radions or fiftytwo?

[TimLikesFish]

Hey guys. I have a 120 (4x2x2) and need to pick some LEDs for it. I plan on keeping LPS and SPS down the line, possibly becoming more SPS dominant in the future but only time could tell. I've been strongly considering the Radions for a while, but it's a little hard to justify the price so I'm a bit hesitant. I've noticed that AI is coming out with their new model, the Fiftytwo, and they look pretty promising. Would one of the fiftytwos be sufficent for my tank? I know the Radions are on sale till the 31st so I kind of feel pressured to make the decision quickly. Any input is appreciated. Thanks

 

[h0bite]

I will pay attention to this thread !

 

[laredo300c]

i have a strong strong feeling that radions will stay at this price now, maybe talking to some lfs that isnt trying to sell you one, the fiftytwo does look very promising but take a look at
"helsinki low iron reef thread"

even though he has mad skills behind a camera, he switched to radion gen 2 and his tank colors are breathless. so why a radion pro when the gen 2 looks this good

 

[TimLikesFish]

Wow that's a nice tank that cardinal has, very impressive. If one fiftytwo unit is all I would need I think I may go with that. I know the spec says up to a 3 foot tank for one fiftytwo, but do you think in reality it would be enough for sps over a 4 footer?

 

[unze]

One led will not be enough, you need at at a minimum .

Radions are far better choice.

 

[TimLikesFish]

Yea i figured it probably wouldn't be. I know I won't be disappointed with the radions and I feel there's a built-in added value with the upgradeability that Ecotech offers. Now to decide which hanging kit to get..

 

[nanoreefer1000]

Would you consider anything else?

 

[TimLikesFish]

Mostly everything else I've seen I haven't been too impressed with. Either I don't like the look of the light produced or its a one piece unit that would be useless in the future on a tank longer than 4 feet. Did you have something in mind you wanted to recommend?

 

[nanoreefer1000]

Reefbreeders, Razor, Nanobox, and DIY

 

[mikeatjac]

Yea i figured it probably wouldn't be. I know I won't be disappointed with the radions and I feel there's a built-in added value with the upgradeability that Ecotech offers. Now to decide which hanging kit to get..

I used some aluminum c-channel strips from Home Depot to custom design my hanging kit for my radions.

 

[that Fish Guy]

Hey guys. I have a 120 (4x2x2) and need to pick some LEDs for it. I plan on keeping LPS and SPS down the line, possibly becoming more SPS dominant in the future but only time could tell. I've been strongly considering the Radions for a while, but it's a little hard to justify the price so I'm a bit hesitant. I've noticed that AI is coming out with their new model, the Fiftytwo, and they look pretty promising. Would one of the fiftytwos be sufficent for my tank? I know the Radions are on sale till the 31st so I kind of feel pressured to make the decision quickly. Any input is appreciated. Thanks

Justify the Price?

They are actually cheaper than the Hydra 52

550 vs. 600

I have never liked AI Lights so I would go with the Radion.

 

[that Fish Guy]

Wow that's a nice tank that cardinal has, very impressive. If one fiftytwo unit is all I would need I think I may go with that. I know the spec says up to a 3 foot tank for one fiftytwo, but do you think in reality it would be enough for sps over a 4 footer?

You would need two LED's for a 3 or 4 foot.

I would not try to do one.

 

[TimLikesFish]

I used some aluminum c-channel strips from Home Depot to custom design my hanging kit for my radions.

Do you have a pic of that you can show me?

 

[TimLikesFish]

Justify the Price?

They are actually cheaper than the Hydra 52

550 vs. 600

I have never liked AI Lights so I would go with the Radion.

Yea the info page on the fiftytwo I was looking at didn't have the price listed, I just assumed they were cheaper than the radion but apparently not

 

[madean]

This is my opinion. I have not been impressed what so ever with the color mixing of just about every led light on the market (including the radion gen 1 and 2). With that being said I have not personally seen the radion pro in person. When I say "see" that means in person. I am not talking about what the leds "do" to the coral and fish. I'm talking about how the light looks on the sand, rock, fish, and coral. To me it looks like little disco balls on everything in the tank. To me the Kessil A350-360 had the best color rendition out of all the led lights. But I believe that has to do with the placement of the leds types and how they are all in one cluster. Most of the other fixtures use a smaller group of leds in clusters. Going back to the kessil, its an incredible light but there is an insane amount of shimmer in the tank. You have to really like the shimmer look to appreciate these lights, if you don't then these lights will bug you. Ghl mitras is a beautiful light and the color rendition is the best I have seen in person for those types of lights (fixture kind of looks like radions and ai). I know there are differences between them. There is a huge price difference between them. Mitras are pretty expensive. I was hell bent on leds and was thinking about radions myself until I saw them in person. I was really disappointed. I even dragged my wife and a few friends outside of the aquarium world to look at what the light did and they shared the same opinion. So my best advice to you is to go see in person what ever light you are thinking of purchasing before you purchase it. Try to find a similar tank situation that will be like what you are trying to accomplish. I am not trying to start a war between led lights. This is just my opinion on led lights. I am glad people are using them, I am glad people enjoy them they are just not for me right now. I personally don't think the technology is there yet with regards to how the color mixing goes. I understand that you can do crazy things with lunar schedules and light programming with leds and that's not what I'm talking about. I don't think the color mixing is there yet. Again my opinion. Everyone sees color a little different. I actually went with ati dimmable sunpower unit. In the long run I knew I would be happier with the t5 flat look then the disco ball look with leds. To be honest if I could figure out a way to have a dimming control over halides I would have gone that route.

 

[ghostman]

Yea the info page on the fiftytwo I was looking at didn't have the price listed, I just assumed they were cheaper than the radion but apparently not

It's hard to make a case for the fifty two, since they're not out yet and cannot be evaluated. But...
They are cheaper than radions since they are full spectrum and more comparable with a radion pro not the G2.
They are fully wireless, without any bothering with the less than reliable ESL or Reeflink. How long has ESL been in Beta? A year or more?

Higher end LEDs like Pacific Sun and GHL Mitras offer great hardware and software, and may be cheaper depending on your needs. My 2 Pacific Suns are cheaper (and better) than the 6 radions they replaced. Good luck picking!!

 

[ThreeMoneyJ]

I would try to see as many lights in person as possible.

I am using AI Vega lights over my 120. I've been happy with AI, it's working well for me.

For the tank size you will need at least 2. I'm actually running 4 over my 120, but that may be a bit overkill!

Reefbreeders has a 48 inch LED that would cover your whole tank and cost a lot less. I have a smaller reefbreeders over my nano that I am also happy with.

 

[TimLikesFish]

It's hard to make a case for the fifty two, since they're not out yet and cannot be evaluated. But...
They are cheaper than radions since they are full spectrum and more comparable with a radion pro not the G2.
They are fully wireless, without any bothering with the less than reliable ESL or Reeflink. How long has ESL been in Beta? A year or more?

Higher end LEDs like Pacific Sun and GHL Mitras offer great hardware and software, and may be cheaper depending on your needs. My 2 Pacific Suns are cheaper (and better) than the 6 radions they replaced. Good luck picking!!

I remember looking at the Pacific Sun units a while back but the ones I want are just too expensive. In a perfect world I would like a quality LED plus t5 fixture for around $1000. It seems that, while going to the very top of my price range, the Radions give me the best bang for the buck, but man would I love a Pacific Sun Pandora

 

[ghostman]

I remember looking at the Pacific Sun units a while back but the ones I want are just too expensive. In a perfect world I would like a quality LED plus t5 fixture for around $1000. It seems that, while going to the very top of my price range, the Radions give me the best bang for the buck, but man would I love a Pacific Sun Pandora

You're comparing apples and oranges. The radions don't have T5, so they don't offer a feature that you would like in a perfect world. The pandoras are for wide tanks (like mine). One Hyperion covers a 48" tank and is less than 2 radion pros. I agree that the pandoras are awesome units, but it's unfair to compare a large led-T5 unit to a smaller led only unit based on price.

 

[ast]

My two cents, IMO:

(1) blue/white beats blue/blue/white
(2) full visible spectrum beats blue/white easily
(3) full visible spectrum w/UV beats full visible spectrum - not sure
(4) Radion Pro beats AI SOLs side-by-side easily
(5) LEDs beat T5 easily - TCO, heat, shimmer, hi-def look, etc.

I would like to see a side-by-side matrix comparison of the AI Hydra models and the Ecotech Radion models.

I would lean Radion Pro vs. Radion and raise them up or dial them down.
Question now is AI vs. Radion, and Hydra vs. Hydra52?
3 Hydras or two Hydra52s?