XM 20k

TyreeUM · Dec 17, 2006

Does anyone have any experience with XM 400 watt 20ks? I have to replace all of the bulbs in the 1,500 over the next two months and I am thinking about switching from radium to XM. I have always used radiums but It would be sweet to save some money-I understand the phos. burns up a lot faster in these bulbs but the tank only has lps and softies. Any input would be great on color and overall look.

Raptor · Dec 17, 2006

I love the 20ks by XM on a 400watt ballast. Nice crisp color, and more par than a 15k.
You'll like it if you like your radium, a little less blue but cool. Thats if youre running a mag 400 ballast.
I have heard mixed results from e ballasts.

twon8 · Dec 17, 2006

i don't think the xm's run well on hqi though, which is what i assume you are running with the radiums?

bryan · Dec 17, 2006

I'll second Creetins recommendation, I love my 400 watt XM 20k's on mag. ballasts.

143gadgets · Dec 17, 2006

I am using 250w 20Ks and I love the color(SPS and Zoas)

Edit: I use electronic ballasts(Icecaps)

BudweiserSelect · Dec 17, 2006

i run xm20ks on a pfo hqi ballast and love the results. twon8 why wouldn't they run well on hqis? i use to run xm20ks on hamilton ballasts and the color was a lot more blue. i think the hqis overdrive the bulb and the result is a brighter whiterblue. hehe does that make sense?

Angel

surfn · Dec 17, 2006

the fact that HQI ballasts overdrive the SE bulbs is an understatement. lol

magnetic ballasts overdrive SE bulbs pretty well. I run a 250w HQI ballast on a radium bulb, and i beleive i read somewhere that it runs closer to 330w. severely depleting the life of the radium bulb.

budweiser.......how long does your XM20k last until you need to change the bulb?

i also heard XM20k's dont run well on HQI's (heard this over on the sps forum on RC).

Raptor · Dec 17, 2006

A friend runs the xm's on a hqi and loves them, Not as blue as the radiums, but alot cheaper if youre going to scrap em every 4-5 mos

surfn · Dec 17, 2006

yeah, if i go back to school and feel the financial pinch on me again, then i'll obviously have to switch to XM20k's run on my 250w HQI ballast, b/c its the cheapest yet most effective bulb out there.

so i'm plenty interested in this topic. anyone have any pics comparing a radium and XM20k on HQI ballast? (if you can even tell based on a lousy picture)

BudweiserSelect · Dec 17, 2006

surfn i really can't say how long they last yet. i ran my xms on the hamilton ballast for over a year then i switched to radiums for 7 months when i got the hqi ballast, after that i ran aquaconnects 14k for about 8 months. And now i am back on the xms and they've been running for the past 5-6months

Angel

TyreeUM · Dec 17, 2006

awesome thanks so much for the all the help. I think i am going to run the 20k xms and throw my hamilton mags back on. They are cheap and I think will be fine. Thanks you guys-I will post some pics of the 1,500 with the XMS next week once I have them burned in and looking nice.

twon8 · Dec 17, 2006

why? because they are tailored to be run on magnetics and the magnetics run them best, both brighter and more power.

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/feb2004/feature2.htm
from sanjay's page
XM 400W 20000K

Along with the XM 10000K lamp, Hellolights.com also introduced a new lamp labeled as 20000K. As expected this lamp has a large spectral peak at 454nm (Figure 2) and as shown in Table 3 this lamp performs best with a M59 ballast. When used with the PFO-HQI ballast, the performance was slightly lower.

xm bulbs were designed to be run on magnetics, and while hqi generally do run bulbs brighter, it is not an absolute. `