Reef Breeders Meridians

dwest · Nov 27, 2025

Does anyone have experience running a meridian (11 or 24) vs Nicrew Gen2 200? I have a 180 gallon tank with 2 braces and have thought about 3 meridian 24’s running front to back as others have mentioned. But am wondering if 3 Nicrew gen2 200’s would also do the job. My tank is a mixed reef with acros.

NCsalt · Dec 4, 2025

I got my shipping notice for the 45 Meridian Shallow Bundle with 14k light bars today! Very excited. Missed the posts about using blue bars with shallow meridian setup, oh well.

I got the bundle because i like the idea of one power supply because it has to go in my stand. Also needed the light bars for 30 inch wide Cade 1500 S/2 Peninsula that I also got the shipping notice for today. It was a good Black Friday.

SpSDrew · Dec 4, 2025

NCsalt said:
I got my shipping notice for the 45 Meridian Shallow Bundle with 14k light bars today! Very excited. Missed the posts about using blue bars with shallow meridian setup, oh well.

I got the bundle because i like the idea of one power supply because it has to go in my stand. Also needed the light bars for 30 inch wide Cade 1500 S/2 Peninsula that I also got the shipping notice for today. It was a good Black Friday.

You won’t be disappointed! Amazing lights that pack a punch

skey44 · Dec 4, 2025

NCsalt said:
I got my shipping notice for the 45 Meridian Shallow Bundle with 14k light bars today! Very excited. Missed the posts about using blue bars with shallow meridian setup, oh well.

I got the bundle because i like the idea of one power supply because it has to go in my stand. Also needed the light bars for 30 inch wide Cade 1500 S/2 Peninsula that I also got the shipping notice for today. It was a good Black Friday.

Dude that setup is going to be amazing! Stoked for you. The shallow reef color is plenty blue. I’m getting mine dialed in to my liking and the coral pop is absolutely unreal. I was actually hoping for more white, but I’m definitely acclimating to the blue light evenings

BR260354 · Dec 8, 2025

Ok, I went through all 31 pages of this thread. Very cool and just about sold on the Meridians.

My current:
I'm currently running 3 AI Blades 48" - 2 Grow and 1 Glow - about 9-10" above the water on a Red Sea Peninsula 500 G2. I have it attached on a 80/20 rail and it is a clean look. The rail is adjustable up and down. I run the grows on 97% intensity with a modified Saxby setup and the glow at 75%.

The tank is in my main room, so light spill is a consideration.

Is it worth the move to the Meridians? Would I need Edge bars also?

I'm not unhappy with the AI Blades....just wondering if I can do better.

Guess I have time now since I missed the Black Friday sales.

skey44 · Dec 8, 2025

BR260354 said:
Ok, I went through all 31 pages of this thread. Very cool and just about sold on the Meridians.

My current:
I'm currently running 3 AI Blades 48" - 2 Grow and 1 Glow - about 9-10" above the water on a Red Sea Peninsula 500 G2. I have it attached on a 80/20 rail and it is a clean look. The rail is adjustable up and down. I run the grows on 97% intensity with a modified Saxby setup and the glow at 75%.

The tank is in my main room, so light spill is a consideration.

Is it worth the move to the Meridians? Would I need Edge bars also?

I'm not unhappy with the AI Blades....just wondering if I can do better.

Guess I have time now since I missed the Black Friday sales.

I just got my Meridian so not a long term user, but did my buying research and can see the product in front of me now. I haven’t gotten to par test yet.

You will be fine to direct replace your lighting with a meridian. I went with the 45 bc I wanted end to end coverage on my four foot tank. You will be fine without the edge bars initially but may need/want as your tank grows in. I recommend using the wide angle lenses if mounting at 9-10” but if you can mount at 14” height the original optics work better with less light spill giving nice working area to get in the tank. I don’t find the light to have high glare relative to the Kessils they’re replacing. What light spill I do have is much more gentle and diffuse.

I’m running at 14” and original optics. Could lower a couple of inches on mine to almost completely eliminate light spill. There is some light spill over the tank length wise so you could potentially get away with the 3 panel unit if you don’t want to light the ends of the tank as much.

As I make adjustments and see the possibilities I’m liking the light more and more. I have had it installed almost a week. I grabbed the shallow reef color. My tank is 48x24x16”

No filter, adjusting my daylight color for fish viewing and “full spectrum” coral growth

Baked out blues

look good too.

BR260354 · Dec 9, 2025

Is there a method to attach the Meridian to an 8020 T-Slot rail? I have a single rail going over the center of the peninsula. Tank dimensions - 49(w)x25(d)x24(h).

Since my rail system is adjustable, I can raise it.

Bitflip · Dec 12, 2025

BR260354 said:
Is there a method to attach the Meridian to an 8020 T-Slot rail? I have a single rail going over the center of the peninsula. Tank dimensions - 49(w)x25(d)x24(h).

Since my rail system is adjustable, I can raise it.

Yes, you can find the black piece on the reefbreeders website. And I was able to find corresponding t slot nut M6-10. Mine are stainless but I don't think it matters.

bvickery1974 · Dec 13, 2025

Loving my meridian so far. But heard they may be redesigning the BOT mount, anyone heard about this?

Also, new to saltwater and curious about good starting point in community settings to start with and relatively acclimation settings, ie start at roughly x% and move up.

Tahoe61 · Dec 16, 2025

I have been running my Meridian 11 at 35% with an 8 hrs photo period, using the manual controller. I received the fixture Nov 26th.
Today I noticed the fixture was not ramping up, the light appeared dim. Unfortunately all the violet leds are no longer functioning.
BRS's response was immediate, they are sending out a replacement fixture. While I am pretty disappointed because I had done my research and waited so long for the right fixture.
I was just the unlikely one that got the dud, it happens. Still love the fixtures and hopefully quick resolution.

Edit. ReefBreeders was very responsive to my concerns immediately. They reviewed images of the fixture on and off. Very impressed with ReefBreeders and BRS customer service response.

Dutch_Roots · Feb 12, 2026

Excited to see how the Meridian 63 with edge bars perform. Just got them mounted on my new build. It’ll be a 72”x30”x24” main center display that these will be on.

Wondering if I will need to add two more edge bars? It’ll be all SPS for this center tank.

t5Nitro · Feb 12, 2026

How high are the lights above the tank? My 30 inch wide tank has cozumel sun (large halide reflectors) overhead with an LED bar front/back, and I am debating adding more light, especially to the back of the tank. My LED bars are tilted to point the lens more towards the center of the tank, so that is probably the primary issue. I think you'll get decent coverage with all the reflectors aimed straight south like you have it as long as the total light rack is suspended high enough.

Dutch_Roots · Feb 12, 2026

t5Nitro said:
How high are the lights above the tank? My 30 inch wide tank has cozumel sun (large halide reflectors) overhead with an LED bar front/back, and I am debating adding more light, especially to the back of the tank. My LED bars are tilted to point the lens more towards the center of the tank, so that is probably the primary issue. I think you'll get decent coverage with all the reflectors aimed straight south like you have it as long as the total light rack is suspended high enough.

Once the tank is installed I’ll have it mounted 14” above the tank. I think that’s what is recommended right?

evilexotica · Feb 12, 2026

I had some High Octane UV LumenBars V2 laying around, so I put those in between the 63 and Edge Bars

(Shut the Meridians off for taking the pic)

skey44 · Feb 12, 2026

Dutch_Roots said:
Once the tank is installed I’ll have it mounted 14” above the tank. I think that’s what is recommended right?

Yes 14” is a good height for these.

t5Nitro · Feb 12, 2026

Dutch_Roots said:
Once the tank is installed I’ll have it mounted 14” above the tank. I think that’s what is recommended right?

That's where mine are above the surface. I think you'll be good with the setup. My only hesitation would be the width of the meridian.

Curious what an app like Photone (free) light meter would be any help? Since you don't have a tank on the stand yet, you could flip all the lights on and place your phone in the center of the tank and then at the front and back edges and see what %reduction in PAR you're getting on the edges of the tank where it would sit. Just know that the absolute PAR number isn't accurate given you need to pay for the LED setting. I'd just be more interested in knowing what any of the free settings shows directly in the centerline of the tank and what % it drops by when you come to the front and back. That might help you at least determine if you want to add another bar or two.

Cozumel sun reflectors are very large footprint so I think my tank gets pretty good spread from that. I'd guess the LED reflectors offer some good spread even with the narrow footprint.

t5Nitro · Feb 12, 2026

evilexotica said:
I had some High Octane UV LumenBars V2 laying around, so I put those in between the 63 and Edge Bars

(Shut the Meridians off for taking the pic)

I like the color of those a lot. If I add more bars, maybe I'll look there. Do you like them?

Dutch_Roots · Feb 12, 2026

t5Nitro said:
That's where mine are above the surface. I think you'll be good with the setup. My only hesitation would be the width of the meridian.

Curious what an app like Photone (free) light meter would be any help? Since you don't have a tank on the stand yet, you could flip all the lights on and place your phone in the center of the tank and then at the front and back edges and see what %reduction in PAR you're getting on the edges of the tank where it would sit. Just know that the absolute PAR number isn't accurate given you need to pay for the LED setting. I'd just be more interested in knowing what any of the free settings shows directly in the centerline of the tank and what % it drops by when you come to the front and back. That might help you at least determine if you want to add another bar or two.

Cozumel sun reflectors are very large footprint so I think my tank gets pretty good spread from that. I'd guess the LED reflectors offer some good spread even with the narrow footprint.

Thanks for the advice! I’m most likely just going to wait on the tank and do par readings. Have plenty of time to add more if I end up needing to.

t5Nitro · Feb 12, 2026

Dutch_Roots said:
Thanks for the advice! I’m most likely just going to wait on the tank and do par readings. Have plenty of time to add more if I end up needing to.

That's what I meant but I think didn't come out that way. Real easy to test it now where the tank would sit, whether from an app or from someones real PAR meter. Easy way to let you know if you need more along the edges. Way easier to do it now!