Reefi 2.1 vs Radion vs Meridian 35

[saabmike]

Sorry for the repost I couldn't figure out how to edit my last poll. I'm going to do a waterbox 65.4 AIO.47.2"×19.7"×17.7" I've been doing research and trying to see what the best lighting options are. Right now I'm going back and forth between 2- ReeFi Uno 2.1's or 2 Radion xr15s. *my dilemma = Reefi lights sound amazing but don't have many reviews or people talking about them, the Par levels and the quality of lights look unbeatable..... but the radions are tried and true everyone and there mother has them and they are 20% off now at BRS, some one brought up the meridian 35 and they look awesome as well. wanted to go with the 2 light option but the Meridian might make me reconsider... opinions to sway me are greatly appreciate!

 

[RobupstateNY]

Love My Meridian 45 on my 170

 

[Jasonak]

I have had and used all 3.

If you want a amazing budget light Reefi Uno. One of mine has has about 6 months use and the fan is making noise. So not the quality of some of the lights out there but for the price hard to beat. Par off the charts with these lights.

Radions great light spectrum, solid all around light. I used them for decade plus. Also hold there value really well and quality build.

Reefbreeder Merdians, very nice light, well built killer spectrum. Its what I'm running on my tank now and will probably eventually swap all my photons out for them. Im running about 50/50 photons and merdians right now. Over a 3x6 footprint.

It breaks down to what your growing also, if its just softies or LPS 100 percent go with the Reefi, if your a stick head or plan on being one in the very near future id go with the Merdians. They Reefi will also do well for SPS, they just dont have as good a spectrum as the merdians. Radions I would skip no matter what, they were the industry standard for years when it came to LED but the PAR is jut not there on them.

 

[saabmike]

Thanks for the comments guys!! it looks like the Radions are out. So now its between the 2 reefi unos or the meridan 35.

 

[saabmike]

Any one else have any experience with the ReeFi unos's or the meridian 35?

 

[RaspberryReefer]

I’m new to reef keeping and don’t have a lot of experience growing coral YET, but I have 4 Uno 2.1’s over my IM 200 EXT. I have a few test corals in the tank as I’m still trying to age and stabilize my system. They seem to be happy and growing. Decent color pop. The lights are very bright! I’m only running most channels below 20% and I haven’t taken PAR readings yet to know the full capability. I have not experienced any fan noise as another member mentioned, though I’m not running them hard enough for the fans to turn on. No connectivity issues, schedule is rock solid, so I can count on them. Only other lights I have experience with are AI blades. I have two grows and one glow over my nano. I really like the color and effects they give. I’m still trying to find the right balance on the Reefis to mimic the color of the blades. Another point, when I bought my uno 2.1 pros, they were $490 each. Now I see they are $575… Price was a bigger motivator for me as I was just jumping into a 250 gallon system from scratch… as you all know, not cheap! Excuse the crude light mount, that is my next project. Hope this helps a little.

 

[exnisstech]

Adam from @Battlecorals swapped out his photons for meridians IIRC. That's a pretty good endorsement.
I have a median 11 over a IM20 and am happy but the tank has only been up a few months but so far so good. I'm able to get 400 - par on the clams on the rocks and around 300 on the derasas on the sand. I have two photon 32s over my SPS tank. When or if the photons need to be replaced I'll be adding meridians.

 

[saabmike]

Thanks for the votes guys! Anyone else? I’m hearing good things about the meridian. I did shoot an email to the owner of ReeFi and he was incredibly responsive and nice! The meridian would be slightly more almost 200 with the mounts and everything more then the Uno 2.1’s. Anyone else use these lights? And criticism?

 

[saabmike]

I’m new to reef keeping and don’t have a lot of experience growing coral YET, but I have 4 Uno 2.1’s over my IM 200 EXT. I have a few test corals in the tank as I’m still trying to age and stabilize my system. They seem to be happy and growing. Decent color pop. The lights are very bright! I’m only running most channels below 20% and I haven’t taken PAR readings yet to know the full capability. I have not experienced any fan noise as another member mentioned, though I’m not running them hard enough for the fans to turn on. No connectivity issues, schedule is rock solid, so I can count on them. Only other lights I have experience with are AI blades. I have two grows and one glow over my nano. I really like the color and effects they give. I’m still trying to find the right balance on the Reefis to mimic the color of the blades. Another point, when I bought my uno 2.1 pros, they were $490 each. Now I see they are $575… Price was a bigger motivator for me as I was just jumping into a 250 gallon system from scratch… as you all know, not cheap! Excuse the crude light mount, that is my next project. Hope this helps a little.

Thank you so much for your take!! I think attach moment leaning towards the unos’2.1s

 

[Bitflip]

I have had and used all 3.

If you want a amazing budget light Reefi Uno. One of mine has has about 6 months use and the fan is making noise. So not the quality of some of the lights out there but for the price hard to beat. Par off the charts with these lights.

Radions great light spectrum, solid all around light. I used them for decade plus. Also hold there value really well and quality build.

Reefbreeder Merdians, very nice light, well built killer spectrum. Its what I'm running on my tank now and will probably eventually swap all my photons out for them. Im running about 50/50 photons and merdians right now. Over a 3x6 footprint.

It breaks down to what your growing also, if its just softies or LPS 100 percent go with the Reefi, if your a stick head or plan on being one in the very near future id go with the Merdians. They Reefi will also do well for SPS, they just dont have as good a spectrum as the merdians. Radions I would skip no matter what, they were the industry standard for years when it came to LED but the PAR is jut not there on them.

@Jasonak how do the reefi reflector compare to the meridian in term or light spill? I think the reefi comes with 90 and 120, and the meridian I think has like 120 by default and you can buy more focus lenses.

 

[MegabiteOG]

No experience with the Reefi, but I’m impressed with the Meridians. I was running two 24’s on a 4’ tank and moved them over to my 6’ adding an 11”. Fantastic spectrum, nice shimmer, zero light blasting you from the sides (no shade needed) and pretty sure they have the power to grow SPS at the bottom. Very powerful and completely silent. The build quality is great as well. Lights are a tough decision to make as they are expensive. This is one of the areas you want to get the right one for your needs the first time around. Good luck on your choice. You probably won’t go wrong with any of these. Here’s a picture of mine on a WB 230.6.

 

[Jasonak]

@Jasonak how do the reefi reflector compare to the meridian in term or light spill? I think the reefi comes with 90 and 120, and the meridian I think has like 120 by default and you can buy more focus lenses.

The reefi has both your correct. But I couldn't give an honest answer on which one has better focus or light spill. Thats something I never compared or looked at.

 

[Jasonak]

I’m new to reef keeping and don’t have a lot of experience growing coral YET, but I have 4 Uno 2.1’s over my IM 200 EXT. I have a few test corals in the tank as I’m still trying to age and stabilize my system. They seem to be happy and growing. Decent color pop. The lights are very bright! I’m only running most channels below 20% and I haven’t taken PAR readings yet to know the full capability. I have not experienced any fan noise as another member mentioned, though I’m not running them hard enough for the fans to turn on. No connectivity issues, schedule is rock solid, so I can count on them. Only other lights I have experience with are AI blades. I have two grows and one glow over my nano. I really like the color and effects they give. I’m still trying to find the right balance on the Reefis to mimic the color of the blades. Another point, when I bought my uno 2.1 pros, they were $490 each. Now I see they are $575… Price was a bigger motivator for me as I was just jumping into a 250 gallon system from scratch… as you all know, not cheap! Excuse the crude light mount, that is my next project. Hope this helps a little.

Wow didnt realise the Unos were 575.00 yikes. I better sell mine lol

 

[minus9]

Adam from @Battlecorals swapped out his photons for meridians IIRC. That's a pretty good endorsement.
I have a median 11 over a IM20 and am happy but the tank has only been up a few months but so far so good. I'm able to get 400 - par on the clams on the rocks and around 300 on the derasas on the sand. I have two photon 32s over my SPS tank. When or if the photons need to be replaced I'll be adding meridians.

Remember, vendors get a huge discount on these lights, so that's a deciding factor as well. They're pretty good lights, but they're also not cheap either. 4' tank, I would use a Quanta Helix bar combo and use the money saved to buy some coral.

 

[NewGuy8899]

Remember, vendors get a huge discount on these lights, so that's a deciding factor as well. They're pretty good lights, but they're also not cheap either. 4' tank, I would use a Quanta Helix bar combo and use the money saved to buy some coral.

I’m seeing some stuff on “sponsorships” for these lights. I was set on getting them but after I found out that the “sponsorship” ended for a micro influencer and they removed the lights it made me hesitant. Is a lot of hype that we’re seeing cause these vendors are getting paid to promote these or are they moving everything over because they truly believe these are better lights than what’s out in the market?

 

[MegabiteOG]

Sponsors selling lights is one thing, but I don’t think that a
coral grower and seller like BC would put crappy lights over their coral they are selling because of a discount. At the very least, I know they have worked well over my tank. Happy light hunting.

 

[saabmike]

No experience with the Reefi, but I’m impressed with the Meridians. I was running two 24’s on a 4’ tank and moved them over to my 6’ adding an 11”. Fantastic spectrum, nice shimmer, zero light blasting you from the sides (no shade needed) and pretty sure they have the power to grow SPS at the bottom. Very powerful and completely silent. The build quality is great as well. Lights are a tough decision to make as they are expensive. This is one of the areas you want to get the right one for your needs the first time around. Good luck on your choice. You probably won’t go wrong with any of these. Here’s a picture of mine on a WB 230.6.

Which meridian LEDs did you go with the 14k or the OG?

 

[MegabiteOG]

OG for the mains and 14k for the edge bars. I like running the tank pretty white during the day (I’m an old school 14k MH guy) moving towards the blues at night. Plenty of white light for my taste with the OG’s. I haven’t seen the new 14k’s over a tank to comment on them. I wonder if the added whites would add more crispness to the look.

 

[saabmike]

OG for the mains and 14k for the edge bars. I like running the tank pretty white during the day (I’m an old school 14k MH guy) moving towards the blues at night. Plenty of white light for my taste with the OG’s. I haven’t seen the new 14k’s over a tank to comment on them. I wonder if the added whites would add more crispness to the look.

That’s what I was thinking! Everyone seems to be running side bars with the meridians but I really don’t want to spend the extra and it’s only on a 19 inch wide tank. I haven’t seen anyone with the 14k’s

 

[MegabiteOG]

That’s what I was thinking! Everyone seems to be running side bars with the meridians but I really don’t want to spend the extra and it’s only on a 19 inch wide tank. I haven’t seen anyone with the 14k’s

You wouldn’t need to at all. I’m at 24” wide and would have been fine without them, but wanted cover a little more area towards the front of the tank.