Razor vs XR15x2

[Jakepen]

I can not decide, well I can, I just don't know if I can justify the price. Are the xr15s worth the extra $500? Do they help corals thrive that much more? Is the color that much better? Someone, sell me on the xr15s!!!

 

[mcarroll]

Unless you're mostly unaware of the Radion I think it's fair to say you're decided on the Razor. I say go for it, you won't regret it. Plus you'll have a little pile of money left to spend on other things!

 

[Jakepen]

I'm pretty aware of everything the xrs have to offer, I think they are awesome. The controllability, all the modes, for instance the coral grow mode, sweet. I dunno, will the r420r suffice? I've seen videos on radions where they make corals just pop, look like they are glowing. Does the razor have that capability?

 

[jent]

I am pretty happy with my razor. My complaints with it are mostly related to LED's rather than the razor itself. I did end up adding a kessil to help with some of the sharp led shadowing, and must say I like the color of the kessil better. I kind of wish I had just gone with only kessils because of the color, but at no point wish I had gotten a radion as I can't see anything significant it would have provided over the razor to justify the costs.

 

[Jakepen]

Yeah, I mean allll the ridiculous colors it offers, I'll use a small handful, so that won't bother me. But, I do like that you can pick your blues. How do your corals look, and grow under your Razor?

 

[Acameron2]

I've had pretty good growth out of my little nano razor. But like others say it's pretty directed light. But over all I like it. Plus it's simple setup which is how I like it.

 

[Jakepen]

I would probably get the wider lenses. Your corals look pretty good under it!

 

[Acameron2]

Yea that would do wonders for my little frag tank

 

[Jakepen]

Do your corals almost glow under the right setting?

 

[jent]

Getting corals to pop and glow is really easy under the razor. As far as I am concerned, there is nothing wrong with the spectrum for either the visual nor the growth case. I do tend to run a bit more whites in the afternoon (when I am most likely working and away anyways), and then by the time I am coming home things are blue'ing up nicely.

The whitest I run is channel A at 100%, and B at 80%. I like the visual difference of a more 10k look, the variation, but don't particularly like how the corals look. I personally find the best color balance of about 1/3 more blue (B) compared to channel A. So if B is at 90%, my A is at 60%. To me (YMMV), this is the absolute best color, colors look great, but not insanely blue yet. I achieve this by going from that 100(A) 80(B) point to having my next point have B at 100% and A down to 60% (which I know is beyond that 1/3 mark I mentioned above, but keep in mind it's transitioning to that point steadily). By 4pm, things are absolutely perfect. From that things for me tend to progress more on the blue side as the tank dims into the evening.

When I said I like the color of the kessil more, the reason being is it's slightly more _blue_ where the razor is slightly more _purple_. Honestly you would never be able to tell unless they are side by side like mine currently are. I tried to take a photo to show the differences just now, but even my camera could not pick it up well.

I have the wider lenses but don't use them. They reduced the par too much, and did not really help the shadowing to any significant degree. I felt like I was getting better results with the stock lenses. Adding the kessil fully fixed my shadowing issues, as it is forward, and angled at about 20deg to give a different angle to the incoming light.

Not sure if that helps. Honestly you will need to tune things to find where you like it, and where the corals like it. I personally did not use their built in curves at all. I just thought I would let you know how I tuned it for some success. Feel free to let me know if you have more questions.

 

[Jakepen]

^^Helps a ton^^. Decided I will save around $500 and go for a different light... Any other competitors come to mind? (Very new to the hobby, and know very few reputable brands). Has to have the ability to be mounted to the tank, and cover a 3ft. tank... Any suggestions, I appreciate.

 

[jent]

Now knowing your tank is 3ft long, you may likely end up actually wanting the wider lenses and end up running the LED's higher (I personally run at 100% for a short period, but with wider lenses I would need to run full bore longer).

I know I already said it, but I would really look at kessil. I think 3 pendants would be awesome over a 3ft tank. The AP700 would be another option, but I am not sure if it would be wide enough (i honestly just don't know, I have not done much research into that fixture but at a glance it looks interesting).

If it were me, doing it again, I would get 3 or 4 kessil pendants.

Hopefully that does not make it more confusing. I wish you were local so I could show you the differences in real life.

 

[Jakepen]

Not confusing at all, heard great things about Kessil. Would you think two 360s?

 

[AdamNC]

No real complaints here using a 160w 16k R420R on my 29 gallon 30" tank. Colors pop and acros respond well to it. The only complaint I do have is a few of the stock optics on mine have clouded after about a year of use.

 

[Jakepen]

The lenses, or the actual led?

 

[AdamNC]

The lenses. I can pick up new lenses for $15.00 a puck. So $45 to replace all 3, not that big of a deal. I'm just guessing I either got salt splash on them and the salt dried and burned or faulty lenses.

 

[Jakepen]

Yeah, but after a few years of use, you have to expect minor wear and tear. At least you can replace them if you choose.

 

[Jakepen]

How do you guys feel about Kessil 160s? Look like pretty nice lights...

 

[Jakepen]

If I went with the Kessil 160s, would I need 3?

 

[jent]

The 160we is what I am using to supplement my razor. It's not very much wattage on their own. What are you planning to keep? If you want SPS, anemones, clams, etc, you will want more light.

I would think three Kessil 160We's would probably be very close to equal to a 160w razor.

I personally would get two 360's to start out with. That likely would be plenty of light, but you could easily add a third in the future if you find you want more (or a couple 160WE's depending on the needs). That said, I am sure 2 x 360's will be plenty to get you started (and maybe forever).

The reason I personally would want three or four lights is because two will likely be in line. With a third or fourth you will be able to move one or two lights forward to get more coverage/less shadowing (similar to my setup with the kessil, even if yours is not angled).

All in all, I don't think you can go wrong in any way, razor is good, kessils are great (but not quite as clean looking, and they will add up in costs quickly).