Is this a good T5 light fixture?

[Kevin87]

Hey everyone-

I am looking to upgrade my single T8 light fixture in my 55 FOWLR tank to something that I can keep and anemone and soft corals with.

I came across this quad T5 light fixture and it seems reasonably priced, significantly lower than anything else I've seen. Is this a good deal? Will it be sufficient for anemones and soft corals? Thanks!

Link:
Odyssea T5 Aquarium Lighting

 

[_Alex_]

its decent and will work with good bulbs (ATI) but its not the most recommended

 

[nitro'sreef]

++1

 

[Duffam3434]

Hey everyone-

I am looking to upgrade my single T8 light fixture in my 55 FOWLR tank to something that I can keep and anemone and soft corals with.

I came across this quad T5 light fixture and it seems reasonably priced, significantly lower than anything else I've seen. Is this a good deal? Will it be sufficient for anemones and soft corals? Thanks!

Link:
Odyssea T5 Aquarium Lighting

My Buddy that owns a LFS, gave me a list of Lights to stay away from and "Odyssea" was one on the list.. The main 2 he said never buy were Odyssea and Nova.. I believe it was because they were fixtures that had A Lot of problems. I'm just passing along what i've heard. Personally i've only used Coralife T5 Fixtures.

 

[JSaquatics]

When I was using T5 lighting I was using the ATI fixtures and never had a problem

 

[Muney Mun]

I just purchased a quad Odessa t5 and it will do the job especially if you're ballin on a budget but if you can afford one of the ones from dr fosters or brs for about 250 to 400 I would advice it. The Odessa like I got was less than a hundred and seemed like a great deal but when I received it I seen why it was so cheap. Mine looks like you have to be very gentle but so far everything is working great I just hope I don't jinx myself

 

[DSP]

Iv used just about all the odyessea t5s and a halide fixture they all work great.the bulbs they come with suck so I would def replace those before to long.if your interested i have reviews on my youtube channel

 

[DSP]

Btw if you hear crazy reviews about them catching fire the reason is a guy like 5 years ago put a metal halide right on top of his plastic center brace,And of coarse it melted the center brace lol.i think everyone knows not to lay a metal halide right on top of plastic lol.Now of course there not the best fixtures made but if your on a budget you won't be disappointed they get the job done.

 

[Davesgt]

The old odyssea fixtures were far from quality, but the newer ones seem to do just fine. I purchased one to use on my planted freshwater tank and I have to say ive had far less problems with it than my zoo med light I had which was very expensive. Id recommend changing bulbs due to them being junk. Id say for the price go for it cause the new ones have actually impressed me and I use Ati fixtures.

 

[ReeferBob]

I have been using a 4 light with moon leds for 2 years with no issues. My new light is an ATI but the old Odyssea is now in my sump. All bulbs in it are ATI. The ballasts are external so the light is very slimline. These lights do get a bad rap I think largely because they are cheap. I had also heard about the ballasts catching on fire but have never heard more then anecdotal evidence. They are not UL listed and this is part of the reason they get a bad rap. Also there is no support on them. If they break them, they will tell you, "Tough spit don't call again.".

 

[Duffam3434]

Btw if you hear crazy reviews about them catching fire the reason is a guy like 5 years ago put a metal halide right on top of his plastic center brace,And of coarse it melted the center brace lol.i think everyone knows not to lay a metal halide right on top of plastic lol.Now of course there not the best fixtures made but if your on a budget you won't be disappointed they get the job done.

Haha that's one of the reasons he said stay away.. He didn't mention it was some dudes fault and not the companies. And as Davesgt said, Im sure the quality has come up since back then.. I've never done any research on them because of what I heard, So it's never crossed my mind to buy one.

If you end up getting it, I hope it works Well for You!!

 

[peter505]

I owned one for a couple of years. I would also recommend putting ATI bulbs in it. After 6 or 7 months of running it, I took a ballast apart to check for any of the crazy fire hazards my lfs kept warning me about. In my experience, there isnt anything to worry about. Solid light for $100