radion or kessil

[redvil13]

replacing my black boxes, my deep tank is showing its teeth with only 19 par at maxed power on both channels with 3 black boxes only 4" in off the water surface at the sand bed and anemones and clams are wanted

2 radion g4 xrw30 pros

4 radion g4 xrw15 pros

4 kessil 360w or 360n

tank specs 150g tall 48" length 24" wide 30" DEEP

looking to pull the trigger tonight or tomorrow

 

[jda]

Assuming that your Black Boxes functioning 100% correctly, I don't think that you are going to get any more PAR from the Radions or Kessils.

The color and coverage can be different, but they are not any more powerful.

Which black boxes do you have?

 

[redvil13]

mars aqua ... I just lost my wht channel in one and that's what prompted the idea to replace

 

[John3]

I’ve only used the kessil a160 model with the spectral controller. I helped set these up on a friends tank. With the spectral colntroller I didn’t like the color tunability compared to the G4 Radion I have on my tank. Not sure if it’s better with a different controller. I’ve read a lot of posts about the kessil shimmer but comparing them first hand to a G4 Radion I like the Radion better. Not to disrespect the kessil but I just think I get a lot better color from my corals with the Radion.

If it were me I’d rather have 4 xr15 than 2 xr30 because the pucks on the xr30 are pretty close together and I think you loose some coverage. I think cost wise it’s about the same except mounting.

 

[jda]

They might be an upgrade for color or controllability, but I do not think either that they are more powerful than a working Mars Unit. The pucks wider apart are a benefit for shadowing and spread, but they will not cover like the larger panels that you have now.

I am not a lens specialist, but narrower lenses will penetrate further, but also could cause some issues in the shallower water.

BRS has some par maps for most of these.

If you really want to light stuff 30 inches down, you might need a different kind of light.

 

[redvil13]

TYVM john that's the feedback I wanted to see

 

[redvil13]

Jda are you thinking MH?

 

[jda]

It would depend. What kind of 'nem and what kind of clam?

I can get 200ish PAR at 24 inches with 250W Halides with a 2'x2' spread reflector, which is enough for most 'nems and deresa & squamosa. Most folks on a tank that deep will use 400W. MH on a penetrating reflector are kinda unmatched in the area because they don't harm the stuff up high with too focused of light. 8 Bulb T5 could do well too, but I have not tested them at this level in my own home.

You could keep Maxima and Crocea up in the rock work... they like the rocks. The nems will move around a bit to find a sweet spot. You could do this with anything that you suggested, or even just replace your Mars unit. Can you add a fourth black box and just line the top with them? This could be a cheap experiment before you went another way.

I am building a 36" deep tank, so I know what you are going through. I will be using MH, but this tank is also 14 feet long and 4 feet deep, so reflectors will be the most efficient way to light it. I am going to use a pair of 400W over a atoll where I will keep my clams, and then 8x 250W over a pair of reefs with acropora. I probably will not keep anything too low except for some deepwater acros, which are fine at 24" under 250W MH... I don't want to spend any more to grow different stuff down there, so I have to trade it off.

 

[redvil13]

I was wanting to avoid the mh route... I have temp issues in the summer . my overflows are not corner ones so turning the boxes long way is only workable or efficient on the center only which it is in my case

 

[[Cameron]]

If you have the cash, the Giesemann Aurora would be at the top of my list.

 

[jda]

That is a tough tank to light... for sure. Good luck with it. A 6" sand bed might be your best friend.

 

[Daniel Waters]

replacing my black boxes, my deep tank is showing its teeth with only 19 par at maxed power on both channels with 3 black boxes only 4" in off the water surface at the sand bed and anemones and clams are wanted

2 radion g4 xrw30 pros

4 radion g4 xrw15 pros

4 kessil 360w or 360n

tank specs 150g tall 48" length 24" wide 30" DEEP

looking to pull the trigger tonight or tomorrow

I use both radions and kessils. Here are some thoughts for you.

I find a radion xr15pro is quite a bit more powerful (from a par point of view) than my Kessil A360W.

You'd probably need or want a spectral controller for the kessil A360s. With that extra cost and your tank depth, I think you should consider two AP700s versus 4 A360s. The AP700 is probably as powerful as 3 A360s and is wi-fi controllable I believe.

If mounting and extra cords is not an issue, I'd definitely recommend 4 radion xr15 versus 2 xr30.

Shimmer and color blending = Kessil wins hands down in my book. But i don't think you'd go wrong either way with two AP700s or 4 radion xrw15 pros with that tank footprint.

 

[mjlash22]

4 Radion XR15's. You will have more spread than the XR30's and more controlability than the Kessil's. Your tank depth is doing to be the tricky part to reach the PAR you want at the bottom of your tank.

 

[madweazl]

What did you measure PAR with? 19 PAR even at 30" from a typical black box seems quite low, especially from three units over a 48" spread. I've never run the G4s but have Gen3 XR15s that have remained in the boxes because I like the A360WEs better; for me, the superior color blending and shimmer of the Kessil were more desirable. With that said, BRS' measurements of four A360WEs over 40" length tank at a depth of 18" was approx 250-300 PAR; with an additional 12" to penetrate, I don't believe the A360N will provide substantially better results.

In regard to the Radions, keep in mind that you lose a lot of PAR if you run a profile like the AB+ and even more if you use the diffuser. With those two items factored in, an XR15 and the A360WE put out almost identical PAR values so keep that in mind going forward. The highest PAR values for the Kessils are at approx 60% color because of the way Kessil Logic works and is considerably "whiter" than the AB+ profile (Ecosmart suggests that to be about 18.5k while the Kessils at 60% are approx 14k).

 

[hyprc]

Is that PAR measurement directly under one of those chinese boxes? If they're maxed you're not going to get enough punch out of the Kessils for sure; out of those options the 4 XR-15s would give you the best spread/power. Like some have said you're not going to get much more PAR out of them but you will get more overall/spread-wise. Just don't use the diffusers, you'll lose too much PAR.

 

[ajhudson15]

Something to think about. You don't necessarily have to put your clam on the sand bed. I have an anemone in my 75 and it does not stay anywhere near the sand bed.

 

[EliteReefing1023]

radions hands down. the color rendition is crazy and uncomparable

 

[XNavyDiver]

I've had radion xr30 gen4 pros from the begining.. now they are paired with t5.
There is no substitute.

 

[JBKReef]

I've had radion xr30 gen4 pros from the begining.. now they are paired with t5.
There is no substitute.

I was going to suggest something along these lines, get the 24 inch T5 hybrid option ($229) and use three kessils and the spectral controller ($99), cost would be about the same I believe as 4 kessils alone.

 

[pickupman66]

Truthfully I was not that impressed by the Radio G3 I had. It was a non pro. I recently swapped to a pair of Hydra26 HD and have been MUCH happier.

if you are looking for deep punch, you may want too to look at the EcoExotic Cannon. they are Kessel on Steroids.
https://www.ecoxotic.com/product/cannon-pro-led-pendant-160w-full-spectrum/