Keep Kessil or go Radion
- Thread starter Evan West
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ReeferMadness80G
Valuable Member
Depends on what you're lighting. But IMO, Radions, no contest.
ReeferMadness80G
Valuable Member
Radion has more PAR than the Kessils, but they disco ball. IMO, Radion has too much PAR, and it's easy to get spectrum out of whack. With Kessils you just set it and the light does magic. Here's an idea, just mail me those junk Kessils and treat yourself to some nice new Radions.
Honestly, BRS just put out some videos on Kessil A360WEs and the Radion XR30G4 Pros in their lighting series. Kessils were way cheaper, and put out the same PAR the Radions did once you dialed them back(nobody needs 800 PAR at 18"). Kessil also had better spread. If you gotta have more than enough light to fry chicken, get the Radions. IMO, they are just too over the top for me.
Honestly, BRS just put out some videos on Kessil A360WEs and the Radion XR30G4 Pros in their lighting series. Kessils were way cheaper, and put out the same PAR the Radions did once you dialed them back(nobody needs 800 PAR at 18"). Kessil also had better spread. If you gotta have more than enough light to fry chicken, get the Radions. IMO, they are just too over the top for me.
Reefcowboy
Well-Known Member
Radion hands down. A friend has seen the radion light diffuser in person and said the tank looks like it is lit by metal halides.
I have three G4 pros and dont think the diffuser is needed at all, but for those who want it, it will be available.
I ran Kessils in my old tank, beautiful light, but sps grow/color much better under G4 radions..
I have three G4 pros and dont think the diffuser is needed at all, but for those who want it, it will be available.
I ran Kessils in my old tank, beautiful light, but sps grow/color much better under G4 radions..
http://www.aquaillumination.com/science/par.html This tool may help you!
You realize you compared the 160WE when the OP said he had the 360WE?
edit: actually their numbers are laughable. They are saying the 360 doubles the power but increases avg par only 4? fuzzy math and I'm not even a Kessil owner/fan
Kyl
And how does it feel like, to wake up in the sun
I see no point in junking the Kessils and outlaying a lot for a questionable upgrade when the lights are dialed back and running AB+ (as seems to be the most popular programming). The shimmer is completely different as well, and if using a diffuser eventually the par difference will drop even more.
Keep those workhorses another generation imo.
Keep those workhorses another generation imo.
If you are worried about PAR you could just add another 360. The Kessils are great lights and I don't see a significant reason to buy all new lights when the ones you have do well. Usually we tend to question lighting when it comes to LED tanks because there seems to be a lot of unknown but we do now know the 360s can and will grow coral.
ReeferMadness80G
Valuable Member
No I didn't realize that, I really wasn't paying attention. I was simply offering my opinion and a tool that "may" help. Good catch!
OP
OP
Evan West
Well-Known Member
Wow lots of feedback, what prompted this is i have two kessil a360we and one is out of warranty and blew a few leds in the matrix. So i need to spend 400 to get a new one, or i can sell my other one put in another $60 bucks and get two xr15. I am not growing mainly sps but now have a pretty even SPS/LPS mix in my tank.
You could do that but after having Keesils and seeing what real shimmer and color blending you may be disappointed in the Radions. I'll through a wrench in here and recommended the Kessil AP700. What ever two xr15s can do I will say that the AP700 certainly can do, of not better.
I have 5 160's and keep them at 100% intensity 100% of the time, why do you think you should never go over 50%intensity? Is that just for the the 360? I've been doing it like that since day one and haven't had any issues other than everything grows great and looks fine, just wondering.
Have you contacted Kessil? They're usually pretty good in the customer care department.
The XR15s and A360s perform similarly and are at the same price point as well. If you've had good results with the Kessils, I see no reason to switch. If for whatever reason you're not happy with them, maybe switching to something else is the right move. The Radions do offer a lot of flexibility but I think most people are using something close to the AB+ recommended spectrum which reduces PAR by about 30%. To get the color blending of the Kessil, you'll also need the new diffuser (which looks very promising) and that reduces PAR by another 20%. At this point, the Kessil A360 actually produces slightly more PAR. With that said, the Kessil still lacks WiFi and that may be a big deal for some (added expense for the spectral controller if you aren't running an aquarium controller already).
saltwaterpicaso
Valuable Member
having had radion g3 pros over my 90 for 3 years I was never truly happy with them I switched to the kessils 360s 3 of them when I did I lost a few corals and some browned out I was running my radions at 70 percent so thinking that I ran the kessils at close to a 100 percent believing they were weak after 2 months I was so fed up I didn't know what to do then I seen a video of a guy on youtube growing beautiful sps with his kessils running them at only 50 percent. I turned them down and within a month my corals were better looking under the kessils than they ever were with the radions. if I had to do it all over again I would get an ap700 because its newer tech and dims to 0 rather than just shutting off like the 360s.
Kyl
And how does it feel like, to wake up in the sun
Contact Kessil, make them support their hardware (even if out of warranty, 1 year is BS). If that fails, see if the vendor you purchased them through will try and help out. Lighting should not be burning out in a few years of normal use, these aren't some cheap ebay light and shouldn't be treated as having the durability of one. Never settle on face for a 1 year warranty on higher end consumer electronics.
In terms of the Ap700, the achilles heel of the fixture is still the control software. Unfortunately I doubt it's going to get any better since Kessil considers it a complete product now. After all the marketing promises they've made over the past two years, the app quality is still something you would expect out of Jebao, not one of the "leaders" in LED lighting. If we're being honest here, that's one area that the Radions completely stomp the AP700.
OP
OP
Evan West
Well-Known Member
Hmmm lots and lots to think about, i gotta see if kessil replaces the light because then ill just keep them no problem i love them. But if they dont and i need to buy a new light I had figured maybe id try something else just to see as all ive ever used was Kessil.
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