Do Chinese Black Box LEDs Work? (Viparspectra)

[HomeSlizzice]

Honestly for the price and ease of use, why not just get an 8 bulb hydroponic t5 system, and replace the bulbs. Sunlight supply T5's are/were used in many different wholesale/aquaculture systems. A Sunlight Supply 8x54 T5HO off of amazon is only like $160. So just grab that, a wifi outlet for your timer, and some good bulbs (ATI for example).

 

[falc]

I run 2 Viparspectra spectrum 160's over my new 40b and I have no complaints! I had to move a couple acropora, a leather and a couple goniopora over when their holding tank sprung a leak and they have responded very well! YMMV but I think you sill be pleasantly surprised with these lights!

 

[cracker]

Iv'e had some over 4 years now They work just fine for me. If the bucks are tight they fit just fine !

 

[thejuice24]

I run them (Viparspectra), for the price you can’t beat them. I also took it a bit further and modified the led. Took out some of the 12k and replaced with 20k. Added some more UV (405, 410 and 420) and moved some of the 450 and 470 blues over to the white channel. Really easy to do and cheap....

 

[Bpb]

The world may have changed some, but when I was 14 years old, $2400 may as well have been $2,400,000. It was well beyond any money I’d be able to realistically earn. The viper spectra sound like a winner for the OP realistically. Unless he/she has very generous parents

 

[Coastie Reefer]

Ok, id still take radions over the black boxes.
Warranty, UL certified, better spectrum and intensity, controllability and room for growth. Add a reeflink and vortech pumps... May be alot of money but the results are proven. Ive only seen 1 black box lit tank that is "show" worthy. I went from T5s to black boxes, growth slowed right down, now i have kessel and T5s, growth and color are 100x better.

Every one has a preference, he asked for opinions, i gave mine. Mine just happens to cost more.

Mars are UL and CTL

 

[AbnormalReefer]

Thank you all for the insight, I do not doubt that Radions are worth the money at all. If given a choice (sans monetary constraints) I’m sure most of not everyone would choose the Radions any day. I certainly would. However I just do not see that happening anytime soon.

Another idea I was thinking of was making it a FOWLR for now and obtaining all the fish I desire then saving up for the Radions. The calm, collected side of me enjoys this idea more, because the months of waiting will pay off in the end. I am leaning towards this idea more at the moment.

Unfortunately being patient as a 14 year old doesn’t come easy haha

 

[Flippers4pups]

Thank you all for the insight, I do not doubt that Radions are worth the money at all. If given a choice (sans monetary constraints) I’m sure most of not everyone would choose the Radions any day. I certainly would. However I just do not see that happening anytime soon.

Another idea I was thinking of was making it a FOWLR for now and obtaining all the fish I desire then saving up for the Radions. The calm, collected side of me enjoys this idea more, because the months of waiting will pay off in the end. I am leaning towards this idea more at the moment.

Unfortunately being patient as a 14 year old doesn’t come easy haha

I say this all the time about the hobby and to hobbyist, " do what's right for the animals your keeping, but do what's right for you and your budget".

Planning a head is key. Eliminates spending more money and endangering your animals. Slow and steady for the win!

 

[NY_Caveman]

One thing about black boxes, that I did not see mentioned, is they are pretty easy to take apart and work with. You can customize them or replace diodes and other parts.

I am quite happy with my SB Reef Lights black box over a mixed reef.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Nothing wrong with them- they just don't last long AND . . . best of luck getting warranty service if needed.
You'll have to hire this gal to make a firm call to China!!!

 

[AbnormalReefer]

Thanks all for the advice. I am still slightly conflicted but I don’t wanna be cheap and end up paying more in the future. It may just have to remain a FOWLR for half a year or so. First thing first though is a good protein skimmer!

 

[theKoolAidMan]

Yes, absolutely they work. Anything that will provide the intensity and spectrum needed by coral will work. Doesn't matter how much you spend, the coral doesn't care.

When you spend more than the black boxes the advantages generally are:
1. UL Listing and Safety. The black boxes are not UL listed, meaning they have not been tested by UL LLC, which is a third party testing company that certified electronic devices as being safely designed in terms of fire risk. The importance of this is debated, but essentially you're buying a box of wires that no one other than the manufacturer has bothered to inspect to see if it was designed and made in a safe manner that won't burn your house down. Now, out in the wild, there have been cases of fires or melting due to these lights, but there still seem to be very rare. Also note that not all of the brand name lights are UL listed either.
2. Configuration. For the black boxes choices of spectrum intensity is limiting at times and if you don't have a ton of control over schedules and spectrum intensity. With a more expensive light like something by AI, you can set intensity of each wavelength exactly throughout a set 24 hour schedule, plus other bells and whistles. The black box I believe allows scheduling but it in more limited ham-fisted manner.
3. Quality. Generally speaking a light by AI of Kessel are going to be made of higher quality components and have a more aesthetically pleasing design. I would trust an AI Hydra 26 to last longer and run cooler than a black box.
4. Par uniformity and spread. BRS did a video I believe with the black boxes and did find that something like an AI Prime or Hydra 26 has a much more even PAR distribution and spread than the black boxes. So while the black boxes DO provide enough intensity and the correct spectrum, they're not as uniform, so coral placement can become trickier in theory.
5. Warranty. Name brand manufacturers will stand behind the product and warranty. If your black box from eBay fails after a month 9 times out of 10 you're out of luck despite whatever warranty paperwork comes in the box.

If you can truly afford a name brand light, I would recommend it considering the potential safety risks and overall build quality and longevity. However if you cannot afford expensive lighting the black boxes will grow coral just fine as they have for thousands of others, including many successful reefers on this forum.

I'm currently a 32 year old upper middle class professional that can afford AI lights without too much trouble, so I do because I like those things I listed. However, 10 years ago I was a college kid with 2 reef tanks and used Chinese black box T5 lights. It was the same debate then. However, they were cheap and grew corals.

 

[slowngreen]

It's funny actually, I've seen several coral shops with expensive lighting in the showroom but then black boxes in the back on grow out tanks.

 

[Matt Carden]

I am 43 years old, my yearly income is over $100,000 this year. I'm setting up a 150G tank. I chose to buy 3 - 16" SB reeflights for $415 instead of spending $2400 on name brand lighting. This hobby is very expensive and if you can find products that accomplish the goals then you will have more money for corals, food, supplements, medications, salt, controllers to make maintenance easier so you can spend more time enjoying your tank.

 

[Oldreefer44]

It appears to be human nature to try to convince others to purchase whatever we purchased because we crave validation. At one time in my career I was considered one of the countries foremost experts on certain types of products. Yet, I could have been standing their with a big sign attached stating my expertise level and if another customer walked up and suggested something else that they had bought, they suddenly had far more credibility than I did. I have had all versions of lights many based on budget which worked fine. I currently have Orphek because I can. At the same time I would never try to convince someone on a budget to start with them because lighting is just one element to keeping corals successfully. My LFS uses black boxes and their stuff is beautiful and healthy.

 

[wesman42]

Yes, absolutely they work. Anything that will provide the intensity and spectrum needed by coral will work. Doesn't matter how much you spend, the coral doesn't care.

When you spend more than the black boxes the advantages generally are:
1. UL Listing and Safety. The black boxes are not UL listed, meaning they have not been tested by UL LLC, which is a third party testing company that certified electronic devices as being safely designed in terms of fire risk. The importance of this is debated, but essentially you're buying a box of wires that no one other than the manufacturer has bothered to inspect to see if it was designed and made in a safe manner that won't burn your house down. Now, out in the wild, there have been cases of fires or melting due to these lights, but there still seem to be very rare. Also note that not all of the brand name lights are UL listed either.
2. Configuration. For the black boxes choices of spectrum intensity is limiting at times and if you don't have a ton of control over schedules and spectrum intensity. With a more expensive light like something by AI, you can set intensity of each wavelength exactly throughout a set 24 hour schedule, plus other bells and whistles. The black box I believe allows scheduling but it in more limited ham-fisted manner.
3. Quality. Generally speaking a light by AI of Kessel are going to be made of higher quality components and have a more aesthetically pleasing design. I would trust an AI Hydra 26 to last longer and run cooler than a black box.
4. Par uniformity and spread. BRS did a video I believe with the black boxes and did find that something like an AI Prime or Hydra 26 has a much more even PAR distribution and spread than the black boxes. So while the black boxes DO provide enough intensity and the correct spectrum, they're not as uniform, so coral placement can become trickier in theory.
5. Warranty. Name brand manufacturers will stand behind the product and warranty. If your black box from eBay fails after a month 9 times out of 10 you're out of luck despite whatever warranty paperwork comes in the box.

If you can truly afford a name brand light, I would recommend it considering the potential safety risks and overall build quality and longevity. However if you cannot afford expensive lighting the black boxes will grow coral just fine as they have for thousands of others, including many successful reefers on this forum.

I'm currently a 32 year old upper middle class professional that can afford AI lights without too much trouble, so I do because I like those things I listed. However, 10 years ago I was a college kid with 2 reef tanks and used Chinese black box T5 lights. It was the same debate then. However, they were cheap and grew corals.

1. It has been established that BOTH Mars Aqua and ViparSpectra are UL listed. If a black box burned down my house, I'd be able to get it covered under my insurance.

2-5. For longevity, I'd spend 7x the amount on a Radeon. That's 7 years, or 7 ViparSpectra units (assuming a worst case scenario of a year).

So, will a Radeon last nearly a decade? The verdict is still out on that one (highly doubt it).

Your statements regarding par uniformity can be addressed with a few dollars and a diffuser. Many people have done so, and successfully.

There isn't a warranty on SOME black boxes. Going by that logic, there shouldn't need to be a warranty on an expensive light if they're really that much more reliable.

 

[slowngreen]

Personally the only thing I don't like about black boxes and why I don't use them is lack of channels to tune. I wish they could still be affordable but come with separate channels for w-b-rb-uv and so on. I'd use them for sure then.

 

[theKoolAidMan]

1. It has been established that BOTH Mars Aqua and ViparSpectra are UL listed. If a black box burned down my house, I'd be able to get it covered under my insurance.

2-5. For longevity, I'd spend 7x the amount on a Radeon. That's 7 years, or 7 ViparSpectra units (assuming a worst case scenario of a year).

So, will a Radeon last nearly a decade? The verdict is still out on that one (highly doubt it).

Your statements regarding par uniformity can be addressed with a few dollars and a diffuser. Many people have done so, and successfully.

There isn't a warranty on SOME black boxes. Going by that logic, there shouldn't need to be a warranty on an expensive light if they're really that much more reliable.

Yes a couple brands of black boxes are UL. I stand corrected.

Still I'm not sure the point of your post overall. I was at no point arguing that that people shouldn't buy them if you'd read the post rather and get defensive and try and justify your own purchases to yourself.

 

[wesman42]

Yes a couple brands of black boxes are UL. I stand corrected.

Still I'm not sure the point of your post overall. I was at no point arguing that that people shouldn't buy them if you'd read the post rather and get defensive and try and justify your own purchases to yourself.

I was merely addressing misinformation.

 

[Mrx7899]

I have 3 over my 225 and have no problems growing any kind of coral