Description
Time, Dim and Protect a Whole Room of Varidrive Lights From One Panel
The Maxibright Varidrive LED/HID Controller – also sold as the Varidrive Digital Lighting Controller – is the master unit for Maxibright's Varidrive Control ballasts, the 600W Varidrive with RJ11 controller ports. Linked to those ballasts it runs every light from one screen: a 24-hour timer, dimming from 20% to 100% in 1% steps, gradual sunrise and sunset, and temperature-led dimming that pulls output back when the room gets too warm and shuts the lights down at a set limit. Because a Varidrive Control ballast drives HPS and MH lamps as well as Maxibright's ballast-driven Varidrive LEDs, one controller covers HID and LED rooms alike.
Key Benefits
- Fine dimming from 20% to 100% in 1% increments
- Built-in 24-hour timer – no separate light timer needed
- Sunrise and sunset simulation brings the lights up and down gradually instead of switching straight to full power
- Thermostatic dimming and shutdown protects plants and equipment when the room overheats – the temperature sensor is included
- Room-scale control – up to 100 Varidrive Control ballasts on one controller
- Clear LCD with a four-button menu for schedules, output and temperature limits
Why Do Grow Lights Need Dimming and Heat Control?
Lights that jump from off to full power, run flat out through a heatwave and can only be adjusted one ballast at a time make a steady environment hard to hold. Seedlings and fresh cuttings stretch or scorch under the wrong intensity, and a hot afternoon can push the room past what plants tolerate, slowing growth and nutrient uptake. Central control lets you run gentle output over young plants, raise it through vegetative growth and flowering, and leave the controller to trim power on its own if the temperature climbs.
How to Use
- Check what you are controlling: it works with Varidrive Control ballasts that have RJ11 ports – not the standard Varidrive dimmable ballast, and not LED fixtures with built-in 0-10V drivers
- Link the ballasts to the controller and to each other with RJ cables, then turn each ballast's dial to EXT
- Set the clock and photoperiod from the LCD menu
- Choose the output and the length of the sunrise and sunset ramps
- Set the temperature limits for automatic dimming and shutdown
Technical Specifications
- Brand: Maxibright
- Model: Varidrive LED/HID Controller (Varidrive Digital Lighting Controller)
- Controls: Maxibright Varidrive Control 600W ballasts (RJ11 port), running HPS or MH lamps or ballast-driven Varidrive LEDs
- Signal: PWM over RJ11
- Dimming: 20% to 100% in 1% steps
- Timer: 24-hour on/off scheduling
- Sunrise / sunset: Gradual ramp up and down
- Temperature functions: Automatic dimming on temperature rise; emergency shutdown at a set temperature
- Included: Thermostat and temperature sensor
- Capacity: Up to 100 Varidrive Control ballasts
- Interface: LCD display, four-button menu
- Not for: LED fixtures with built-in 0-10V drivers – use the Maxibright Universal Lighting Controller
Frequently Asked Questions
Will it control my standard Varidrive 600W ballast?
No. It needs the Controllable (RJ11) Varidrive Control ballast. The standard and Slimline Varidrive dimmable ballasts have no controller port and are set by their own dial.
Will it dim a Varidrive 360W, 720W 3.0 or 500W/1000W LED?
No. Those Varidrive LEDs have integrated drivers with a 0-10V RJ port and pair with the Maxibright Universal Lighting Controller. This controller is for lights powered through a Varidrive Control ballast.
How many lights can one controller run?
Up to 100 Varidrive Control ballasts, linked to the controller and to each other. Each ballast can run an HPS or MH lamp or a ballast-driven Varidrive LED.
Why can't I see the sunrise or sunset happening?
The ramp is deliberately gradual, so the change is hard to spot by eye – but the ballasts' power draw rises and falls through it.
Works Well With
