Quality vs. Quantity: Reef Lighting

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

Hello all!
As I continue to plan my first saltwater tank, I have a quick personal preference question for you all in terms of lighting. My current plan for the tank is a Waterbox 125.4 Frag (78g). As a beginner, I would start off with softies and lps with plans of moving up to sps corals when I gain enough experience. My current dilemma is between quality (two Radion xr15s) vs quantity (two AI Blades, or four AI Primes or Hydras). All seem to be great lights but Radions seem to be stronger whereas AIs seem strong but I would need more of them. What do you guys think? Is it better to buy a couple of really powerful lights like Radions or buy at least 4 of some good, but not as powerful lights? Thanks!

- Patrick

 

[Jeremy_d]

Lighting is always a “what you’re willing to pay for” subject as people have success with $50 china black boxes and people have success with $1000+ setups. Whichever one fits the look you are going for if the lights will be exposed or under a hood. You’ll be able to grow coral with both.

 

[Vinaka_vakalevu]

there are tons of options that will work. if you are worried about cost something like 3 noopsyche k7 minis would work or 2 k7 3 pros. because the tank is wide and shallow over all spread is more important that straight power.

 

[Seancj]

Look into the Noopscyhe K7 V3. It's a nice attractive fixture, puts out a great spectrum and intensity that will grow any coral, and you can buy 4 of them for the price of a single Radion xr15. I have one over my 30 gallon shallow SPS reef for a year now and really like it. No problems with it at all.

NOOPSYCHE K7 V3 aquarium led saltwater coral light for USA

Better spectrum out / Excellent Growth / Feed Almost all the of the SPS/LPS coral in one reef tank isn't a dream especially red coral Perfect mixing and Shimmer / Superior Color Mixing / The best mixing spectrum technology / Affordable price LED reef lighting/ about 1.4watt per dollar

noopsychereeflight.com

 

[mh0ward]

If it were my tank, I would probably use 4 of the AI primes out of your options. By having 4, you can spread the light out more and eliminate some of the shadows that would be present with just 2 lights. It would also give you a little more flexibility with creating different light intensity zones. My tank is only a 20 long so my decision really came down to 2 smaller lights vs one larger one... one of the bigger factors for me was the idea that if one failed, I would still have plenty of light to keep the tank going while waiting for a replacement. Also, I really like the small 'puck' form factor, and they're currently on sale.

 

[Gumbies R Us]

I've always been a fan of AI lights. In contrast, I don't personally have one. From what I have seen, they are very good

 

[exnisstech]

I have both lights currently on tanks.
The noopsyche k7 III pro smoke the xr15 in par output and come with a mounting arm. Great bang for your buck light.
Not as cheap but a reefbreeder photon 48 would light that tank nicely I think, They come with mounting legs. The photon is a panel vs puck so there is much less light spill than puck style lights if that is a concern.

 

[oreo54]

Dimensions (LxWxH): 1223 x 643 x 410mm (48.2" x 25.3" x 16.1")
• Display Volume: 295 L / 78 gal
• Total Volume: 473 L / 125 gals

On the quantity side consider the 48" Reefbreeders..

Photon 48-V2 Pro

Control your aquarium lighting like a pro with the Photon 48-V2 Pro and Reef Nexus app. Optimize with presets or custom programs.

reefbreeders.com

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

If it were my tank, I would probably use 4 of the AI primes out of your options. By having 4, you can spread the light out more and eliminate some of the shadows that would be present with just 2 lights. It would also give you a little more flexibility with creating different light intensity zones. My tank is only a 20 long so my decision really came down to 2 smaller lights vs one larger one... one of the bigger factors for me was the idea that if one failed, I would still have plenty of light to keep the tank going while waiting for a replacement. Also, I really like the small 'puck' form factor, and they're currently on sale.

Is there a way to mount four Primes without buying four separate arms? The AI Hydras seem to have a lot more options for mounting than the Prime.

 

[mh0ward]

Yea I agree that the mounting options are lacking, I ended up welding together my own mount with steel tubing for a sleeker look than the goosenecks. They do have some ceiling mounts that could probably be mounted to something other than the ceiling, like for instance a wall mounted articulating arm or something. I just bought one of the Primes on sale for a little frag tank I've set up, and for now, I've 3D printed a mount that sits on the edge of the glass, but I may end up putting a wall mounted bookshelf over it and hang the prime from the underside of the bookshelf with one of the ceiling mounts.

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

Good ideas, thank you!

 

[Aaron75]

You're around the $1000 price mark regardless of 2 radions vs 4 primes. I'd look into 2 Reefi Uno 2.0 Pro. Otherwise, as others recommended, the Noopsyche k7 v3 would work nicely, though they've seemingly had some shipping issues recently.

 

[Vinaka_vakalevu]

Is there a way to mount four Primes without buying four separate arms? The AI Hydras seem to have a lot more options for mounting than the Prime.

Noopsyche mini comes with arm and is a better light in my opinion than the prime. The AI user interface is “easier” but set the noopsyche up in ap mode and it’s beyond simple. $251 for 3 noopsyches with arms included. And I can promise you they grow whatever you want them to grow. Sure shipping can take a little while but again $251 vs 1k for lights leaves you some room for other important pieces of equipment. Skimmer, gyres, return pumps etc

 

[rtparty]

Used Radions with little use can be had for close to half on the used market these days.

I loved my Radions and I loved the Blades I ran before that.

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

Every option seems pretty interesting but especially the Noopsyche’s decent price. I wonder why you don’t hear about them more often. I’d imagine 3 would probably cover the 78 gallons.?

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

I saw a Radion XR15 today at a lfs and the light quality is pretty impressive too…

 

[billyocean]

Lighting is always a “what you’re willing to pay for” subject as people have success with $50 china black boxes and people have success with $1000+ setups. Whichever one fits the look you are going for if the lights will be exposed or under a hood. You’ll be able to grow coral with both.

Sums it up right there. Most any reef led light will grow any coral including acros these days. More coverage appeals to me than just power. All the lights mentioned have the power.

 

[PharmrJohn]

Just be aware there have been some recent complaints concerning Noopsyche. Customer Service issues. I was reading a thread either yesterday or the day before on the issue. That being said, I've never dealt with them, just passing on what I've read recently.from another member.

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

Sums it up right there. Most any reef led light will grow any coral including acros these days. More coverage appeals to me than just power. All the lights mentioned have the power.

Thank you! That makes sense. So then what lights have the most coverage generally?

 

[Stinson Beach Aquatics]

Just be aware there have been some recent complaints concerning Noopsyche. Customer Service issues. I was reading a thread either yesterday or the day before on the issue. That being said, I've never dealt with them, just passing on what I've read recently.from another member.

Good to know