Neptune SKY LED

Jon's Reef

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Neptune sky a rebranded zetlight. Overpaying for a brand name that didn't even make this product. It has similar spectrum to most Chinese black boxes
Interesting. A rebranded zetlight? How did you come by this information?
Maybe some confusion with the GRO? (rebranded Zetlight E200S w/ orange bumper, optional tube mount and 24V direct connection)
 

KarlsReef

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i think every light is over priced i think if someone came up with a light like the sky or radion and priced it better every company would have to lower there prices. we have to stop paying these prices for stuff its like corals you get 1" frag hundreds of dollers its just crazy
It similar to the PC GPU market where prices have been artificially raised for years by the green side just because they can (because they value themselves worthy of the higher prices and due to previous lack of competition) then the red side hit back with new competitive cards at a decent price at first but then saw they could also raise their prices as they were selling and saw that the others didn't really try to compete price wise. Then comes the last 18 months and causes chip shortages and shipping hikes and the increased demand thanks to miners has also played a part.
Competition used to drive prices down, now it seems that they all think lets enter at the same price rather than compete price wise giving the luxury or high end argument. Yes they are "high end" items but as a whole you can bet your bottom dollar they eek out as much profit as they can... Regardless of who the manufacturer is... Yes its business but one day over pricing does end up hitting the bottom line.
 

Stain

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I have a bad opinion of Kessel because of their customer service or lack of they at out lied to me over warranty issues with the Kessil 160we.
Must be a Canadian thing. They've ignored me on a 160we that I lost the deep blues on. I own four of the dang things, but only 3 work right now. I love the lights, but kessil customer support sucks in Canada. I'm moving soon and upgrading the lights/tank, wont be kessil's. Torn between 2 xr15's, sky or or a reefbreeders 32 v2 on a 40 breeder.
 
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GillMeister

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Maybe some confusion with the GRO? (rebranded Zetlight E200S w/ orange bumper, optional tube mount and 24V direct connection)
My assumption as well. I was hoping the person stating this is a zetlight as a fact had a source we could go back to. As you know, speculation leads to misinformation. It's always good to check and correct that at the source.
 

Jon's Reef

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I believe they said in one of the Neptune live streams that zetlight made it for them
The GRO, yes. Zetlight e200s $150. Neptune GRO $130 (optional power supply $20)
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The Sky is an internal development, manufactured in California by Neptune and local partners.

They shared pics of the manufacturing:
 

blaxsun

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Less conjecture and more fact is always appreciated!

I’m still on the fence as to whether the SKY would be an improvement over the Radion - or just something different in terms of the look and feel. There are certainly a lot of aspects that are winning me over, though.
 

Jon's Reef

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Less conjecture and more fact is always appreciated!

I’m still on the fence as to whether the SKY would be an improvement over the Radion - or just something different in terms of the look and feel. There are certainly a lot of aspects that are winning me over, though.
If you have something that is working, no need to change.

If you decide to change, have a definitive goal in mind. Coverage because you are running out of spots for corals or the corals thrive less at their base, par because you want to try to really bring out the colors in SPS, simplification, noise level, desire to try new things.

Make a list of things in your current light solution that are important to you. It must mount to the back of the tank, it must have a certain color or control, etc.... Make sure the new light will meet all of those.
 

blaxsun

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If you have something that is working, no need to change.

If you decide to change, have a definitive goal in mind. Coverage because you are running out of spots for corals or the corals thrive less at their base, par because you want to try to really bring out the colors in SPS, simplification, noise level, desire to try new things.

Make a list of things in your current light solution that are important to you. It must mount to the back of the tank, it must have a certain color or control, etc.... Make sure the new light will meet all of those.
The Radions I have are working - as time goes on I'm just less and less impressed with the "quirks". I think a pair of SKYs would actually replace the two Radion XR30's and single XR15, while giving me a bit better coverage along the front and back. I also like that I can just use the existing RMS mounts. The SKY will probably also be a bit quieter, and I do like the Apex integration (I hate Mobius with a unrelenting passion). Hopefully my LFS will get them in soon so I can check them out in-person.
 

Mywifeisgunnakillme

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One plus with the Neptune SKY for Apex users has to be the interface - which can be controlled through Fusion. I can’t possibly see how this could be any worse than Mobius, which I’m ready to pitch out the window.

This morning I awoke to find all my Radions off, and was unable to get the schedule in Mobius restarted. The templates wouldn’t reload (despite numerous attempts), the clock was off and I had to restore from a backup. Apparently there’s a software issue with intensity @sunrise where this can get screwed up. I’m still waiting EcoTech support to get back to me...

I agree Mobius has issues. My Vortechs connect or dont connect sporadically to bluetooth. Its very annoying and crap. Neptune from most reviews has the better software...

That said, software isnt what keeps coral growing and fish alive. It's hardware. I just use the big buttons on vortechs for feeding and once my ghl is set and working, i dont play with it.

If someone finds hundreds of dollars of value in software then Sky, with a one year warranty and cheapened construction, maybe the right fit.
 

Mywifeisgunnakillme

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Must be a Canadian thing. They've ignored me on a 160we that I lost the deep blues on. I own four of the dang things, but only 3 work right now. I love the lights, but kessil customer support sucks in Canada. I'm moving soon and upgrading the lights/tank, wont be kessil's. Torn between 2 xr15's, sky or or a reefbreeders 32 v2 on a 40 breeder.
Straton
 

Mywifeisgunnakillme

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areefer01

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If someone finds hundreds of dollars of value in software then Sky, with a one year warranty and cheapened construction, maybe the right fit.

Not to be that person but this comes up a lot in other threads and it is misleading. It is an opinion. Most of these people will compare it to the G5. Ok, lets do a quick compare and search on:

Noisy G5 radion
G5 cracked lower cover
Cracking radion G5
G5 Shipping / boxing issues
G5 screw torque

Again because we are talking about quality as it relates to new products we can see a pattern. Feel free to search on:
Vectra L1 new version
Vectra L1 gen 1 impeller

I would argue so far the Neptune SKY has the best out of the box experience so far compared to the G5. We can also look at the ATI Straton and Philips Gen 2 that are equally as impressive. The only complaint I've read about ATI is the mounting options. Neptune SKY is better than, or equal to similar priced products from ATI and Philips and beats the G5 on out of box experience.

Searches don't lie - there is no bias there. I mean we really can't argue that, can we?
 

Jon's Reef

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The SKY will probably also be a bit quieter,
I can confirm that the sky fans are quiet. I always wondered if there was some setting on the Radions that I was missing in terms of the fan noise.

I also like that I can just use the existing RMS mounts.
They will bolt up, but the light seems to work a little better at 10-11” vs the 8-9” RMS height. There was someone on here who was disappointed at the lower height and raising it made them happy. Not a deal breaker, more a point of optimization.
I hate Mobius with a unrelenting passion
I think if you are in that ecosystem (light, wave maker, return pump, doser) it can be nice. It will get better as it is refined.

I always wondered if Mobius is going to be something bigger. At what point will they add sensors?
 

blaxsun

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I can confirm that the sky fans are quiet. I always wondered if there was some setting on the Radions that I was missing in terms of the fan noise.

They will bolt up, but the light seems to work a little better at 10-11” vs the 8-9” RMS height. There was someone on here who was disappointed at the lower height and raising it made them happy. Not a deal breaker, more a point of optimization.

I think if you are in that ecosystem (light, wave maker, return pump, doser) it can be nice. It will get better as it is refined.

I always wondered if Mobius is going to be something bigger. At what point will they add sensors?

The 8-9” height is probably ok for me, as I have more of a lagoon-style setup with the aquascaping. less fan noise is a plus for certain! I’m using Red Sea ReefWave gyres because I not only think they’re better, but I find the price points on the MP40/60 just... offensive.

At this point if Mobius would stop screwing up my schedule and returning errors every 15-20 minutes I’d be just ecstatic. Before they get into sensors they really need to improve their software first.

And that bait ‘n switch on the 30 day/1 year warranty from EcoTech is just one more shady tactic. I don’t think anyone else pulls that crap.
 

Kfactor

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You should join Neptune's marketing team.... That is a ridiculous statement.... The "many" can afford a $900 light, and what are (dirt cheap) T5 fixtures, AI's, pick your favorite LED bar, or--if cost is apparently not a factor--Radions?

Glad you like the light... Hope you got it for less than $900.00.... Hope the plastic coating isn't sticky in a couple of years as well...

Anyway, anyone thinking about buying a Sky should search youtube videos for Sky teardowns (Reefbuilders, Telegram, and others) and the cost cutting and flaws are detailed... You should look for reviews that actually mention flaws and issues and ignore the videos posted on Neptune's youtube (infomercial) channel.

BRS apparently now is fine with a narrow spectrum in LEDs since acquiring Neptune, which is VERY interesting... (compare BRS lighting showdown videos on youtube and harsh comments about narrow spectrum (needle point spectrum) LEDs with BRS's Sky review and a blatant glossing over of the Sky's narrower (needle point) spectrum:

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It’s funny when someone buys somthing and everything they Swore by changes
 

A worm with high fashion and practical utility: Have you ever kept feather dusters in your reef aquarium?

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