Lighting for 75 Gallon SPS tank

[bradreef]

Easy.

2 a8se( radion clones) about $600 due to tarrifs
2 noopsyche k7 about $ 430 due to tarrifs
2 nicrew hypereef 150, about $500 plus tax.

All will grow any coral. And well.

 

[rtparty]

2 Nicrew 200 Gen 2 and a controller. Under your $800 with all mounting included.

Easy choice IMO

 

[reefernc02]

Check out noopsyce trsc aquatics uses only noops in his farm and grows incredible sps could get like three or four for 800 if your willing to spend a little more I’d go with hydras and if you wanna step it up fully do something like a radion or a orphek

 

[Hooz]

I would echo a few of the suggestions that have already been made.

A 3 bar Quanta Helix combo would do great, but if you want dimming and ramping, you'd need some sort of controller.

A pair of the new Nicrew 200w Gen 2s with a controller would also be a good option. They increased the spread and updated the spectrum with the Gen 2.

A pair of the A8 variant lights would also be good.

Any of those options would do what you need, and all fall within your budget.

 

[Rocks reef]

T5s would be effective, save on the lights but pay more for electricity. $800 for lights is really tough.

Not sure how you would save... 250 watts of LED costs the same electricity as 250 watts of T5 or 250 watts of Halide.

 

[oreo54]

Not sure how you would save... 250 watts of LED costs the same electricity as 250 watts of T5 or 250 watts of Halide.

The arguable point is you don't need 1:1 wattage...
Every industry from commercial to farming doesn't do 1:1 replacements except to increase output.
Even looking at this thread..
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/peer-review-request-watts-per-gallon-led.1119945/
And the past and you will notice a lack of equivalence.
2.75 watts of t5 would not be deemed suitable for sps (3 tube t5 over a 55 gal) whereas they find it fine in LEDs.
In the fw world i always advocated for a .75:1 ratio ( led:t5) when replacing t5's oddly that is exactly what the above thread is pointing to.
Go figure.
I believe a minimum t5 sps array over a 55 would be like 4 tubes, or roughly 4 wpg.
4 x .75 is 3 wpg. Close enough to 2.75. and a 25% power savings.

That is how you save money. Now how much money is ??? and in many cases it is not as significant as one wishes it to be.

Plenty of other factors like quality of diodes, lensing, mounting, hardware longevity, ect that can affect the cost ratio though.

Also one can buy 1:1 say if replacing tech but doesn't mean they will run 1:1 .
More than likely that will not save you money.

Admittedly there are those that don't believe you can use less wattage. Like I said an arguable point.

 

[Reginald Reefer III]

I'm slowing planning out my next aquarium. I want to do an SPS only 75 Gallon. I have basically all my equipment figured out except for the most important part, the lights. If possible I would like to keep the entire lighting setup under $800 but am willing to go a little higher if needed. Right now I'm trying to determine if I should to T5s, LEDs, or a hybrid setup. T5s seems like they would be in the price range but I am slightly worried about the possibility of the lights no longer being made. There are also a lot of LEDs that are within the range but I'm not sure what would be best. I'm fine with having a less than ideal controller if the lights themself are good. Im open to any and all suggestions.

I would also like to mention the dimensions of the tank are 48x18x21

ATI Sunpower fixtures can still be purchased through a LFS/online retailer, although they are typically assembled on demand and ship from Europe and cost ~$700. A lot of places claim that certain models have been discontinued, but that is false and are only made once ordered. I have a 6 bulb, 4' ATI Sunpower Fixture that took around 3 months to arrive once I purchased it. I also use a Lumilite Pro Actinic + UV supplemental LED strip over a mixed, albeit very heavy SPS/Acro tank and am very happy with the amount of light it produces. Definitely want a dimmable fixture though to ramp and dim if corals are being fried without having to physically raise the fixture.

Sunpower Models: https://atinorthamerica.com/lighting/dimmable-sunpower/
Online Store locator: https://atinorthamerica.com/where-to-buy/

 

[Schlafrig]

I would echo a few of the suggestions that have already been made.

A 3 bar Quanta Helix combo would do great, but if you want dimming and ramping, you'd need some sort of controller.

A pair of the new Nicrew 200w Gen 2s with a controller would also be a good option. They increased the spread and updated the spectrum with the Gen 2.

A pair of the A8 variant lights would also be good.

Any of those options would do what you need, and all fall within your budget.

Im really looking at the 3 Bar Helix combo but cant find anything about the PAR output. I reached out but am waiting on a response now. Do you know if it would be enough for an SPS tank? It seems like most people use it as supplementary lighting

 

[oreo54]

Im really looking at the 3 Bar Helix combo but cant find anything about the PAR output. I reached out but am waiting on a response now. Do you know if it would be enough for an SPS tank? It seems like most people use it as supplementary lighting

When testing the 3 bar setup, with all three bars at 100% I was getting about 900 par at the water line on the tank. I turned them down to about 65% and have 325par at my Acros and my Stylo. At my Trumpets, Gongordians, Blasto, and Hammers I was getting about 250-200 par. At my GSP and Kenya Trees I was getting about 150 par.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/quanta-helix-light-bar-2-0-first-impressions.1076917/
I believe a potentiometer is included but check. For manual dimming. If you wanted more control the drivers can "do" 0-10V (or 1-10v, the subtlety eludes me :) )

Both are best with a wall timer to shut the drivers off completely. Long story.
Anyways one of the reasons they aren't primary lights. Control options and the basic all or nothing on the "colors" doesn't appeal to the more control is better crowd.

 

[saltcreep74]

3 - noopsyche k7 pro's and call it a day..all under $800.

 

[JonoH]

Unless your sold on new lights - for your budget the second hand market may be worth considering.

Can pick up some bargains on LED's that still have many years in them.

 

[Hooz]

Im really looking at the 3 Bar Helix combo but cant find anything about the PAR output. I reached out but am waiting on a response now. Do you know if it would be enough for an SPS tank? It seems like most people use it as supplementary lighting

I'm pretty sure that @Lousybreed (who owns Quanta) is using that setup for a 60 Breeder (same footprint as a 75, just a little shallower) SPS tank. I'd reach out to him, but from what I've seen, that should be all you'd need. He'd be a good one to talk to about what mix of bars would be best suited to your "color" tastes as well.

The bars do come with manual dimming options but, like I said previously, there are other 0-10v control options out there if you want automatic ramping and dimming.

 

[Schlafrig]

Just incase anybody else is trying to find more info about the par output for the 3 bar Helix this is what Luca sent to me.
" I have the 60 Breeder and I have a three bar over it. I am getting 450 peak PAR 6" down from the water line and around 300 a foot down. I would say that unless you want to blast your corals with mega PAR the three bar is my go to!"

So seems like I have found a winner!

 

[oreo54]

Just incase anybody else is trying to find more info about the par output for the 3 bar Helix this is what Luca sent to me.
" I have the 60 Breeder and I have a three bar over it. I am getting 450 peak PAR 6" down from the water line and around 300 a foot down. I would say that unless you want to blast your corals with mega PAR the three bar is my go to!"

So seems like I have found a winner!

Now the hard part ...

There are five variation options to choose from:
WHITE+: 2 Reef Crest Daylight & 1 Meso Blue
WHITE++: 2 Tropic Sun & 1 Meso Blue
BLUE+: 2 Meso Blue & 1 Tropic Sun
BLUE++: 2 Meso Blue & 1 Reef Crest Daylight
PLANTED: 2 Tropic Sun & 1 Reef Crest Daylight

 

[Schlafrig]

Yeahhh that's where I'm struggling now lol

 

[twentyleagues]

Yeahhh that's where I'm struggling now lol

It really depends on what you like the look of for the most part. These have a good spectrum in most forms that will grow coral. Do you like more blue? Plan on having high fluorescing corals or not? I know this is probably not helpful in helping to make a decision completely but maybe some stuff to think about.

The blue+ mimics the blue+ t5s which is a proven spectrum and does not look half bad either.

 

[averagesteve]

I have the same size tank with a 48" ATI Sunpower 6 bulb T5 fixture (non dimmable). It has two plugs to separate two bulbs from the other four. I have two actinic in the two bulb for sunrise and sunset since non-dimmable, and four coral+ which is 50% blue plus, 40% aquablue special, 10% purple plus in the other four.

Fixture is probably like 12 inches from the top of the tank, I'd have to measure when I get home.

I get around 300-400-ish PAR at the top, 150-200 in the middle, 50-100 at the sand bed all depending on how close I am to the middle.

That's to give you an idea of what T5s are like. I got my T5 fixture used on FB marketplace from a hobbyist that was breaking down their tank for like $200.

If I had to replace my T5 fixture with a $800 budget, I would get either 2x Nicrew Hyperreef gen 2 either the 150w or the 200w and the controller.

 

[gmavrom]

I'm slowing planning out my next aquarium. I want to do an SPS only 75 Gallon. I have basically all my equipment figured out except for the most important part, the lights. If possible I would like to keep the entire lighting setup under $800 but am willing to go a little higher if needed. Right now I'm trying to determine if I should to T5s, LEDs, or a hybrid setup. T5s seems like they would be in the price range but I am slightly worried about the possibility of the lights no longer being made. There are also a lot of LEDs that are within the range but I'm not sure what would be best. I'm fine with having a less than ideal controller if the lights themself are good. Im open to any and all suggestions.

I would also like to mention the dimensions of the tank are 48x18x21

I bought two Popo bloom 90 watt for 1560 a piece with the mounts, they work fine, and I have a WB 110 tank