Ok. That kind of makes sense.
However it would be nice to do it like the Kessils when you only get the two channels. One sets the look and the other sets the intensity.
I just have to find the right curves that will make it look good through the entire dawn to dusk cycle. Any help in that regard would be appreciated. In other words, what would the two slopes look like to have a 0700 to 2100 dawn to dusk with a peak at 100% day (symmetrical)?
The setup of the scheduler application on the CoralCare controller works in a similar way.
The user first determines the desired color point to his liking, and then decides what intensity (independently from the color point) to set (depending on the coral needs).
If you need some guidance with setting up a dusk to dawn schedule I advise the following procedure:
Download the CoralCare software from our main page and attach the controller via USB to a computer. Open the standard program (or the program of one of our test users that can be found on our main page). Set the CoralCare controller in “Live mode” and determine how the schedule setup looks for your reef. You can also use the demo mode to summarize your 24hour schedule in a 2 minute period.
If you are happy with the schedule you can copy the channel values that are noted in the Color temperature sliders (highlighted in red in the below picture).
So .. Warm & .. Cold for each time instant.
These values correspond to the absolute power levels of the two channels. If you map this to the 0-10V interface (>9.5V = 100%, 1V = 1%) you can achieve an exactly similar schedule with your Apex controller
So in example, this is the schedule I currently run for my reef:
If you use the standardized curve you end up with the following values:
There could be some minor differences between these theoretical values due to implementation choice of the Apex software/hardware (different absolute 1-100% levels or dimming curve) and some voltage drop over the interface. But the result and procedure should be good enough to define a strong base level on which you can tweak and experiment to set it to your own liking.
Good luck and have fun with it!
Please message me if something is unclear, I do not want to hijack your topic any further with it
Will they dim all the way to off, or very dim at least?
They dim all the way off. They come on at around 8% which is about normal for 0-10v control. At that level, with just the blue side, it is pretty dim, but like most LED of this kind, it is not dim enough for moonlight. But that's OK, Neptune has a solution for that
The CoralCare fixture dims down to a level of 1% (what corresponds to 6mA of the normal 600mA drive current).
At this region the LED’s run very efficient and therefor Philips advises not to use these settings for a constant “night light effect”.
The corals really need a lengthy dark period to recover from their photosynthetic energy cycles that occurs during daytime.
If moonlight is a wish I would advise to use a very dim light source (possibly some single LED’s) to ensure the corals and fish get the rest they need.[/URL][/QUOTE]
