Finally got the @Marshydro Mars Hydro FC-3000 Smart LED unboxed and hung. It was nicely packaged with sturdy foam protecting the goods. The driver has a solid foam chunk keeping it in the center. Provided (besides light and driver) was a User Manual, Power Cord, Suspension Kit (two ratchet hangers), Hanging Kit (metal wire with sturdy carabiners), Driver Support Brackets (those green things if you want to mount your driver) and a Dimming Cable (RJ11).
Yes, you read that right. They provide a cable up front for you to purchase another FC-3000 to daisy chain with right away!
I’ve bought two lights with daisy chain capability and neither came with any cable. Manual for the FC series says you can chain up to 60 units 
and have them all set to the same dimmer intensity as the “master” in the chain (they have pretty clear instructions on this in the manual).
Driver comes unmounted from the light rail, but ready to mount real easy with the provided support brackets. The cables are so long from the light to the driver, and then driver to power cable that mine sits comfy atop the tent. The driver is ready to plug-and-play in seconds to the light rail and power cord, the instructions in the manual could be a little more clear by having written text that you need to twist the connector piece between the driver and light rail…there’s only a small diagram of this. To be fair, I had figured it out before seeing the diagram but some may overlook it.
Because of the size of the metal loops on the frame of the light rail this was super easy to hang, could do it with one but the wife stopped by the tent to lend a hand
took less than 2 minutes to clip in and get hung. I ended up not using the Hanging Kit, I used two more ratchet hangers and have one per metal loop.
The frame is sturdy with four individual fixed light rails, I think the FCE series has adjustable rails. But the spacing of the rails is good for even light distribution IMO, and when I get a bigger tent that gap the middle will fit my tiny Bloomspect SL600 to give 80 booming extra watts of light
Had a minor hiccup and that’s where the User Manual could be a little more clear with an Operating Instructions page (it goes from Assembly Instructions to Daisy Chain Operation, no general Operating tips). There’s a button on the left of the dimmer control unit on the driver assembly. When it’s pressed in the light responds to the dimmer, when it’s depressed the light runs at max wattage without responding to the dimmer control (you need this for daisy chain dimming). On the actual driver it shows a depiction of a pressed in button and “DIM” next to it, and a depressed button with “EXT” but I didn’t notice this at first.
Well my unit came with the button pressed in and the dimmer set to off. So I got my phone ready for a slow-mo of it’s first lighting, plugged the light in, and nada
once I corrected my foolish ways
And we have light
acclimating this 10 day old Mango Smile sprout with the light 20” above her luscious canopy at minimum dim setting (probably around 30-40 watts).
Having issues connecting to the light through the app, it requires connecting to WiFi for OTA updates. The light is getting recognized by Bluetooth and I can select it, but each time I enter my WiFi information it kicks me back to the Bluetooth selection page. This has prevented me from connecting the light to the app and having access to all its functions (timer, spectrum control, Sunrise/Sunset simulation, etc). Not sure why these features can’t just be controlled through Bluetooth? I like the WiFi capability also but it shouldn’t prevent users from controlling the light short distance if they’re having issues connecting the light to WiFi. If this wasn’t a giveaway item and I was a paying customer super giddy to get their new toy up it would’ve been a gut punch. Other than that, this light is brilliant
To be continued…
Yes, you read that right. They provide a cable up front for you to purchase another FC-3000 to daisy chain with right away!
I’ve bought two lights with daisy chain capability and neither came with any cable. Manual for the FC series says you can chain up to 60 units and have them all set to the same dimmer intensity as the “master” in the chain (they have pretty clear instructions on this in the manual).Driver comes unmounted from the light rail, but ready to mount real easy with the provided support brackets. The cables are so long from the light to the driver, and then driver to power cable that mine sits comfy atop the tent. The driver is ready to plug-and-play in seconds to the light rail and power cord, the instructions in the manual could be a little more clear by having written text that you need to twist the connector piece between the driver and light rail…there’s only a small diagram of this. To be fair, I had figured it out before seeing the diagram but some may overlook it.
Because of the size of the metal loops on the frame of the light rail this was super easy to hang, could do it with one but the wife stopped by the tent to lend a hand
took less than 2 minutes to clip in and get hung. I ended up not using the Hanging Kit, I used two more ratchet hangers and have one per metal loop.The frame is sturdy with four individual fixed light rails, I think the FCE series has adjustable rails. But the spacing of the rails is good for even light distribution IMO, and when I get a bigger tent that gap the middle will fit my tiny Bloomspect SL600 to give 80 booming extra watts of light
Had a minor hiccup and that’s where the User Manual could be a little more clear with an Operating Instructions page (it goes from Assembly Instructions to Daisy Chain Operation, no general Operating tips). There’s a button on the left of the dimmer control unit on the driver assembly. When it’s pressed in the light responds to the dimmer, when it’s depressed the light runs at max wattage without responding to the dimmer control (you need this for daisy chain dimming). On the actual driver it shows a depiction of a pressed in button and “DIM” next to it, and a depressed button with “EXT” but I didn’t notice this at first.
Well my unit came with the button pressed in and the dimmer set to off. So I got my phone ready for a slow-mo of it’s first lighting, plugged the light in, and nada
once I corrected my foolish waysAnd we have light
acclimating this 10 day old Mango Smile sprout with the light 20” above her luscious canopy at minimum dim setting (probably around 30-40 watts).Having issues connecting to the light through the app, it requires connecting to WiFi for OTA updates. The light is getting recognized by Bluetooth and I can select it, but each time I enter my WiFi information it kicks me back to the Bluetooth selection page. This has prevented me from connecting the light to the app and having access to all its functions (timer, spectrum control, Sunrise/Sunset simulation, etc). Not sure why these features can’t just be controlled through Bluetooth? I like the WiFi capability also but it shouldn’t prevent users from controlling the light short distance if they’re having issues connecting the light to WiFi. If this wasn’t a giveaway item and I was a paying customer super giddy to get their new toy up it would’ve been a gut punch. Other than that, this light is brilliant
To be continued…
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