Led lights for a 90g

[Semaka]

so I am in the process of building a 90g reef tank. Just placed an order on a 48/18/24 main with a 40g sump.
Now my main dilemma is lighting.
I would like to go with LEDs. My budget is around 1500 but if I can bring it down it would allow for a nice controller :P.
I have narrowed it down to two options (don't be shy to suggest some other thing): 3 module Mazarra P series (the whole set would be 1534) and the other one is the Sunbrite F series (48 in long for 1099).
From the technical specs the sunbrites use older generation 5w XPG cool whites with XPE for the other channels. While the Mazarra use XMLs with some XPGs. Now bearing in mind that I'm a complete newb when it comes to saltwater aquariums/lighting are the Mazarras worth 400$ extra?.... would the sunbrites impede coral growth or limit my options as far as coral species go?

Which would you pick? do you have better options? point them out. Sry if there's a LED thread on these lights and I missed it.

[Nano]

welcome to canreef, have you thought of DIY Leds?

[Snaz]

DIY will save you tons of money and you well get the exact combination of emitters you want.
http://www.aquastyleonline.com This is where I bought mine. Love em.

[isaac1]

Not sure your location but if ur in or around edmonton i suggest going to red coral sea i beleave its called off fort road the owner showed me led set ups a bit pricey but defently has the best led displays and set up in edmonton

[Semaka]

No I did not bother to look into it. At this point I'm no where near versed enough to build one. The actual building is not the problem but this being my first tank it is hard to know what I need, what I'm going to like and what is going to work. I just felt that if the Sunbrites were decent enough I would buy those and eventually when I would be "old enough to feel ways about things" I might build a LED strip. At this point I thought it would be much safer to just buy one ready made.
out of curiosity how much would it cost to build an equivalent 48'' led strip?

[fishytime]

two AI sols would be more than adequate for your tank and would come in at around $900 with the optional controller.....that would save you some coin.....and ya, welcome to canreef

[Semaka]

Thx :)
I guess i should provide some more info. I would like something that would allow me to grow the majority of corals.
I did not look into the AI sols. Are they enough to cover the whole tank 48/18 ?
How would they stack against the other two?

[Cade]

Welcome!

Yah the most popular LED's seem to be Ecotech Radions and the AI Sol.

I have a 90 and if I had your budget I would perchase 2 Radions, you would never regret it.
But if i didnt feel like spending $1600 + hanging kit + shipping I would go for the AI's and Im sure I would never regret that either, I have spoke with many happy owners of those lights.

Some people may say that 3 AI's are necessary but you can always start with 2 and see how you like it.

Good luck and Im jelouse of your LED's whatever you choose. :razz:

[troni]

I definately suggest DIY modular led is a sponsor of the forum check it out. They also have apex controllers 15% off. If you don't wanna do diy they 2 most talked about are radion and the ai sol. Good luck.

[burgerchow]

I would wait til next week and check out the release of the new Kissel A350 led spotlights. Been doing a lot of research on the current A150, and they seem pretty impressive. You would probably only need 2 units for your . I will be replacing my MH with a pair of A350s as soon as they're available. The only led that can closely replicate MH, including the tank shimmer

[fishytime]

The only led that can closely replicate MH, including the tank shimmer

thats not true....most higher wattage LEDs will produce the shimmer....my Radion shimmers even with only the "royal blues"running at 3%

[Semaka]

yea there's a bunch of LEDs that provide the shimmer effect...
+ "you would probably need just two" does not sound very encouraging... more like I could probably get away with using only three.
the big question would be if I could get a complete system for about 1k cad that would deff be nice otherwise they will be cast in the same category as the radions :(

[Reef Supplies]

yea there's a bunch of LEDs that provide the shimmer effect...
+ "you would probably need just two" does not sound very encouraging... more like I could probably get away with using only three.
the big question would be if I could get a complete system for about 1k cad that would deff be nice otherwise they will be cast in the same category as the radions :(

:-)

http://www.reefsupplies.ca/canada/48-sunbrite-f-series-led-preorder/

- $1099
- Avail in May
- Latest LED tech.
- Cree 5w and 3w
- Full color : White, Blue, Red, Yellow and UV
- Iphone controllable

Read more here http://www.reefsupplies.ca/canada/sunbrite-led-f-series/

Btw: Our main depo is in Montreal (MET next to Hgreg)

thanks,
Ray

[RuGlu6]

Thx :)
I guess i should provide some more info. I would like something that would allow me to grow the majority of corals.
I did not look into the AI sols. Are they enough to cover the whole tank 48/18 ?
How would they stack against the other two?

To grow "majority of corals" all you need is two of these (http://www.aquatraders.com/EVO-48-LED-Reef-Bright-p/56234.htm) for about $320 +shipping and no need to spend $1500.

They are 3W LED's and this will be plenty of light for 48"x18" tank.
If you want it to be more blue you can get one of these (http://www.aquatraders.com/LED-Submersible-p/56223.htm) and zip tie it to the central brace of the tank just above the surface horizontally.

You can't dim or control these but hey, no need to spend big $$$ ether.
New LED's are popping out like mushrooms almost every 2 weeks now LOL.
You never know what will come out next and what will get obsolete soon. So why invest so much in something so rapidly evolving?

jmtcw

[04V10]

Hey guys,

For what it's worth I'm running the Mazarra S series on my 20 gal. I really like them and didn't feel like I spent too much, as they do what I need and they are easy to program, colors are great. I wish I could have gotten the P series for a bit more color adjusting, but they are good enough to grow pretty much anything.

However, I am going to bo converting to a Radion setup...when the wife doesn't notice...lol

[wmcinnes]

I have 2 AI Sol Superblues on my 90. Shimmers like no tomorrow.

[troni]

ya most of us know that already some are still left behind. good growth from your sols too?

[MarkoD]

I would wait til next week and check out the release of the new Kissel A350 led spotlights. Been doing a lot of research on the current A150, and they seem pretty impressive. You would probably only need 2 units for your . I will be replacing my MH with a pair of A350s as soon as they're available. The only led that can closely replicate MH, including the tank shimmer

Honestly. Ai sols are the best balance between quality ,features and price.

And they grow corals like crazy. I've had more sps growth in 5 months with sol
LEDs than I had in 1 year with metal halides

[Nano]

I would personally stay away from these "EVO" strips, they look to me like a "Made in Mexico" type of cheap Marineland knock off, and even marineland isnt up to par for saltwater..
To grow "majority of corals" all you need is two of these (http://www.aquatraders.com/EVO-48-LED-Reef-Bright-p/56234.htm) for about $320 +shipping and no need to spend $1500.

They are 3W LED's and this will be plenty of light for 48"x18" tank.
If you want it to be more blue you can get one of these (http://www.aquatraders.com/LED-Submersible-p/56223.htm) and zip tie it to the central brace of the tank just above the surface horizontally.

You can't dim or control these but hey, no need to spend big $$$ ether.
New LED's are popping out like mushrooms almost every 2 weeks now LOL.
You never know what will come out next and what will get obsolete soon. So why invest so much in something so rapidly evolving?

jmtcw

i know I have only had mine for a short type, but my zoas seem to love my leds, I have more growth (even with the crash) in the last 2 months then i did in 6 in my old nano under t5s.
ya most of us know that already some are still left behind. good growth from your sols too?

[Semaka]

I have a couple more weeks to decide but I'm still on the edge.
could I get away with 2 Mazarras P series in a 90g (48/18/24)?

[burgerchow]

check this out. New Kessil A350 ( aka tuna blue)
I'm getting a pair of them as soon as released from J & L. Each light should be the equivalent of a 250-300 watt MH

Looked at the AI's and Radions but their mounting options leave a lot to be desired. The Kessils are mounted on a flexible gooseneck which attaches to the back of the tank. Also they are the only true led designed for aquariums. They make their own leds. It is one single led, not a bunch of little ones put together.

http://reefbuilders.com/2012/04/04/kessil-tuna-blue-led/

[Midway]

Well I've had my 5 AI Sols over my 240G and in a short period of time I've seen lots of grow in some zoas and other corals and the colors??? Spectacular!!!

[fishmanty]

Also they are the only true led designed for aquariums. They make their own leds. It is one single led, not a bunch of little ones put together.

http://reefbuilders.com/2012/04/04/kessil-tuna-blue-led/

The Kessil's are actually a bunch tiny little LED's clustered together much closer than those in a Radion or AI Sol. They just appear to be one LED, because they are that close together. Look at one close up and you'll see the smaller LEDS packing into the "bulb".

[Cliff]

two AI sols would be more than adequate for your tank and would come in at around $900 with the optional controller.....that would save you some coin.....and ya, welcome to canreef

+1 to the above

I'm using three AI SOLs on my 120 and I like them a lot better than the 8 bulb T5HO fixture that I had. I am also using the baseline controller than AI sells. I have the whites at 45%, and the blues and royal blues at 75% and it looks a lot brighter than my old T5 fixture

Your 90 gallon should do just fine with two units and a controller

[troni]

check this out. New Kessil A350 ( aka tuna blue)
I'm getting a pair of them as soon as released from J & L. Each light should be the equivalent of a 250-300 watt MH

Looked at the AI's and Radions but their mounting options leave a lot to be desired. The Kessils are mounted on a flexible gooseneck which attaches to the back of the tank. Also they are the only true led designed for aquariums. They make their own leds. It is one single led, not a bunch of little ones put together.

http://reefbuilders.com/2012/04/04/kessil-tuna-blue-led/


With a bunch of little leds you get better covverage as with one big one you get light emitted from a single point. My guess is some shadows.
If the sol and radion were not designed for the aquarium what were they designed for?

[burgerchow]

The Kessil's are actually a bunch tiny little LED's clustered together much closer than those in a Radion or AI Sol. They just appear to be one LED, because they are that close together. Look at one close up and you'll see the smaller LEDS packing into the "bulb".

your right fishmanty . My bad. Here is their led technology. Jeff at J and L told me they were one giant led bulb, but on further research, they are lots of bunched up small led's. Point is that Kessil is an agricultural lighting company that has set it's sights on the aquarium industry, and they have designed their own led's just for us.

http://www.kessil.com/about/dense_matrix_led.php

[Cliff]

Looked at the AI's and Radions but their mounting options leave a lot to be desired. The Kessils are mounted on a flexible gooseneck which attaches to the back of the tank. Also they are the only true led designed for aquariums. They make their own leds. It is one single led, not a bunch of little ones put together.

Check out AI's website and you will see they use multi cree LEDs, each unit has eight clusters of three LEDs (one white, one blue and one royal blue). Could you be thinking of a different brand of fixture ?

http://www.aquaillumination.com/sol/

I can't comment on the mounting brackets as I mounted mine in a canopy

[Cliff]

Sorry burgerchow, I did not notice your above post before I typed the one above.

[The Grizz]

I would wait til next week and check out the release of the new Kissel A350 led spotlights. Been doing a lot of research on the current A150, and they seem pretty impressive. You would probably only need 2 units for your . I will be replacing my MH with a pair of A350s as soon as they're available. The only led that can closely replicate MH, including the tank shimmer

thats not true....most higher wattage LEDs will produce the shimmer....my Radion shimmers even with only the "royal blues"running at 3%

My DIY LED's from Modular LED have a great shimmer, not as much washout from the LED's as the MH & I am getting much better growth on everything in my tank under the LED'S

[The Grizz]

Looked at the AI's and Radions but their mounting options leave a lot to be desired.

there are some options out there to mount the AI & Radion out there, you just have to talk to the right people.

[mike31154]

As already mentioned in the thread, newer LED fixture & DIY options are appearing at a breakneck pace. I finally jumped off the fence earlier this year & decided on a high power 10 watt LED array build. These LED arrays, or multi chips are available in increasingly high wattages, over 100 watts per chip and some of the 100 watt chips are capable of handling twice that power, i.e. over 200 watts. They are also now available with different LED colours suitable for our hobby combined on the same chip.

Here's a photo of some of the components I've used. 10 watt LEDs in 3 different colours. Decided not to use the optics, they were the wrong size (made for 20 watt & larger LEDs) & the glass lens is way too heavy. I have 27 of these LEDs on my fixture & if I used those optics it would weigh a ton. One of the reasons I chose to build this way is to save weight by not using large heatsinks. I'm getting plenty of punch & very good colour blend without optics & the fixture 8" above the water. I've found the 10 watt LEDs to be a great balance between power & ability to blend colour without needing too many of them.

https://public.blu.livefilestore.com/y1pQt2zCiKn5B6cZKVg-f4t3K5jT3HIkEOU6hzVDGCKmWPomR1r16OE23aQ5vdWF-NRcPiZ1OamGpt_Qsg9ZCF5rQ/P1040642e.JPG?psid=1

I have a thread of the build going in the DIY forum here. I suspect that if you were to disassemble a Kessil LED, you would find similar components, a high power LED, probably in the 30 to 50 watt range, with optics & fan.

[Semaka]

Well boys and girls I have finaly decided on a LED fixture. It is a diy from Rapid LED. 2x 36 Premium LED DIY with XPGs and XTEs (2 to 1 ratio of Royal blue and Cool White XPGs). Comes with a dimmable drive. I picked 4 9x6 drilled black Heat sinks. To this I'll add another dimmable drive, able to drive 14 extra leds. These will be 8 UV and 4 probably red idk yet (maybe green). An array of 4 complete modules of a total of 86 leds comes to a total cost of 845$ transport included. Thus, allowing me to connect this bad boy to a brand new Neptune Apex lite that I can now afford :).
Yey for DIY thunderstorms :)