deedubz
nuttier than a squirrel turd
That might be difficult to answer. My first fixture was an Odysea that I'd purchased off ebay. Admittedly, I was brand new to the hobby and couldn't justify paying for a Hamilton or a Giesemann. Just like anything else, you're paying for a logo, right? Wrong(more on this shortly). It came with Odysea brand 14k bulbs I think. They were god awful yellow, though the actinic t5s weren't too terrible. Definitely not ATI though. I researched mh/t5 bulb combos and ultimately went with phoenix 14ks supplemented with ATI actinics. Despite the primitive reflectors, and given my comparison was to the horrible bulbs that came with it, it actually looked really good. Problem is, I came home from work on day and swore I smelled something burning. After walking around the house I narrowed down the smell. Sure enough, my ebay fixture was starting to smoke. Ultimately, my decision to skimp out on my lighting ended up costing me more than my current Hamilton fixture, which I absolutely love. It also cost me hundreds on the cheap death trap I had suspended above my aquarium, as well as 2 halide bulbs, 4 t5 bulbs, and 2 "upgraded" cheap ballasts.
Soooo... As I said, thats a bit complicated lol. I ended up using the Hamilton 14ks and t5s that came with the fixture. I do really like them but wish I had just a touch of blue. I figured I'd try their 20k with blue+ bulbs this go. I figured I'd try a few combos and see what looks the best to me. I was afraid it might be too blue but I wont know til I try! I can always mess around with the t5s until I'm 100% happy. Sorry about the short novel of an answer lol!
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