Thank you all very much for sharing your expertise with me, and in such a timely manner. I feel I have a much better idea as to what I want now.

Weezer: glad to see I wasn't forgotten by you. Either the popo were engaging in scare tactics and meanwhile having a laugh at my expense, or they were really sifting through dirt without any direction. In any event it was a very strange and terrifying moment for me. But now that the heat is behind me...

As for the suggested brands/models here is what I found:

Procyon 100's - way too expensive. Immediate write off. Too small too. I'd have to purchase a bundle to make it work. No thanks. They are beautiful though.

Wex-c150 - thanks str8 for your input and your eye opening grow logs. However, I was a little disappointed to see that the 150's don't have any deep red @ 660 nm in them. If u remember correctly from your posts they are $450 each? Great price, but how did you get the 660 nm diodes with them?

LumiGrow - They sure know how to write a convincing ad, but just as you mentioned oldmac where are the umoles/s ratings? This is odd because on their website they provide a detailed explanation as to the importance of this figure but I couldn't seem to find it in their product description. Also, there's a seller on eBay getting rid of 2 es-330's for $2,200 USD. Suggested retail is $1500 each. Too bad I don't need those babies anytime soon. Still though, I will keep these on my radar.

TI Probloom - gotta be the most appealing one for me. Tough to beat a registered dealer stationed in Quebec.

Some more math: Ti smartlamp - 186 umols/s @ 330 watts = 1.75 umols/s/w

Ti smartbar - 124 umols/s x 2 @ 430 watts = 1.75 umols/s/w

conclusion: exactly the same performance. The SmartBar is $500 more naturally. I'm torn.

I think the SmartBar is my best bet since the bars are more versatile and accomodate my space much better. Although it's a 4x6 area I really only use half of that, shaped in a block letter C. Hence the bars, not squares.

Sorry to keep you in suspense Weez but I'm really only in the brainstorming phase of this project right now. It will be months before I start anything concrete. But rest assured I will make the wait worth while. And yes, it looks like I'm going to need to re evaluate my budget if I'm going to do this properly, either that or just decrease the overall size. Very likely. I may have to settle with a 5x2 arrangement using the SmartBar. Seems convenient.

Oldmac, does the ProBloom come preconfigured, no wavelength tinkering necessary? And lastly, are they sufficient as a stand alone, or do they require supplemental lighting? I think I remember you using a few T5HO 2700K's?

Thanks again.
macnasty Reviewed by macnasty on . The Very Best of LED Light Systems? Greetings, I am yet another curious seeker of the nascent world of LED lighting, but I am different from 95% of other curious seekers in that I want to stay as far away from any Chinese compromise as possible. My question/request: can those with experience in the field (big fan of weezard and oldmac) please suggest a few if the most reliable companies to purchase ready-made LED setups. FYI I have done a fair amount of research over the last year on the topic, have dabbled with discount Rating: 5