My Review of Orphek Atlantik V4 after 15 Months

[sawdonkey]

How are these leds mounted? Are they chip type, soldered via reflow method? If so, using a soldering iron to remove and replace probably is damaging them.

LEDs need to be heatsinked properly as well. How are they heatsinked?

The board is mounted to a heatsink with some thermal paste between. There are four fans blowing on the heatsink. The LEDs are the little round ones with two prongs coming for the negative and positive connections. The center part is actually stuck to the board with some kind of thermal glue. I’m not sure what reflow method is? I don’t think using a soldering iron to disconnect them is damaging them, but disconnecting the thermal glue with a screw driver is actually kind of difficult. The solder is easy.

 

[sawdonkey]

I've ran a Orphek V4 compact for since Nov2017 and I've experienced the same blue/uv LED's burning out and having to get them to send me new diodes to solder in myself. They claim the newer diodes are better and "upgraded" so the same problem shouldn't happen again. So far so good... but I'll probably take a closer look tonight to see if anything burnt out.

If i were to do it over again, I'd probably go with Radions or main T5's with LED bars as supplement.

They sent me a whole new LED board, but it has a manufacture date on it that is the same as the one that went bad, so I assume it’s the same and I’m not hopeful.

They acted like I was the only person having this problem or ignored my questions when I asked if this is a common issue.

 

[tgrick]

I've ran a Orphek V4 compact for since Nov2017 and I've experienced the same blue/uv LED's burning out and having to get them to send me new diodes to solder in myself. They claim the newer diodes are better and "upgraded" so the same problem shouldn't happen again. So far so good... but I'll probably take a closer look tonight to see if anything burnt out.

If i were to do it over again, I'd probably go with Radions or main T5's with LED bars as supplement.

I just went with 3 compacts because I was tired or replacing t5 bulbs every few months. I guess there is no perfect solution. Thankfully Ican solder/desolder all day long! I had a Hydra 26 HD fan fail on me also...the controller board for the fans became corroded. It's was taken care of brilliantly and quickly...but things do happen. Electronics and Salt Water are a great mix for trouble!

 

[scriptmonkey]

Well, the good news is that soldering LEFs is super easy and a soldering iron costs about $10. What is V4.2? I’m not familiar with the .2




I have my fixtures mounted too and to work on one, I have to take both down. Orphek tried telling me that my problems are due to my lights being in a compound. Well, I have a six inch fan pushing air into the side of my canopy and another two six inch fans pushing air out the top, directly above the lights. Plus, the other two guys I know that have had problems don’t have their lights in a canopy.

A guy I know locally has four compacts and they’ve been a nightmare for him.

Well that should be easy to figure out, have you stuck a temperature gauge up there and recorded peak temperatures? I could see diodes burning out in higher temperatures but canopies in aquaria are a common occurrence, you would hope they were engineered with that in mind.

We will wait and see on mine, just got my 8020 base put together, need to hit it with a torque wrench to snug all the bolts. Need to sit down behind my design program and knock out a preliminary rack design.

 

[GugsJr]

I have 2 Compacts V2 and 2 full size V4s.

My Compacts have been perfect. I have had to replace the LED Boards on both of my full size. Orphek has been great with customer service. No run arounds, no jumping through hoops. Just a happy customer.

So far no issues with the replacement LED Boards.

I have had the Radion G4 Pros before the Orpheks. I have had better growth from my Orpheks then I ever had with my Radions. So while for me this was inconvenient, I must say I wouldn't go back to any other light.

I like the fact that these lights are easy to work on. Anyone that has opened a Kessil, Radion or Hydta knows the puck styles aren't always to work on.

I have seen Saw Donkeys tank so I do know the pain he has to go through to swap them out. On my tank it's a pain but not as bad as Saw donkeys.

The OR2 Bars are amazing for anyone looking to get some. Rumors are soon they will be dimmable. I hope this is true.

 

[mtraylor]

Wow! I think I my stomach just turned. I purchased a V4 gen 2 just a bit ago for my frag tank. I have set it up on my display for now to see how I like the light because I was thinking I would replace my ghl mitras with these if I like them. But with this article. I dont think I will be buying anymore as I like a set it and forget it type of lighting. My GHLs have been going for like 8 years with no issues. Solid light.

I have had mine going for around 1 week now. How long does it take for these issues to show up. Whats the easiest way to spot the problem?

 

[LARedstickreefer]

The board is mounted to a heatsink with some thermal paste between. There are four fans blowing on the heatsink. The LEDs are the little round ones with two prongs coming for the negative and positive connections. The center part is actually stuck to the board with some kind of thermal glue. I’m not sure what reflow method is? I don’t think using a soldering iron to disconnect them is damaging them, but disconnecting the thermal glue with a screw driver is actually kind of difficult. The solder is easy.

Any pictures by chance? When soldering leds, or any semiconductor, you can’t let it get too hot. Surface mount components usually are soldered on via reflow soldering. The entire board is brought up to the solders melting point in an oven. A soldering iron tip is much hotter than the solder. It’s meant to be used on components that have leads or pins, that go through holes in a board.

 

[mtraylor]

When soldering it is very important to know the heat thresholds of the led's, cap, etc that you are working with. If thats the way you want to roll, it would be best to get a controllable iron to keep the heat as low as possible.

 

[hart24601]

Yikes. Been running orphek for 12 months this month. No issues so far, but something to keep my eye on.

 

[LARedstickreefer]

When soldering it is very important to know the heat thresholds of the led's, cap, etc that you are working with. If thats the way you want to roll, it would be best to get a controllable iron to keep the heat as low as possible.

I LOLed at the $10 soldering iron for use on something like this.

 

[bubbaque]

What would they of said if you said you don’t know how to solder or have the tools to do so?

 

[Vamsi]

I was hoping to see some great reviews. I have the radion G2. So was thinking to go with the orphek's sometime in the future. Hopefully, orpehk comes thru and iron out any design issues.
To the OP, I am sorry you are going thru this. The lights are NOT cheap by any means.

 

[LARedstickreefer]

Are these leds ONLY the 380nm ones? Doesn’t true uv break down clear plastics?
Maybe this is an issue with the actual lens material getting damaged, causing failure of the diode itself?

 

[sawdonkey]

What would they of said if you said you don’t know how to solder or have the tools to do so?

Not sure, they probably would have sent a whole board. However, even after I soldered in a new LED and got the light working, a few month later, I had the same issue again. So, they sent me a whole new fixture.....and after about three months, it’s doing the same thing.

To those talking about soldering, you just connect the little tabs to the contact points on the board. The LED itself likely doesn’t even get warm.

 

[lexinverts]

This light could be a good alternative to Orphek. It has a beast of a heat sink and a powerful cooling fan.

Interesting 'New' LED Light

I just received two ReeFi LED lights for testing purposes. This company has been around for a while, but it is new to me, and I'm impressed with the thoughtful design. There are 72 LEDs in the array including cool white, warm white, amber, lime, blue, royal blue, violet, 420nm and 400nm, each on...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Karl M]

Why did I have to open this thread. I have a V4 gen2 been running it since last December I believe it ok, I am going to have Check to see if all the diodes are working tomorrow.
Was thinking about getting another one for my soon to be finished frag tank. @Orphek ...Hate to hear about a possible problem because I really like their products....but , I’m losing that loving feelin

I really don’t need one more thing to worry about, especially my LED Lighting

 

[LARedstickreefer]

This light could be a good alternative to Orphek. It has a beast of a heat sink and a powerful cooling fan.

Interesting 'New' LED Light

I just received two ReeFi LED lights for testing purposes. This company has been around for a while, but it is new to me, and I'm impressed with the thoughtful design. There are 72 LEDs in the array including cool white, warm white, amber, lime, blue, royal blue, violet, 420nm and 400nm, each on...

www.reef2reef.com

Got one coming tomorrow

 

[hart24601]

Has anyone else had this happen? Trying to see how many folks are having this issue. How many individuals do we know of so far? If I have the UV burn out I might just get a UV bar to mount behind it.

 

[Cheche]

Do anyone have the serial numbers on this lights ..? Maybe is a batch the came with defective drive or leds... I will like to see some pictures too .. I have been reading and looking to buy this lights I’m just wondering now if I should..

 

[GugsJr]

Do anyone have the serial numbers on this lights ..? Maybe is a batch the came with defective drive or leds... I will like to see some pictures too .. I have been reading and looking to buy this lights I’m just wondering now if I should..

I still wouldn't go with any other lights other then Orphek. My corals responded in a few weeks compared to when I had Radions with t5s.

When I spoke to them they acknowledged there was an issue with some units and told me they have addressed the issue.

I ordered another Compact for my Frag tank and 2 UV Bars for my 240 Cube.