Good place for LED parts ?
- Thread starter b2d2t
- Start date
TheFishMan65
New member
I like RapidLED. If it is a really large tank you might consider Cutter.
reefermad619
New member
Co-sign on rapid. They might be having a sale on black Friday too.
reefermad619
New member
Key word was MIGHT. Take a look in rapids forum in the sponsors forums. They said they might have a sale and if they did, it would be on ala cart stuff only. No kits would be on sale. Either way I hope they do have a sale!
jkf1983
Premium Member
extremeshannon
New member
+1 for reefledlighting Bill is awesome to work with.
TheFishMan65
New member
jk, I think you need a larger fan 
jkf1983
Premium Member
jk, I think you need a larger fan
Go big or go home. Haha. I actually really like it, was easier than 2 smaller fans. Really quiet too, nzxt is the brand.
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
Personally, I shop around. Prices change pretty quickly on this stuff, especially the LEDs themselves. Unfortunately it's hard to cross-shop vendors that don't specify which bins you're getting, which can have a big impact on performance - so I usually stick to vendors that specify a bin (or at least an order code so you can look up the potential range of bins).
emooring37
Member
someone define bin please............as it applies to what we are doing with these leds.....gotten sev diff answers
nemosworld
Active member
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nemosworld
Active member
bins are like your cars vin number. with the bin you can go to the manufacturer website and get the exact specs for that led.
lumens, voltage etc
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
There are two relevant bins for the LEDs we usually talk about. LED models cover wide ranges of specs, and a bin basically tells you the specs for that exact LED you have in your hands.
Brightness bin tells you how efficient the LED is. It tells you how much light it will produce at a given power level.
Color bin tells you the specific color for that LED.
For instance, a Royal Blue XP-E might be spec'd as D316, which is D3 color bin and 16 brightness bin. This is the deepest blue bin available and the brightest efficiency bin available - so when shopping for royal blue XP-E, most people try to get this bin.
The significance is that a single model of LED might have performance bins that span 100% differences in efficiency, or wide variances in color, so if you get a "random" bin you might have really poor results.
Brightness bin tells you how efficient the LED is. It tells you how much light it will produce at a given power level.
Color bin tells you the specific color for that LED.
For instance, a Royal Blue XP-E might be spec'd as D316, which is D3 color bin and 16 brightness bin. This is the deepest blue bin available and the brightest efficiency bin available - so when shopping for royal blue XP-E, most people try to get this bin.
The significance is that a single model of LED might have performance bins that span 100% differences in efficiency, or wide variances in color, so if you get a "random" bin you might have really poor results.
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
While we're waxing philosophical about bridgelux LEDs, IMHO it is important to point out that the "economy" they offer will probably prove false in many situations, given that:
1) a top-bin Cree XP-E is easy to get for barely over $3,
2) it'll be efficient enough that you need fewer of them for a given light output, and
3) your power bill will be less
1) a top-bin Cree XP-E is easy to get for barely over $3,
2) it'll be efficient enough that you need fewer of them for a given light output, and
3) your power bill will be less
der_wille_zur_macht
Team RC
In general, a "big fixture" is just lots of little fixtures put together. The sites targeting reefers typically bundle parts for common tank sizes, which are all much smaller than your monster.
The one potential area for difference is driver choice. Many people with larger tanks shy away from the typical Meanwell ELN driver because it has poor power factor and a high inrush current. The Meanwell HLG series is one common choice. Other people use DIY drivers or other brands (Inventronics, etc.)
The one potential area for difference is driver choice. Many people with larger tanks shy away from the typical Meanwell ELN driver because it has poor power factor and a high inrush current. The Meanwell HLG series is one common choice. Other people use DIY drivers or other brands (Inventronics, etc.)
reeferdale
New member
I am starting my LED build this weekend - 252 Cree XP LEDs and using 4 Meanwell HLG 240-48A drivers. I looked at all the LEDs, satis, bridgelux, no names and I decided (with much help from people on the forums) that the CREE was the way to go, more lumens per LED = less LEDs and less cost. Plus, I have a lot of room to run the CREES over 650 to 700 mA. I have to admit I did not get deep into the selection of the LEDs based on Binning, but if you can afford it I would do it based on what Wille has described
The XP-E royal blues can run up to 1000 mA and the XP-G whites up to 1500 mA, this leaves a lot of room to dial in the color you want, provided you get a dimmable driver. the HLG 240-48a is a 5A driver (48 watts) so you can run some where in the range of 78 LEDs at 800mA in parallel. For a little over $100a driver that is about 1.30 per LED. Rapid LED gave me a QTY discount also and it was at or below the group by and I had then in less than a week.
The XP-E royal blues can run up to 1000 mA and the XP-G whites up to 1500 mA, this leaves a lot of room to dial in the color you want, provided you get a dimmable driver. the HLG 240-48a is a 5A driver (48 watts) so you can run some where in the range of 78 LEDs at 800mA in parallel. For a little over $100a driver that is about 1.30 per LED. Rapid LED gave me a QTY discount also and it was at or below the group by and I had then in less than a week.
