Any serious SPS collectors use LED?
- Thread starter SPS_Addiction
- Start date
mhucasey
Acros & wieners, oh my!
I agree, its the right amount. A big part of what frustrates me about most LED systems is that they claim you can light a reef with half as many LEDs as you need. The pictured tank has the right amount of coverage but with that many emitters the electricity savings is not all that much. Perhaps the owner had other goals in mind like less heat or controllability.
The tank looks really nice, there is no doubt about that.
The tank looks really nice, there is no doubt about that.
power boat jim
Well-known member
that appears to be the trick to LED lighting. That and running them at a lower power then what looks to be the same amount of light from a MH. I didnt buy enough G3 radions and now have a MH over the center of the tank. I will have to wait until I can afford to get two more pros. The Radion G3 apppear to have what it takes to match MH in color and growth so far.
Reeftub
New member
Growth has been a complaint of mh users, this guy grew the tank out in 6 months. How many people can say that and yes they weren't from frags but can you do that. Color morphing up front yes on some corals but not later in the game. The topic of this thread is there any serious sps guys with led and I think the guy is pretty serious don't you think, what is long term to you? I've had the same sps for 3 yrs under leds with no color morph so is it going to change soon? It's the same color it was when I bought it and came from 400 mh. So what you have to use more leds for coverage, what if you put leds in a reflected like mh do you think that would help probably would but nobody has tried it. My question to you is have you tried LEDs long term? Or are going off people who tried it and weren't patient enough to see the positive affects of led and their color. Or are listening to people that tried it rushed it and had ill affects because it doesn't happen over night. I've seen people with mh with sps and can't grow corals and have bad color due to water chemistry, I've seen guys with t5 that have the same result so please get off putting down LEDs guys.Anyway both mh and LEDs work so pick your poison.
Easy there killer, where did you see me putting LED users down? I support their continued growth in the hobby. After over 10 years keeping SPS I have seen them being successfully grown with T12 shoplights, PC's, MH, VHO, T5, Plasma and LED. I have also been fortunate enough to have a large number of friends in this hobby over the years who have been as serious as you can get with SPS who have also tried various lighting, and we share our experiences. My current tank has been lit with MH, VHO and LED all at the same time for quite a while now. The LED supplements have been on it for almost 3 years now.
There are always reasons why people report the good and the bad, sometimes it isn't light related, but when serious SPS growers report color morph, shading undersides and a general loss of color just from a light change on long term established tanks, it bears some consideration that the lights may be an issue, especially when the tank returns to normal after the traditional lighting is put back. It is through these discussions that the LED tech has grown, the mfg.'s are always watching to see what others are or have done and the effects. They are still learning as are the rest of us.
This is a good thing.
There are always reasons why people report the good and the bad, sometimes it isn't light related, but when serious SPS growers report color morph, shading undersides and a general loss of color just from a light change on long term established tanks, it bears some consideration that the lights may be an issue, especially when the tank returns to normal after the traditional lighting is put back. It is through these discussions that the LED tech has grown, the mfg.'s are always watching to see what others are or have done and the effects. They are still learning as are the rest of us.
This is a good thing.
OrionN
Moved on
Several years ago I did not use LED because I think the technology is not adequate yet. Blue and white light just not enought to let the coral keep their color. The manufactors found this out after the early attempts. Now everybody know that broad spectrum is needed even when our eyes cannot tell the different. I have to admit that LED is still expensive. This is the nature of our hobby. More people produced them and the price will go down. Anybody remember a MH bulb for 120 and need to be change every year?
There is no question that a good LED fixture can produce the growth and color that is just as good or even better than MH. I know because I am doing it. Today light for a reef tank should not be a problem especially if you have money to burn. The future of reef lighting is LED. Ther is no disadvantage that cannot be solve with tweeking the placement and spectrum of the lighting elements. The advantages of LED are too much for MH and Florescent technology to overcome. In fact, barring new technology, the future of all lighting for all applications is LED
There is no question that a good LED fixture can produce the growth and color that is just as good or even better than MH. I know because I am doing it. Today light for a reef tank should not be a problem especially if you have money to burn. The future of reef lighting is LED. Ther is no disadvantage that cannot be solve with tweeking the placement and spectrum of the lighting elements. The advantages of LED are too much for MH and Florescent technology to overcome. In fact, barring new technology, the future of all lighting for all applications is LED
doctorwhoreefer
In Memoriam
I see some of the metal halide/t5 truists are here.. 
I think no matter what, 8-tracks are better than cassette tapes.
Don't forget guys, I'm sure there's been BILLIONS of dollars poured into the last few years and led technology improvements on every single front there is in the world.
You cannot say the same for metal halide and t5. They are dying technology, their prime is gone.
They both grow coral but please respect the choices of others. The hobby needs an attitude adjustment imo on differences of opinions and how to decide between arguing their favorite and progressing the hobby. As far as progressing the hobby, I don't think holding old ideals before new tech is wise when teaching new people. There's plenty of tanks out there that use any number of lighting combinations.
The health of the coral needs to come first instead of personal favorites and adapting into more efficient setups is also wise. Especially if we're going to pull this hobby out of the crosshairs of being nerfed by the "powers that be".
I think no matter what, 8-tracks are better than cassette tapes.
Don't forget guys, I'm sure there's been BILLIONS of dollars poured into the last few years and led technology improvements on every single front there is in the world.
You cannot say the same for metal halide and t5. They are dying technology, their prime is gone.
They both grow coral but please respect the choices of others. The hobby needs an attitude adjustment imo on differences of opinions and how to decide between arguing their favorite and progressing the hobby. As far as progressing the hobby, I don't think holding old ideals before new tech is wise when teaching new people. There's plenty of tanks out there that use any number of lighting combinations.
The health of the coral needs to come first instead of personal favorites and adapting into more efficient setups is also wise. Especially if we're going to pull this hobby out of the crosshairs of being nerfed by the "powers that be".
swk
New member
I see some of the metal halide/t5 truists are here..
I think no matter what, 8-tracks are better than cassette tapes.
Don't forget guys, I'm sure there's been BILLIONS of dollars poured into the last few years and led technology improvements on every single front there is in the world.
You cannot say the same for metal halide and t5. They are dying technology, their prime is gone.
I would argue that vinyl, which is older than both formats, STILL sounds the best of them all.
I would disagree that mh and t5 are dying technologies. They're not going anywhere. Manufacturers are still developing and releasing new t5 tubes as of 2014.
Bpb
New member
The 8 track to cassette analogy is garbage. A more appropriate analogy would be vacuum tube based amplification vs digital solid state. There you are looking at something that is smaller, lighter, and more energy efficient, trying to mimic and older heavier, hotter running, but more pleasant sound source. 8 track vs cassette isn't a worthy comparison. Nobody is arguing which light form has the most modern R&D dollars being poured into it. People are arguing which grows coral faster, an develops the best color over time. Nobody is discussing up front vs long term running cost, or what is the sexier technology for the geeks out there. We are taking about growing and coloring coral.
Idefixes
New member
AdamNC
New member
And thats where like myself have gone big and just toned down the intensity. 3 pucks over a 30" tank and I have very few if any shaded areas.
doctorwhoreefer
In Memoriam
+1 to the analog vs digital analogy lol, I should have seen that..
Though mh/t5 might be produced as of 2014, I believe they're still making old styles of many things. Not necessarily because they're better, but nostalgia is a powerful marketing weapon.
The debate is endless, at least for now. But the favor is rising for led from a logical standpoint and the amount of successful tanks running led are starting to pile up.
Because of the differences of application between the various lighting setups, mh/t5 are probably the best for beginners imo.:deadhorse:
Though mh/t5 might be produced as of 2014, I believe they're still making old styles of many things. Not necessarily because they're better, but nostalgia is a powerful marketing weapon.
The debate is endless, at least for now. But the favor is rising for led from a logical standpoint and the amount of successful tanks running led are starting to pile up. Because of the differences of application between the various lighting setups, mh/t5 are probably the best for beginners imo.:deadhorse:
Similar threads
