Show Us Your LED Tanks

[ReefOcean]

Originally Posted by sphelps

I don't really buy into the fact LEDs will come down as much as people seem to think.

Percvisely. Sort of like how Metal halide arent coming down, yet there is competition for cheaper chinese products like odyssea.

People tend to forget the prices are set to tollerances created by the consumer. Not by competition. It is the consumer that decides that the prices are too high from company A, and decides to go to company B. Just Because company B is cheaper, doesnt mean company A through Z is going to lower prices.

There is also a matter of technology and patents. High power LEDs cost a lot of money per unit. Cicuitry, drivers and power supplies from respectible manufactureres cost money as well. When you are buying a system like Vertex and the late PFO Solaris, you are paying for the materials, and a niche-market adjusted margin. Yes, let's not forget that the aquarium market is a niche, in a niche-market companies have to increase their margines to adjust for the fact their market is small, and volume sales are low.

Besides, there ARE cheap LED fixtures out there, but they are made with substandard materials.

Expect their pricing to stay relatively the same for a very long time.

[whatcaneyedo]

Originally Posted by ReefOcean

Percvisely. Sort of like how Metal halide arent coming down, yet there is competition for cheaper chinese products like odyssea.t mean company A through Z is going to lower prices.

You sure? The price of each of my metal halide pendants has dropped $50 in the last 3 years.


... So does anyone have any LED tank pictures to show off?

[daniella3d]

what about colour in SPS with LED? Everyone I know who tried LED with SPS changed that after a year or two because they did not like how the color in their SPS turned out.

What about a hot pink birdnest under LED? what about those crazy color we seen in SPS? can it be done with LED and if so, where are the pics?

[ReefOcean]

Originally Posted by whatcaneyedo

You sure? The price of each of my metal halide pendants has dropped $50 in the last 3 years.


... So does anyone have any LED tank pictures to show off?

From where? I bet you, that manufactuer wholesale prices didnt go down. Perhaps the company adjusted it's price integrity and allowed retailers to sell for less. Perhaps the company outsourced to China and it temporarily beinifting from lower production costs. There are a lot of variables. Regardless, inflation and volume usually effects the cost of goods. If these products are made in China, guaranteed that prices are going up, not down.

If they are made in the US and Canada, where inflation is a bit more under control you wont see a significant price drop but not a price increase either. People have to understand. LED lights are not PCs or cars. They arent purchased by everybody on the planet. There arent investors chucking billions at Vertex, building up their infrastructure. It just simply isnt economically plausable.

Not to mention, the patents that need to be paid to manufacture these things. When you consider base cost for material, a limited consumer base and inflation, prices will not drop and if they do, I would not invest money into those companies that are desperately dropping prices to save themselves...they are going under.

[whatcaneyedo]

Originally Posted by ReefOcean

From where? I bet you, that manufactuer wholesale prices didnt go down. Perhaps the company adjusted it's price integrity and allowed retailers to sell for less. Perhaps the company outsourced to China and it temporarily beinifting from lower production costs. There are a lot of variables. Regardless, inflation and volume usually effects the cost of goods. If these products are made in China, guaranteed that prices are going up, not down.

If they are made in the US and Canada, where inflation is a bit more under control you wont see a significant price drop but not a price increase either. People have to understand. LED lights are not PCs or cars. They arent purchased by everybody on the planet. There arent investors chucking billions at Vertex, building up their infrastructure. It just simply isnt economically plausable.

Not to mention, the patents that need to be paid to manufacture these things. When you consider base cost for material, a limited consumer base and inflation, prices will not drop and if they do, I would not invest money into those companies that are desperately dropping prices to save themselves...they are going under.

Sorry it was $40 not $50. I found my old receipt which says $169.95, currently on their website they are $129.95. They are Lumenmax 3s that I bought at J&L.

Everyone in the developed world is using LEDs now. They're in consumer goods, homes, office buildings and industrial plants. They're also in PCs and cars.

[sphelps]

Originally Posted by whatcaneyedo

Sorry it was $40 not $50. I found my old receipt which says $169.95, currently on their website they are $129.95. They are Lumenmax 3s that I bought at J&L.

Everyone in the developed world is using LEDs now. They're in consumer goods, homes, office buildings and industrial plants. They're also in PCs and cars.

Where is this developed world?? I've never seen an office building or industrial plant that uses LEDs for lighting and I'm a contractor that works in different offices and manufacturing plants all the time. Also I just got a new house, no LEDs anywhere and there really wasn't much available for fixtures with the exception of a few over priced dim bulbs and under cabinet lighting. Even new street lights still use HPS even though new LED streetlights exist cities are just not buying into them.

LED technology is great but it's still developing and has a long way to go before it's as popular as you seem to think it is. Will LED prices go down, yes but not in the way you think off. New LEDs with higher efficiency are released every damn day, the LEDs I purchased a few months back are now cheaper and obs. They've been replaced with a new model which is better but also more expensive... Quite simply prices will remain the same for the latest and greatest but cheaper options will always exist but nobody wants those

In this LED game plan on spending a decent amount with no chance of being able to recover your costs in resale as your fixture will be obs in as little as a few months. Plan to keep it long enough to cover your costs in efficiency savings alone or better yet buy it for other reasons all together.

Also keep in mind your halides don't become obs, they have been consistently the latest and greatest MHs for years and many years to come. Oh and you over paid for your reflectors, I purchased my luminarc 3 several years ago for $130. Hence the price drop really has nothing to do the technology fading.

[lastlight]

Sorta like buying a computer and all the chip upgrades. I never buy the very highest end model and you save a lot and get very close to the same performance. Sure your LEDs are obs now but another person I guess can come alone and buy a bunch of them for much less and still have a great light (like you will) when all's said and done.

It's due to things changing so fast that you can to some degree see savings by going a step down. I may be wrong but I don't think with previous lighting options we saw that same opportunity to save?

I suppose a major part of all this is the need to purchase many LEDs vs buying a lamp or two or a reflector or two so buying a slightly older LED x many saves you a lot.

[sphelps]

Originally Posted by lastlight

Sorta like buying a computer and all the chip upgrades. I never buy the very highest end model and you save a lot and get very close to the same performance. Sure your LEDs are obs now but another person I guess can come alone and buy a bunch of them for much less and still have a great light (like you will) when all's said and done.

It's due to things changing so fast that you can to some degree see savings by going a step down. I may be wrong but I don't think with previous lighting options we saw that same opportunity to save?

I suppose a major part of all this is the need to purchase many LEDs vs buying a lamp or two or a reflector or two so buying a slightly older LED x many saves you a lot.

Yes potential for savings in the DIY area but not so much in the fixture area, well at least not anymore compared to other lighting fixtures. Also when buying OBS LED components you'll have to be good with timing as sales are really only significant once inventory stops being replenished.

[parkinsn]

Originally Posted by sphelps

Where is this developed world?? I've never seen an office building or industrial plant that uses LEDs for lighting and I'm a contractor that works in different offices and manufacturing plants all the time.

I sold a few of these 2 years ago to an industrial plant

http://www1.crouse-hinds.com/crouseh...on=view&id=308

But I do agree with you that there is lots of product out there in the LED world but very little is "main stream" as of right now. There was LED A19's and MR16's several years ago for the resi market, but I have yet to sell them on any sort of regulaur basis if at all.

On topic....

MOAR PICS PLZ

[sphelps]

This was my LED fluval edge