Radion G5 Rant. $900?

[Arturs Millers]

Well actually one more thing. If you dont care the newest stuff its smart to just wait a bit a get good old g4 for mutch lower price. And they will do just do amazing because there is thousands off tanks with these lights growing everything.

Well atleast thats what i will do

 

[Magellan]

@SPR1968 This always happens when I buy an iPhone. Well, not much anymore. If you’re happy with the product you bought, you bought it for that reason, even if the next new shiny model is coming out. Lighting is lighting. We tend to overthink lighting too much in this hobby. We can make adjustments here and there. But if it works it works. Look how many people are running back to retro MH.

Amen for a retro MH!

This price point is ridiculous imo....for a light that most people will run at 30% power or kill their corals and still need 2 or more to cover their tank. Then get t5s anyway because they have dead zones. But at least it comes with a fancy app, so you can constantly adjust things. Because corals don’t like stability, everyone knows this...

 

[ScottR]

Amen for a retro MH!

This price point is ridiculous imo....for a light that most people will run at 30% power or kill their corals and still need 2 or more to cover their tank. Then get t5s anyway because they still have dead zones. But at least it comes with a fancy app, so you can constantly adjust things. Because corals don’t like stability, everyone knows this...

I’m a fan of T5s. If I could make them ramp up and down and change their colors like LED, I’d run T5 only. Until then, I’ll stick to my maxspect/T5 hybrid.

 

[Magellan]

I’m a fan of T5s. If I could make them ramp up and down and change their colors like LED, I’d run T5 only. Until then, I’ll stick to my maxspect/T5 hybrid.

Mh + led for an upgrade, perhaps?

 

[ScottR]

Mh + led for an upgrade, perhaps?

I love MH but heat wise, fixture, costs, etc. But of course in an ideal tank, I’d run MH and probably nothing else.

 

[Magellan]

I love MH but heat wise, fixture, costs, etc. But of course in an ideal tank, I’d run MH and probably nothing else.

I see used MH fixtures all the time for just a fraction of the cost of something like this, and as far as heat...Just think of all the $$ you will save on heaters!

 

[Reef man 89]

Ecotech could sell a goats fart if they wanted to
[/QUOTE]
Say what!!!! ecotech goats farts sounds like it will grow coral like god himself!!! Sign me up how many will $10 grand get me? They better finally get with the 20 first century and add Bluetooth to these farts!!! Or I will post on reef2reef how much I hate these farts.

 

[atoll]

Personally speaking there are a number of different ways of looking at it. None are particularly right, none particularly wrong. However, if Ecotech want people to trade up is the G5 offering a big enough upgrade to encourage them to do so. Sure some will be tempted the question is will there be enough. I suggest it will sell OK but there is a lot of competition out there and it's growing. Here in the UK many have turned their back on Radions in favour of Orphek's. EG. I have just swapped out my 3 x XR30s for 2 x Atlantic's on my 5' d-d tank which not only work out cheaper but give me better spread with less shading. The G5 is of course a better light than a G3 or G4 but it will still have the same old issue of shading if slightly less.
They say something is only worth what another is willing to pay, well we will see how sales go and the truth of the pudding etc or is it a case of you pays your money and takes your pick. I went for secondhand Orphek's as I can't afford these fancy prices but I could just as easily have gone for Evergrows.

 

[jwshiver]

I came back to this hobby after 15 years and im more shocked at the price of coral frags. Hundreds of dollars for a 1in or 1/2 inc coral. Thats insane

I can't remember the last time I actually saw an honest 1" frag.

 

[SyracuseMatt]

I'm always surprised by these rants. If the light is more money than you want to spend or, if you perceive it to be a poor 'value' (cost relative to performance), don't buy it. The vast majority of people in this hobby are spending significant discretionary income on something entirely unneeded. If you told most people in the world, 'I only spent 2 thousand dollars to keep fish and coral in a glass box versus the 4 thousand dollars my neighbor spent', they would probably look at you a little funny.

Having said that, reasons to buy Radions might include:

1) control: I don't need to ramp up from blue to a fuller spectrum in the morning and back down at night but, I really like it. Not only does it seem more 'natural' to me but, it gives me a chance to enjoy my tanks at different color temperatures throughout the day;

2) large user base and Ecotech finally focused on helping hobbyists find settings that will work: Ecotech developing and hobbyists tweaking the AB+ program was sort of a 'game changer' for Radion users. Prior, it seemed like Ecotech was giving everyone the power to melt their corals into the sand with no real explanation about appropriate settings/levels. The result (particularly without widespread par meter use) was a lot of guess work and more than a little frustration and failure, with people abandoning lights that could work because they didn't know how to make them actually work;

3) good support: I know some have had mixed experiences but, I think, at least in general, their customer support is good. I've only needed them once but, they were very responsive/helpful;

4) functional: when set up appropriately, they work. Certainly not unique to Radions but, of course, essential; and

5) seemingly reliable: I've run 5 Radions, gen 2s and gen 3s (mostly bought used) for years without issues; I have to clean the fans periodically, which is a pain, but, I've not had any other issues.

Personally, I think the upgrade from Gen 1s to Gen 2s was a big deal as Ecotech started to understand that generating obscene amounts of par with spotlight focus was not such a great thing. But, the changes from Gen 2 to Gen 3 and Gen 3 to Gen 4 were not game changers (although the growing focus on optics in Gen 4 likely made Gen 5 possible). Now, Ecotech has abandoned pucks in favor of panel wide lighting. This is a big deal (in my opinion). It seemingly means that Ecotech is satisfied that, because of its optics, Ecotech now believes it can achieve good color blending without the need for pucks. BRS initial testing clearly shows the positive aspects of abandoning the pucks. Gone are any significant hot spots, even with the lights hung close to the water (8 inches).

I may or may not buy Gen 5s (or the new Philips lights when they come out in the U.S.) but, I'm definitely intrigued by both. I'm happy to have the choice and happy to see LED lighting continuing to progress in what appears to be the right direction. Spend your discretionary income how you will (bigger house, faster car, 1k+ new phone every year) but, don't begrudge reef keepers who decide to spend several thousand dollars on lighting. It's an inherently frivolous hobby after all. Nobody needs to keep marine fish and corals in a glass box.

Matt

 

[Fishingandreefing]

To me, $900 for a light is more justified than a $400 pump, it’s ridiculous.

 

[atoll]

This hobby is full of needs and wants along with opinions. Do I need $900 lights to grow coral or make them look nice, not at all but I may want it and be prepared to spend it to get what I want.....

That's if I could afford 3 X G5s which I can't so it's a no for me but I might in a couple of years when they come down in price on the secondhand market. I buy most if my equipment secondhand as I don't have the disposable income to buy new now that I am on a pension.
Radions are great lights of that I have no doubt as I have owned 2 G3s but to me there are better lights for the money. I would put G4s secondhand in the same bracket as my Orphek Atlantic's secondhand cost wise.

Only the buyer can say if a particular light is worth the money. However, I have heard of people with G4s wishing they had bought the Orphek's. 2 x V4s will light a 6' very well. You would need 3 X G4s and maybe G5s to cover the same. That would make the cost of 3 G5s much more than the Orphek's here in the UK at least.

Each to their own but if it was my money I would wait sometime before diving into the G5s to see if they have any issues and how well they perform.

 

[Kfactor]

I’m going to be switching from my new ai primes 16hds to the xr15s . From day one my ai prime reefs do not match colour I even got
One under warranty and that one does the same thing . I would be happy that the price didn’t go up lol we’re lucky it stayed the same

 

[destro]

What if the G5 included a par meter? Would it be worth it now?

 

[andrewkw]

I don't get the hate either. I probably won't buy these lights, but they certainly look interesting and the fact they developed their own fan should be a huge plus not something to be mocked. A cheap fan is a big failure point. Showing a lower price point is not going to show they are trying to build the best possible lights. Are they the best possible lights? Who knows but they certainly are progressing.

There is no need to call it a 100w light when they are actually 205/210w and should cover 18-24" across the tank despite it's form factor. Additionally while it's too early to say there is talk that these lights will not require T5 supplementation due to their spread.

I would guess the majority of the sales are going to be either to new reefers or those who need to replace lights either due to age or new larger tank and want to try something new. I don't think anyone is suggesting throw out G4's or even G3/G2/G1 for these. The comparison to iphone is not really accurate since older iphones are sabotaged / slowed down / no longer compatible with newer software.

If you buy these and take care of them you can probably get 10 years out of them. Maybe more.

 

[Reef AquaCult]

I don't get the hate either. I probably won't buy these lights, but they certainly look interesting and the fact they developed their own fan should be a huge plus not something to be mocked. A cheap fan is a big failure point. Showing a lower price point is not going to show they are trying to build the best possible lights. Are they the best possible lights? Who knows but they certainly are progressing.

There is no need to call it a 100w light when they are actually 205/210w and should cover 18-24" across the tank despite it's form factor. Additionally while it's too early to say there is talk that these lights will not require T5 supplementation due to their spread.

I would guess the majority of the sales are going to be either to new reefers or those who need to replace lights either due to age or new larger tank and want to try something new. I don't think anyone is suggesting throw out G4's or even G3/G2/G1 for these. The comparison to iphone is not really accurate since older iphones are sabotaged / slowed down / no longer compatible with newer software.

If you buy these and take care of them you can probably get 10 years out of them. Maybe more.

All good points!

 

[Infidel]

Gotta keep up with the Joneses...

 

[blstravler]

I think there is also a connection to many of the "high end" on-line coral suppliers, like the ones that sell those $1k 1 inch frags. If these suppliers moved away from Radions and went to T5's or MH or a different brand of LED - you would see a shift in the market. People follow what others do especially when they have great success. Now (very recently) you have those Coral Suppliers selling frag packs on the same sites that sell the same equipment they use to grow the same corals - that is the one thing I don't like.

 

[greekspec2]

I thinks it's hilarious when the 'poor me's' cry about they can't afford the latest and greatest.

 

[Bpb]

Without knowing their actual margins per unit we can’t realistically complain about the cost. And I don’t mean going on rapidled and citing what diodes are costing and what their heat sink costs and just assume it’s a lateral application of value.