Reef lighting and spectrum experts opinion

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

@Reef Breeders @Battlecorals
Hello! Suggestions please for this setup. Looking to mount high, and cover a 1.8m x 1.8m tank. I was thinking of Battlecorals raceway setups which proves meridians and photons can throw down the par from a high height. What would be recommended here?

Can you give me the exact dimensions of the tubs height, Width, depth and an approximate mounting height of the lights.

Adam doesn’t even use the focus optics as far as I’m aware he’s using our default optics so the PAR numbers would shoot up drastically with focus optics at the expense of spread.

 

[DanyL]

I completely agree that actual, measurable data is essential. That’s exactly why I encouraged the original poster to test our lights firsthand and share his results openly. We’ve already published strong PAR numbers through Arie Idaho Reef, clearly demonstrating the Meridian Focus optics’ impressive capabilities. But let’s be real, manufacturer data only goes so far. There’s nothing more convincing than an actual customer putting our lights to the test. If you have genuine doubts about the product’s performance, I’d invite you to buy one, test it thoroughly, and share your own findings. Until then, speculation alone doesn’t hold much weight against real results from real users.

I’ve actually already seen the video you referenced - it’s a good showcase overall, and the PAR map shows strong numbers at 12.5” mounting height with the Focus lens. No issue there.

However, that’s a standard mounting height - not the extreme one the OP was asking about. Referencing that video doesn’t support claims about mounting at 2 meters, or anything close to it.

Also, expecting someone to purchase and test a fixture before they can raise a technical concern isn’t a reasonable standard for community discussions and tends to dismiss valid, good faith skepticism.

My original point still stands: there’s no data public or otherwise that supports usable PAR at that kind of distance, and raising that as a concern is both reasonable and responsible.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

I’ve actually already seen the video you referenced - it’s a good showcase overall, and the PAR map shows strong numbers at 12.5” mounting height with the Focus lens. No issue there.

However, that’s a standard mounting height - not the extreme one the OP was asking about. Referencing that video doesn’t support claims about mounting at 2 meters, or anything close to it.

Also, expecting someone to purchase and test a fixture before they can raise a technical concern isn’t a reasonable standard for community discussions and tends to dismiss valid, good faith skepticism.

My original point still stands: there’s no data public or otherwise that supports usable PAR at that kind of distance, and raising that as a concern is both reasonable and responsible.

Adam at Battle Corals is getting excellent results using just the standard balanced optics. Unless OP is planning something even more demanding than Adam’s setup, which itself is already quite impressive. it’s only logical that the narrower optics, specifically designed for deeper penetration, would perform even better. Adam’s success clearly demonstrates how effective our regular optics are, so there’s every reason to expect even stronger results from the Focus optics.

 

[DanyL]

Adam at Battle Corals is getting excellent results using just the standard balanced optics. Unless OP is planning something even more demanding than Adam’s setup, which itself is already quite impressive. it’s only logical that the narrower optics, specifically designed for deeper penetration, would perform even better. Adam’s success clearly demonstrates how effective our regular optics are, so there’s every reason to expect even stronger results from the Focus optics.

I mean, I’ve seen the Meridians over the frag tanks at Battlecorals - I might be wrong, but they look to be mounted around 50-60 cm, which is about the same height I run my own lights over my frag tank. I’m hitting similar PAR numbers to what was shown in the video you referenced, even without focused reflectors, when maxed out.

But even so, 50-60 cm is still a long way from the 1.8–2.0 m mounting height OP is looking for. And without any public PAR data anywhere near that kind of range, I think it’s reasonable to remain skeptical until we see real world results from a setup like that.

That also applies to the lights I personally run - if I knew for sure they would work at that height, I would’ve suggested them long ago.

 

[FishOkay]

Its all kicking off! Haha but the tank is 2m x 2m and 80cm deep. Im looking to hang the potential new light 170 - 200cm above the tank. Currently I have 14 ai blades and a couple 400w metal halide fixtures (which i want to keep). I was originally looking for a single fixture to spotlight from high above and fill the usable 1.8 x 1.8m space of the tank. Im open to experimentation it seems like the reefbright.

I like the look of the meridians I suppose if I was to use such lights I would effectively group them together to create a square panel of them if that makes sense.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

I mean, I’ve seen the Meridians over the frag tanks at Battlecorals - I might be wrong, but they look to be mounted around 50-60 cm, which is about the same height I run my own lights over my frag tank. I’m hitting similar PAR numbers to what was shown in the video you referenced, even without focused reflectors, when maxed out.

But even so, 50-60 cm is still a long way from the 1.8–2.0 m mounting height OP is looking for. And without any public PAR data anywhere near that kind of range, I think it’s reasonable to remain skeptical until we see real world results from a setup like that.

That also applies to the lights I personally run - if I knew for sure they would work at that height, I would’ve suggested them long ago.

I mean, I’ve seen the Meridians over the frag tanks at Battlecorals - I might be wrong, but they look to be mounted around 50-60 cm, which is about the same height I run my own lights over my frag tank. I’m hitting similar PAR numbers to what was shown in the video you referenced, even without focused reflectors, when maxed out.

But even so, 50-60 cm is still a long way from the 1.8–2.0 m mounting height OP is looking for. And without any public PAR data anywhere near that kind of range, I think it’s reasonable to remain skeptical until we see real world results from a setup like that.

That also applies to the lights I personally run - if I knew for sure they would work at that height, I would’ve suggested them long ago.

I’m so confident that our Meridians can handle this that I am willing to waive the restocking fee if they don’t work with the focus optics.

 

[DanyL]

I’m so confident that our Meridians can handle this that I am willing to waive the restocking fee if they don’t work with the focus optics.

Fair enough, and I would love to see anyone taking on your offer to test them and share some real world measurements to see how well they perform under those conditions.

I still think I made a valid prediction based on the information available to me, but I would honestly love to be proven wrong.

And even if they aren’t able to push through, that’s completely fine too. I don’t think an edge case like this should take away from what your lights are already able to achieve under more typical conditions, the ones they were designed to work with.
At most, it will just help set a realistic expectation for all lights of the same tier.

 

[FishOkay]

Thats very true! My tank/pond is so far removed from what a typical tank is and lights just werent designed for it. So its very much trial and error and experimentation for me. So discussions like this are very valuable.

The question though if the meridians were to be used with the focus optics how many would be recommended and the layout.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

Thats very true! My tank/pond is so far removed from what a typical tank is and lights just werent designed for it. So its very much trial and error and experimentation for me. So discussions like this are very valuable.

The question though if the meridians were to be used with the focus optics how many would be recommended and the layout.

I will run some numbers and make a recommendation this week for you.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

Its all kicking off! Haha but the tank is 2m x 2m and 80cm deep. Im looking to hang the potential new light 170 - 200cm above the tank. Currently I have 14 ai blades and a couple 400w metal halide fixtures (which i want to keep). I was originally looking for a single fixture to spotlight from high above and fill the usable 1.8 x 1.8m space of the tank. Im open to experimentation it seems like the reefbright.

I like the look of the meridians I suppose if I was to use such lights I would effectively group them together to create a square panel of them if that makes sense.

If you do it that way you should be able to arrange 8 Meridian 63 horizontally with 1.5” of spacing between each light.

Then you can run a Meridian 63 and Meridian 11 in the middle to give complete blanket coverage over the whole tank.

This will be more than enough for your needs I know this will be a great opportunity for the Meridian to prove itself.

If you’d like to reach out to me direct id be happy to work with you to ensure that you are happy with your setup, otherwise we will refund you and you can continue your journey. Although I know your journey will end with the Meridian.

 

[FishOkay]

If you do it that way you should be able to arrange 8 Meridian 63 horizontally with 1.5” of spacing between each light.

Then you can run a Meridian 63 and Meridian 11 in the middle to give complete blanket coverage over the whole tank.

This will be more than enough for your needs I know this will be a great opportunity for the Meridian to prove itself.

If you’d like to reach out to me direct id be happy to work with you to ensure that you are happy with your setup, otherwise we will refund you and you can continue your journey. Although I know your journey will end with the Meridian.

dang I would love to do that If money was no object as I have no doubt they are brilliant lights but 8 63's would be close to £10,500 which is a large jump from my original idea of the orphek amazonas 500 at $1200. I would say the original idea was not to replace my current lighting set up, but to compliment it in replacement of the orphek amazonas 960 icon and the kessil a500x which were mounted high up.

 

[Reef Breeders Verified Sponsor]

dang I would love to do that If money was no object as I have no doubt they are brilliant lights but 8 63's would be close to £10,500 which is a large jump from my original idea of the orphek amazonas 500 at $1200. I would say the original idea was not to replace my current lighting set up, but to compliment it in replacement of the orphek amazonas 960 icon and the kessil a500x which were mounted high up.

Understandable, let me know whenever you’re ready to try out the Meridian and I’ll be happy to help you in any way I can.

 

[VintageReefer]

dang I would love to do that If money was no object as I have no doubt they are brilliant lights but 8 63's would be close to £10,500 which is a large jump from my original idea of the orphek amazonas 500 at $1200. I would say the original idea was not to replace my current lighting set up, but to compliment it in replacement of the orphek amazonas 960 icon and the kessil a500x which were mounted high up.

You want to keep the 400w halides and use the leds more for accents and to add some pop ?

 

[FishOkay]

You want to keep the 400w halides and use the leds more for accents and to add some pop ?

Yeah exactly pretty much it. Id like keep the halides and the ai blades which are just the grows and then add another light or lights up high. So I suppose really (i havent checked) par is covered by the ai blades and the new light is additional spectrum / colours and potentially some more shimmer.

 

[FishOkay]

I will see what quanta says from my email, but im potentially thinking now if I can't find an led fixture or fixtures, I may just add a couple more 400w metal halide fixtures!

 

[DanyL]

You’re technically in the public aquarium lighting tier here, so I get the frustration. Metal halides honestly aren’t a bad backup plan.

The Atlas might still stand a chance with your budget and what you’re aiming for. It does have good spread and decent punch for the price, but it’s still unclear how it would perform at your mounting height.


Another option you could look at is the ReeFi Uno 2 Pro - that’s what I use on my own systems. It’s a 265W fixture in a compact form (about 15x20 cm), and it does have an optional narrower 60 degree reflector, though I’m not sure you will need that for your goal.

If you’re trying to get actual usable PAR from that kind of height, you’d probably need to pack a bunch of them together in a grid - something like WWC’s lagoon tank (which isn’t as high, but not too far from it). That setup could potentially work with the 60° reflectors, but realistically, it would be a full replacement of your current lighting and the cost would reflect that accordingly.

On the other hand, if your goal is just to add spectrum and some shimmer, then maybe 5 units (~$2.5k) could be enough - still above your budget, but maybe more manageable.
However, you’re definitely in experimental territory here - there’s no public data for this kind of use, so it’ll take some trial and error.

Might be worth messaging Daniel Lu (owner of ReeFi). He’s been solid and realistic in my experience, and could probably help you figure out what makes sense based on your setup.

May I ask what’s the main issue with the Amazonas and Kessils right now? Not enough spread?

 

[Reefering1]

You’re technically in the public aquarium lighting tier here, so I get the frustration. Metal halides honestly aren’t a bad backup plan.

The Atlas might still stand a chance with your budget and what you’re aiming for. It does have good spread and decent punch for the price, but it’s still unclear how it would perform at your mounting height.


Another option you could look at is the ReeFi Uno 2 Pro - that’s what I use on my own systems. It’s a 265W fixture in a compact form (about 15x20 cm), and it does have an optional narrower 60 degree reflector, though I’m not sure you will need that for your goal.

If you’re trying to get actual usable PAR from that kind of height, you’d probably need to pack a bunch of them together in a grid - something like WWC’s lagoon tank (which isn’t as high, but not too far from it). That setup could potentially work with the 60° reflectors, but realistically, it would be a full replacement of your current lighting and the cost would reflect that accordingly.

On the other hand, if your goal is just to add spectrum and some shimmer, then maybe 5 units (~$2.5k) could be enough - still above your budget, but maybe more manageable.
However, you’re definitely in experimental territory here - there’s no public data for this kind of use, so it’ll take some trial and error.

Might be worth messaging Daniel Lu (owner of ReeFi). He’s been solid and realistic in my experience, and could probably help you figure out what makes sense based on your setup.

May I ask what’s the main issue with the Amazonas and Kessils right now? Not enough spread?

I thought he said he was trying to hit specific dim spots. (Iirc, without re reading)

 

[DanyL]

I thought he said he was trying to hit specific dim spots. (Iirc, without re reading)

Look a couple of messages above mine.

His goal is to replace the current orphek and Kessil setup, and to provide more spectrum and shimmer on top of the blades and metal halides he already has.

 

[FishOkay]

You’re technically in the public aquarium lighting tier here, so I get the frustration. Metal halides honestly aren’t a bad backup plan.

The Atlas might still stand a chance with your budget and what you’re aiming for. It does have good spread and decent punch for the price, but it’s still unclear how it would perform at your mounting height.


Another option you could look at is the ReeFi Uno 2 Pro - that’s what I use on my own systems. It’s a 265W fixture in a compact form (about 15x20 cm), and it does have an optional narrower 60 degree reflector, though I’m not sure you will need that for your goal.

If you’re trying to get actual usable PAR from that kind of height, you’d probably need to pack a bunch of them together in a grid - something like WWC’s lagoon tank (which isn’t as high, but not too far from it). That setup could potentially work with the 60° reflectors, but realistically, it would be a full replacement of your current lighting and the cost would reflect that accordingly.

On the other hand, if your goal is just to add spectrum and some shimmer, then maybe 5 units (~$2.5k) could be enough - still above your budget, but maybe more manageable.
However, you’re definitely in experimental territory here - there’s no public data for this kind of use, so it’ll take some trial and error.

Might be worth messaging Daniel Lu (owner of ReeFi). He’s been solid and realistic in my experience, and could probably help you figure out what makes sense based on your setup.

May I ask what’s the main issue with the Amazonas and Kessils right now? Not enough spread?

Thats it, that's what drew me to the orphek amazonas 500w. Its the only company i have found that are actually willing to sell their commercial fixtures!
The metal halides im kind of leaning towards but currently emailing back and forth with quanta regarding the atlas but the time difference make it a bit slow.

I will take a look at those lights aswell I haven't heard of those. But yeah price wise I didn't want to spend a fortune, eventually I will probably replace the whole lighting set up. The blades are a great light but they need to be mounted to close to the water. I will keep the metal halides though out of all the lights they are the ones that im most satisfied with!

Yeah pretty much not enough spread!

 

[DanyL]

So, I actually dug a bit more down that rabbit hole to see if there were any comparable PAR measurements we could use, and I found that Maxspect actually published detailed ones for their commercial lights.

In fact, I was also surprised to see the spectrum they produce is perfect for reefs, rather than just FOWLR like most do.
Pricing is obviously unavailable, but I would assume the F600W would cost around 1,500-2,000$ based on the orpheks.

Given that the company is also hobby-tier and are from Hong Kong, they may have official representation in the UK, so maybe you have better chances to get your hands on them? Worth a try.

If you look into their PAR readings, the F600W with 90 degree lenses should be able to produce around 255 micro moles at 2m, and around 85 at 3m. Meaning you will likely be able to get around 100 PAR at the bottom of your tank at 2.8m from a single light source and a coverage of around 1.5x1.5 meters, which is as close as you will probably get.

5 of them with 30 degrees would likely replace your whole setup and produce enough PAR for acros.

But even if you aren’t able to put your hands on these, you are able to use their data to approximate the penetration of other lights, based on beam angle and power density - in that case, the ReeFi I suggested earlier would be slightly above their F200W model and with the 60 degree lenses should be able to provide approx 70 to 150 micro moles at 2.0-2.8 meters deep - which is fine for what your looking for right now.
Spread is unknown - but it is possible to calculate and simulate it (ask Daniel Lu - he had used simulation to ensure proper spread with his 90v2 reeflectors, it’s an expensive commercial software from my understanding, so it isn’t easily obtainable).

As for the Atlas - I’m not sure if they are using any secondary lenses for their spread, in my opinion they are likely basing it solely on the stock LED optics given the amounts of diods they have, so it will be more difficult to compare here, but this is something I believe Luca should be able to answer.

Hope you will find something that works well for you without breaking the bank, though it is quite extreme what you’re trying to achieve here.

Keep us updated, I’m really interested to see the progress and end results regardless of what you end up going with.