Viparspectra vs Phlizon

[Fishy888]

I’m having a hard time finding the Viparspectra 300w light which is what I need for my 90 gallon cube. It’s going to be a month or two before I get a light but I watch eBay, Amazon for new and used lights and Facebook marketplace in the hopes of finding a good deal on a used light. I was seeing the Viparspectra 300w reef light on both eBay and Amazon but suddenly they’re gone from both.

If I can’t get the Viparspectra are the Phlizon lights any good? Are they comparable to the Viparspectra for quality of both PAR, spectrum, and construction?

I’m seriously thinking about metal halide especially since I’d only need one and since I have a 90 gallon cube, which is about 30” x 30” x 25”, there’s no center brace to melt. Plus I love how natural it looks and the shimmer effect. Since my tank is 25 inches deep I’d likely need 400W. It’s also getting harder to find decent prices on lamps. As a result halides will be a last resort.

 

[Ron Reefman]

I just got a Phlizon led and it seems to be reasonable well made. Although it's 2 channels, it only has one plug. So you can't turn off the white channel for sunrise and sunset effect. But my frags are doing just fine.

 

[oreo54]

Keep in mind a "300w" is not 300 watts
This is from a horticulture "300w" model as a viparspectra example:

• Replaces a 250W HPS/MH
• Actual Power Draw: 130W±3% at 120V

And the "165" is like 110 watts.

Now this brand ( not judging quality)
is at least honest

Actual Power Consumption: 120 Watts +/- 5%

As to the differences between the multiple brands of almost identical boxes...???
Brs did a comparison video with a few models.

As to viparspectra seems they are leaning to horticulture but keeping their bread and butter 165 reef line.

Wattshine, Chizon, Viparspectra, Relassy, Wills , Arknoah, ect. hard to is keep track, Also sometimes hard to figure REAL wattage, harder to judge quality.

If your going by price point in the short run mh may be best, especially if you think you need 400 watts.
Price what it would cost you for a mh system.

I'd suggest you need 2 " black boxes".
The lensing is pretty tight you they seem to perform outside their class.

 

[Cudaman]

I’ve got 2 of the Viparspectra 165w lamp assemblies for sale .. less than 2 years on them … PM me if interested !

 

[HighlandReef]

When I was in the process of switching over to led, I tried several of the black box leds.
I made sure to order from Amazon, that way if I didn’t like something, returns were hassle free. They all went back, except for the Viparspectra.
Viparspectra by far had the best color spectrum out of all the black box leds I tried, including phlizon. I tried several.
I tried some other black box leds that were highly recommended by others on the forums but what I found was the white channels tended to run very yellow. Hated the color spectrum of the white channels on the others, just too yellow.
Viparspectra stopped making the 300w, probably cause it was overkill.
Most of these black box leds are rated at 165w, but almost all of them run around 55w per channel. On most, you’ll have 2 channels, white and blues.
I have 4 Viparspectra 165w over my 210.
I also upgraded to 120* lenses, helps with the spread.
I have the blue channels set to 30% and white channel set to 1%, that gives me just over 100 par on the sand bed. I have a mixed reef and that works well for me.
I have also read good things on noopsyche but I don’t have any personal experience with that led light.
In general, These led’s are very powerful and if you crank up the channels, you can easily cook corals. It doesn’t take much to hit 100 par on the sand bed. My point is be careful when setup led lights, it’s easy to crank up the power going by just visual. You really need access to a par meter to properly setup led lighting.

regarding MH, I have run MH/T5 combo for years. I switched to led earlier this year and what I am finding is my corals are not growing as fast as they did with MH.
With that said, led has plenty to grow corals, it’s just I noticing better growth with MH.
I ran 3 - 250w MH w/ T5 (ati purple plus and true actinic) over my 210 (6’ tank), that was plenty for my mixed reef.
my point is, you probably don’t need 400w MH.
I am still on the fence about led, I am trying them but if they don’t work out, I am hanging my MH’s back over my tanks. I guess time will tell.
If your cube is the typical 90 cube (30x30x24), you could run a 250mh with some supplemental T5’s.
SPS dominated tank different animal and I won’t go into all that now.

 

[billyocean]

When I was in the process of switching over to led, I tried several of the black box leds.
I made sure to order from Amazon, that way if I didn’t like something, returns were hassle free. They all went back, except for the Viparspectra.
Viparspectra by far had the best color spectrum out of all the black box leds I tried, including phlizon. I tried several.
I tried some other black box leds that were highly recommended by others on the forums but what I found was the white channels tended to run very yellow. Hated the color spectrum of the white channels on the others, just too yellow.
Viparspectra stopped making the 300w, probably cause it was overkill.
Most of these black box leds are rated at 165w, but almost all of them run around 55w per channel. On most, you’ll have 2 channels, white and blues.
I have 4 Viparspectra 165w over my 210.
I also upgraded to 120* lenses, helps with the spread.
I have the blue channels set to 30% and white channel set to 1%, that gives me just over 100 par on the sand bed. I have a mixed reef and that works well for me.
I have also read good things on noopsyche but I don’t have any personal experience with that led light.
In general, These led’s are very powerful and if you crank up the channels, you can easily cook corals. It doesn’t take much to hit 100 par on the sand bed. My point is be careful when setup led lights, it’s easy to crank up the power going by just visual. You really need access to a par meter to properly setup led lighting.

regarding MH, I have run MH/T5 combo for years. I switched to led earlier this year and what I am finding is my corals are not growing as fast as they did with MH.
With that said, led has plenty to grow corals, it’s just I noticing better growth with MH.
I ran 3 - 250w MH w/ T5 (ati purple plus and true actinic) over my 210 (6’ tank), that was plenty for my mixed reef.
my point is, you probably don’t need 400w MH.
I am still on the fence about led, I am trying them but if they don’t work out, I am hanging my MH’s back over my tanks. I guess time will tell.
If your cube is the typical 90 cube (30x30x24), you could run a 250mh with some supplemental T5’s.
SPS dominated tank different animal and I won’t go into all that now.

I was going to comment but this pretty much covers it. I have mine mounted at 14" with stock lenses and at 80% blues only its about 180 at the sand.

 

[Fishy888]

I think I’ll go with MH most likely. I’m getting a highboy MH fixture today for $15. Even if only the ballast and socket can be used I’m already ahead.

I really appreciate the responses though. My cube is 29 x 29 x25 or 26. I definitely want SPS and clams but I also want to keep softies and LPS. Mainly SPS however.

 

[Brooklands]

I have three 450 watt viparspectras that I'll be selling in the next 1-2 weeks. I'm getting a 215g for more space and I want to go with black units to match the tank. These are the heavy-duty steel power-coated white units, 3 channels, dimmable. They run cool and have been dependable for me. The tank photo shows my 80 wide with 2 units running above it.

 

[oreo54]

I have three 450 watt viparspectras that I'll be selling in the next 1-2 weeks. I'm getting a 215g for more space and I want to go with black units to match the tank. These are the heavy-duty steel power-coated white units, 3 channels, dimmable. They run cool and have been dependable for me. The tank photo shows my 80 wide with 2 units running above it.

Are these the red, white, and blue hort. units?
I didn't know that they made a reef version..

 

[Gkrockman]

I was going to comment but this pretty much covers it. I have mine mounted at 14" with stock lenses and at 80% blues only its about 180 at the sand.

I have the 360 Viparspectra about 12 inches over my 30 gallon for a couple of years. Great light system for the price. Noticed the comment about "stock lenses". What is it and what does it do. Thanks.

 

[billyocean]

I have the 360 Viparspectra about 12 inches over my 30 gallon for a couple of years. Great light system for the price. Noticed the comment about "stock lenses". What is it and what does it do. Thanks.

I believe they are 90 degree lenses which is a more narrow "beam" of light from each diode. The 90 degree holds better par at deeper depths but will spotlight if hung low over over more shallow tanks. Mine is a 125 standard at 21 or 20 inches deep. If i hang them low i can see the "disco ball" effect. Some people swap out the lenses for 120 degree lenses for a wider spread and drop the mount height lower. Some people take them off all together and drop them super low. Not sure on how the 120 degree effect par but removing the lenses will drop par significantly so lights will have to be cranked up from what I've read. Hope this helps