Do any of you own a digital ballast? And are they worth the money?

mosstrooper · Feb 23, 2011

I was pondering how long i have had my 600w ballast and it shocked me to think that i have owned it since 1998 which 13 *&*%$* years.

I seem to remember that the performance of a ballast degrades over time, so maybe i ought to get a new one.

Do digital ballasts save you money?

JGP · Feb 24, 2011

Goes to show how good your mag ballast is, 13 years and still going.I'd be tempted to swap it for another.

mosstrooper · Feb 24, 2011

This is a good point, though there have been times where it has had to go into storage too, for a couple of years, so its probably had more like 10-11 years use.

rocket high · Mar 4, 2011

My ballasts are 5 years old now and i was thinking the same thing as you Mossy ... my ballasts are from growell and i was ripped off money wise ...but they do work well. i would like to switch to digitals but the price tag is too much for me right now maybe in a few years time when the recession is over ...

mosstrooper · Mar 4, 2011

I know what you mean about price. I like the idea of quiet though, does this make the lamp quieter too, or is it just the ballast? (im asking as i expect you are an expert)

My lamp can whine and sing with the best of them.

compost · Mar 4, 2011

mosstrooper said:
I know what you mean about price. I like the idea of quiet though, does this make the lamp quieter too, or is it just the ballast? (im asking as i expect you are an expert)

My lamp can whine and sing with the best of them.

Depends. I bought the cheaper digital ballast and instead of humming you have a small fan that puts out about the same amount of noise. The higher quality digital ballasts don't have the fans. I really don't notice more light, however I do see a lot less amps being used for the same amount of lighting.

mosstrooper · Mar 4, 2011

compost said:
I do see a lot less amps being used for the same amount of lighting.

This is what i like to hear. That, along with quieter is making me think i might start saving my pennies.

Phillthy · Mar 5, 2011

silent, luke warm not hot and the ability to dim. love them.

windsurfer · Apr 22, 2011

rocket high said:
ballasts are from growell...ripped off money wise ...

yes growell are a bunch of chancers regarding their prices, they keep sending me magazines every few months.. I used them for vermiculite and perlite, for some reason they were quite big value for the big bags, and I needed lots for some hempy buckets.... I think it must have been a pricing error on their part.. i kept my mouth shut tho

urbangorilla · May 8, 2011

i got to say it is a wise investment getting 1 of those lumatec digital blasts, they are not as dear to run so it will save u money in the long run & u have a nice dimmer switch option.

BongRipkenJR. · May 8, 2011

I am very skeptical on making the switch to digital ballasts. I have heard so many different accounts on them not lasting past a year, however I don't know the brands. I know a certain chinese model goes out quite consistently. My ballasts are from 2008 and running strong. Yeah, they might use %10 more energy, but buying a $250-300 ballast every year seems uneconomical.

Vape-pro · May 12, 2011

Hey ripkin, i'd say they are worth it , have two nextgen 1000s running for more than a year no problems. Had a galaxy select a watt burn out on me . you aren't supposed to run them 24/ 7 with out adequate air flow cooling them , the replacement is working fine. Im happy with them overall , my bro uses em , about 4 lights worth , no problems either. hope it helps , peace

bdiddly1 · May 23, 2011

i have a digilight ballast&can hear no noise at all but i can hear a ringing sound from the bulb,light sometimes!my mag ballast has lasted 10 years also!

The Revolution · May 23, 2011

Stick with the magnetic ballasts. there is less to go wrong with them, they are easy to repair, and the new digis are proven to burn bulbs faster than magnetic

vostok · Jan 12, 2013

mosstrooper said:
I was pondering how long i have had my 600w ballast and it shocked me to think that i have owned it since 1998 which 13 *&*%$* years.

I seem to remember that the performance of a ballast degrades over time, so maybe i ought to get a new one.

Do digital ballasts save you money?

Me too, I'm in the same boat waiting for the big leap to LED

Hydro-Soil · Jan 13, 2013

mosstrooper said:
I was pondering how long i have had my 600w ballast and it shocked me to think that i have owned it since 1998 which 13 *&*%$* years.

I seem to remember that the performance of a ballast degrades over time, so maybe i ought to get a new one.

Do digital ballasts save you money?

Replace the cap and ignitor on it and run it for another 13 years. Where can you get a 600w digital for under $100?

I'd recommend replacing the capacitor every 3-5 years after that though.

Stay Safe! :blowbubbles:

noyd666 · Jan 13, 2013

had both, still got both types, mag more heat but i always had a 20w clamp fan on it for cooling, had no trouble with any''''' ah one chink one would not start up a sun pulse globe, had to move my music box away from digi'''' to much static. use a le-lux house to garage monitor always left on so i can only hear whats going on up at garage end,i can hear ballests start up, quite interesting to hear them elec going through there start up procedure, ithink the digi went about 7 min to go through its stages?its def quieter on the monotor with mag. plenty cheap ones on ebay autions.

Sativa Dragon · Jan 13, 2013

I have the Badass 1kw low frequency dimmable, I like it mostly for the square wave it keeps the arc more uniform. The lamp still sings a little and the ballast still amkes some noise during start up, I paid a premium for it cause I wanted the best light I could get. In all honesty If it's not in the budget don't do it. If it is go for it. I have a few digital ballasts of different qualities the Baddass is def the most high tech.

Hammerhead · Jan 13, 2013

All of the top brands now have internal fans even lumatek has them on there new units. I have 3 digi's 2 are Lumatek no problems. I needed to replace the 3rd one after 5 years of use. I was reluctant to try CAPS new Nano Ballast but the reviws where fantastic. To my surprise it has performed better then the Lumateks. I would love to open one of these to see how how it was made It has no heat sink. The temp is cooler then the 600 Lumateks are. It does have 2 fans(push/pull) dimmable with a delayed start. Keeps all the ballest from firing at the same time.

rocket high · Jan 13, 2013

WoW a 1000$ for a digi ballast ... i suppose if you have the cash ..why not.

im still using my mag's ...money is tight right now so i still have to wait to upgrade

Do any of you own a digital ballast? And are they worth the money?

Member

Member

Member

Active member

Member

Member

Member

Seven-Thirty

Member

Member

Active member

Member

New member

Active member

Active member

Active member

noyd666

Active member

Disabled Farmer

Active member