DrJynx86answered grow question 5 years ago I have been growing with Viparspectra 450w and 600w for a long time and they're definitely better than sodium or mercury lamps, they don't use as many watts, they yield a lot more, and they definitely don't heat up as much.
I haven't compared to other leds, but so far they have lived up to expectations.
I think many of the criticisms come from they not using new types of Cobb leds, and that might be valid, but in reality I haven't compared with my own grows and experience. They aren't on the cheap side and you pay for the brand also, to be honest I have read more good than bad and that's something to weight too.