Let me start by saying what I tell every engineer who calls me asking about the Mean Well LRS-150-24 for a new fixture project: there is no single 'best' power supply. It always depends on what you're trying to light, where that light is going, and, frankly, how much you care about the initial cost versus the long-term reliability. That LRS-150-24 is a workhorse—24 volts, 10 amps, 150 watts—but it's not the right fit for everything.
I've been managing procurement for a mid-sized lighting manufacturer for about six years now. Over that time, I've watched our team (and our customers) make the same mistake: picking a power supply based on wattage alone, without thinking about the fixture's thermal environment, dimming needs, or even the plant life underneath the light. Yeah, you read that right—plants. Let's break this down by scenario.
Three Common Scenarios, Three Different Answers
I've organized this around the most common questions I get. Find the one that sounds like your project, and jump to that section. If you're still unsure, I'll give you a quick checklist at the end to make the final call.
Scenario A: The Wall Chandelier (Aesthetics & Dimming)
The setup: You're building or installing a wall chandelier—maybe for a hotel lobby or a high-end residential project. You need a clean look, and you probably want dimming.
The common mistake: Assuming any 24V supply will work. The LRS-150-24 is a fantastic, cost-effective AC/DC power supply, but it's not a dimmable LED driver. If you hook it up to a triac dimmer expecting smooth fading, you'll get flicker or a nasty pop. The LRS series is a standard switching power supply—it's designed for constant voltage, not dimming control.
What I've learned (the hard way): In 2023, we sourced 200 LRS-150-24 units for a series of decorative chandeliers. The customer wanted 0-10V dimming. We had to rip them all out and swap them for Mean Well's LPC or HLG series. That rework cost us about $4,200 in labor and shipping. The LRS is a great supply, but if you need dimming, look at the LPC-60-700 or the ELG-150 series. If you absolutely must use a constant voltage supply, you'll need an external PWM controller (a Mean Well PWM-30 or similar). That adds to the BOM and the wiring complexity.
A quick side note: Mean Well's 3-in-1 dimming (resistor/PWM/voltage) is available on their HLG and ELG series, not on the LRS. If that feature is a 'must-have,' skip the LRS-150-24.
Scenario B: The Cyclops Spotlight (Power & Heat)
The setup: You're powering a cyclops spotlight—a high-power, single-point source for accent or outdoor lighting. These fixtures often need a 24V/10A supply because they draw a lot of current.
The good news: The LRS-150-24 is practically built for this. One of the reasons I buy them in bulk is the thermal performance. The LRS series is designed for forced or natural convection cooling, and it can deliver full power up to around 50°C ambient. For a spotlight mounted in a open canopy or a vented enclosure, this supply is a solid choice. It's also priced very competitively—we pay about $28–35 per unit depending on volume, which is lower than the HLG or RSP series.
The catch (and it's a real one): The LRS-150-24 doesn't have a PFC (Power Factor Correction) circuit. For small residential projects, this is fine. But for commercial installations, where local codes or utility rebates require power factor correction, you'll need the LRS-150F or a PFC-equipped supply. I've had to turn down a $15,000 order once because the engineer insisted on the standard LRS, and their site had strict THD requirements.
Here's a comparison from our procurement records: In Q2 2024, we compared costs across 4 vendors for a 100-unit order. Vendor A quoted the standard LRS at $32/unit. Vendor B quoted a PFC version at $47/unit. We almost went with Vendor A until I checked the site requirements. The $1,500 savings would have evaporated if the inspector flagged the THD. We went with Vendor B.
Scenario C: Can Dracaena Grow in Low Light? (Wait, what?)
The setup: This one caught me off guard a few years back. A customer was building a vertical garden feature—a living wall—inside a restaurant. They were using Dracaena (which can tolerate low light) and needed a power supply to run the LED grow strips. They had a Mean Well LRS-150-24 in their spec.
The question: Can Dracaena grow under an LRS-150-24? Well, the power supply doesn't affect the plant's biology directly. The question is really whether the LEDs you're powering with it can produce the right spectrum and intensity for low-light plants. Dracaena can survive in as little as 50-100 foot-candles (about 500-1000 lux). A standard 24V LED strip (like a 5050 or 2835) running at 24W per meter, driven by the LRS-150-24, can easily provide that.
The insight: The LRS-150-24 is overkill for a small plant system. A 24V, 5A supply (like the LRS-100-24) would work fine. But if you're planning to expand the living wall, or if you want to run the LEDs at full brightness for a lighting effect, the 150W headroom is nice. The key thing I learned is to check the LED driver compatibility.
People think 'more power means better growth.' Actually, for low-light plants like Dracaena, too much light causes stress and leaf burn. The causation runs the other way—you need just enough power. I built a quick calculator after getting burned on a job where we overspecced a 300W supply for a 3-foot plant wall. The plants died, and we replaced them at a $1,200 loss.
So, to answer the question directly: Yes, Dracaena can grow under lights powered by an LRS-150-24, provided the LEDs are the right spectrum (3000K-4000K for foliage) and you're not blasting the plants at full power 24/7.
How to Decide: A Quick Procurement Checklist
I can't tell you exactly which supply to buy, but I can tell you the questions you should ask yourself (and your engineering team):
- Do you need dimming? If yes, skip the LRS and look at the HLG or ELG series. If no, proceed.
- Is PFC required by local code or project spec? Check the electrical drawings. If yes, go with the LRS-150F.
- What's the ambient temperature around the power supply? If it's over 50°C, you're better off with a fan-cooled supply (like the RSP-200) or de-rating the LRS.
- Are you powering plants or just lights? For plants, match the current to the actual LED load. Overprovisioning by more than 30-40% is wasteful and potentially harmful.
If you can check off 'No dimming,' 'No PFC required,' 'Ambient under 50°C,' and 'Standard lighting load,' the LRS-150-24 is probably your best value. It's one of the most reliable power supplies I've bought over the past 6 years. I've tracked every order in our procurement system (about 2,400 units across 6 years), and the failure rate is under 0.5%.
But if your project looks like Scenario A (the dimmable chandelier) or Scenario C with a tight budget and a plant wall, the calculus is different. Pick the right supply now, and you'll save yourself a $4,200 rework (and a bunch of dead plants) later.