Best Lights for SPS?

[jas1598]

What is the best light for growing SPS that can be mounted on arms from the back of tank? I need to upgrade my lights and am leaning towards the Radion XR30 G6 PROs, but many say they are overpriced. On the other hand they seem incredibly reliable compared to cheaper lights. Should I just pay the big money for the Radions, or is there something else I should be considering with proven reliability?

 

[rtparty]

Nicrew Gen 2. Like 1/3 the cost of Radions with all the performance

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

There is no "best" lighting, there is only adequate and inadequate. Some low budget lights like nicrew are adequate, but if you want radion then get radion, who cares what people say?

 

[exnisstech]

As mentioned there is no best light regardless what some believe. IMO radions are overpriced, over hyped and under powered but people grow coral under them. Also Mobius sucks and randomly changes date and time which causes lights to come on at all hours if the night which is why my Gen 4 XR15s are sitting on a shelf. Not everyone experiences the issue but a search will show it is a problem with mobius and has been since it was released.
Many lights are capable of growing SPS. I grow my acros under reefbreeders photon V2 pros. The new meridians are supposed to be even better and offer a BOT mount IIRC. I have a meridian 11 over 1 tank but I haven't had it running very long. I've also grown SPS under noopsyche K7 pro III.
Since you have mount concerns some lights offer back of tank mounts but many will required custom light mounts designed for your set up.
This is a mount I had someone design for my 6 noopsyche over my 7ft tank. I think someone who is good with design could come up with an 80/20 light mount for pretty much any tank. This mount is attached to the stand but could be attached to the wall behind the tank.

 

[Hooz]

Yeah, "best" is pretty subjective. You're going to get a lot of people recommending whatever light they have because it was the "best" for them, whether is was price, availability, etc.

Most all modern LED fixtures will grow SPS given it meets the intensity (power) requirements of what you're trying to grow. At this point they are all just variations on the theme from a spectral ("color") standpoint. Some have more power, some provide better spread, some can sit right on top of the tank others need to be mounted higher.

The only requirement you specified was "SPS" and BoT mounts, that would suggest intensity (power) and spread/coverage to combat shadowing, but what size is the tank? Would you rather have the lights mounted higher or lower?

Radions have a proven spectrum for growing coral. They are also powerful lights, but the newer ones sacrifice some of the power for increased spread, which is also important for SPS. They need to be mounted about 8" above the tank. The new Gen 2 Nicrew lights mimic the spectrum and spread of the Radions pretty close.

AI Blades are the king of coverage, and they can site right on the tank rim, but you need multiples to get a "full" spectrum.

There are litterally hundreds of "good" options. Something for every budget. You need to prioritize what's most important to you and how that applies to the tank you're planning on lighting to find the "best", though.

 

[IntrinsicReef]

SPS can be grown with very expensive or very cheap lights. Honestly, the amount of time and discussion given to the slight differences in lights baffles me. LEDs have come a long way. Match the intensity and spread to the size/ depth of your tank and decide how much you want to spend on bells, whistles and branding. Here is a tank using Black Box Viparspectras to grow SPS. The options others have listed above are great too.

 

[Strad12]

Coverage is the most important aspect for SPS. LED bars are king for acropora. T5 and Halide are also good, but much less energy efficient and a bit outdated. Pendant LED's cause harsh shadowing and irregular growth forms in SPS. Go on youtube and look up award winning SPS tanks, specifically ones with really nice symmetrical colonies. Without fail, almost all of them use LED bars or T5's.

 

[lombeard]

I've had the best results with T5s but they all seem to work pretty well. I had Gen 5 Radions on my current tank and they're solid lights.

 

[gkprevite]

I love t5’s still. Maybe add a led bar for some extra pop.

 

[IntrinsicReef]

Coverage is the most important aspect for SPS. LED bars are king for acropora. T5 and Halide are also good, but much less energy efficient and a bit outdated. Pendant LED's cause harsh shadowing and irregular growth forms in SPS. Go on youtube and look up award winning SPS tanks, specifically ones with really nice symmetrical colonies. Without fail, almost all of them use LED bars or T5's.

Intensity is probably the most important aspect, not coverage. You can have a dim light bar with great coverage and it's not going to grow coral properly (just ask anyone who was reefing around the time of standard output florescents.) Pendants can cause shadows because it is point source lighting. Just like Metal Halide and the sun. They are useful for deep tanks and will not cause irregular growth.

 

[Matt L]

What is the best light for growing SPS that can be mounted on arms from the back of tank? I need to upgrade my lights and am leaning towards the Radion XR30 G6 PROs, but many say they are overpriced. On the other hand they seem incredibly reliable compared to cheaper lights. Should I just pay the big money for the Radions, or is there something else I should be considering with proven reliability?

There are many, but most can grow sps coral. However there is a difference in growth and color. Sometimes you don’t get both from the same light. Which sps coral are you wanting to grow? Are you experienced with sps?

 

[VintageReefer]

I would not get radions tbh, they are ok at best but overpriced.

Look into the new reefbreeder meridians, they make a back of tank mount for them. The RB website has discounted bundle packages that include led bars and upgraded power supply, so you can run the bars and main light all off a single power cord.

I use meridians with dual 14k bars. The look is incredible. Bars are 2 channel as well and spectrum is adjustable

 

[TX_REEF]

Budget: Noopsyche K7 https://noopsychereeflight.com/prod...LoOGz_Du7mQRn_t33vQ5pVLnQtZUfV0M0xB6w4l7bSxNr

Best shimmer & color development: kessil ap9x https://amzn.to/46hAuim

Best power, spectrum and controllability combo: reefi https://www.reefi-lab.com/product-category/lighting/

 

[Strad12]

Intensity is probably the most important aspect, not coverage. You can have a dim light bar with great coverage and it's not going to grow coral properly (just ask anyone who was reefing around the time of standard output florescents.) Pendants can cause shadows because it is point source lighting. Just like Metal Halide and the sun. They are useful for deep tanks and will not cause irregular growth.

Halides are not a point source like LED pendants since they have a giant reflector. Acropora only need around 50 PAR to survive, and grow quite well at just 200 PAR, so lack of LED light intensity hasn't been an issue in over a decade. The only implementation of LED pendants that leads to symmetrical colony growth is in an aquaculture setting where you have 360 degree coverage by a number of LED fixtures. Even then, most aquculturists use LED bars or T5's in their systems. For the average SPS enthusiast looking for the optimal lighting solution for a single aquarium, LED bars are clearly superior.

 

[FishTruck]

You will be happy with the radions. Well tested, good advice on color / spectrum options that work, and IME they last many many years. Definitely not the only option though. They are the longest lasting piece of reef equipment I have ever owned... other than my lifereef skimmer. Gen2s still going (on my frag tanks) If I could do it all again, I would have just bought 12 of them for my giant tank and saved myself the hassles of dealing with a cheaper choice. Buy once, cry once, as they say.

I really like the reefi too. Good lens choices to minimize light spill. I have had them (just 2) for just a couple years though. There is not as much advice on what spectrum blending to use and I have not been brave enough to put much coral under them yet. They are kind of in a back area of my big tank. I did have one powersupply croak, but, it was a cheap replacement.

Orpheks bars are an economical and versatile option (get the dimmable ones), but already had 1/8 fail at the two years mark. The big orphek fixtures have given me headaches with 100% failure at 4 years marks requiring numerous rebuilds. They might be okay in the 3 rd generation - if you need the footprint they are worth some consideration.

 

[Featherweight]

My opinion. I have not tried reef breeders yet though. I run reefis on one tank, kessils on one and radions on one. All of them have helix bars added.

Reefi with helix meso blue bars. You get everything. Power, spectrum control, support an American owned small business.

 

[IntrinsicReef]

Halides are not a point source like LED pendants since they have a giant reflector. Acropora only need around 50 PAR to survive, and grow quite well at just 200 PAR, so lack of LED light intensity hasn't been an issue in over a decade. The only implementation of LED pendants that leads to symmetrical colony growth is in an aquaculture setting where you have 360 degree coverage by a number of LED fixtures. Even then, most aquculturists use LED bars or T5's in their systems. For the average SPS enthusiast looking for the optimal lighting solution for a single aquarium, LED bars are clearly superior.

The entire genus Acropora require only 50 PAR to survive? Where are you getting this information?That doesn't make any sense to me.
I have seen many modern tanks where corals are starved for light. Whether it's undersized fixtures or setting the intensity too low. LEDs are dimmable and many new hobbyists run low intensity blue-only tanks that can cause problems by not driving enough photosynthesis within coral. So, intensity is still an issue. Spread with non-point source lighting like T5s is important when corals are fully grown in and shading themselves and others. But this won't happen for several years, and can be countered by pruning and good coral placement.
And yes, if pendants are set up correctly in aquaculture, or at home, or any tank, they can grow coral without causing "asymmetrical " growth. There are different applications for different lights. There are many beautiful SPS dominant tanks lit by Kessil pendants. If you think LED bars are best, then cool. No need to detract from other methods.

 

[Reginald Reefer III]

T5's with LED supplementation (actinic + UV)