Anyone used the Ecoxotic Panorama Pro's lights?

[camellia]

Does anyone have an opinion on these lights?
I'm about to order the Ecoxotic lights for my JBJ 12 in place of original light in the hood.
1 panorama Pro 12k White/445nm Blue
1 panorama Pro 445nm Blue
With the 60w transformers and their inline dimmers, etc.
Has anyone used these on a 12 JBJ or have any input about them?

I also want two of the 6watt 12" Stunner Strips Blue/magenta & White/blue to add to my quad bulb of my 28 JBJ.
I sure would appreciate any feed back on these!
Thank you

 

[bulkrate]

The Good? Ecoxotic stands behind their product and does a great job in the post-sales relationship business. The lights do actually work, are decent as retrofits go and will promote growth and some coloration. Hooking them us is the easiest thing I've ever done on my tank.

The Bad? By the time you buy two PPro strips (or more...the recomendations keep changing and are almost always underestimated when talking to Ecoxotic pre-sales), dimmer, splitters and power supply you're out about what a more polished & full-er featured LED lighting system would cost. I currently have a set of the 12K/445 and 445/Magenta pro modules lighting my 9 gallon nano tank. They do a decent job overall and I do get some "pop" in various colors, but some corals like the mix and some definitely don't.

Stunners can add some color but not much from a PAR standpoint... the 12K PPRO will put out a lot more white than you'd expect and can easily wash out the blues/magenta. If going the PPro route again, I'd get the 8000K white and then flank it with a 445 and then a pair of magenta/453 stunners. Aaaaannd then you're up in the $299-399 territory. An AI sol/nano would be in reach and you'd get a programmable lighting controller in the bargain instead of a twist-knob.

Also for your consideration... full-spectrum setups seem to be the Next Big Thing in LED fixtures (check out LEDTRIC.COM for some low-cost entries or the Coral Natural White stars if going DIY at rapidLED/boostLED - I forget which). Supposedly the addition of a small number of deep-red, cyan, violet and neutral white LEDs yeilds a much better color development in many corals. LOT of info on nano-reef's ligthing forum threads regarding this... and of course, even more opinions are fielded.

 

[camellia]

Thanks for taking your time to break that down for me. It sounds like I need to look at your other options and then some.
I grabbed a used led that sits on top of the glass hood ( I have both hoods and 2 12 tanks) it over heats the tank but will get me by until I do more research.
Thanks for all the information, there is so much to learn its overwhelming. There are so many lighting options and honestly after reading for 3 hours on various types, I'm just starting to understand each one and the pros and cons!
I really appreciate ya!

 

[dustin]

I just added one panorama pro strip to my redsea 130d along with the 2 stock t5's. Im pretty happy with the strip. Gives the tank shimmer and some pop. Seems well made and was easy to install as already commented on. For a 12 gallon tank, I would add one strip and another fixture with maybe t5's like mine as this is a great way to play with color options and much more cost effective. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[bulkrate]

True, you can get some wonderful results by mixing lighting technologies. T5HO for spectrum, LED's for raw PAR and the hypnotic shimmer effect. Of course then you have to deal with the drawbacks of periodic bulb replacement, potential added heat and increase power demand, but in nano tanks it's really a non-issue... $30-50 spent every 6-9 months for a couple of 12" tubes is a far cry from what you'd be looking at on a multi-bulb 36" or 48" fixture required for a larger tank.

I had responded initially along the lines of all-LED options. Personally I prefer them for the footprint alone... I like being able to see the top of my tank without a bulky fixture.

 

[laminatedgorilla]

I'm using two of the 19w ecoxotic panorama pro strips in my aquapod 12. They are both 12k/445nm split. I went with the LED approach because they used less power, were quieter (no fans), ran cooler and fit perfectly in the hood.

My tank has only been up and running for a little over two months, but the corals that I have seem to be reacting favorably to the lighting setup so far.

 

[bulkrate]

Minor correction to my above post... the product's the Ocean Coral White LED star and it's available from ledgroupbuy.com. Nice things is that it CAN be retrofit into an existing DIY setup.

I'm debating getting 2-3 and building a drop-in replacement for the dinky 6K white pendant that shipped with my Ehiem 9 gallon "cube".

 

[camellia]

Thanks, great information! Anyone looked into or used the CREE LEDs with dimmer etc.? It takes longer to install but allows more color and light intensity options. The videos on these looked amazing!!

 

[dustin]

I want to add something here in hopes of helping someone else who might be researching these lights. I had my first issue after weeks of ownership, not long right. The cord came out of the unit. The bad was that it was basically held on with a little solder and silicon, thats it. Also, it wasnt yanked on, it easily pulled right out. So, I had to take the unit apart, clean it up, resolder the joints, and re silicone everything back togther. I added a zip tie wound around the wire so when pulling on the cord its not leveraging just the soldered joint. Very weak design. With a quick modification I doubt this will happen again unless its really yanked. Im pretty good with things like this, but I could see how some would be stuck with a nonfunctioning fixture and be pissed.

So moral of the story is dont pull on the cord and be careful when mounting the strips. Create a little loop in the cord so pressure doesnt pull on the direct connection to the unit itself.

 

[camellia]

Great idea, thanks for he post.

 

[dustin]

Well I need to update this thread in hopes of helping others researching this product. I noticed last night that two of my led's on this strip are now out. If I press on them they will turn back on for a bit. This is happening to so many folks that buy these strips. The argument is that they have good service, but going through the hassle of dealing with them, taking the unit out and dealing with it isnt worth it in my opinion. I will not buy these again buyer beware.

 

[mrflameangel]

I had one, and one of the strips burnt out completely in under a year. I called, shipped and they sent a new one in under a week.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[dustin]

I appreciate that, and Ive read alot about how they replace. But I have an issue with a product that seems to go out after less than 12 months of use, and it wasnt cheap. Ive been in the business of reef keeping for a long time have light fixtures that are 10 years old and work great!

It seems to me that spending a little more in R&D would save them, and me, alot of hassle.

 

[camellia]

I ended up going with the new Tao Tronic 212W blue:white. The price is right and my corals love it. I've been acclimating them to light because I haven't found a dimmer for it .
I will update if a dimmer is available.