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leepink23
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T5/LED vs T5/Metal Hallide
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Acroporaaddict
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It’s showing discontinued on BRS, good information on the SE vs DE, thanks
check ebay. Coralvue has been blowing them out. I sent them an offer lower than the list price and they accepted it.
Reefcowboy
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Wow didnt know they were discontinued... glad I got mine and have radium bulbs stocked until oct 2020!
A. grandis
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Whoever got the last Spectra SE 48" from BRS is a lucky boy!!
Did they stop producing?
I'm so glad I already got mine a while ago for my new system.
It is a very nice fixture with a super heavy duty finishing. Good looking too!!
After the BRS video showing how good it is many of us took the chance to try it and confirm it's qualities!!
It is so sad that all the good things they produce comes to a sad end and some times they don't get updated as they should.
Hopefully Giesemann will realize how many of us are going back to halide/T5s nowadays and come up with another halide/T5 fixture to satisfy SPS systems!!!
The Spectra is some serious fixture and will be respected forever IMHO!
This video also shows some LED comparison, including those spectrum hot spots and shades.
Did they stop producing?
I'm so glad I already got mine a while ago for my new system.
It is a very nice fixture with a super heavy duty finishing. Good looking too!!
After the BRS video showing how good it is many of us took the chance to try it and confirm it's qualities!!
It is so sad that all the good things they produce comes to a sad end and some times they don't get updated as they should.
Hopefully Giesemann will realize how many of us are going back to halide/T5s nowadays and come up with another halide/T5 fixture to satisfy SPS systems!!!
The Spectra is some serious fixture and will be respected forever IMHO!
This video also shows some LED comparison, including those spectrum hot spots and shades.
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lancesmith1
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This fixture has no active cooling. It will COOK the T5s.
lancesmith1
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And yes... I ran a Spectra for about 1 year.
When I run T5s with MH, I just use them for 2 years or until they burn out. The MH is doing the heavy lifting and I only really used them for after hours viewing and occasional supplement.
BTW - if you use a fan across the top of the tank, my 250W MH fixtures will barely get to 100-105 degrees at the end of the day and you can put your hand on them and leave it there indefinitely on the top or anywhere outside of the glass on the bottom. I blow a Vornado over the length of the tank across the top of the water, but that also gets some over the top of the fixture.
A. grandis
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I also have the Vornado and I can touch the fixture without a problem...
The system is designed to run hot and those ballasts are different than the ATI.
That is the main reason why it doesn't really cook the bulbs!
I'm using Giesemann and KZ bulbs for the T5s and 250W Radiums in that fixture. The single T5 reflector for 2 bulbs isn't as good as we would have a single for each bulb, but it blends the spectrum of the T5s really well. As jda said... it's the halides that dictates what's gonna happen, mostly.
The whole system design allows the distribution. Love it!
The system is designed to run hot and those ballasts are different than the ATI.
That is the main reason why it doesn't really cook the bulbs!
I'm using Giesemann and KZ bulbs for the T5s and 250W Radiums in that fixture. The single T5 reflector for 2 bulbs isn't as good as we would have a single for each bulb, but it blends the spectrum of the T5s really well. As jda said... it's the halides that dictates what's gonna happen, mostly.
The whole system design allows the distribution. Love it!
A. grandis
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Good to know. Thanks!
lancesmith1
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I am happy that you are happy with your fixtures and that you are not depending on the T5s for contributing anything to the mix after a short time.
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leepink23
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What do you run now?
Reefcowboy
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So you are saying T5 fixtures without active cooling do not contribute to anything after a "short time"?
Have you heard of the TEK T5's?
I grew sps out of the water with that fixture.
There are tons of testing showing t5s keep up much longer than we first thought.
Debating how good the spectra is is pointless anyways
lancesmith1
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ATI Powermodule hybrid 8 x 39.
panic
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@jda from LS? Long time!
I wanted to add my experience with this comparison from having my reef up for almost 20 years. I'm a 400w Radium and mag ballast guy for all the reasons above. However, 2 years ago I switched from 3 of them in Lumenarc reflectors over a 220g to two Reefbreeders LEDs for a few reasons. I calculated a $40/month savings in electricity from the light ($480 per year), $80/month savings in the summer from no longer needing to lower my A/C temp to keep the tank cool (with fans) and run it for a longer season ($320 per year), don't need to buy 3x 400w Radiums at $70 each ($210 per year), replace about 1 ballast per year $150. So I'm saving a little of $1100 each year. Minus $700 fixture... you get the idea.
Also, I was getting tired of trimming the SPS away from the glass and the local shops can only trade so many of these mini-colonies I would chop off, I was tired of cleaning off the inside of the reflectors, I wanted a more streamlined look (I don't use a canopy), and I kind of wanted to see what the LED fuss was about.
Skip forward a few years. The LEDs still look great on top of the tank, the color is pretty good, I don't have to trim corals every few weeks. BUT, I have lost all of my millis, several chalices off the bottom, my basketball size hammer has shriveled up to half the size, my colonies no longer encrust so their foundation becomes weak when the top portion continues to branch, I have lost every yellow and red SPS I had. I'm going to try some Gen5 Radions when they come out since they are supposed to be miles ahead of LEDs from a few years ago. I might pick up some G4 before then, so we'll see how it goes.
I wanted to add my experience with this comparison from having my reef up for almost 20 years. I'm a 400w Radium and mag ballast guy for all the reasons above. However, 2 years ago I switched from 3 of them in Lumenarc reflectors over a 220g to two Reefbreeders LEDs for a few reasons. I calculated a $40/month savings in electricity from the light ($480 per year), $80/month savings in the summer from no longer needing to lower my A/C temp to keep the tank cool (with fans) and run it for a longer season ($320 per year), don't need to buy 3x 400w Radiums at $70 each ($210 per year), replace about 1 ballast per year $150. So I'm saving a little of $1100 each year. Minus $700 fixture... you get the idea.
Also, I was getting tired of trimming the SPS away from the glass and the local shops can only trade so many of these mini-colonies I would chop off, I was tired of cleaning off the inside of the reflectors, I wanted a more streamlined look (I don't use a canopy), and I kind of wanted to see what the LED fuss was about.
Skip forward a few years. The LEDs still look great on top of the tank, the color is pretty good, I don't have to trim corals every few weeks. BUT, I have lost all of my millis, several chalices off the bottom, my basketball size hammer has shriveled up to half the size, my colonies no longer encrust so their foundation becomes weak when the top portion continues to branch, I have lost every yellow and red SPS I had. I'm going to try some Gen5 Radions when they come out since they are supposed to be miles ahead of LEDs from a few years ago. I might pick up some G4 before then, so we'll see how it goes.
Yup, that is me... from a decade ago.
When you go back to MH, which is probably a inevitable, go with 150W or 250W next time and negate the heat and electrical savings... 150w will do fine with nearly all SPS and everything else and 250w can handle anything. Nobody needs 400w Halides unless you are covering a large area or going deep. You will still have to buy bulbs, though.
The G4s were supposed to be miles ahead of the G3... I would not expect too much more from the G5s.
When you go back to MH, which is probably a inevitable, go with 150W or 250W next time and negate the heat and electrical savings... 150w will do fine with nearly all SPS and everything else and 250w can handle anything. Nobody needs 400w Halides unless you are covering a large area or going deep. You will still have to buy bulbs, though.
The G4s were supposed to be miles ahead of the G3... I would not expect too much more from the G5s.
panic
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My other reef, a 36" deep 270, does great with just 2x 400s and that is what I've been running since I added it to the system. If I end up getting Radions for the 30" deep reef and don't care for the light spread, back to the MH for that one too. Good point on using the 250w as well!
