would like your input please on seahorses

[rayjay]

Jeff, it's great that you are researching before buying.
While there are a few people that succeed with keeping seahorses in various set ups with other tank mates and in coral tanks and indeed at temperatures not recommended, but they are in the minority and unfortunately for every one that exists there are probably hundreds if not thousands that fail that way.
When I first started I picked recommendations that I wanted to adhere to and ignored some others because I thought that my 12 yrs of reefing (at that time) would ensure my success.
Well, my seahorses paid the price.
Seahorse keeping can be fraught with so many problems even when you do everything to minimize chances of losses, but ignoring them definitely makes success much more fleeting.
I would suggest you start off keeping seahorses under the most stringent conditions aiding their success, and if you get past a year that way then you might consider doing some of the other things you would like to do with the tank.
Buy TRUE captive bred, keep a species only tank, start with a sterile system and cycle tank completely, maintain tank temperatures between 68° and 74°, and set up a very frequent, relentless housekeeping regime.