Opinion on lighting

[sparrow78]

Hello there! We’ve got a 125 gal mixed reef with fish aquarium 72Lx25Hx18W. Would these lights be beneficial?

VIPARSPECTRA Timer Control Dimmable 165W 300W LED Aquarium Light Full Spectrum for Grow Coral Reef Marine Fish Tank LPS/SPS Amazon product ASIN B07SHR6HW1
currently running two Kessil A80 BlueTuna

 

[sparrow78]

Looking to add 3 units.

 

[Koh23]

Rs90 is weaker light, with very limited spectrum..

I have 2 units, and added one black box in middle, way better than 3 x s90.....

 

[jda]

Lots of people have Vipars over their reef tanks. You should be able to search and find the tanks and stuff. Generalizing - good light, but not great that are made to be used and thrown away without long warranties even though many have had them last quite a while.

Like anything, try and find some experiences a few years in and not the love-fest type of post shortly after purchasing.

 

[nereefpat]

In case you haven't seen this thread:
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/viparspectra-165watt-anyone-using-these.317612/
That could keep a guy/gal busy for a day or so.

 

[Bpb]

Like anything, try and find some experiences a few years in and not the love-fest type of post shortly after purchasing.

Those are the bane of product reviews. Those types of reviews dominate the Chinesium type light experiences. “I unboxed these 12 minutes ago, and my corals have never been happier! I researched spectrum for HOURS and I have it dialed in perfect! Highly recommended!”

 

[Koh23]

To be honest.....

This type of lighting is on market way longer than most, if not any of the "i'm expensive brand name unit".....

Either in form of diy lights using 3w chinese unbranded low quality chips, either in form of prebuilt black boxes....

So, if you really thing that there's not enough time for this light to prove adequate and usefull - think again.

If u want cold truth, do you really thing that "any brand name" use any different diodes, yes, they aiming for quality bin leds, yes, they have quality control, yes.... This is all true, but, when it comes to lights only, there's very very little difference. Even the highest and price insane units suffers from non consistency, having two units that performs differently, in terms of par and spectrum they give. Yes, all in acceptable tollerance, but...

When you remove from equation all of the fancy apps, presets, customizations etc.... in core, you get very very similar lights, no matter what u buy.

Similar insanity was when stating "xy t5 fixture is better than "yy" fixture"... It's relatively all the same, only real difference can be in quality of reflectors, same in led lighting - better drivers, better lenses, quieter fans... or oposide... Bulb can give only what bulb can give.....same, led chip can give...well, u guess.... ;)

But there we dont talk about 80%, 50% difference in favor of "brand name" light.... in best case, we talk about few %......

Money can't buy everything, so, yes - this type of lights (black boxes and similar) are recommended, are great starting point, and can sustain healty corals, good growth and everything, way past "beginner" point...

In fact, only time i will be willing to think about putting 1000-s of $ in lights is when i get to point that every single coral or frag in my system is worth way more than lights... so...not really gonna happen ;)

Of course, yes, there are limitations, there are drawbacks, there are some sacrifices which need to be make when using this cheap lights - but, again, there's no need to adress this lights in such way....

 

[Cell]

What's your budget?

 

[J1a]

Even the highest and price insane units suffers from non consistency, having two units that performs differently, in terms of par and spectrum they give.

This is something I wonder as well. What kind of tolerance are the "branded" stuffs perform to? Or even more importantly, what kind of spectrum shift/Par degradation occurs under real world use. I wonder if there is any real-world testing done.

Of course, there are reefers who upgrade every generation. In that case, the durability is probably not a huge concern. But who knows. Maybe there is measureable Par degradation after a year or two?

 

[Koh23]

Can't help you with any actual numbers, data etc... but, very often can u found that same units performs slightly different, i saw that on ai prime 16, three units, all of them have visible difference in light color when channels are set exactly on each...

Same reason, person where i saw this is selling his.... enough said.... Also, saw similar on red sea 90....

On my rs90, there's few par points difference from unit A vs unit B, but of course, this can be margin of error, and caused by measuring, not light output....

Like i said, when you strip it down to core, all that's left is le diode itself....

I have oportunitiy to see some of tanks with high end light, and some that runs 3w diodes on aluminium bars, connected to pc power supply, without any control, adjustability, par or spectrum readings....

And, on that i based my opinion, yes, lights matters, but, most expensive lights can't compensate for lack of...well, so many things.... Cheap, low quality lights can perform same, even better, if everything else is in order....

Don't get me wrong, i would LIKE to hang 20 high end units over my tank.... But i don't NEED to, for my tank to be sucessfull...

 

[Gobi-Wan]

I had a viparspectra over my 75 gallon tank for 2 years and it grew corals extremely well for the price point. I now have migrated to a 125 but changed to different lighting, mostly for extra features and product support. Here are some points from my experience and research.
-to get good spread the viparspectras need to be mounted HIGH. Like 12-18”. Otherwise you will have a flaming hot spot in the middle and not much outside that. Inside a hood would be ideal, a floating hood would be even better. When the light is that high it’s in your eyes constantly when trying to enjoy the tank. Once mounted high the color blending is pretty decent and disco affect goes down as well.
-in the US we have manufacturing standards that it’s NEVER ok for a product to like… catch on fire. In other countries if 1 in 1000 units catch on fire they’re considered ready for market or something to that affect. Paraphrased from a BRS video I think.
-all black box units, though the viparspectra looks very classy comparatively, have the cheapest possible electronic parts.
-3 of those over a 125 will absolutely grow SPS if you so desire.
-every decision you make is taking some kind of risk, no matter what people like to say about spending a fortune on high end equipment, there’s give and take. You just choose what level of risk you are comfortable with. Of the Amazon black boxes, viparspectra is far and away the best. BRS has a good video on them.
-If the Chinese aspect does worry you, there’s a brand called SB reef lights made in America, also black box style, but with higher manufacturing quality and a mid-range price point. More features too. People seem to like them.

Good luck!

 

[J1a]

visible difference in light color

If this is the case. Then the spectral difference may be very significant.

Diodes are important, but there is also tje quality of the driver, thermal management, optics etc. Many of this can affect the output and longetivity of the light.

 

[Cell]

Consider with a 6 ft tank how many lights you will need for coverage and how many available electrical outlets you have. I'd rather run a larger light with less plugs than several smaller units that can't be daisy chained.

 

[Gobi-Wan]

Consider with a 6 ft tank how many lights you will need for coverage and how many available electrical outlets you have. I'd rather run a larger light with less plugs than several smaller units that can't be daisy chained.

The viparspectras have a single cord and can be daisy chained as well I believe.

 

[Koh23]

-in the US we have manufacturing standards that it’s NEVER ok for a product to like… catch on fire. In other countries if 1 in 1000 units catch on fire they’re considered ready for market or something to that affect. Paraphrased from a BRS video I think.

Sorry, really don't mean to be rude, or disrespectful, or anything, but this is...

First, i know that you in USA consider BRS to be somewhat deity, holly father and son, but... with all of respect to them, most of they "wisdom" is simply well thought advertisement and marketing things they sell..... And, by many many reefers opinions outside of US - somewhat entertaining and somewhat useful. Again, with all of respect.

Secondly, US don't have highest possible standards, far from that. Don't confuse what enters market via eBay, or personal purchases, and what enters via official channels, where every product is rigorously tested, and must come long and hard way before earning all of papers, certificates and stuff to be legally sell on some country market.

And yes, this also applies for Chinese stuff, which is why it's very hard to find local importer, or seller of this stuff, not limited to Chinese lights. U can safely say that 95% goods made in China simply don't meet all of safety requirements to be sold on market.

And, yes, hard to believe, but even some made in USA stuff still have hard time to pass anywhere else outside. ;)

So, no, 1 out of 1000 is not acceptable in most of countries, that's not limited to USA only.... Not single reputable seller, or company would go trough hassle to import legally and put on markets something that's questionable, primary because liability and responsibility if something goes wrong when customer bought and used it... Even if he manage to bypass certificates and all of paperwork, which is also in most of countries very hard to do...

That's why we don't have these units to be sold anywhere outside eBay or similar sites....

 

[Gobi-Wan]

Sorry, really don't mean to be rude, or disrespectful, or anything, but this is...

First, i know that you in USA consider BRS to be somewhat deity, holly father and son, but... with all of respect to them, most of they "wisdom" is simply well thought advertisement and marketing things they sell..... And, by many many reefers opinions outside of US - somewhat entertaining and somewhat useful. Again, with all of respect.

Secondly, US don't have highest possible standards, far from that. Don't confuse what enters market via eBay, or personal purchases, and what enters via official channels, where every product is rigorously tested, and must come long and hard way before earning all of papers, certificates and stuff to be legally sell on some country market.

And yes, this also applies for Chinese stuff, which is why it's very hard to find local importer, or seller of this stuff, not limited to Chinese lights. U can safely say that 95% goods made in China simply don't meet all of safety requirements to be sold on market.

And, yes, hard to believe, but even some made in USA stuff still have hard time to pass anywhere else outside. ;)

So, no, 1 out of 1000 is not acceptable in most of countries, that's not limited to USA only.... Not single reputable seller, or company would go trough hassle to import legally and put on markets something that's questionable, primary because liability and responsibility if something goes wrong when customer bought and used it... Even if he manage to bypass certificates and all of paperwork, which is also in most of countries very hard to do...

That's why we don't have these units to be sold anywhere outside eBay or similar sites....

BRS does not sell black boxes. They have a lot of helpful videos. Just trying to paraphrase a vague argument that cheap Chinese stuff isn’t manufactured to the same standards as the name brand stuff. I wasn’t taking a poke at whatever country you’re in. Just trying to help the OP. Edited multiple times because I’m stupid.

 

[Koh23]

Exactly, my point.....

Nobody sells them except chinese....