Should I switch to Radion LEDs from MH/T5?

[Gwitness]

Like I said I have 3 gen 2s and I love them and think they work now but j think I could get them better by tweakjng even more....with Radions there are so many different options that can happen that the smallest change could affect ur corals in a positive or negative....I think we need to have some thread where Radion users can post every schedule detail of their schedule, depth of tank and how high above water the lights are...a lot of times led users will take someone's successful schedule and apply it to there's but the small differences in tank sizes or height above water can mess it up! I think that LEDs are the scapegoat for a lot of the coral issues.....Im still figuring mine out now and I've had them about a year!! Just got 120degree lens and I think it will make a difference!!! It with probably make me have to tweak my schedule even more but oh well!!! It all takes time

 

[Sleeperr34]

Same as the vegas for me. Love mine. But im prob going to be getting the upgrade kit for the 52s and same ill prob have to redial them in again.

 

[Gwitness]

But I think once people are patient and do Dial them in ....they are great....but if don't want to take the time and go through the ups and downs then just stick with halides or t5

 

[Sleeperr34]

If u can keep me updated with things u run into with the new lenses. And how they work for you. Im excited to see how much better they get with them.

 

[d2mini]

You said u ran leds for 2 yrs but never said what u had or in truth what any real problems. Just a half statement without anything else. And then you start to pick a fight because i feel leds r just as good. I'm not the one here bashing on you or urs. Im just defending me and mine.

Bottom line this is both our opinions. U feel mh are the best period im not here to change ur mind or anything along the lines of it. Im just repling to a post and giving my opion on what i would do. Not running around with my chest out saying ur wrong im right no other way around it.

LOL, you guys are funny.
Not picking a fight at all, just stating the truth and trying to save the OP a lot of frustration.
I had Radion Pros, and before that Gen 1's. In fact, I had BETA gen 1 units before you even heard about Radions.
My cube tank was the poster child for Radions.
So you can trust me when I say that I gave LED more than a fair shake and tried everything imaginable to produce the look and results of a MH/T5 combo and it's just... not... happening.
When you have experienced both types of lighting, long term, and can produce concrete evidence that you can get the same exact results with LED that you can with the other, rather than talking about some article you read or what your friend told you, then come back and revisit this conversation.

Also, i left you a link in my "half statement" that takes you directly to the post in my build thread that talks about my switch.

Btw, not including a chiller which I run anyway with 150g of support system in my garage in the deep south, my switch from led to mh/t5 is costing me $100 a year in electricity.
Even with bulb changes, the cost difference when buying a high end led fixture would take YEARS to make up. And by then you'll want to upgrade anyway.
In the cooler months I'll be saving money not running my heaters so much.
But even if it does end up costing me more, that's fine. The health and beauty of my coral are worth it, and I make the cash back selling frags! lol

 

[d2mini]

Im still figuring mine out now and I've had them about a year!! Just got 120degree lens and I think it will make a difference!!! It with probably make me have to tweak my schedule even more but oh well!!! It all takes time

Why on earth do you say this like it's a good thing? Srsly? :faint2:
Slap a mh/t5 combo up there and call it done. Then enjoy your tank and watch things grow like gangbusters.

 

[Gwitness]

Haha Ummmmm I don't have an answer why Lol.....honestly I think because I already put all that money up for the Radion that I don't want to give up on it and resell it.....but I'd be lying if I said I haven't thought about trying all t5 or Adding them to my canopy now

 

[Quinn123]

I switch MH to led and I regretted everyday.

 

[Sleeperr34]

And again to each his own. But by why ur saying is his gen3 is the same as ur gen1? Im sorry but they are way way diff. Gen3 r way better now then what the gen1s. And same goes for most of the led systems out now. They have greatly improved the light coming out of the system. So yea I'll agree with you fully. I FEEL. And i THINK. The radion gen1 were nothing in comparison to MH. But that is a complete diff machine.

Thats like me saying carb motors are way better the fuel injection, because i had one of the original fuel injected cars and the car aways broke on me. Things are a lot diff set up now.

 

[Pete polyp]

Haha Ummmmm I don't have an answer why Lol.....honestly I think because I already put all that money up for the Radion that I don't want to give up on it and resell it.....but I'd be lying if I said I haven't thought about trying all t5 or Adding them to my canopy now

I think this is more common than what people would think

 

[Sleeperr34]

And again not saying MH are not perfect. They r. U hang plug in done. Change bulbs once a yr ur good.

Im just saying if u dial in correctly one of the new led systems they are just as good. BUT.. U have to put in a lot to dial them in even with how much better they r now.

So yes. The good out ways the bad. MH is better then leds. But only because of the small room for messing it up. Leds are just as good but u have to have it dialed in perfect. 2-3 % can make or break the set up to ur coral

 

[d2mini]

And again to each his own. But by why ur saying is his gen3 is the same as ur gen1? Im sorry but they are way way diff. Gen3 r way better now then what the gen1s. And same goes for most of the led systems out now. They have greatly improved the light coming out of the system. So yea I'll agree with you fully. I FEEL. And i THINK. The radion gen1 were nothing in comparison to MH. But that is a complete diff machine.

Thats like me saying carb motors are way better the fuel injection, because i had one of the original fuel injected cars and the car aways broke on me. Things are a lot diff set up now.

Sorry for any miscommunication but I did say that I switched to Pros. When they became available to retail. And not sure if I mentioned this but I did have the wide angle lenses too at the end.

Don't get me wrong. My intention is NOT to bash LED in any way, especially the Radions.
Ecotech rocks and the Radions are an awesome light if you choose to go LED. And they are continuing to improve the technology, which is terrific and exciting.
I'm just letting the OP know that he may want to sit back and watch a bit longer because he may very well be disappointed with the results if he is happy now.
And although coral color/growth of some of my sps were a big reason for me to switch, I had a lot of personal preference reasons too.

1) LED tanks are so dim in comparison. I like a really bright tank.
2) LED is such a pinpoint light source. Too much shadowing and bald undersides of coral. Adding T5 would definitely help.
3) I don't care for the crazy 70's black-light colors. I like a more natural looking tank. I kept looking back at the pics of my cube pre-led and really missed the look.
4) I realized I don't need all that slow ramping up and down and infinite color choices.
5) I didn't want to deal with all the programming anymore. I just wanted plug and play. Simplify. Less time fussing with equipment, more time enjoying the tank. With the mh/t5 I know I can put up a proven combo and know for sure that if I'm having any issues with the tank, the lights are NOT the problem.

So lots of things to consider if you want to make the switch one way or the other.

 

[d2mini]

u have to have it dialed in perfect. 2-3 % can make or break the set up to ur coral

Agreed. To me this is the biggest problem with the fancy led units.
The manufacturer is handing over complete control to the consumer who generally has no freakin clue what they are doing when it comes to lighting, spectrums and what the coral need to thrive.
Most of us, me included, are just tweaking color channels until we get a spectrum that looks good to our eyes.
Someone needs to create custom pucks or custom graphs that truly replicate the proven mh bulbs already on the market like Radiums, Pheonix, Ushio, etc.

 

[Sleeperr34]

Agree on a lot of that.

Anyone who does go led does need to understand if they do go to leds. The dank is going to look a lot dimmer. One thing i dont like and one reason why a lot of people add t-5s to balance it and not make it look as dim.

And sorry i read the last one and replied as i was in bed and didnt catch that u upgraded to pros and wider lens.

Led systems now that r out r looking better and better as they come out. And i like and hate that they give us so much freedom in changing the lights around. I personally like it because my tank coral is still young and only a small mix in. Not going all crazy with coral until we move in a couple yrs and i can get my wet room. So i can play with my lights more and watch the good and bad effect i get with my corals. And u can get the same out come of people that change around the t5 color combo without having to take and change equipment. And do it small little changed to get brighter and diff color morphs. More so i feel now with the uv bulbs being added in.

But on the same thing i hate it because they dont explain enough about spectrum with the leds. They talk par all the time and that is goon and all. But if u have high par and crap spectrum u will literally cook your corals. And more often then not people only get half info about the system and end up killing there tank and waisting thousands of $ and then getting ****** and saying f this im done with it.

But i do have to say thank you very much it has been a long time that i have a good back and forth with someone that knows what they r talking about with leds vs mh/t5. My friend i used to go back and forth with all the time just changed on me with the hydra and hydra 52s being out that when set his system back up he is going leds lol.

 

[benny z]

The problem with many LED fixtures is the optics. Corals don't need 40, 60 and 90 degree optics which is what many LED fixtures come with. The optics increase the par but can focus the light to tight and fry corals. MH are great so are t5. The argument that LEDs will kill all your corals and anemones shouldn't even be brought up any more. If you go back on forums before LEDs were invented there are as many arguments about lighting and as many people complaining that lights are killing/browning/bleaching their coral.

Could not agree more.

Using a custom blend of LEDs with no optics over my nano, and every piece of coral I have (softies, LPS, and SPS) are doing great. Even with no optics, I am running them at no more than 40% capacity. I read a post a bit up where someone said their SPS had turned mostly white...what does that tell you? Turn them down!

https://www.reef2reef.com/forums/le...oad-spectrum-light-emitting-diodes-blend.html

Like you said - people have blamed lighting for their issues ever since the beginning of reefkeeping. Personally, I find it much easier to adjust LEDs for intensity than it is to find the right position for a particular coral under halides/T5s. *shrug*

 

[Gwitness]

I have 3 radikn gen 2s and i really think I'm going to add 2 t5 bulbs to the front and back side of my canopy..... What retrofit light should I get?? And what color bulbs do you think would be best for my corals and for blending all of my lights together?? I know nothing about t5s

 

[Sleeperr34]

Not sure really on that. Been wondering that myself. Was thinking about it. To get the last parts of the spectrum im missing and to balance out the light a bit. But not sure if i want to do it. Was going to wait until i redid my rock work. I have more then i want in my tank. But that is because i took down my 90 fish only and added the rock because my sister wanted a tank. But now she doesnt. So need to rethink my rockwork since I'm not saving it for her tank anymore.

 

[Acro]

How do you correctly measure par with LEDs? I'm curious what everyone uses

 

[Sleeperr34]

U can use a par meter to do it. I feel u can get a low measurement that way. But i have heard some people say that a meter does not read some blue leds correctly. But others say it works fine. But a par meter would be your best bet.

 

[FX CharityCorals Verified Sponsor]

Has anyone factored in the cost of corals lost and fried during the tuning stage of LEDs as an added cost?
I know you run the risk with T5 and Halide bulb changes but the odds are much less. I am a T5 guy all the way. I am in the hobby to get the most color out of my corals and the little added cost is worth it too me. LEDs definitely work on the higher models. Proof is there. I did a swap this weekend and all my corals are under T5 and some of them looked like garbage under the LED fixture I ran at the swap. I could not pull any of the pinks or oranges. Needless to say I did not sell any of those. It was interesting though how big of a difference the frags looked. I hated the colors the swap tank corals looked compared to what I know they look like.