data sheets. I think these will out do my other leds very well. If you love your HID system john then youll not really go for LED once you think led is for you im sure you wont regret it oooorrr you could try a HID led combo. That works really well but the issue inwas having was the heat in summer was far too hot but ive got rid of all my hids now and have 4 leds so if i had to send one back i could pop up another led. I know not everyone can do that tho or if a led went id just de solder and replace with a new one
Poke was stubborn go to the free light from intelligro. Lol me and poke got off.on the wrong foot in there. Yeah same strain think different by dp there autos so not clones.. My led was away 2 weeks but they were gonna replace a few bits but in the end replaced everything but the shell.
Im just stubborn. Ive grown with HID for years but im always up for improving and changing my techniques and equipment. Im thinking ill replace my CFL for veg with a LED just cause I wont need to drop as much to replace it. Then work towards the 350 if I like it. Send me one of your old ones over ;-) ill test it out haha.
Yeah i noticed flowers were fater and nicer and the thrichs stand up much nicer under led as less heat..
Between a Blackdog and a Mars, I would go with the Mars for sure. Fortunately those are not the only choices. I have 4 Mars lights - they work. I also just received 2 new SolarSpec lights by Amare. Just turning them on says volumes. Of course one can compare the specs and make a pretty well informed decision. Of course, the grow off between the two will be even more important. I would add, don't be swayed by low price unless it is all you can afford. Look for best value.
You sound like me a year ago. I was the biggest skeptic. But i promise you this, when you finally see the difference in plant gowth, in bud production, etc, theres really no comparison anymore. A few years ago HID blew LED away, but it doesnt anymore. HIDs on its way out, you know because they continue to fall in price and are almost at giveaway prices. You want proof like i did. Buy one from a company with a nice return policy. I doubt youll send it back but just for the sake of the ease of mind. Ive only heard of one led burning out ever and the manufacturer pulled it off the market due to a design flaw. Youre making a lot of the same claims i made but at the end of the day it comes down to this, every aspect of the bud from flavor, to plant health and vigor, to weight, smell and taste is superior, as happens when a plant reaches its full potential. I like to point out that at week 9 of my last grow i thought the plants were done, this after ten years in the game, im no noob, this is experience talking. I tossed leds up and watched things happen to my plants ive never seen before. What i normally would have cut down and called done had a ways to grow and grow they did, for another two weeks, doubling in weight and size. Ill save you the two liter soda bottle sized buds. Youve all seen those pics of resinous covered buds as well, those that follow me. Nobody can convince you the grass is greener bro. Youll see one day and when that enlightening moment hits you in the face like a fist youll remember this thread and turn red like i did after i knew. it really is that eye opening. I was in literal shock for days. Watch my first few vids last grow, its clear im at a loss for words most of the time, 20 minute videos where i go OMG GUYS I CANT BELIEVE THIS!!!! The more you grow, the more you know....People always ask well what about 5-10 years in, what if the light fails? I say buy another. Ten years is a lot to get out of a machine. If youre smart when it comes to growing you may get one given to you, depends on who you know and how you grow. Not everyone gets to drive ferraris, but you never hear those driving them calling them a piece of shit, know what im saying? ~ poke
I hear what your saying brother. I think a lot of the anti LED come from the flood of the market. There are so many rip off/half assed company's out there and it just makes the LED pool so very very murky. You only hear compliants about questionable LEDs I have yet to hear any about known quality brands. Guess ill just have to jump in. Start saving my dimes for a 350. Thanks everyone for commenting! Appreciate the help.
No problem dude i totally hear you bro. Lots of scammers taking advantage of the good spirit of cannabis people in general. Thats why this thread exists, to weed out the BS. Hell yeah you can get a cheaper panel than i have, you can even make one that does a damn fine job, or you can buy one from a proven company with a warranty that works. Whatever you decide dont be spur of the moment, be patient, take your time, ask questions. If i could give you a panel i would in a heartbeat. Theyre good enough that i know you wouldnt go back. I say that with confidence. But that depends on the panel. My only experience is viewing plants under an old first gen mars snd growing under the newest XML 650s. Im simply blown the eff away. But my light while great is not your only option. Theres a light for every budget and theres a lot of experienced GURUs on GC who can hold your hand through any process. Just keep saving and doing your research and something will eventually fall into your lap. It worked for me lol ~ poke
Yeah im probably not going to snag the 650.. let alone 2 you crazy man! Im tossing around the idea of 1 - 350 or 2 of the 150s. Ill have to talk to them and see what they thinks better. Do you have a certain rep you use or just email them?
Well here's some proof leds are better and here's the link to the article where I got this pic from http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/hubs-energy-efficiency1 you should give it a read and you'll see what I'm talking aboot
I agree pretty much with all that was said here. The one thing I can say is that in comparison to the Amare brand, the Mars brand is a huge step downwards. Definitely not in the Ferrari class. More like the bargain basement - and I have both. If you are wanting to try LED's out, pick up one of the Amare SolarSpec lights. They are a good compromise between going all out and going with a Mars light. The guarantee is unmatched anywhere. Period. Look for yourself. Or you could go with their SolarSpec light which is a no-holds-barred, kick ass light. Again, the guarantee is incredible. Ask TopLED if they will match it? LOL Again, I view Amare as a graduation for me. Going from something that works to something that kicks HID lights ass. A huge step up from TopLED in quality, guarantee and most importantly for me, performance. One thought though is that no one can persuade someone that doesn't want to be persuaded. If you really love HID, no harm in staying there. I think LED are designed with a lot of considerations in mind - like temperature, amount of Watts used etc. Few have the ability to kick HID to the curb. If you are looking for long lasting, HID busting, super guarantee, then you can't go wrong with Amare. They were designed by master growers with the goal of giving back to the community. Bottom line, nothing wrong with HID if you know them and love them. I appreciate the savings in heat and Watts used while still having all the benefits of HID. Chocolate, Vanilla - HID, LED - both are good. Some prefer one over the other.
Thats a cool read! I didnt even think of the hydro foot print. LEDs are the green choice. I do plan on getting solar panels and would need less with LEDs. Im going to be going LED. Ill keep my HID for back up. I have checked out the Solar Specs and depending on the price I get I might grab one of them. Then grab an advancedled later down the road. Keep you guys in the loop.
DIY cob panels will be better and cheaper. I'm about to build the new Cree CXB 3590 cob which is the newest tech out and if solar specs was too use them they'd be waaayyy tooo expensive it's not really that hard. I've made 8 so far.
look at my sig just click on that and it will take you to my diy leds and depending on how big you want it but if you want it like me it would run about $700 but be worth $1800 and I have the source to get the new Cree cheaper than any other place around
Great choice. You just have to wonder why the other LED companies don't offer guarantees like Amare does. You have to wonder if they don't believe in their lights. The price is only part of the equation when looking at value. I used to go cheap. But the older I get the more I look for value. I also look for no hassle guarantees. And I pay a bit more for that peace of mind. As for DIY - it is surely much less expensive. But not being super handy myself, I'd rather buy an already done solution. One nice thing about the Amare's is that they are modular - so if anything fails it is easily fixed. Of course they will do it for you as well. And you don't have to send it to China to get it done.
One of my favorite LED growers has a pretty cool setup going atm, might interest you guys. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P79Q3S1vUlg
Hi JDO I was here browsing around and saw your post. I'm using a Amare 350 and an advanced DS 300 in a 5x5x7 tent with great results. This is my first complete grow with this pair. Take a look at my organic grow journal and tag along for the final results. I'm very impressed with both fixtures.