Help me spend my money

[RedoubtReef]

Nm

 

[woodyarmadillo]

OP I don’t know anything about the Gen 1 XR30s but I found one on ebay for $220, if you’re interested. I’d bet you could make an offer on it and the seller would love to sell it. I think they’ve been trying to sell for awhile. I also found a Gen 3 for $300 buy it now.

here’s the links:

EBay XR30

EBay XR30 Gen 3

 

[slogan315]

I just bought an ICON for my cube (.. BRS had it on sale) Keep an eye out as they have been running specials lately . I think Orphek direct had the compact on sale recently too!!

Do you have a picture of it? Really interested to see a single compact on a cube.

 

[slogan315]

OP I don’t know anything about the Gen 1 XR30s but I found one on ebay for $220, if you’re interested. I’d bet you could make an offer on it and the seller would love to sell it. I think they’ve been trying to sell for awhile. I also found a Gen 3 for $300 buy it now.

here’s the links:

EBay XR30

EBay XR30 Gen 3

I appreciate the help. A little worried about lights that old. I’m leaning towards new or at least newer hardware for longevity.

 

[slogan315]

These pics are under the noopsyche lights. I'm probably about 70% but run 0 red and green and very low whites I think 10%. I'm really happy with the noopsyche but if I were starting a new tank and I had the spare change I would probably go with the Photon. It just seems to have better spread with the panel of led vs the pucks. I like the app a little better also tho the noopsyche app isn't terrible. If money were tight I wouldn't hesitate going with the noopsyche. I get some shadowing with them but my canopy only allows me to have them 7 inches off of the water so I don't get the spread I would get if I could move them up a little

This is under the Photon. It does a nice job I think. Blues and uv are 40% white 3%( this is cool too. I think my radions have to be above 6% or they won't light) green and red 0% so there is a lot of cushion for when I bring some more sps over but the lps are loving it so far. It's only been running 6 weeks or so. I also wanted a single fixture and no pucks and all the light spill from them since this is in our dining area with no canopy. Sorry for being long winded, us old retired guys get to rambling some times

Be as long winded as possible. I really appreciate the response. Pics with direct comparisons from the same person/camera make it much easier to compare without seeing in person

 

[fodsod]

Just a note on the Reef Breeders Photon Pro has a 2 year warranty. The Noo-Psyche K7 Pros only have a 1 year warranty. Although the RB is twice the price as often as stuff breaks in this hobby it's nice having a warranty twice as long. Just a thought.

 

[slogan315]

Just a note on the Reef Breeders Photon Pro has a 2 year warranty. The Noo-Psyche K7 Pros only have a 1 year warranty. Although the RB is twice the price as often as stuff breaks in this hobby it's nice having a warranty twice as long. Just a thought.

That’s a good point. What does that say about the reefi uno 2.0, 3 year warranty.

Im starting to realize I have been drinking the cool-aid on the reefi uno…

 

[Wasabiroot]

I would suggest Quanta Pros. Their cons are way outweighed by their pros.
Cons:
No dimming or ramping included
(I am sure there is a way to make a dimmer (@oreo54 probably could suggest ideas)
Pros:
Affordable (I paid 150 for a 2ft bar, which would fit perfectly above your cube, 300 for 2 with one spectrum each), which would likely enable you to have enough par for sps at top and lps below, a good compromise in a mixed reef
-Great spread and punch with good color mixing
-Durable aluminum housing, and you can mount with the included hardware ( or literally use a clamp in my case because I can't be arsed)
-Long, quality power cord
-solid customer service. They accept returns if it's defective only though, which it likely won't be. And he's on here to chat with if you want to shoot the breeze or have questions

My acros started growing faster when I added this light. I have an XR15 blue set to 70% also, but this gave me a nice daylight/blue combo for peak hours. I run it 2 hrs a day and expand it a half hour every other month. End goal is 4hr in a 10 hr light period

My aiptasia also enjoy the light (har)

 

[fodsod]

That’s a good point. What does that say about the reefi uno 2.0, 3 year warranty.

Im starting to realize I have been drinking the cool-aid on the reefi uno…

We all get stuck on particular products and it's hard to see anything else once that happens. I'm sure you've done your due diligence on all the lighting. Everything you've talked about is good stuff.

If it were me, I'd just get what I actually want because if I don't I'll end up with it anyway after I've spent more money on everything else. LOL.

 

[Reign1]

Do you have a picture of it? Really interested to see a single compact on a cube.

Unfortunately no. I am still collecting the equipment for build which I have put off until late summer/fall as I don't want to setup and then go out of the country on holiday. To much to worry about w/ a house sitter. BTW the tank is a 30" cube (around 115 gal.) and I ended up getting the full size atlantik (BRS had it for $735) . I know I will likely get some light spillage as it is only 30" wide/deep but wanted to make sure tank was blanketed with light.

 

[Crustaceon]

I run an anemone tank and have had good results with viparspectra (165w) fixtures. I’m getting 700ish par at the surface with 20% white & 40% blue @ 16”. Great bang for your buck. Growth has been equivalent to running a 6-bulb t5ho. Colors are a little better. I keep RFAs, BTAs, LTAs, a sebae that’s getting way too big and a Haddoni that finally decided my lighting was sufficient and settled on the bottom.

 

[slogan315]

We all get stuck on particular products and it's hard to see anything else once that happens. I'm sure you've done your due diligence on all the lighting. Everything you've talked about is good stuff.

If it were me, I'd just get what I actually want because if I don't I'll end up with it anyway after I've spent more money on everything else. LOL.

Hold on. Gotta screen shot this for the PowerPoint presentation to my wife.

jk, but I do think I came into this post hoping someone would convince me that what I think I want would actually do what I want.

 

[slogan315]

Unfortunately no. I am still collecting the equipment for build which I have put off until late summer/fall as I don't want to setup and then go out of the country on holiday. To much to worry about w/ a house sitter. BTW the tank is a 30" cube (around 115 gal.) and I ended up getting the full size atlantik (BRS had it for $735) . I know I will likely get some light spillage as it is only 30" wide/deep but wanted to make sure tank was blanketed with light.

Will be very interested to see how it looks when you get it setup!

 

[Derrick0580]

Add a couple orphek strips front and back of the kessil…..

 

[leepink23]

I need help with recommending lighting for my situation. Im going for a mixed reef, but I want to build equipment around sps and place lps where possible. Budget is important here!

I have a 60g cube (24x24x24) with canopy. There’s about 10” from water to ceiling of canopy. It vents out the back, but I’m open to cutting holes or removing the ceiling if necessary.

I currently have 1 kessil 360x. I love the shimmer but I’m lacking color, power, and coverage. Running at 80% peak and my anemone is climbing to the top of the scape, so I’m guessing the par towards the top is around 200-250.

Options I’ve considered:
- add supplemental strip lighting with current 360x
- upgrade to more powerful primary light and sell 360x. (Thinking reefi uno 2.0 or orphek icon compact)

I’m not interested in going with T5’s or MH right now. Would like to stay LED only.

I would choose reefi uno. I have experience with noopsyche, Radion g5, orphek compact, reefbreeders, hydras. My 2 favorite are definitely hydras and reefi

 

[slogan315]

I would choose reefi uno. I have experience with noopsyche, Radion g5, orphek compact, reefbreeders, hydras. My 2 favorite are definitely hydras and reefi

What size tank do you have the reefi over? Any pictures?

 

[leepink23]

What size tank do you have the reefi over? Any pictures?

I have 4 over a 180. Also at the shop where my frag tanks are he has 3 hydra 32 over a 180. I am going for acro dominant on mine which is brand new. He has a mixed with acros at top. I have hydras and orphek over my frag tanks and he has noopsyche over his frags. I put light shields on mine because it is right beside my kitchen table. The hydras and reefi have the least side glare. I also would add I don’t love the shimmer on reefi but do love the shimmer on hydra.

 

[slogan315]

I have 4 over a 180. Also at the shop where my frag tanks are he has 3 hydra 32 over a 180. I am going for acro dominant on mine which is brand new. He has a mixed with acros at top. I have hydras and orphek over my frag tanks and he has noopsyche over his frags. I put light shields on mine because it is right beside my kitchen table. The hydras and reefi have the least side glare. I also would add I don’t love the shimmer on reefi but do love the shimmer on hydra.

Wow that tank is something! In your experience with reefi and orphek, would single fixtures give good enough coverage for a 24x24x24 cube? Or would it look too much like a “spotlight”? I ask because for the uno and icon, they aren’t pucks, but they aren’t full coverage panels either… trying to gauge the in between and if supplemental bars would be needed for coverage and color

 

[Spare time]

Worried about the hardware long term at 100%.


This was my initial thought. As I started looking into it, started wondering if it was better to sell the kessil ($200-300) and use the led bar budget for upgraded primary lights.

for example, say used bars are around $100 and the kessil sells for $250. That’s $350 towards a new primary light. Having full coverage from 2 noopsyche k7 v3 pros for $450 sounds pretty enticing. But I can’t seem to shake the reefi uno 2.0 as it’s getting such positive reviews and seems like real value for the money (that might not stay as the company gets bigger)

The kessil doesn't need to be at 100% the entire day. Heck, lots of corals only photosynthesize at dusk and dawn.


The kessil is a nice light, and I don't like lights like the uno where you may possibly get the disco ball effect (which I am guessing they might). Simply adding the reefbrites would boost the par for you. Quantas are another option, but lights like quanta and orphek are going to be more prone to discoballing albeit less noticeable if you get one with a more limited spectral output.

 

[leepink23]

Wow that tank is something! In your experience with reefi and orphek, would single fixtures give good enough coverage for a 24x24x24 cube? Or would it look too much like a “spotlight”? I ask because for the uno and icon, they aren’t pucks, but they aren’t full coverage panels either… trying to gauge the in between and if supplemental bars would be needed for coverage and color

Yes they both would cover. With reefi you will likely need to switch from the stock 90 degree lense to the included 120 degree lense. I am not running these at 50% with 90 degree lense and get 400-500 par at top of rocks, 300-350 mid and 200-250 sand WD.