I am looking at the AI sol, but it's only about 12inches long and I will need 2, will these 2 units be enough to light my tank and grow great coral?:lookaround:
LED'S (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter BlacknBlue2
- Start date
What size tank, and what corals do you wish to keep?
cubetankguy
its hip to be square
reefbreeders... 200 bucks shipped... per unit... ai what 500 plus per unit... just sayin
I was going to say the same thing.
OP
OP
reefbreeders in china, and AI is usa, plus ai is 399 for a 55g tank
cubetankguy
its hip to be square
1 fixture will not cover a 48" long tank.... so youll spend 400 with reefbreeder rather than 800 for ai... and considering what you were saying 6 weeks ago about $$... 400 trumps 800 all day every day...
reefbreeder has a us distributer.... look under the chineese led group buy threads
reefbreeder has a us distributer.... look under the chineese led group buy threads
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Kepler
Former: Koletang
Do not go with the sol. It is not full spectrum and it caused many problems for me and several others I know.
Go with a full spectrum LED. (reefbreeders, vega, radion, etc.)
Go with a full spectrum LED. (reefbreeders, vega, radion, etc.)
OP
OP
http://reefbreeders.com/photon48.html
ok, how about these, their 449 bucks and this unit is 48in long, and would be exactly what I need
ok, how about these, their 449 bucks and this unit is 48in long, and would be exactly what I need
cubetankguy
its hip to be square
http://reefbreeders.com/it2080.html
photon32 is what I would go with if I were you
the photon 48 is 500 buck fyi
photon32 is what I would go with if I were you
the photon 48 is 500 buck fyi
OP
OP
even though it's a full 12in shorter?
cubetankguy
its hip to be square
light spreads....
reef junkie
Senior Member
Stick with t5s
6" on either side of the fixture isn't that big of deal and certainly can make it work.
In the grand scheme of things and thinking 5+ years out, I'd go with the 48" too. Not that much more money. Lord knows you will probably waste more money than that at some point in his hobby. Especially since there is a crossbrace to deal with that will block the center portion of the 32"
In the grand scheme of things and thinking 5+ years out, I'd go with the 48" too. Not that much more money. Lord knows you will probably waste more money than that at some point in his hobby. Especially since there is a crossbrace to deal with that will block the center portion of the 32"
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Bowser
Senior Member
I ended up going with 2 16inch ones, the light spreads out pretty far and i could see that the 32" could cover my 75g tank pretty well. If I could I'd go for the 48" just for aesthetics.
If you want something from the US, you could always drop a bunch more money on the radions, I haven't heard bad stuff about their new stuff
If you want something from the US, you could always drop a bunch more money on the radions, I haven't heard bad stuff about their new stuff
Nanofreak79
zoapalythoaddict
You get what you pay for. Yes the knock off lights are adequate, but you get much higher quality in the AI's or Radions for example. They are also made here, supporting US made products. Customer service and warranty work is easier when dealing in the states. The lights are cheaper for a reason, not to knock the members that have them. In this hobby buying something just to save a buck isn't always the best solution.
They aren't knock offs actually. There is nothing about them that resembles any other light on the market currently. I will also say they are more than adequate....... have you used these lights to base this opinion on? I would invite you over to view my system now and then a year from now to see how well these LED's are working for proof of this. As with anything, you need to properly acclimate your tank to the huge change these Lights will provide and keep them longer than 6 months before you can say they are worth it or not.
What irritates me about the USA made lights is if they cared soo much about boasting their lights are made here why can't they make their fixtures more affordable? No import fees, no overseas manufacturing cost, parts made here in the US?? doubt it.....We already have expensive light options from everywhere else, Germany, Italy, Japan, etc. They are great lights but couldn't they charge a little less!!! The Chinese LED lights have been well documented that they have/can grow beautiful corals. The PAR/PUR and spectrum readings show that they are as good as the more expensive lights and as far as I'm concerned are built with great quality for the price.
As far as customer service is concerned there are three authorized US distributors who can do repairs/replacement under warranty which is 2-3 years depending on where you buy. Even if you buy them over seas their customer service is excellent from my personal experience! I dropped one of my D120's in the tank (along with down some stairs but thats a different story!) I contacted Evergrow directly for help (they were very prompt in responding), after explaining to them what happened and what I needed they sent me every single part needed PLUS extra LED's (free mind you) for 58.00 shipped and I received it within 7 days! That included two new drivers, three fans, two dimmers, two power switches, and wire harness. I can prove this with my receipt and shipping label!
It doesn't have to be expensive to be good. I got what I paid for and more! As an example, I have used these Chinese dual head circulation pumps in my tank for over two years with no problems and will be switching over to Jebao once they come in too (even without a warranty!). I have had the MP10's and the expensive LED's but with more products being made in China with better quality America better wake up and start doing things better price wise if they want to get my dollars!
I'll stick with these lights and enjoy them. If I ever have problems I'm sure I can either replace or repair them for less than the price of either of the more expensive lights out there.....at least twice over!
Whew!! Sorry for the rant! Just want to give my opinion/experience on this too!
What irritates me about the USA made lights is if they cared soo much about boasting their lights are made here why can't they make their fixtures more affordable? No import fees, no overseas manufacturing cost, parts made here in the US?? doubt it.....We already have expensive light options from everywhere else, Germany, Italy, Japan, etc. They are great lights but couldn't they charge a little less!!! The Chinese LED lights have been well documented that they have/can grow beautiful corals. The PAR/PUR and spectrum readings show that they are as good as the more expensive lights and as far as I'm concerned are built with great quality for the price.
As far as customer service is concerned there are three authorized US distributors who can do repairs/replacement under warranty which is 2-3 years depending on where you buy. Even if you buy them over seas their customer service is excellent from my personal experience! I dropped one of my D120's in the tank (along with down some stairs but thats a different story!) I contacted Evergrow directly for help (they were very prompt in responding), after explaining to them what happened and what I needed they sent me every single part needed PLUS extra LED's (free mind you) for 58.00 shipped and I received it within 7 days! That included two new drivers, three fans, two dimmers, two power switches, and wire harness. I can prove this with my receipt and shipping label!
It doesn't have to be expensive to be good. I got what I paid for and more! As an example, I have used these Chinese dual head circulation pumps in my tank for over two years with no problems and will be switching over to Jebao once they come in too (even without a warranty!). I have had the MP10's and the expensive LED's but with more products being made in China with better quality America better wake up and start doing things better price wise if they want to get my dollars!
I'll stick with these lights and enjoy them. If I ever have problems I'm sure I can either replace or repair them for less than the price of either of the more expensive lights out there.....at least twice over!
Whew!! Sorry for the rant! Just want to give my opinion/experience on this too!
BashfulBacterium
Senior Member
Now THIS is how to make an argument! Might look into these myself....
Nanofreak79
zoapalythoaddict
I'm glad you like your lights, I personally would never use them. To each there own I guess. The apperance or asthetics of the unit are terrible. Everything seems to be made in china, thats not always a good thing IMO. Support your country by paying more for the light realizing that our workers make more money on a annual and per hour basis, and don't have sweat shops that pay people peanuts to make such products. The difference is made up somewhere. Bridglux LEDs are half the price of cree's alone, so I could argue that saves quite a bit upfront. I dont care what it says the bins are terrible compared to the higher quality fixtures. I'm not familiar with guts of the fixture as far as drivers and other components so who knows about those costs. I have no experience with your fixture nor do I plan on ever purchasing one. The Vega's color, control, and overall quality far surpass the alibaba style fixtures......made in the USA anyday
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Do those premium companies actually say that the components of these "USA" made lights are actually made in the US? Just because the light comes from a US based company and assembled in the US doesn't mean it's made in the US...
I'm all for supporting US made things and US companies, but when they are charging such a premium for something that isn't proven to demand that premium price, it just seems elitist and a little silly to buy it simply because it was created by a US company and it's the "it" thing to have....
I'm all for supporting US made things and US companies, but when they are charging such a premium for something that isn't proven to demand that premium price, it just seems elitist and a little silly to buy it simply because it was created by a US company and it's the "it" thing to have....