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"There is no crying in reefing"!!!!!!:sad:
Care to talk me out of this?
- Thread starter dakota9
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I started this thread to be talked out of a impulse purchase, I think it's made more people want it....
Before I think anymore about buying it, I should really see one at work...
George, it sounds like they must be ordered in 10K, 15K or 20K, but then some sites suggest they are fully adjustable in Kelvin rating. How does it work exactly? What Kelvin rating does your light operate at?
Thanks all.
Rawn, have you gotten the good cry out of your system yet?
Before I think anymore about buying it, I should really see one at work...
George, it sounds like they must be ordered in 10K, 15K or 20K, but then some sites suggest they are fully adjustable in Kelvin rating. How does it work exactly? What Kelvin rating does your light operate at?
Thanks all.
Rawn, have you gotten the good cry out of your system yet?
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Check Marine Fish they did have some sizes in stock. I believe their price is the same or at least they should be able to match it.
I seem to remember someone saying thier was a dimming issue 10% 20% on LEDs but it might have been resolved by now.
I seem to remember someone saying thier was a dimming issue 10% 20% on LEDs but it might have been resolved by now.
I'm thinking of what I have laying around the house I can sell.....
1 Firebird Convertable
3 carat men's ring
Hmmmm I've been meaning to auction off all my old bar lights and signs on ebay, maybe that will be the route to go. That could actually kill two birds with one stone, I get extra cash, and it clears the clutter out, which makes ity look like I've done something around here..
Gears turning in head, figuring ways to get this light.....
1 Firebird Convertable
3 carat men's ring
Hmmmm I've been meaning to auction off all my old bar lights and signs on ebay, maybe that will be the route to go. That could actually kill two birds with one stone, I get extra cash, and it clears the clutter out, which makes ity look like I've done something around here..
Gears turning in head, figuring ways to get this light.....
You (or anyone, for that matter) are welcome to come by and check it out. I'm in Smyrna. Just PM me and we'll work out a date/time.
There are two series. G (which is the "250 Watt MH equivalent" -- and subject to much malign on Reef Central let by one jerk who understands neither LED's nor the physics of light and heat) and the H series (the "400 watt MH equivalent"). Within each of those series, there is a 13K version and a 20K version. The spectrum refers to the setting where both blue and white lamps are at equal intensity settings.
The spectrum of the lamp can be varied, but at a loss of intensity. For instance, the 20K fixture can be put at 15K or 10K by dialing back the blue bulb intensity, such as setting white at 100% and blue at 50%. Similarly, the 13K can be dialed to 20K by lowering white lamp intensity.
Does Marine Fish do price matching? I didn't think they did.
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Ive got mine set up if you ever want to see it as well.
The 20k adjusts from about 6500k to 2200k the 15k adjusts from 6500k to1500k. Last I talked with them they were going to discontinue the lower kelvin lamps. You get more par out of the 20k.
For the record yes I price match or beat it if I can.
Tony got to come over and play with mine when I got it shipped in back in february. Overall Im very pleased with the fixture and it is soooo much cooler than my halides (pun intended).
The 20k adjusts from about 6500k to 2200k the 15k adjusts from 6500k to1500k. Last I talked with them they were going to discontinue the lower kelvin lamps. You get more par out of the 20k.
For the record yes I price match or beat it if I can.
Tony got to come over and play with mine when I got it shipped in back in february. Overall Im very pleased with the fixture and it is soooo much cooler than my halides (pun intended).
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I say run, don't walk from this lighting fixture... (Someone has to be the voice of reason!)
For me it is like any piece of new technology, be it the Iphone or something else 1st gen. If you wait about a year, there will be a compeditor in the market. I know Coralife has been reported to be developing a light. This will 1) bring down the price and 2) give time for the Solaris to move into 2nd gen and improve on the first model. My opinion is a T-5 set up will remove most heat problwems from alot of tanks, they do not need new bulbs as often as a halide, they are a bit more energy efficiant then a halide. For me that would be a good middle ground before chalking up $2500 on a lighting system. Then again, I am cheap, and I much rather save that money for better sll around devices for my tank and when I can not upgrade my tank any more, then think about this "toy".
George, what reeading did you get with the PAR meter and your LED lights. I suspect that I am right and having a LED system that is 12" too small for the tank makes the PAR drop off at the 6" edges of the tank a HUGE difference! Something also to think about.
I know I am such a buzz kill!
For me it is like any piece of new technology, be it the Iphone or something else 1st gen. If you wait about a year, there will be a compeditor in the market. I know Coralife has been reported to be developing a light. This will 1) bring down the price and 2) give time for the Solaris to move into 2nd gen and improve on the first model. My opinion is a T-5 set up will remove most heat problwems from alot of tanks, they do not need new bulbs as often as a halide, they are a bit more energy efficiant then a halide. For me that would be a good middle ground before chalking up $2500 on a lighting system. Then again, I am cheap, and I much rather save that money for better sll around devices for my tank and when I can not upgrade my tank any more, then think about this "toy".
George, what reeading did you get with the PAR meter and your LED lights. I suspect that I am right and having a LED system that is 12" too small for the tank makes the PAR drop off at the 6" edges of the tank a HUGE difference! Something also to think about.
I know I am such a buzz kill!
I don't remember the reading I got. Mine isn't running at 100% intensity right now anyway. I can say the corals and clams love it.
The spread point is correct. There is a significant drop off in intensity past the area of the fixture. If anyone is considering one of these, you have to get one correctly sized for your tank. Right now I have a 24" fixture over a 36" tank, but that's because I bought the fixture for my 24" cube, not the temporary tank my setup is running.
Of course, the fringes are prime softy territory, so no harm there.
Xyzpdq0121;76937 wrote: I say run, don't walk from this lighting fixture... (Someone has to be the voice of reason!)
For me it is like any piece of new technology, be it the Iphone or something else 1st gen. If you wait about a year, there will be a compeditor in the market. I know Coralife has been reported to be developing a light. This will 1) bring down the price and 2) give time for the Solaris to move into 2nd gen and improve on the first model. My opinion is a T-5 set up will remove most heat problwems from alot of tanks, they do not need new bulbs as often as a halide, they are a bit more energy efficiant then a halide. For me that would be a good middle ground before chalking up $2500 on a lighting system. Then again, I am cheap, and I much rather save that money for better sll around devices for my tank and when I can not upgrade my tank any more, then think about this "toy".
George, what reeading did you get with the PAR meter and your LED lights. I suspect that I am right and having a LED system that is 12" too small for the tank makes the PAR drop off at the 6" edges of the tank a HUGE difference! Something also to think about.
I know I am such a buzz kill!
Party Pooper! But yeah, I hear you. Remember when DVD players cost a month's salary and digital cameras were at least $100 per megapixel? Heck, I can even remember when a scanner was $500 and a color monitor was a luxury... (okay, now I'm telling my age)
Xyzpdq0121;76937 wrote: I say run, don't walk from this lighting fixture... (Someone has to be the voice of reason!)
For me it is like any piece of new technology, be it the Iphone or something else 1st gen. If you wait about a year, there will be a compeditor in the market. I know Coralife has been reported to be developing a light. This will 1) bring down the price and 2) give time for the Solaris to move into 2nd gen and improve on the first model. My opinion is a T-5 set up will remove most heat problwems from alot of tanks, they do not need new bulbs as often as a halide, they are a bit more energy efficiant then a halide. For me that would be a good middle ground before chalking up $2500 on a lighting system. Then again, I am cheap, and I much rather save that money for better sll around devices for my tank and when I can not upgrade my tank any more, then think about this "toy".
George, what reeading did you get with the PAR meter and your LED lights. I suspect that I am right and having a LED system that is 12" too small for the tank makes the PAR drop off at the 6" edges of the tank a HUGE difference! Something also to think about.
I know I am such a buzz kill!
I agree this is a over priced and over rated system and t5s or MH will give you much more bag for you buck.
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Ok ... I actually have that 36" Solaris H4. You are welcome to come over and check it out.
First: this thing is bloody expensive. If you can wait for the competition to force prices down then do. In fact, you will have to wait a month or so any way as shipments are usually spoken for before they arrive in the US.
Second: this this is unbelievable. It is no doubt the wave of the future. Yes, plug it in and leave it alone. Or you can customize the hell out of it because the computer control is built in.
I have set mine to:
Dawn: 100 minutes from pitch black to 100% light output (100% both blue LED's and white but are separately controllable).
Cloud Cover: 6 times a day at random times for 15 minutes each. Light output is reduced 60%
Dusk: takes 100 minutes from 100% light to zero
Moon rise: takes 30 minutes from full sun set to full moon rise. I have only the blue LED's functioning as the moon and those at 2%. This makes everything fluores brightly but does not through much visible light. Extremely cool effect.
Moon set: takes 30 minutes to set. Then the Dawn starts.
Shortest day length is set to 10 hours and syncs to northern hemisphere shortest day
Longest day length is set to 14 hours and syncs to northern hemisphere longest day
Time shift, I shift the schedule by 1.5 hours so that it matches with my sleep/wake cycle. Yes, this is a function built right in!
And get this ... highest temp in the light housing so far is 92 degrees! You can put your hand right under the LED's and feel no heat at all. The fan spin rate goes up and down as needed. It even switches which of the 2 fan banks spin down to keep even ware.
And ... this thing is silent. You can barely hear it while standing right next to it. And with my skimmer on you can't hear it at all!
I LOVE this thing! Of course after spending $2100 I would wouldn't I.
First: this thing is bloody expensive. If you can wait for the competition to force prices down then do. In fact, you will have to wait a month or so any way as shipments are usually spoken for before they arrive in the US.
Second: this this is unbelievable. It is no doubt the wave of the future. Yes, plug it in and leave it alone. Or you can customize the hell out of it because the computer control is built in.
I have set mine to:
Dawn: 100 minutes from pitch black to 100% light output (100% both blue LED's and white but are separately controllable).
Cloud Cover: 6 times a day at random times for 15 minutes each. Light output is reduced 60%
Dusk: takes 100 minutes from 100% light to zero
Moon rise: takes 30 minutes from full sun set to full moon rise. I have only the blue LED's functioning as the moon and those at 2%. This makes everything fluores brightly but does not through much visible light. Extremely cool effect.
Moon set: takes 30 minutes to set. Then the Dawn starts.
Shortest day length is set to 10 hours and syncs to northern hemisphere shortest day
Longest day length is set to 14 hours and syncs to northern hemisphere longest day
Time shift, I shift the schedule by 1.5 hours so that it matches with my sleep/wake cycle. Yes, this is a function built right in!
And get this ... highest temp in the light housing so far is 92 degrees! You can put your hand right under the LED's and feel no heat at all. The fan spin rate goes up and down as needed. It even switches which of the 2 fan banks spin down to keep even ware.
And ... this thing is silent. You can barely hear it while standing right next to it. And with my skimmer on you can't hear it at all!
I LOVE this thing! Of course after spending $2100 I would wouldn't I.
I strongly disagree with this on the MH and I'd say the results are comparable to T5. The common misconception with these fixtures is that since they lack the human-visible intensity, they simply must be inferior. The LED's are a much more precise spectrum than T5 and far more so than MH. While the PAR/PUR may not be up to MH specs, the power wasted to the infrared and UV spectra more than makes up for the difference. The efficiency pays off hugely on power bills, heat, and absence of UV. The last two are the major culprits in coral bleaching.
It's not for everyone and there are certainly more intense fixtures to be had and there are trade offs, but dismissing them as over rated (or over hyped) is subjective at best. Over priced is a matter of time. I guarantee that even if I dump this fixture in 2 years for a new one, I'll have made my money and a bit more on it in savings of not having to chill my tank and not having heat and evaporation fighting my home AC system.
As an added bonus, I get a seasonally accurate sunrise/sunset along with moon light which can't do anything but help a reef aquarium.
I won't say it's definitely the best or that everyone should get one, but it works and it works well.
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Here is fact.........LED will be the lighting of the future period. Tail lights, traffic signals and industrial lighting is already there.
The incandesent will be a distant memory soon look for them in new construction in the not so distant future.
The incandesent will be a distant memory soon look for them in new construction in the not so distant future.
I am not saying that it is not a good lighting system just that it is over priced and with electronic MH ballast and t5s I can see spending that much on lights. I would save your money and by nice live stock. If the prices come down this will be a great lighting system.