Switch From ReefBreeders to Radions?

[LJLKRL05]

I am trying to make a decision and I need some input.
I have a 210 gallon tank with two reefbreeders photon v2 32 inch fixtures over it.
I am considering purchasing some new G4 radion XR30W Pro fixtures.
Has anyone here switched from the RB lights to Radions? Was there a huge difference in the way they look?
Or has anyone been able to see the two side by side for a live comparison?
I am growing coral, mostly LPS, but I am not happy with the appearance of the tank under the RB lights. I don't like to run mine too blue and I can't seem to find the look I want with what I have.

I watched the BRS video on the black boxes (I know they did not compare RB's), and it nudged me toward the radions, but it is a tough decision.

Thanks for your input

 

[bluescion.dg]

I've been trying to figure out my photon 24 v1 I was bleaching sps coral with it at 20%white and 25% blue Much smaller tank then yours so I imagine yours are much higher then that

 

[LJLKRL05]

I had a photon 48 v1 over a 55 gallon tank a few years back, and I never ran my blues over a bout 40 % and the whites usually half or a little more than half the blues.
I had them about 8 or 9 inches above the water line.
They are very bright.

 

[Velcro]

I am trying to make a decision and I need some input.
I have a 210 gallon tank with two reefbreeders photon v2 32 inch fixtures over it.
I am considering purchasing some new G4 radion XR30W Pro fixtures.
Has anyone here switched from the RB lights to Radions? Was there a huge difference in the way they look?
Or has anyone been able to see the two side by side for a live comparison?
I am growing coral, mostly LPS, but I am not happy with the appearance of the tank under the RB lights. I don't like to run mine too blue and I can't seem to find the look I want with what I have.

I watched the BRS video on the black boxes (I know they did not compare RB's), and it nudged me toward the radions, but it is a tough decision.

Thanks for your input

That BRS video does not have anything to do with v2 photons. If you hang photon v2s high (18-24") the spread and color blending is BETTER than radions. I have owned both and the photons honestly are my preference. I'm getting better growth and color from photons than I was 8 bulb ATI fixture.

Radions are overpriced IMO, especially considering how discoballey they are with whites in any reasonable amount. If you are concerned that you don't have enough PAR from the V2 I would hands down consider adding t5 to your current setup.

 

[LJLKRL05]

That BRS video does not have anything to do with v2 photons. If you hang photon v2s high (18-24") the spread and color blending is BETTER than radions. I have owned both and the photons honestly are my preference. I'm getting better growth and color from photons than I was 8 bulb ATI fixture.

Radions are overpriced IMO, especially considering how discoballey they are with whites in any reasonable amount. If you are concerned that you don't have enough PAR from the V2 I would hands down consider adding t5 to your current setup.

I could add a T5 to them. I am not worried about PAR even though I have not measured it. I don't have them turned up much over 50% so I have plenty left to add brightness.
How do you have yours set?

 

[Velcro]

I have mine about 20" above the tank. I run two of the 24" fixtures over a 30x30 cube. I have all blues set at 100% and white at 50%. Red and green just kind at like 25%, they don't matter much to me. This give mes 250-350 par pretty much everywhere in the tank. The par is very good all over the tank and there is zero discoballing.

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

I watched the BRS video on the black boxes (I know they did not compare RB's), and it nudged me toward the radions, but it is a tough decision.

Ahaha. I knew this was going to be the effect of that video. Bash black boxes, everyone lumps together all BB are bad, even though all BB are not created equal push their own sales. Those BRS guys are smarter than they look. ;Hilarious

 

[Velcro]

Ahaha. I knew this was going to be the effect of that video. Bash black boxes, everyone lumps together all BB are bad, even though all BB are not created equal push their own sales. Those BRS guys are smarter than they look. ;Hilarious

I wish I had two radion xr30 g4's to compare to my two v2s head to head.

 

[LJLKRL05]

Ahaha. I knew this was going to be the effect of that video. Bash black boxes, everyone lumps together all BB are bad, even though all BB are not created equal push their own sales. Those BRS guys are smarter than they look. ;Hilarious

I am not saying the photons are bad. I had the photon 48 v1 before I got a bigger tank and went with v2's.
I am asking if I can get better color "appearance" in my tank with Radion G4 lights.

I wish I had two radion xr30 g4's to compare to my two v2s head to head.

Me too. I wish I knew someone close by that would let me put one of my V2's over their tank next to their radions for comparison.

 

[LJLKRL05]

I have mine about 20" above the tank. I run two of the 24" fixtures over a 30x30 cube. I have all blues set at 100% and white at 50%. Red and green just kind at like 25%, they don't matter much to me. This give mes 250-350 par pretty much everywhere in the tank. The par is very good all over the tank and there is zero discoballing.

See, you have full coverage over your tank.
I have a 24 inch front to back tank, and I have two 32 inch V2 Photons end to end over the six foot length. I am not getting full coverage like you are.
I would really need 4 of these to get full coverage like you have. There is a noticeable bright center on my tank. The front and back are a little darker.
Lights are 11 inches above water and canopy prevents me from raising them.

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

I am not saying the photons are bad. I had the photon 48 v1 before I got a bigger tank and went with v2's.
I am asking if I can get better color "appearance" in my tank with Radion G4 lights.


Me too. I wish I knew someone close by that would let me put one of my V2's over their tank next to their radions for comparison.

I know, I wasn't really trying to imply you were saying that. I just wanted to point out an example of that biased BRS video having an effect on the consumer. But what you are asking about, the "visual appeal" factor, is pretty subjective and hard to quantify. It comes down to personal preference.

 

[Velcro]

See, you have full coverage over your tank.
I have a 24 inch front to back tank, and I have two 32 inch V2 Photons end to end over the six foot length. I am not getting full coverage like you are.
I would really need 4 of these to get full coverage like you have. There is a noticeable bright center on my tank. The front and back are a little darker.
Lights are 11 inches above water and canopy prevents me from raising them.

I have no doubt that one could cover 24" width especially with a couple t5 bulbs. 30" is just in that middle ground where I wasn't comfortable with just one unit since I am all SPS.

 

[DSC reef]

I know, I wasn't really trying to imply you were saying that. I just wanted to point out an example of that biased BRS video having an effect on the consumer. But what you are asking about, the "visual appeal" factor, is pretty subjective and hard to quantify. It comes down to personal preference.

Biased is your own opinion and others will have theres. Just because you don't like what you read doesn't mean others can't make an educated decision on what they want to buy. Why bring that to the OP's thread anyway? To the OP, the photons are amazing and adding T5 will definitely help with coverage, velcro is spot on.

 

[Bouncingsoul39]

Biased is your own opinion and others will have theres. Just because you don't like what you read doesn't mean others can't make an educated decision on what they want to buy. Why bring that to the OP's thread anyway? To the OP, the photons are amazing and adding T5 will definitely help with coverage, velcro is spot on.

Because he mentioned the video?!? I'll say what I want, thanks.

 

[Jongalt26]

I apologize if some of this has been said before, i didn't read through the posts since i have direct experience with this.

I ran two 24" photon v2's over my 60x24x24 (150g). They did a fine job but like you i wanted a different look and i also wanted more growth. After extensive research i decided to add two t-5 fixtures with 2 bulbs each (3 blue+ and a purple+) which I wanted more for growth and reduce shadowing. The T-5's didnt do much in the way of color but definitely helped with growth so I used the reefbreeders for accent lighting for a bit. I still wasn't getting the look that others and my LFS had with radions. When i re-built a second tank 30x30x24 (93g) i moved the photons to the second tank and took the opportunity to buy g4 pro's for the 150. I found the coral labs article and programs for the radions and finally i was able to get the look that i wanted. So as far as the perceived coloration of the LPS it was a significant improvement. My 150 is almost all LPS with a few starter sticks.

So now my reefbreeders are over my 93. This tank is for softies (zoas, nems, rics, shrooms etc), mainly so i don't have to pay as close attention to the water parameters but i digress. I decided to replicate the light spectrum programming from the radions to the reefbreeders which is painstaking due to the controller and when i was done i was floored with the look and pop of the zoas & nems. They looked fantastic. I'm pretty happy with the results in both situations.

With that said, my first recommendation is to check out the ecotech coral lab report and mimic the spectrum ratios on the reefbreeders to help get the spectrum to what you may prefer. If spending money i definitely recommend adding T-5's to your system before considering upgrading the LED's. It's my opinion that LED and T-5's are one of the best lighting combinations to use and the t-5 upgrade is more effective yet less expensive than going from photons to radions. The T-5's help prevent shadowing, provide a more even light and definitely provide proven growth light spectrums. Another popular method that people have been successful with is a combination of t-5's & reefbrite strips but i definitely prefer the tunability of both reefbreeders and radions in lieu of reefbrites.

After the addition of T-5's then i would consider buying radions. Yes, i think they are worth the cost as long as you already have t-5's.

Note - bulbs. I found a lot of suggestions to run mainly blue+ so thats what i went with. In Jason Foxs fairly recent presentation he indicated that he runs all actinic T-5's (w/ reefbrite strips). I personally like the blue light spectrum so i'm going to try all actinics out. The blue+ bulb name is a bit misleading since it's more of a white with a spike in the blue spectrum.
Tidalgardens has a great video of bulb color comparisons and combinations.


Below are some pics of the photons on the softie tank.
I hope that helps!
Jason

*edit - i swear im clicking thumbnails for the photos but they're still quite large. I apologize.




Photon V2's over the 93:

 

[LJLKRL05]

@Jongalt26 I have tried replicating the Coral Labs programs with my photons, and yes it is a pain. Trying to calculate percentages based on one color being the starting point.
Can you share your settings please?

 

[Jongalt26]

I PM'd you a link to view the schedule. Im currently using 50% power.

 

[LJLKRL05]

Thanks I will check it out

I PM'd you a link to view the schedule. Im currently using 50% power.

 

[BoomCorals]

I am not saying the photons are bad. I had the photon 48 v1 before I got a bigger tank and went with v2's.
I am asking if I can get better color "appearance" in my tank with Radion G4 lights.


Me too. I wish I knew someone close by that would let me put one of my V2's over their tank next to their radions for comparison.

I had both. In fact before I had radions I had AI and photon V2. The photon V2 are a lot like the SB reef lights in terms of look. PAR spread is slightly better than SB reef lights but not as good as radions. But the growth wasn't as fast as the radion and SB for me. If you are looking to upgrade because of the look I'd strongly suggest kessil. They have a look that is great in my opinion. Other option would be T5 but I feel T5 add a dullness to the "look" of the tank.

 

[pompeyjohn]

The photon V2 are a lot like the SB reef lights in terms of look. PAR spread is slightly better than SB reef lights but not as good as radions.

I'd have thought it would be the other way around - that the array would have a wider spread than the dual pucks. I am guessing it was the new pro 4 radions right? Were both fixtures at the same height?