Ecotech Radion G6?

[Jon's Reef]

BRS policy is that you can return unopened for full refund. Opened and unused is 10% restocking fee. Clearance, blowout and liquidation are not returnable.

SaltwaterAquarium.com you can return unopened only. Once it is opened, no return.

Note that the G5 are not marked clearance, blowout or liquidation on the BRS site, so if purchased there they can be returned.

So it seems to be standard policy if it is opened, return is a no-go.

I would just keep them... then in the future (2-4 years down the road) you have the option to upgrade them and have "fresh" leds.

 

[Martingale]

yah I would think so... UV or near UV degrades plastic. I doubt that this UV magically does not.

Have the Radions previous near-UV leds burned their lenses? I have only noticed it on the Primes <405nm myself, but these new LEDs seem like they’ll surely do it.

 

[Nonya]

BRS policy is that you can return unopened for full refund. Opened and unused is 10% restocking fee. Clearance, blowout and liquidation are not returnable.

SaltwaterAquarium.com you can return unopened only. Once it is opened, no return.

Note that the G5 are not marked clearance, blowout or liquidation on the BRS site, so if purchased there they can be returned.

So it seems to be standard policy if it is opened, return is a no-go.

I would just keep them... then in the future (2-4 years down the road) you have the option to upgrade them and have "fresh" leds.

The Radion upgrades are supposed to be available soon--for a few hundred bucks.

 

[Jon's Reef]

Shadow reduction is not coverage.

The G6 has increased coverage. It does not have increased shadow reduction. To decrease shadowing the light must originate from a larger area.

 

[Tamberav]

So I’m gonna jump in here and I’d like peoples opinions. I also feel like making a few of you laugh. I recently got caught up in the sale of the radions, although I had 2 hydra 26’s with no issues. The sale hit me, even though I said to my friend, I bet they come out with a new light and he said no. That won’t happen!!! Well, what a surprise. They did come out with a new one. In the interim I found hydra 32’s on sale on this website for only 200 each and only 7mths old. Sold my old ones for the same and it was a win, win for me.
But, now here’s the kicker. I still got caught up in the hype and purchased two xr15 pros gen 5’s along with another deal of snatching two reef brite xho for 140 with the dimmers. Still caught up in the hype, I wanted to go further and get the 6’s, but the company I bought them from said that they don’t take back open box radions and I quote, “just the radions”. First they said it was the ecotech. Then they admitted because the new gen came out, only to see open box radions for sale on there site two days later.
The story gets funny when you think about it, but I should’ve been enraged, I’m not. I just feel like they took advantage cause one they thought I was either stupid, or maybe they figured because I was a woman, I don’t know. The last excuse was that no company is taking them back, which I know for sure is not true.
Anyway, here I am with 2 radion gen 5 pros, which I really like and new hydra 32’s, and 2 Reefbrites with dimmers all for the wonderful price of $950.
Should I complain, probably not, but with this hobby it is so addicting, and I still am finding myself trying to think of a way to upgrade. So, my question is, what is it with us reefers that we just can’t let it go and we have to have whatever it is that just came out. I don’t know, but I really have to stop. I have a new build that I’ve always wanted and that should be enough, but my fellow reefers it’s never enough. It’s never never enough. Haha.
I hope I made you guys laugh and I know that quite a few of you will identify with me. In the meantime, When I figure out how to get the 6’s I’ll let you know. Oh, and my last question? How many of you feel I got taken for on those lights? They were not even two weeks that I bought them.

they use fancy marketing is what is getting you... but spectrum wise it hasn't changed much since 2016 aka G4

 

[Jon's Reef]

Have the Radions previous near-UV leds burned their lenses? I have only noticed it on the Primes <405nm myself, but these new LEDs seem like they’ll surely do it.

There was a study done (I believe by Luxdium) where they found the melting was due to the array temperature and salt spray, not the uv light. Note that Violet and UV leds use much higher power.

 

[Tamberav]

Often, the best deals are one generation older than cutting edge. Gen 5s are on sale as sellers try to get rid of the older stock. Sometimes, even older tech is still a great deal. I just bought a half dozen Radion XR30W Gen 3 Pros (that's right, Gen 3) dirt cheap. My sticks and other corals are extremely happy.

hey now don’t you know… when a new light is released, corals stop growing under the old light. Duh.

 

[oreo54]

There was a study done (I believe by Luxdium) where they found the melting was due to the array temperature and salt spray, not the uv light. Note that Violet and UV leds use much higher power.

There are multiple reasons for browning and/or melting..

LED and Lens Degradation Through Volatile Organic Compounds

In general, LEDs are very resistant light sources. Nevertheless, glues, conformal coatings, o-rings, gaskets, and potting compounds, all materials that are frequently used in the construction of LED based luminaires or lamps and often contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may have a negative...

www.led-professional.com

Chemically induced discoloration is less prevalent and not as noticeable with amber, red or green LEDs since these color LEDs have longer wavelengths, therefore a lower frequency, and produce lower photonic energy compared to blue LEDs. Photonic energy (E) is defined by the Planck- Einstein equation of E = hf, where h is Planck’s constant and f is frequency, thus a higher frequency produces a higher photonic energy.

Of course violets and UV have even higher photon energies.

 

[Jon's Reef]

There are multiple reasons for browning and/or melting..

LED and Lens Degradation Through Volatile Organic Compounds

In general, LEDs are very resistant light sources. Nevertheless, glues, conformal coatings, o-rings, gaskets, and potting compounds, all materials that are frequently used in the construction of LED based luminaires or lamps and often contain volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may have a negative...

www.led-professional.com

Of course violets and UV have even higher photon energies.

Luxdium did the study because they are making a replacement led array. One aspect was to fix the thermals of the board. They found by keeping the diode temp lower the discoloration no longer occurs. So it is prove. That it was not the near UV, rather it was the salt spray and temperature leading to decomposition of the plastic. Results are shown on their instagram page.

 

[oreo54]

Luxdium did the study because they are making a replacement led array. One aspect was to fix the thermals of the board. They found by keeping the diode temp lower the discoloration no longer occurs. So it is prove. That it was not the near UV, rather it was the salt spray and temperature leading to decomposition of the plastic. Results are shown on their instagram page.

I wasn't denying what they found, just stating there are other ways to brown a diode/lens.
Some inter-related.

Failure Mechanisms and Color Stability in Light-Emitting Diodes during Operation in High- Temperature Environments in Presence of Contamination (Conference) | OSTI.GOV

The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Scientific and Technical Information

www.osti.gov

Experimental data presented in the paper shows that vulcanized
rubbers and adhesive epoxies operating in high temperature and
high humidity environments in the vicinity of the LED-based
product may give off VOCs and affect the luminous flux output
and color stability of the product dramatically and pre-
maturely. Furthermore, since rubbers and epoxies may be used
in the construction of the LEDs, Solid State Luminaires – given
the drastic impact of the VOC outgassing on the LED
performance and reliability shown by the data in this paper, it
is imperative that examination of the interactions of the
material composition with the luminous flux output and color
shift of the LED be examined for critical applications.

You couldn't just give me a link huh...

1.4.3. Polycarbonate
The third widely used material as an LED encapsulant is thermoplastics based
on polycarbonate. Bisphenol A polycarbonate (BPA-PC) is an engineering
thermoplastic with high impact strength, heat resistance and high modulus of
elasticity. It has been used in various applications and its application in different
domains has tremendously increased during last years [33-35]. General
formulation of BPA-PC is shown below:
Figure 6: Chemical structure of Bisphenol A polycarbonate
Similar to epoxy resins and silicones, the main disadvantage of polycarbonate
under exposure to the radiation at elevated temperatures is yellowing and
discolouration. This results in a decreased light output due to decreased
encapsulant/lens transparency. The main reasons of discolouration and
yellowing are continued exposure to wavelength emission (blue/UV radiation)

https://www.citc.org/resources/uploads/2020/08/Organic-Materials-Degradation-in-Solid-State-Lighting-Applications.pdf

Darn "UV", aka Violet LEDs browning out. New silicone lenses better?

I know this has already been discussed in the past but I'm a bit late to the race. So my first generation of SemiLEDs "True Violet" (from StevesLeds) were a total fail. They started off impressive but quickly browned out (discolored) into uselessness. StevesLeds now offers a "2.0" version with so...

www.nano-reef.com

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.ledil.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/LEDiL_Installation_guide_29112017.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwjIlfvs0u_3AhULGc0KHaVIAWQ4HhAWegQICRAB&usg=AOvVaw1DHev60ciAgzXnyI3Iurik

Ahhh..funny only the purple were browned.

LED - Luxdium Light.

I have been waiting for this for a while. The team at Luxdium did not want me to talk about this in the past. They are doing very interesting stuff that can turn ur existing LED to hyper power mode lol. Check it out https://www.instagram.com/luxdium/ @telegraham , @Pot8Os @Lexinverts

humble.fish

 

[Bronx19]

By changing the shape of the lenses.

Thus they cannot have a spherical lens, but some strange shape. Bet they don't.

 

[Nonya]

Thus they cannot have a spherical lens, but some strange shape. Bet they don't.

I think they called them HEI2. Probably more oval than round so they can increase the spread in one axis.

 

[Nonya]

hey now don’t you know… when a new light is released, corals stop growing under the old light. Duh.

That's what they count on certain people thinking--the ones who always have to buy the newest stuff.

 

[Jon's Reef]

I think they called them HEI2. Probably more oval than round so they can increase the spread in one axis.

It is 2 lenses. The reef builders video shows how the LEDs “look” bigger on the g6. This is not due to larger chips, it is due to a change in the primary lens geometry.

The secondary lens optic effect is not just due to physical shape, but more so the thickness variation between the center and edge. This changes the path length resulting in more or less refraction of the light. This lens was also tweaked (if it wasn’t they would not include a new one in the upgrade)

 

[MrKlumZ]

 

[Napoliandy]

BRS policy is that you can return unopened for full refund. Opened and unused is 10% restocking fee. Clearance, blowout and liquidation are not returnable.

SaltwaterAquarium.com you can return unopened only. Once it is opened, no return.

Note that the G5 are not marked clearance, blowout or liquidation on the BRS site, so if purchased there they can be returned.

So it seems to be standard policy if it is opened, return is a no-go.

I would just keep them... then in the future (2-4 years down the road) you have the option to upgrade them and have "fresh" leds.

Thanks for the input. I’m actually loving the lights as is. Probably invest later.

 

[Nonya]

It is 2 lenses. The reef builders video shows how the LEDs “look” bigger on the g6. This is not due to larger chips, it is due to a change in the primary lens geometry.

The secondary lens optic effect is not just due to physical shape, but more so the thickness variation between the center and edge. This changes the path length resulting in more or less refraction of the light. This lens was also tweaked (if it wasn’t they would not include a new one in the upgrade)

So one lens with two effects

 

[Jon's Reef]

So one lens with two effects

There are 2 physical lenses. One is attached to the led diode. The second is the big plastic removable one.

 

[swirlygig]

Anyone have photo or video comparisons yet?

 

[MarsReefer]

I just got mine last night. Trying to dial them in now but so far the par seems really low. I have every channel at 100%, point intensity at 100% and both moonlight channels at 100% but I’m only getting 150 par with the light mounted 9” above the water and my apex par meter 12” under the water. Might need a third just for low light levels. Would probably need 6 for an sps tank.