G5 XR15 Blue vs. XR30 Blue : What's the difference and will one save you $$ over the other?

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randyBRS

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Not parallel but perpenticular

If I were setting up that long term SPS dominated system, I would personally use the XR15s for a couple of reasons. They are cheaper and I can space them to meet my needs or even add a 5th one in if I felt the need for it. (Still more cost effective.) :)
 

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Hi @randyBRS, so for a 120 gallons full of mature sps, i will not have sps self shading with 4 G5 xr15. No need to put 3 xr30 in parallel of the tank ?
according to the video even with many large sps, using 4xr15 is equivalent to using 3 xr30 to better distribute the light and have the same results ... correct me if I'm wrong.
 

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@randyBRS i'm trying to figure out which lighting lighting to choose. reef full sps with some lps on the bottom (120x55x55 cm). I have seen the different BRStv reviews but I still have doubts ... according to the latest video regarding the xr15 g5 blue having 4 xr15 g5 blue or 3 xr30 g5 blue is equivalent to having the same diffusion and the same results in a reef of my size full of large colonies of sps.
my question is: are the radion g5 alone sufficient to evenly illuminate my coral and have excellent colors and growth? or is it necessary to add some neon t5 in order to have better colors on the sps during the white light of the day? if it is necessary to add t5 to increase the diffusion should I still use 4xr15 g5, or in this case can I use 2 xr30 g5 ( maybe increasing the total light intensity to get more par) since the diffusion is given by the t5?
 

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@randyBRS I was told that if for what I am trying to a achieve with my new build as a mix reef heavier on the sps side 3 xr30 would be sufficient. Now after reading this thread I’m wondering if xr15 would be better suited to get the job done at a 20” height off the water. Tank dimensions are 96”x30”x25”, in the center is my over flow. How many would I need 4 or 5? And blue or pro?

2DAA8676-6C61-475A-992E-80B24CF4095C.jpeg
 
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randyBRS

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@randyBRS
my question is: are the radion g5 alone sufficient to evenly illuminate my coral and have excellent colors and growth? or is it necessary to add some neon t5 in order to have better colors on the sps during the white light of the day? if it is necessary to add t5 to increase the diffusion should I still use 4xr15 g5, or in this case can I use 2 xr30 g5 ( maybe increasing the total light intensity to get more par) since the diffusion is given by the t5?

Our testing and recommendations (especially those for SPS systems) are based on providing exactly that, even/distributed blankets of light where shadowing isn't an issue. That said, the recommendations for both the XR15 and the XR30 solve for that potential issue. I wouldn't see a specific "need" for adding in additional light if I followed these recomendations, but you certainly could if you wanted to. Just check with a PAR meter and adjust the light intensity as needed.

That said, if you were to add in some T5 fill light I don't doubt that you could get away with less Radion fixtures to achieve similar PAR numbers and distribution we tested. I will say that so far out of all the lights we've tested, as a LED only option the G5 Radions have shown the best performance in diffusion/distribution/spread.
 
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@randyBRS I was told that if for what I am trying to a achieve with my new build as a mix reef heavier on the sps side 3 xr30 would be sufficient. Now after reading this thread I’m wondering if xr15 would be better suited to get the job done at a 20” height off the water. Tank dimensions are 96”x30”x25”, in the center is my over flow. How many would I need 4 or 5? And blue or pro?

Personally I think 3x XR30s is not enough to cover the entire 96" length, especially in a way that provides enough PAR for the SPS corals you want to keep. In a totally dominated SPS system, my guess would be that 6x XR30s would be the way to go, but since that is not your tank goal and you're looking for more of a mixed tank I think you could get away with 5x XR30s.

With that in mind and comparing that with the data we saw on the XR15s, You might even find that 6x-8x XR15s will get you in those mixed tank PAR goals and save you several hundreds of $$$.
 
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Yea I’m going with 3-4 xr15 on my 4ft 120. @randyBRS what does the par spread look like on a 4 ft x 2 ft 120g with 3 xr15?

I'm not exactly sure since we didn't test the tank using three. My guess is that you'll likely be able to hit many of the points in that upper 200+ PAR ranges, likely a solid option for mixed reef tanks with SPS in the upper portions of the tank.
 

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Our testing and recommendations (especially those for SPS systems) are based on providing exactly that, even/distributed blankets of light where shadowing isn't an issue. That said, the recommendations for both the XR15 and the XR30 solve for that potential issue. I wouldn't see a specific "need" for adding in additional light if I followed these recomendations, but you certainly could if you wanted to. Just check with a PAR meter and adjust the light intensity as needed.

That said, if you were to add in some T5 fill light I don't doubt that you could get away with less Radion fixtures to achieve similar PAR numbers and distribution we tested. I will say that so far out of all the lights we've tested, as a LED only option the G5 Radions have shown the best performance in diffusion/distribution/spread.
Thanks a lot for the answer. do you think that in relation to the problems encountered in the new g5 (breaking of the frame, noisy fans etc.) ecotech makes a recall program to solve the problems especially of the fans?
 

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Personally I think 3x XR30s is not enough to cover the entire 96" length, especially in a way that provides enough PAR for the SPS corals you want to keep. In a totally dominated SPS system, my guess would be that 6x XR30s would be the way to go, but since that is not your tank goal and you're looking for more of a mixed tank I think you could get away with 5x XR30s.


With that in mind and comparing that with the data we saw on the XR15s, You might even find that 6x-8x XR15s will get you in those mixed tank PAR goals and save you several hundreds of $$$.
I feel because of where the over flow is only 1 light would be needed. I was looking at these layouts which would be best for coverage assuming I go with the xr15 ?

3A9E5402-38B5-4C2C-A40F-9D8A5F303BCD.jpeg A0AEF2EB-B96C-48FB-BE97-71EBC1179049.jpeg 10D8C4CF-1065-4D51-8B16-46F5C515585A.jpeg
 

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Question instead of put them at 8 or 9 only at 55 %power ,would it not make sense to put them higher and run them at 100%? so the color and the light would be more nice?
how much would you put on a 120x60x60cm sps/softie? 2,3or4?
 

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Question instead of put them at 8 or 9 only at 55 %power ,would it not make sense to put them higher and run them at 100%? so the color and the light would be more nice?
how much would you put on a 120x60x60cm sps/softie? 2,3or4?

I have them 20” above the water, and I have them currently at 60% intensity. I would say 4 for the tank size you are mentioning. These lights are powerful and very bright. Pics make them look very dark blue or very blue way more than what they are in person. You can also adjust the settings to add more white as well.
 

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I have them 20” above the water, and I have them currently at 60% intensity. I would say 4 for the tank size you are mentioning. These lights are powerful and very bright. Pics make them look very dark blue or very blue way more than what they are in person. You can also adjust the settings to add more white as well.
Thanks for your answer. But why then in their video they said to put them only at 8-9 over the tank? Are they wrong with their measurements?
 

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Thanks for your answer. But why then in their video they said to put them only at 8-9 over the tank? Are they wrong with their measurements?
No they are not wrong at 8-9” above the tank you will not need to run them at full intensity. I have mine with that intensity because the amount I have, the types of corals I have and the height of my canopy. I only went with the 8 xr15 to ensure I had no shadowing as to also eliminate hot spots. I did not want to add t5 to supplement.
 
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Thanks for your answer. But why then in their video they said to put them only at 8-9 over the tank? Are they wrong with their measurements?

The optimal mounting height tests that we do for all lights take into account light spilling out of the tank. For the purposes of our testing we stop the height tests when we see a 15% loss of overall average PAR, meaning that 15% of the light is spilling into the surrounding room rather than inside the tank.

Certainly you could mount any light we test higher than what we recommend and increase the intensity to achieve the same PAR numbers, however higher mounting does come at the cost of more light spilling into the room. It's a tradeoff that some reefers are more willing to make than others and at the end of the day the biggest takeaway would be that no matter how high you decide to mount your lights, the best practice will be to measure the PAR inside your specific tank/setup to ensure you are hitting the PAR goals you desire for the types of corals you want to keep. :)
 

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What's the best bang-for-buck set up for a 3 foot SPS tank?
 

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What's the best bang-for-buck set up for a 3 foot SPS tank?

I'd say that three AI Primes would be one of the best lighting options for a 3 foot SPS tank, assuming it's not an unusually tall 3 foot tank. Plus, they're probably one of the most cost effective options for lighting a 3 foot SPS tank too. The results that we got from our recent Prime 16 BRStv Investigates video over a 40 breeder, for example, were pretty impressive. You can see that video HERE.
 

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The optimal mounting height tests that we do for all lights take into account light spilling out of the tank. For the purposes of our testing we stop the height tests when we see a 15% loss of overall average PAR, meaning that 15% of the light is spilling into the surrounding room rather than inside the tank.

Certainly you could mount any light we test higher than what we recommend and increase the intensity to achieve the same PAR numbers, however higher mounting does come at the cost of more light spilling into the room. It's a tradeoff that some reefers are more willing to make than others and at the end of the day the biggest takeaway would be that no matter how high you decide to mount your lights, the best practice will be to measure the PAR inside your specific tank/setup to ensure you are hitting the PAR goals you desire for the types of corals you want to keep. :)
Great I unterstand now thanks
 

Superlightman

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The optimal mounting height tests that we do for all lights take into account light spilling out of the tank. For the purposes of our testing we stop the height tests when we see a 15% loss of overall average PAR, meaning that 15% of the light is spilling into the surrounding room rather than inside the tank.

Certainly you could mount any light we test higher than what we recommend and increase the intensity to achieve the same PAR numbers, however higher mounting does come at the cost of more light spilling into the room. It's a tradeoff that some reefers are more willing to make than others and at the end of the day the biggest takeaway would be that no matter how high you decide to mount your lights, the best practice will be to measure the PAR inside your specific tank/setup to ensure you are hitting the PAR goals you desire for the types of corals you want to keep. :)
But another question when in the video you put 4 radion on a tank with two of them really close to the left and right side of the aquarium, a lot of the light must go in the room?Isn't it in contradiction what you said just prior?
 

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