Light Shopping

[Tennsion]

I'm finishing cycle of 75g that will be mixed reef (softies, lps, 3-4 fishes). I've been out of the hobby for about 16 years so a lot has changed. LEDs seem to suit the tank...
So I made a list. How does one decide?
Ai hydra 32 (maybe over budget)
Ai Prime 16 (3 of them)
Nicrew 150w (2 of them)
Viparspectra (also 2)
USA Orbit Marine
PopBloom
Kessil (over budget)
Others?

I like the mounting arms of some of these as opposed to holes in my ceiling. All advice appreciated.

 

[Peace River]

You may also want to consider the Noopsyche K7Pro2 lights. Good luck with whatever you choose!

 

[blasterman]

Personally I would get two ViparSpectras.

 

[Mastiffsrule]

Evening and welcome aboard

Am I correct your 75 is going to be 48” long?

If so 1 AI 32 will not be enough. I think the 75 is also tall so the 3 prime may not have enough par to the floor. I have heard good things about Viva spectra but it has limited control. @Peace River mentioned Noopsyche which are are great choice from what I have been hearing.

keep us updated and start a build thread so we can check out the progress.

 

[Tennsion]

Evening and welcome aboard

Am I correct your 75 is going to be 48” long?

If so 1 AI 32 will not be enough. I think the 75 is also tall so the 3 prime may not have enough par to the floor. I have heard good things about Viva spectra but it has limited control. @Peace River mentioned Noopsyche which are are great choice from what I have been hearing.

keep us updated and start a build thread so we can check out the progress.

Thank you. I am leaning towards 2 Viparspectras or 2 Ai hydra 32s. Yes, tank is 48" long and 21" tall. Big price difference, but I'm really not keen on ruining my ceiling for hanging vipars. I'd like to start a build thread, thank you for mentioning it.

 

[Dkmoo]

I think the better question is - what kind of par map do you want your tank to have - I know you mostly have low par corals now, but do you envision that the tank ultimately become an sps dominated? Mixed reef? LpS/softies dominated? This answer will drive you decision bc it will determine what kind of light spread you want around your tank and where you want to place certain corals with different par requirements. Ie, a lower number of high power lights will give you a spread that purposely create spotlight hot zones for SPS. And still have options outside the spotlight for lps/softies. High numbers of lights will mean you generally have a more even spread, so light hungry corals on top lower PAR corals go on bottom.

 

[Tennsion]

I think the better question is - what kind of par map do you want your tank to have - I know you mostly have low par corals now, but do you envision that the tank ultimately become an sps dominated? Mixed reef? LpS/softies dominated? This answer will drive you decision bc it will determine what kind of light spread you want around your tank and where you want to place certain corals with different par requirements. Ie, a lower number of high power lights will give you a spread that purposely create spotlight hot zones for SPS. And still have options outside the spotlight for lps/softies. High numbers of lights will mean you generally have a more even spread, so light hungry corals on top lower PAR corals go on bottom.

As originally posted, I'm just finishing cycle and plan this tank to be mostly softies and lps, with 3 or 4 fish. I'm sticking with that plan but want to decide on lights early on so I can deal effectively with the algae outbreaks before fully stocking the tank.

 

[Dkmoo]

As originally posted, I'm just finishing cycle and plan this tank to be mostly softies and lps, with 3 or 4 fish. I'm sticking with that plan but want to decide on lights early on so I can deal effectively with the algae outbreaks before fully stocking the tank.

Ok then even 2 prime 16hd would be fine. Check out the BRSTV they did here. For lps/softies, 1 prime can cover enough for a 24 x 24 x 24 cube. With your tank dimension, 2 would be enough for raw PAR output but 3 may help with better spread.

Hydras may be overkill

See video here, starts at 3:45

 

[rudysmallfry]

I just replaced my Orbit Current Marines with AI Primes. The difference is incredible. The AI Prime packs a punch in terms of PAR, adjustability, brings out great detail in my corals. I think you'd be fine with them for what you're doing. You can mount them with hard brackets instead of hang from the ceiling. It's a nice look.

 

[Tennsion]

I just replaced my Orbit Current Marines with AI Primes. The difference is incredible. The AI Prime packs a punch in terms of PAR, adjustability, brings out great detail in my corals. I think you'd be fine with them for what you're doing. You can mount them with hard brackets instead of hang from the ceiling. It's a nice look.

What about the arms that are sold separately but built for the Ai's. Are you recommending solid brackets as opposed to the bendable arms?

 

[Smokeshow]

I have 2 wills black box lights over my 75. Their similar to the old mars aqua lights. Have them plugged into a kasa smart power strip and can set a schedule for them to turn on/off. I have a 3rd one ready for when I swap to them into my 125g

 

[Uncle99]

Three Visparspectra and Two Halos for mix.
4 years running

 

[Spare time]

3 primes. You can add a 4th later if you want and get better spread than with 2 hydras.