Kessil A160WE vs Radion XR15 G6

NewCaliCaptives

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I have a Waterbox 10g Cube that has been going great for about 2.5 years. I had the AI Prime that it came with and then it stopped working so I went ahead and replaced it with a Kessil A160. I really like the A160 shimmer and I like the “halide” look of the light. Corals seem to like it quite a bit as well except some of my newer branching SPS frags (Pocillipora, stylophora, monti digi) are starting to brown out on the underside and the side away from the light. My monti which kind of overhangs the sand bed on the center of the tank is also casting a shadow right over where i’d like to put more corals.

I went ahead and got an XR15 G6 Pro and it greatly reduced the shadowing, which i think the SPS frags will appreciate quite a bit. Just installed it today so we’ll see if they do. I also like the fact that when I upgrade i can bring that along with it and not have to get all new lights. However there is a horrendous disco ball/static tv effect that does not look natural.

I really just liked the look of the kessil a lot more, looked much more natural to me really. But I know that if the shadowing is this pronounced on just frags, it’s not going to be good when they are larger (they’re already growing quite noticeably.)

Im just really not sure what to do or what the best path forward would be. Keep the Kessil and just not care about the coral doing well on all sides/ losing real estate to the monti shadow or keep the radion which solved the issue but isnt as visually pleasing. Advice would be appreciated!
 
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NewCaliCaptives

NewCaliCaptives

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Kessil does have more shimmer - the Radion will have less shadowing. Aesthetically it's really personally preference (squares vs. picks).
yeah really i’m torn because i think my preference is the kessil but i got the radion to solve the shadowing issue and man it sure does solve it! Wish i could just do a mix of both but for such a tiny tank really not an option
 

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