17500K megachrome 400 watt feedback

[Charterreefer]

Is anyone using the Megachrome 17500k crystal bulbs? I have been using Radium 20000k for quite a while and was thinking about getting a few to try out. It will be for an all sps tank. Any feedback would be great.

 

[Abhishek]

I do but only 2x250 watts . Am not sure about your taste but crystal is absolutely amazing and I love them more than radiums .
The blues and purples are not washed out and much much more defined edges with acros .
I run one on electronic luxcore set at hqi and one on m80 ballast . The m80 puts out a little more PAR and makes it run a little yellow and the luxcore makes it run icy white . They have large spike in 400 and below which make them amazing for stand alone bulbs but whiter than radiums on m80 .

Here's a few pics under crystal :-

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Abhishek]

I know it's not common in US but many of my Euripwannfeiends run these and are quite amazing !!!

Also I checked with Geisemann and they have tested the bulbs to last for 3 freaking years when ran 6 -8 hrs a day .

I do t believe so if they run without spectrum shift or PAR loss for 14-16 months it's a win for sure .

I shall send a video I did the other day for my tank which should show colors in the truest sense .

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Charterreefer]

Thanks! I don't like the way radiums washes out my tranquil milli as well as a few others. I have a Pinky and the Bear that just won't color up amongst a few others that look very drab. It seems that they are looking for a light frequency that just isn't there to energize them. I was hoping going a bit whiter would help them color up more.
I heard that the ballast actually runs cooler. Has that been your experience?

 

[Charterreefer]

I use Lumatek on the "Super lumen" setting for my Radiums. What is the recommended requirements of the Megachromes?

 

[jackson6745]

Any FTS's with this bulb running?

 

[Charterreefer]

FTS's?? Sorry I'm not the best with acronyms.

 

[Abhishek]

Firstly , yes my ballasts run wayyy cooler than when radiums .

The spectrum is called crystal rightly . It's absolutely white with tinge of blue and purple and some yellow depending on DOCs in your tank .

If you go to my build thread , you will see a video of the tank with these halides and reefbrite leds .

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/finally-reef-tank-started-after-6-years.277366/page-4

Lastly , the PAR is more than radium . I get around 350 - 450 on the sand bed with 2 halides over an 18 inch tank .worh radiums it was around 50-60 less .

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Abhishek]

Lastly , You should run it on superlumens mode on your lumatek ballast just like radium .

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Abhishek]

Here's the video of the tank with the halides and reefbrites :-



Regards,
Abhishek

 

[TaylorPilot]

Have any of you compared it to the 14500k Coral bulb? I have a 250 DE that I ran over my 40B for about 6 months with t5 supplementation. It was a little too white for me. I am wondering how the 17500k compares to it, or if I should move up to the 21000k. No one locally runs them, so I have never seen one in person, and they are about the most expensive MH bulb out there. So I'd hate to buy the 17500 and it still be too white.

 

[lancesmith1]

I ran them in a RB setup with the LED strips. I thought it was perfect. However... I was getting a lot of flicker using the RB ballet. I switched over to the RB 20K and thought it was pretty close. I liked that combo a lot as well. Plus the Twin Arc alternates fringe tubes so the theory is that you don't get as much degradation over a 12 month period. The RB 20K is worth looking into IMO.

 

[TaylorPilot]

I ran them in a RB setup with the LED strips. I thought it was perfect. However... I was getting a lot of flicker using the RB ballet. I switched over to the RB 20K and thought it was pretty close. I liked that combo a lot as well. Plus the Twin Arc alternates fringe tubes so the theory is that you don't get as much degradation over a 12 month period. The RB 20K is worth looking into IMO.

Yea, I have heard good things. I think @melev runs those over his system. I have a few DE250 watt reflectors and electronic ballast. I really wanted to use that stuff, so I am looking for the best stand alone 250 DE bulb, although I will probably still run T5 to supplement. The 14500k megachrome was just a little too white for me.

 

[Charterreefer]

When you say too white...is it not warm enough for you or not blue enough?

 

[TaylorPilot]

Not blue enough...It looked like it had a touch of yellow to me, but with a few T5 it was a very nice white with a touch of blue. I would like it a little more blue, but not loose all the other colors. I think the 17500 is probably what I am looking for, but will require some blue supplementation for my taste.

 

[Charterreefer]

Are you running on an electronic ballast with a super lumen type of setting?

 

[Charterreefer]

Over the past ten years or so I keep bouncing back and forth with, not enough blue or too much blue. It seems that too much blue and it washes out purples and reds and effects yellow coral then I go back and switch to a slightly warmer bulb and then wish I had the bluer bulb back however, the from looking at Abhishek's pics, his tank looks so crisp and vibrant. The greater spectrum makes the tank have more contrast and brings out a larger range of color in the coral. I think the 175000K would be the ticket. For the price Megachrome charges for the bulb I want to make sure I'm going to be happy with it. I really do like the fact that the ballasts run (as reported) a lot cooler. That's a huge plus as far as lowering heat generation not to mention the reduction in electricity use (heat equates into wasted electricity).

 

[Abhishek]

Over the past ten years or so I keep bouncing back and forth with, not enough blue or too much blue. It seems that too much blue and it washes out purples and reds and effects yellow coral then I go back and switch to a slightly warmer bulb and then wish I had the bluer bulb back however, the from looking at Abhishek's pics, his tank looks so crisp and vibrant. The greater spectrum makes the tank have more contrast and brings out a larger range of color in the coral. I think the 175000K would be the ticket. For the price Megachrome charges for the bulb I want to make sure I'm going to be happy with it. I really do like the fact that the ballasts run (as reported) a lot cooler. That's a huge plus as far as lowering heat generation not to mention the reduction in electricity use (heat equates into wasted electricity).

Believe me an on the same boat man ! I know 95% of the community loves blue tank but I can't stand it ! Even radiums ran on M80 were blue enough for me .
I love the way megachromes donot wash out purples and blues . I donot know if the 400 has the same spectrum as 250 but I would guess so .
I have infact stopped all supplement ReefBrite and love the tank only in 17.5 k .

Regards,
Abhishek

 

[Charterreefer]

Believe me an on the same boat man ! I know 95% of the community loves blue tank but I can't stand it ! Even radiums ran on M80 were blue enough for me .
I love the way megachromes donot wash out purples and blues . I donot know if the 400 has the same spectrum as 250 but I would guess so .
I have infact stopped all supplement ReefBrite and love the tank only in 17.5 k .

Regards,
Abhishek

Thanks for the helpful info Abhishek.
I think you have sold me on the Megachromes! I have a few coral like Pinky the bear and some other high priced sps that just sit there and look drab. Since the other sps look great I strongly think they need a part of the spectrum that just isn't there with the bluer bulbs.
It is definitely an acquired look if one is used to cool but washed out blue look. I'll go with the 175000K to bring back the contrast and broader coral color that the blue light doesn't provide. And then maybe, my Pinky the bear and others will start to show their true colors .
PS nice camera work! looks like you have a nice lense.

Regards
Lou

 

[Abhishek]

Thanks for the helpful info Abhishek.
I think you have sold me on the Megachromes! I have a few coral like Pinky the bear and some other high priced sps that just sit there and look drab. Since the other sps look great I strongly think they need a part of the spectrum that just isn't there with the bluer bulbs.
It is definitely an acquired look if one is used to cool but washed out blue look. I'll go with the 175000K to bring back the contrast and broader coral color that the blue light doesn't provide. And then maybe, my Pinky the bear and others will start to show their true colors .
PS nice camera work! looks like you have a nice lense.

Regards
Lou

Hey Lou, I hope you like the bulb as much as I do ! I was attracted to it with the large spike in the purple/violet spectrum as evident below from BRS link . I havent seen many bulbs that have the spike and also has adequate reds, yellows and greens spectrum in the right ratio :-

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/megachrome-crystal-17500k-single-ended-giesemann.html

The bulb generally needs 100 hrs or so of burning time during which it might appear yellow but it will change . If your water has enough dissolved organic compounds, it will appear yellow and you might need to run carbon .

Regarding the lens - funny you say that as its taken with an iphone 5 lol !!! Although I do have many fancy lenses , but none can take videos as they are all analog . My other passion is being a freelance fine art photographer using analog cameras like Hasselblad and Leica and their lenses are way more than a Dastaco Calcium Reactor lolll ! But they cant take videos .

Here's some of my pics if interested taken on film and developed at home and printed on silver gelatin paper using darkroom and then scanned to upoload on web . Scans make them look **** but the prints look better

http://www.dripbook.com/abhishekdasgupta/

Like many , I am allergic to digital cameras and find them very hard to operate . Its way easier for me to calculate light and aperture using my analog lightmeter and eyes !

Regards,
Abhishek