Minimalistic multichip DIY LED build

[djsmallz]

That is just bad azz

[bowfront90]

Originally Posted by bowfront90

Very excited about this multichip setup! I was considering using 70-80 3W LEDs until I started reading this thread. Now I am considering doing the following.

MY SETUP:
Tanks Dimensions: 72x36x20
LED will be 24 inches from top of aquarium.
LED would replace a 72 inch fixutre with 3x250MH + 4x80T5 = 1070 watt
I have Clams, SPS, LPS, Softy and fish.

Here is what I am planning on doing:

Heatsink:
60x10 vs TWO 25x10 (Heatsinkusa)
Currently leaning towards 2 smaller pieces

LED:
50W Actinic Royal Blue Hybrid LED x 4 (Ebay/led-hk)
10W 455nm Royal Blue LED x 6 (Ebay/luoxiquan)
10W White 15000K 20000K LED x 6 (Ebay/luoxiquan)

Optics: (50W LEDs)
60mm Lens Reflector with Base for 20-100W LED (Ebay/ac-rc)

Adhesive:
Arctic Alumina Thermal Adhesive

Driver:
HLG-100H-36B x 2 (to control 50W leds) (wattsupply)
ELN-60D-48 x 2 (to control 10W leds) (wattsupply)

Cooling:
Multiple CPU Fans (Newegg)

Controller:
APEX controller

Questions:

Is there anything that would make this build LESS expensive, or MORE efficient (ie, less LEDS, different drivers, etc).

Do you think I need to ADD more LEDS? I would like the entire tank to be covered.

I am also considering having 2 vs one BIG heatsinks. Any ideas?

Thanks everyone for your help!!!!

Any recs from the pros on this thread???

[matiLanza]

wow i have a feeling my 48 LED order i just did will get old fast and it hasnt even arrived yet..i hate this thread! already has me planning a new light ! when my NEW light isnt even built yet! wish i saw this earlier !

[maglofster]

Originally Posted by 007Bond

I see the GTX is rated at 250w vs 180w. What does the max wattage indicate when you are talking a 100w multi-chip? How do you translate the max wattage of the cooler to a multi-led?

Well, the "100W" chips I'm using can actually be driven to 252W. So if I want to up the current in the future I can just add a more powerful driver and I don't have to think about the cooling.

We are not quite sure on how to compare the heat output from a CPU with that of a multichip LED. But, I like to overdo it, better to be safe than sorry and so far the LED's are being kept really cool.

[dainiusiva]

Great thread maglofster! Can you compare you solution to lets say ecoxotic cannon leds?

[maglofster]

Originally Posted by dainiusiva

Great thread maglofster! Can you compare you solution to lets say ecoxotic cannon leds?

Thanks!

Well first of, the LED's. I use Epistar, they use EdiStar. Both are made in China / Taiwan. I can't really speculate on the difference between the chips but they seem pretty much the same when it comes to specs.
DIY vs. Ecoxotic = 1-1

When it comes to drivers, they use MeanWells, I sometimes use MeanWells and sometimes noname drivers from China. But it's easy just to choose for yourself. MeanWells have a solid reputation and they back that up with very good performance.
DIY vs. Ecoxotic = 2-2

Cooling then? Well I think my solution has more overhead, I can crank up my LED to 200W without any problems. Their solution is tailored to the specfic needs of the application and therfore has a smaller footprint.
DIY vs. Ecoxotic = 3-3

Design, well this one is easy. My solutions looks like crap. Theirs is a futuristic and attractive pendant.
DIY vs. Ecoxotic = 3-4

What about price? Well my 300W pendant cost me $740 to build. For an extra $100 I get a total of 500W. To get 300W of Ecoxotic I would pay 3x$499 (for 3 100W pendants) and then 3x$89 (for three drivers) so that would amount to $1764.
DIY vs. Ecoxotic = 4-4

So is it a tie? I guess that depends on what's important to you. I have loads of cash and like the sleek design, go for the Ecoxotic. If you rater save that extra 1000 bucks and don't care about the looks of your DIY solution, the DIY:it..

One other thing you have to keep in mind is that there is a lot of R&D behind the Ecoxotic cannon. I whipped my solution together in a couple of hours while drinking beer. So the build quality of the Ecoxotic is probably much better.

[dainiusiva]

Great reply! you went more in-depth than i was hoping for.

I guess you could basically make the same led pendant as they did, you just need to use special heatsink and encase the lens in beautiful casing.

On the other hand, as you said, they must have spent a lot of time on r&d vs. your r&d being done while drinking beer (no offense intended, not even a tiny amount )

Ok, so r&d aside, do you think that your solution can be made to look like ecoxotic pendant? I mean can your multichip be sufficiently cooled by a fanless heatsink?

Also, i cant believe that nobody has commented on how good your tank looks (the one at the start of thread). It looks amazing, good work!!! And to think that it only uses ats as filtration

[007Bond]

Originally Posted by maglofster

Well, the "100W" chips I'm using can actually be driven to 252W. So if I want to up the current in the future I can just add a more powerful driver and I don't have to think about the cooling.

We are not quite sure on how to compare the heat output from a CPU with that of a multichip LED. But, I like to overdo it, better to be safe than sorry and so far the LED's are being kept really cool.

So to answer my question the heatsinks max wattage IS relative to the multi-chips wattage you will be using. If your chip is rated at 50w max, then you would need a heatsink of at least 50w's also. Am I correct in how to size your heatsink?---Rick

[maglofster]

Originally Posted by dainiusiva

Great reply! you went more in-depth than i was hoping for.

I guess you could basically make the same led pendant as they did, you just need to use special heatsink and encase the lens in beautiful casing.

On the other hand, as you said, they must have spent a lot of time on r&d vs. your r&d being done while drinking beer (no offense intended, not even a tiny amount )

Ok, so r&d aside, do you think that your solution can be made to look like ecoxotic pendant? I mean can your multichip be sufficiently cooled by a fanless heatsink?

Also, i cant believe that nobody has commented on how good your tank looks (the one at the start of thread). It looks amazing, good work!!! And to think that it only uses ats as filtration

Thanks! And yes, I'm 100% sure we can work something out when it comes to a fanless version. But, it has to be cheap and easy to source the heatsinks!

[maglofster]

Originally Posted by 007Bond

So to answer my question the heatsinks max wattage IS relative to the multi-chips wattage you will be using. If your chip is rated at 50w max, then you would need a heatsink of at least 50w's also. Am I correct in how to size your heatsink?---Rick

Yes!

But I think it's prudent to have some "elbow room" so I have doubled the wattage. The L2 Pro cooler I'm using for my 50W can handle 120W of CPU. And the larger GTX Pro, used for the 100W can handle 250W of CPU. This is for two reasons. One, I can raise the current to get more light if I want and two I know that the LED (being the most expensive component in the build) won't burn up when a fan fails.

[007Bond]

Thanks, I understand!!

[007Bond]

Originally Posted by maglofster

Yes!

But I think it's prudent to have some "elbow room" so I have doubled the wattage. The L2 Pro cooler I'm using for my 50W can handle 120W of CPU. And the larger GTX Pro, used for the 100W can handle 250W of CPU. This is for two reasons. One, I can raise the current to get more light if I want and two I know that the LED (being the most expensive component in the build) won't burn up when a fan fails.

Do you think the L2 Pro and GTX Pro can dissipate enough heat to protect the LED's without the fans

[Lassef]

Hi
I am the Swedish guy who Maglofster refer to as Lasse.

I made my first LED fixture consisting of these rectangular "China" LED's for a year ago. It consists of 10-watt chip with no lenses. 3 modules with 9 chips each. 3 chip 10 000 K, 3 chip 16 000 K and 3 chip with Royal Blue. They are driven with 900 mA and then gives a consumption of about 8.3 watts each. As the heat sink, I use a solid aluminum plate. 12 mm (0.47 inches) 240 mm long (9:45 inches) and 150 mm (5.91 inches) and I placed one VGA Xigmatech Bifrost cooler on the top. On the underside of the heat sink LED chips are protected by a transparent plastic cover from the salt spray. At 007 Bond issue in post 169, I can say that I usually have my ramps just at that distance but with V8 cooler, it was a test. The reason I have the LED ramps so low, the LED is a very strong point source, and I do not want my grandchildren to look directly into this sharp source that also contains a lot of light in the blue color range.

Calculating the cooler you need is basically the same as when to cool a CPU. All the power operation of a processor to become to heat – with the LED, it is the same with the exception of the small amount that is converted to light.

If the LED is at 100 watts, you need a cooling effect which in principle can do this. But if you use of a Heat Pipe solution you must be careful and use an oversized solution. This is because it is a gas that drives the heat exchange, and when charged more than the heat pipe can handle it will not work at all.

The reason I chose a solution with a V8 cooler is that in the environment I will use the lights I need to encapsulate the radiator in some type of protection. Over a normal aquarium, I think Maglofsters solution is the best.

I've built this solution to test how deep I can get the light to penetrate if I use a 100 watt chip and a 60-degree lens. I have no need for high PAR values there I will try - I just need to get down the light approximately 4-5 meters (157-197 inches).

Sincerely Lasse

[dkerns06]

If you could build some kind of housing for the light that Lasse made with the v8 cooler i think it would be comparable to the ecoxotic cannons.

[maglofster]

I'm sure Lasse will build some smart solution to house his V8. And when he does, there will be pictures people!

[Lassef]

Hi

PAR readings in air.

26 (10.24 inch) cm below >2000 (The meter stop at 2000)
36 cm (14.17 inch) = 1200
46 cm (18.11 inch) = 620
56 cm (22.5 inch) = 400
66 cm (26.95 inch) = 300
76 cm (29.92 inch) = 218

Distances are measured from the chip. My measurements in water were taken from the surface. 10 cm (4 inches) should be added to these measurements for the correct comparison. This creates the strange thing that PAR value will be higher in water than in air. This I have observed at times other than now, and must be because the water acts as a lens - or - light is reflected from the glass.

Sincerely Lasse

[maglofster]

Originally Posted by 007Bond

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Do you think the L2 Pro and GTX Pro can dissipate enough heat to protect the LED's without the fans

Yes, for a while, like days. As opposed to minutes with really bad cooling.

[007Bond]

Maglofster, Thanks this is good to know. How is this accomplished? Their foot print / design in relation to the LEDs heat output, just the ambient air around it?

[bowfront90]

Do you guys think a large heatsink 25" x 10 " could handle two 50W LEDs plus six 10W LEDs? I plan on putting 2 fans on top of the heatsink.

Also, what kind of material can I place as a saltwater shield to prevent backsplash? I have read that Polycarbonate is the best?

[dkerns06]

Ok so I'm thinking of using this heat sync http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835185097 . Im going to do the 100w panel and 2 3w blue epistars for moon lights. 1, world that keep them cool in your opinion, and 2 could i power the panel and the 2 epistars with the 100w driver? I'm not worried if they would be slightly dim because i think the 100w panel would need dimmed any way.

[hillbillyjones]

A cheap and easy to source heatsink is the new Arctic Cooling's Alpine 64 Plus that's designed for the AMD Llano. It has a MSRP of $15-20. Frostytech has a review of it. Frostytech has reviews for a lot of heatsinks based on 125w "thermal envelope" ("a 38x38mm copper interface die with 125W heat load").

[dkerns06]

ok, never mind on the 3w blue leds on the 100w driver, i forget that i want them to stay on so obviously they have to be on their own driver.

[bowfront90]

Any good resource of connecting LEDs in series versus parallel with some of the drivers mentioned above?

[dnejdl]

wow , man now i really want to build them !!! great par #s.. thxs for the info , and great jon on this trend !!! hats off......

[Psionicdragon]

Man, the heatsinks are crazy lol. I like em, but not sure how to hide them.

Doesn't the 10k LED chip make everything look brownish/yellow?
I bought a 50w "20k" and man...I really didn't like it much.

I am using a multi-color led unit right now and I really like the color. I don't remember, but did you have LPS? People who have lps that uses the 50/50 have been noticing fading colors. Have you notice any?

You have a beautiful tank. I really like those anthias