Lighting Taking the plunge!!

[Free Flow]

Its official, I've put in my order for cobs, heat sinks, holders and thermal pads. I have my hlg 120 already so as soon as my parts come in ill be building a 2 light set up and will eventually end up with 6 cobs in my 5 x 3 I'm so stoked.

How hard are they to wire? Anything I should know before getting started?

 

[wwwillie]

Anything I should know before getting started?

That depends on what you know now...
They are quite simple actually. The wiring is probably the easiest part.

 

[Free Flow]

That depends on what you know now...
They are quite simple actually. The wiring is probably the easiest part.

I've done my research I feel fairly confident just curious if there's anything I should or shouldn't do. Which is better parallel or series?

 

[wwwillie]

I've done my research I feel fairly confident just curious if there's anything I should or shouldn't do. Which is better parallel or series?

It's really not a matter of better... I think series is safer but parallel may be dictated by your choice of COB and driver.

 

[Free Flow]

Hlg 120h 20A driver, citizen 1212 80cri 3000k gen 6. Do you have any links to the differences between series and parallel being explained. I think I need to get a better understanding.

 

[BigSm0]

Hey there @Free Flow. Before you attempt to wire the new light you really need to know the difference between the two and how it all works. Dealing with Electronics isn’t something to do blind. You will damage your lights if done wrong or even worse gets real good zap.

Most importantly that driver has a fv of 20 and the 1212 is 36v. It’s not going to work no matter how you wire it.

 

[Free Flow]

Hey there @Free Flow. Before you attempt to wire the new light you really need to know the difference between the two and how it all works. Dealing with Electronics isn’t something to do blind. You will damage your lights if done wrong or even worse gets real good zap.

Most importantly that driver has a fv of 20 and the 1212 is 36v. It’s not going to work no matter how you wire it.


View attachment 818615

Good catch smo, I didn't even pay attention to that! Thats what I get for buying a $20 driver lol. No worries ill pick up a hlg 120h 48a, or would I be better off picking up the 185 since I plan to add more cobs in the future? I think with all these new found questions I should hit the drawing board again and do some more research. Good thing I have a few weeks before I start builsing. Do you recommend any good reading material @BigSm0 ?

 

[BigSm0]

https://www.autoflower.org/threads/sizing-drivers-series-vs-paralell-by-bigsm0.57213/

https://www.autoflower.org/threads/diy-cob-building-safety-first-electrical-safety-advice.54587/

These are 2 good threads here.

The driver you choose depends on your goal wattage. I’d run 3 per driver if you were to run 6 in total. 2 drivers. Hlg-120h-c1400 will give you 50 watts per cob and run up to 3 cobs. You would need to wire this in series as the voltage is higher with a lower set amperage. Check the first thread out I posted. The guy who wrote it is pretty good with this stuff.

 

[Free Flow]

https://www.autoflower.org/threads/sizing-drivers-series-vs-paralell-by-bigsm0.57213/

https://www.autoflower.org/threads/diy-cob-building-safety-first-electrical-safety-advice.54587/

These are 2 good threads here.

The driver you choose depends on your goal wattage. I’d run 3 per driver if you were to run 6 in total. 2 drivers. Hlg-120h-c1400 will give you 50 watts per cob and run up to 3 cobs. You would need to wire this in series as the voltage is higher with a lower set amperage. Check the first thread out I posted. The guy who wrote it is pretty good with this stuff.

Thanks man, I heard that guy is a know it all when it comes to cobs! Thanks again man I was so excited to get started I didnt even notice.

 

[BigSm0]

Anytime! If you are unsure please take a step back and ask. Burning a string of cobs isn’t fun. I did this one time and man it scared the $h!t out of me.