Help me decide on radion lighting

[CBlair]

Hi guys,
I have a 24x24x12 shallow cube that is just starting to be stocked. I currently have an AI sol blue on the tank but I find the color very monotone. I have been researching the new radion fixtures and they seem to be a more full spectrum fixture. My question is which fixture would be more suited for my tank, the radion g2 or the radion g2 pro. The pro seems as though it adds a more complete spectrum but I'm worried it would be too powerful on my shallow tank and is it really worth the extra $250. Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[OffDaHook]

I am in the same boat with the same tank. I ordered the G2 and its still brand new in the sealed box. I am on the fence with returning it for the pro. This will be a frag tank and am thinking that the full spectrum from the pro can provide better results for the frags. In regards to the pro being to powerful, I am thinking that we can just set the intensity lower and should be good to go. That’s one of the benefits of LED's. In regards to the extra $250 being worth it. I have been reading and reading and it seems that reefers are saying yes. That the GHL Mitras and the Radion pros are top of the line and provide the best results.

I will be tagging along on your thread to see if anyone else chime in.

[smkooq]

If you like the Radions then yes the Pro version is worth it, as this is as close to full spectrum as they offer.

You really should not be worried about a fixture being too powerful, the Radion Pro maxed out cannot even replicate the sun in strength. You can also easily acclimate corals to higher light, as there are many people growing low light corals directly under 400 watt Metal Halides.

If you can't justify another 250$ for extra LEDs the Gen 2 that you have, is also an excellent fixture that is capable of growing any SPS/Clams/and various other intense light needing corals. In the end if you can afford the Radion Pro, and more importantly want the Radion Pro, the real question is why should you not buy it?

[CBlair]

Thanks guys, i was leaning towards the pro versionjust for the full spectrum aspect. Seems like alot of what i have read in reviewing these lights people are saying if you can swing it, then the pro is the way to go.

[Ron Reefman]

Have you even looked at the Reef Breeders Photon 16 or 24? You can do a custom led layout and make it as 'full spectrum' as you want. And leds can be switched out if you want... try that with a Radion. It has a built in controller/timer, runs dead quiet and room temp cool and in my 70G hex anemone tank, has higher PAR than the Radion that I sold! Oh, and the Photon 16 or 24 is 1/3rd the cost of a Radion. They are even a sponsor here on RC!
http://reefbreeders.com/it2040.html

[smkooq]

Originally Posted by Ron Reefman

has higher PAR than the Radion that I sold!
http://reefbreeders.com/it2040.html

Did you do your own par readings? Because most of the Par readings i've seen is as low as half of the Radions par levels.

[GroktheCube]

I'd go for the pros if you do. I think there's a lot to be said for more light in different parts of the spectrum. If it's too bright, you can always dim it.

Personally, I'd be inclined to go with a slightly less expensive option, and put the extra towards a tank controller or something along those lines (I used buildmyled.com for my 120, and used the savings to get an Apex with all the bells and whistles). Kessil and GHL might also be worth a look. I've been very impressed with everything I've seen/heard/read about the new Kessil lights.

[mikeatjac]

I would go for the Pro too. The PAR level is much higher than the G1 and more lights.

[JP Reef]

Originally Posted by smkooq

Did you do your own par readings? Because most of the Par readings i've seen is as low as half of the Radions par levels.

PAR is not the best measure for LED's because most of the light emitted is not registering on the PAR meter. Apogee even admits this. PAR doesn't distinguish between light frequencies, and is more sensitive to the useless spectrum of light that corals need.

[smkooq]

Originally Posted by JP Reef

PAR is not the best measure for LED's because most of the light emitted is not registering on the PAR meter. Apogee even admits this. PAR doesn't distinguish between light frequencies, and is more sensitive to the useless spectrum of light that corals need.

Actually it has been stated that Par meters are a very practical use of μmol for Light-Emitting Diodes (LEDs) with a spectral error of less then 10%.

[JP Reef]

10% is the error for just 448nm on an Apogee meter. Add in the errors for the white and any other blue/violet LED's and you have a pretty significant error.

[smkooq]

Originally Posted by JP Reef

10% is the error for just 448nm on an Apogee meter. Add in the errors for the white and any other blue/violet LED's and you have a pretty significant error.

cumulative spectral error for narrow/broad/mixed band LED's are 8% or less. Metal Halides/ florescent are at about 5%.

[GoVols1983]

I will sell you my Radion Pro. I am moving up in tank size and cannot afford to get another, so I am going with something cheaper.

[04mach1]

I have a radion gen1 over the exact tank and its plenty for me. Would I like a pro, of course but not for another $300.

[CBlair]

Originally Posted by 04mach1

I have a radion gen1 over the exact tank and its plenty for me. Would I like a pro, of course but not for another $300.

How do you find the colors? From what I've read just this afternoon it seems like the pro version is getting good reviews in respect to the fact they appear to be fairly close to a halide bulb in the way the colors appear. It's a shame the AI sol blue appears so washed out. It's a very Unappealing color to my eye anyway, definitely missing the red/violet part of the spectrum. I would like to settle for a cheaper option but feel like I have already done that with the sol. But thanks everyone for your insights and opinions. lighting is always a very debatable topic in this hobby and everyone's opinions are valid so thank you.

[GoVols1983]

The pro looks awesome. I would keep mine and buy another if i could afford it, but its either the light or a bigger tank.

[CBlair]

Haha I hear you on that, a bigger tank may have just fallen on my lap tonight. If the deal goes through I think the pro it will be

[Ron Reefman]

Originally Posted by smkooq

Did you do your own par readings? Because most of the Par readings i've seen is as low as half of the Radions par levels.

I have an Apogee PAR meter and yes I did my own readings. Where in the world did you hear EverGrow lights have half the PAR of Radions? There have been several guys in the 'Chinese LED' thread that have had the same or similar results as me. Nobody has ever said they get lower reading. I had a Radion over my frag tank and it's a great light. It's WAY overpriced and having to hook up a computer to change setting is a royal PITA. But it got me to switch from MH & t5's to all leds.

[smkooq]

Originally Posted by Ron Reefman

I have an Apogee PAR meter and yes I did my own readings. Where in the world did you hear EverGrow lights have half the PAR of Radions? There have been several guys in the 'Chinese LED' thread that have had the same or similar results as me. Nobody has ever said they get lower reading. I had a Radion over my frag tank and it's a great light. It's WAY overpriced and having to hook up a computer to change setting is a royal PITA. But it got me to switch from MH & t5's to all leds.

i'm not saying they have half the par necessarily.

When you stated that Chinese LEDs has more PAR for a third of the price of a Radion, i'm guessing you were regarding the Radion Pro. Well there is a PAR chart posted here of the Radion Pro getting 300+ PAR on the sand bed of a 30" tall tank. Where as I see the Chinese LED's getting posted anywhere from 150-200 on the sand bed of a 24" tall tank.

Just curious where your statement "has higher PAR than the Radion that I sold! Oh, and the Photon 16 or 24 is 1/3rd the cost of a Radion." was being pulled from.

And when you state that the fixture is way overpriced, what are you basing the pricing on? Because in marketing, it seems to be competing with fixtures such as Mitras, and Vertex Illuminas.

[Meanmike]

Isn't ecotech an Amrican company?

[GoVols1983]

Yes, ecotech is American. They are in PA.

[Meanmike]

Originally Posted by GoVols1983

Yes, ecotech is American. They are in PA.

That's what I thought. So why are people comparing them to cheap Chinese stuff?

And I by compare I'm referring to the fact that its cheaper for the Chinese company to build than an American one.

[Clownin Aroun]

I would definitely go for the pro, the extra colors, extra LEDs and extra wattage is with out a doubt worth the upgrade from gen 2 to pro!!!


I have the mitras currently and the pro is the best comparison to the mitras so far!

[coralhound]

I went with the gen 2 about 6 weeks ago and had to reduce the output to 75% and then am using the automatic acclimation feature to bring up the light to that level. I selected 6 weeks to ramp

I have the light suspended 8-9" over the water, it's a 24x24x16 glass cages cube. Par readings with a calibrated apogee meter were 150 in the sand at 75%

The pro is really for deeper tanks. I hope that helps, let me know if you have more questions.

Chris

[coralhound]

Originally Posted by OffDaHook

I am in the same boat with the same tank. I ordered the G2 and its still brand new in the sealed box. I am on the fence with returning it for the pro. This will be a frag tank and am thinking that the full spectrum from the pro can provide better results for the frags. In regards to the pro being to powerful, I am thinking that we can just set the intensity lower and should be good to go. That’s one of the benefits of LED's. In regards to the extra $250 being worth it. I have been reading and reading and it seems that reefers are saying yes. That the GHL Mitras and the Radion pros are top of the line and provide the best results.

I will be tagging along on your thread to see if anyone else chime in.

Unless you plan on using it over another tank that is more than 24" deep I couldn't justify the additional $250. The gen 2 will likely need to be reduced power for a 12" deep tank. The excellent feature is you can ramp the power up automatically over several weeks and monitor the corals so they don't get stressed so ultimately you could go full power.