Lumatek Digital Panel Plus 2.0 Controller

The Digital Panel Plus 2.0 controls two zones independently, up to 400 HID ballasts or 100 LED drivers. It works with the Zeus range, the VF range and with dimmable Lumatek ballasts.

Nought to ten volts: the language dimmers speak

A dimming knob on a lamp does something simple: it tells the driver how hard it may work. That happens through a small control voltage, usually somewhere between nought and ten volts, and it is a convention used across almost the whole horticultural trade. Nought volts means off or minimum, ten volts means full power, and everything between scales with it.

What a controller like this does is take that control voltage off the lamp and centralise it. You set once what should happen and every driver attached follows, whether that is two of them or a hundred. The control wire carries no power, only that signal, which explains how a thin cable can run alongside a row of fixtures drawing hundreds of watts.

The two independent zones are what separate this from a knob. You can put your veg room and your flower room on one panel with different times and different levels, and that is exactly the situation where separate dimmers on separate lamps drift out of step. The soft start and the temperature roll-back apply per zone as well.

Two things to check before ordering. Whether your fixtures have a control input, because a lamp without that connection cannot be regulated this way. And how you will cable it: the signal runs in series from fixture to fixture, so you need a cable per link and those are sold separately.

Technical Specifications:

• Model: LUMM0019
• Zones: two, independently adjustable
• Capacity: up to 400 HID ballasts or 100 LED drivers
• Control: 0 to 10 volt control signal
• Suits: Lumatek Zeus range, VF range and dimmable ballasts
• Cabling: in series, cables sold separately
• Weight: 1.2 kg

Frequently asked questions

Does this controller work with other brands?
Only where they have a 0 to 10 volt control input. That is a common convention, but check it per fixture.

What do the two zones mean?
Two groups of fixtures set separately, with their own times and levels. Useful when veg and flower occupy different rooms.

Are the link cables included?
No, those are bought separately. You need one per link.

Can I use it with a single lamp?
You can, but you would use almost nothing that makes it worth having. For one lamp the knob on the fixture is enough.