70 watt viper light - important info

[stewie24]

Hi all.
I've had the viper light since end of march/first part of april.
I know many of you have tossed around the idea of the fixture not being as bright as expected, crappy reflector, etc etc. I was one of those myself.
I had asked around on various boards if anyone had tried any other bulbs and if so, what was there any difference, but I got limited or no response.
So with that being said. I think i've come to a brilliant conclusion:
I bought a 10k AB blueline bulb that was new from a user on here last week. The bulb came today.
Here is what I noticed:
The 10k ab bulb is definitely a tad more white than the stock jbj 14k bulb. The ab bulb is supposed to look like a 13k bulb. Its brand new and has been running for about 6 hrs so I know its not anywhere near being broken in. I actually don't see any hints of blue it in.
I know the lower the kelvin, the higher the par but...
all i can say is WOW..
The difference between these 2 bulbs is like day and night.
It would be like comparing a 175 watt mh bulb to a 1000 watt bulb.
The sides of my tank were very dim w/ the jbj bulb. Now, the sides of the tank are lit up as much as what the center of my tank was with the jbj bulb.
The corals don't seem to pop as much now except for my hammerhead (which was lacking color at the tips). Probably making a 2x 13 watt pc actintic suppliment wouldn't be a bad idea.
I just can't get over how insanely bright the tank is now. Its a 10 gallon. i tried every position with the jbj 14k bulb and no matter what i tried, the sides of the tank weren't bright at all, and the higher up I had the fixture, the dimmer the tank was.
I even have the fixture another 2 inches higher than what is was with the jbj bulb.
I have a pic with the 14k jbj, and i'll be sure to get a pic with the 10k AB bulb for comparison.
Sooo.. if anyone thinks their fixture is dim, go buy a different brand of bulb. I'd be really interested in seeing some feedback or pics of people using the 20k AB bulb or the 20k ushio bulb (yes, they do make a 70 watt 20k ushio bulb).
Even the shimmer lines are now more intense.

Anyone else using any other kind of bulb other than the stock 14k jbj bulb? If so, what, and how much brighter is it? (maybe I just got a bunk bulb? who knows..)

Questions/opinions/feedback all welcome

Stewie

 

[SurfsUP]

I have the same problem with my 70w viper. But now only after one week of usage, the bulb is dead. I called and emailed JBJ for a replacement and haven't hear squat from them after they told me to email and fax my receipt, which I did over a week ago. I think I will have to order one of these AB bulbs. This will probably be the last time I buy anything from JBJ, due to poor customer service and the products being crap!

BTW, I also purchase one of those in tank digital thermometers and that thing is also dead.

 

[stewie24]

I'm not pushing anything for AB or anything like that. (don't want mods or anyone to get the wrong impression).
Like stated earlier, I know the higher the kelvin, the lower the par. But going from a 10k to a 14k you wouldn't loose THAT much par.
Also, the tank looks white with perhaps a very minute tinge of yellow to it (bulb is still breaking in)
I'd be interested in hearing what you go with.. There isn't a ton of choices out there for 70 watt de bulbs but you do have:
AB 10 and 20 k
Ushio 10 and 20k (maybe even a 14 too, i'm not sure)
Sunpaq 14k (the ones in the sunpods)
astralux 14k (i've heard those are hard to find).
Catalina aquariums 10 and 20k (heard these arent the best, but for 30.00 for a bulb, i'm tempted)
and the list goes on.
Be sure to post back here with what bulb you get, and your experience with it.

Stewie

 

[Pattylucylaura]

A 10 k bulb would be brighter due to the fact that it is more white the higher the k you go the bluer you get the lower you go the more yellow ie. 6500k yellow 10k white 14k mix of white and blue 20k mostly blue this would probably why you thought the 14k bulb looked dim compared to a 10k bulb because it had more blue to it giving it a dimmer look probably not due to the brand of bulb.

Just my 2cents

 

[stewie24]

Thanks for the input patty.
I can understand where you are coming from, but I beleive its the jbj bulbs are poor quality.
I have a 2x 175 watt fixture. I had a pair of new 10k bulbs in it for a few months, and decided it was too yellow for me. I bought a pair of used coralvue 14k's and believe it or not, the coralvues are a tad bit brighter than what the 10k's were. So that goes to show - even tho the lower K bulbs should be brighter, its not always the case.
Yes, i understand you loose a significant amount of par going with higher spectrums, but the jump from 10 to 14k isn't that big. ALso, the 14k jbj bulb isn't what I would call real blue either.. its white with a tint of blue.
Stewie

 

[noschmo]

Stewie: Nice post and good info. I had thought about adding the viper to one tank but overall, I do not think it would be a smart move. Too many negative posts but glad you found some way to improve the lamp! I never took anything about your post as pushing any product but giving good info!

 

[stewie24]

Thanks for the kind words noschmo.
There have been countless posts about the quality of the viper light, etc etc, and I thought i'd try and help out the community by pushing a little more light (no pun intended) on the matter.
Looking at the tank today when I got home, I'm thinking I should have put a layer of window screen over my tank because some of my corals don't look to happy from the light intensity increase.
Also, I looked at the bulb (i know you're not supposed to do that when its on) and I could stare at the jbj bulb directly for a short time, and this new bulb i can stare at it for not even a blink of an eye and i'm seeing white spots its that bright.

Stewie

 

[WZHANG]

I wish you could just buy the viper light without the bulb. Thats one reason I wouldn't buy their light, I don't want to pay the extra $$ for a crummy bulb. But I do like the aesthetics of the unit.