jamie,
As of now, do illumina have RGB clusters or only RED LEDs available as a option?
You mantion that one unit can cover 36" wide tank..HMMM , i am not so sure about it and you tank only 25" as per you specs.. this is my great concern sincei am planning something like 72x36x24.
mike
mike
Bluebastion has it right. (thanks!). In your case, I would start with just the Illumina and see. You can always add the Illumilux modules, should you find the spread or PAR fall-off to the front not to your liking. Also, one could do a T5 supplement.
A RGB pad is not planned, as far as I have heard, but Vertex is interested to know what customers find interesting and usefull. Even with the current rapid exchange of information, there are many that seek their own versions of an LED solution and like to experiment. I expect we will all bark up the wrong tree at some point, but the flexibility of LEDs makes such forays of adventure at least affordable.
Also, and I can't stress this enough, one needs to acclimate their corals to any new lighting system, plus, give some time for changes to happen. Just running out and buying another LED supplement is not the answer in most cases. Nor is running a new LED unit at 100%, regardless of how high you previous PAR was. Let your tanks inhabitants adapt and keep an eye on the finer changes. Aquariums are very intricate biospheres and don't make paradigm shifts overnight. I've been following the problem LED reports, where aquarists have experienced browning of their corals, particularly Acropora. As of yet, I've noted no correlation to the LEDs themselves. Not that i rule this out, but, when apparently similar system react to LEDs so differently, one need to examine a few more parameters. I suspect part of the problem is nutrient control, coupled with the corals recovering from what may well be photoinhibition. Many aquarist have too much light over their tanks, which inhibits zooxanthellae production and keeps corals paler, but not necessarily healthier. Change the spectrum of light and we may see a zooxanthellae bloom, thus browning. This is just a supposition, at this point, and I am hoping to nail down some data to support it.
Jamie