Suggestions for lighting a 60”X30”X30” 100%-SPS

[rickyb]

Current setup is 2- LedZeal S400 with 2- 60" T5. These lights performed very well on my previous 400G tank but had many shadows probably due to the massive SPS colonies and no T5’s at that time.

I'll be replacing these lights but I'm having a difficult time deciding and finding valuable data for my options, also looking for a lot more POP on coral coloration

The tank is 60X30X30, housed by a canopy 20" high, my current lights are about 18" above the water line, but I can place the lights at any height, this will not be an issue.

Requirements:
HIGH PAR
Keep SPS corals at the bottom of the tank 30" down
Coral Coloration
I prefer a 14K – 18K look

So far, I narrowed down to Kessil A500x, Red Sea ReefLed 160s, or Radion XR30 G5 Blue
Anyone with experience with these lights with similar size tanks?
How many of each would I need?

 

[GarrettT]

54''x33x25'' 2x 400w MH's and 2x OR3 leds

 

[Ultra Aquatics]

My tanks a little bigger at 72x36x28 but for reference I am running 4 x Radion XR30 g5 pros. I can grow sps on the sandbed.

 

[Kodski]

In my opinion with the lights mentioned you'll still need filler light like LED bars or T5's. For SPS you'll want some kind of panel style light. Sky, Coral Care, Straton, or Orphek. I'd personally go with Orphek's or the Straton. Orphek's would probably be the best for that size of tank just due to the sizing of the light. Three should be ok, but you could always run 4 if you find the need.

 

[oreo54]

These are sort of industrial leds but you may want to at least take a peak at them mostly because they are for unique situations.
Lots of room above the tank.

Amazonas 960 iCon Aquarium LED Lighting • Orphek

Orphek Amazonas 960 iCon reef Aquarium LED Lighting, 10,000% dimming control system - never offered in the market before!

orphek.com

They are not panels but with enough height they are effectively the same.
@4ft off the water surface and 30 degree lenses you should only need 2.
Guesstimate 0f PAR would be like 700 (surface) to 400 on the sand/bottom. Orphek would have better numbers available.. or should though it seems like they don't want to give them. Lux measurements (subset of PAR) can give a general idea. Gets tricky with a lot of blue though.

Single Point Light Source for Acropora sp.?

My apologies if youve seen this post elsewhere, i am trying to gather as much real world experience based opinions as possible. Attached is a cut section of a new build that i've dreamed about for ages. The objective in aesthetic is to recess a powerful light in the ceiling, to eliminate...

www.reef2reef.com

Anyways "industrial" lights have their pluses and minuses of course.

 

[Reef - Tripp]

ATI t5 8 bulbs.

 

[Hurricane Aquatics]

Ok, so that's a half cylinder tank right?

Here's the pros and cons.

I have a Kessil A500X over a cube right now and they are far superior to the other Kessil models and very powerful. There is this belief that the Kessil has shadows because it is coming from a cannon style small lens. The actual ocean reef has shadows and you would see that if you ever dive on a reef. So personally, I don't think that affects SPS like some think. The A500X comes with a 55 degree reflector and you can buy a 35. This allows the Kessil to be mounted VERY high and still have enough to grow SPS. I personally would run 3 on a tank your size, possibly 4 if you wanted to mount it higher with the reflectors as it becomes more narrow.

The Kessil has the most amazing look of any light out there. Once you see the Kessil, you either love it or hate it. If you love it, no other light will ever suffice.

I also own the Radion XR30 G5 Pro and the G5 Blue. These are excellent lights as well and provide great coverage and super strong PAR. You could mount these high and still have enough to grow SPS on the bottom. The Radions have always been a great option. Some don't like them because the fans are a little loud and the build quality has not always been the greatest. I received my first one and it looked like it had been through the war. It was replaced. I would run 3 vertically on that tank, front to back mounting.

Red Sea 160 - They have no extra lenses, so like a stock Kessil A500X, they have a wide light spread. It wouldn't be my choice for a 30 inch deep tank.

ATI Straton - I own this light as well. It is probably the best light on the market by a wide margin. Build quality is like an Apple product and it has more UV Led's than any other fixture on the market which is very important. Especially to the pop you are wanting. The only downside is that they are very hard to find currently and they are $1100 a piece. However on a tank your size, you could probably mount 2 of these and be just fine. 3 would be maximum coverage and you won't suffer from PAR. They come with a built in diffuser and can be mounted low or high. On a 30 inch tank, I think the standard mounting height of around 10 inches would be more than fine.

The ATI Straton has 0 fans as well. It is silent as it is one piece of aluminum and it is the heatsink. They run super cool and mine has never come close to running over 34 degrees C and I had it at 75% mounted 17 inches above my cube. The only downside (for me) to the Straton is that it is VERY T5 in look. Remember, I am a Kessil shimmer type guy . As far as light coverage, ability to tune spectrum, overall build, etc. I would choose the ATI Straton.

I currently am running the Kessil A500X and I love it. On my small cube, I am only running 40% intensity, with the 55 degree reflector and mounted 15 inches over the water. At 10 inches under the water, I am still getting 220 PAR. As you can imagine, bump that to 100% and you are going to get all the PAR you want.

Have any questions that I failed to list, be glad to answer.

 

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