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Time to make a decision on a new light...

Iain Sutherland

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UKAPS Team
Joined
7 Jul 2011
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3,744
Location
Cambridge
Having sold my TMC controller with the plan of a new method of control which didnt come to fruition i now need a plan. So seems as good a time as any to upgrade the whole light system so i can hang the tiles i have over my 60 and 40 eventually.

As its for Asian dreams it needs to work for a 120cm tank... options:

ATI sunpower 4 or 6 x 54w T5 dimmable £305 + £50-100 on tubes
Arcadia 120 OTL LED £499
Geisemann Furura £1600 lol

Other LED options are available, most would need 2 at least if not 3 units so £1000+

So my finger has been hovering over the Futura buy now button for a week or two but its ridiculous, it may be the coolest looking thing around with more features than ill ever use but its just overkill, if i had a 4ft marine id do it tomorrow.

Which really just leaves a choice of ATI or Arcadia..... i know the ATI works well, will do all i want it too, proven success and the bonus of playing with colour temps...

but

I love LED, no light spill, more controllable dimming, lower power consumption. But the info i can find on the Arcadia is patchy at best at the moment, the controller doesnt look like it has many functions and the unit isnt the best looking thing. (hoping mark will jump in here)

I am more than open to other suggestions, the main 'must have' is dimming and the function to dim in a way i can have 10% for 2 hours then ramp up to 100% for how ever long then ramp down to 5 or 10% for another 2-3 hrs. I work shifts so often will go days without seeing inside the tank without this feature.

The more i toss this around in my head the more i just want to say f*#k it and click buy on the futura which is available on 0% finance with charterhouse :facepalm:

I need you guys to be my conscience...... i can feel clive rolling his eyes at the idea:lol:
 
Not ecstatic about ATI dimm units at the mo, but yeah LED must be a serious consideration and with power costs escalating rapidly.
 
I must admit iain those futura's are dam sexy pieces of kit and the functionality of them is amazing if you can afford one.
I'm excited to see how George gets on with his unit.
Saying that the arcadia is a really nice unit too.
You can get tubes for the ati units for much less than 50 pound by the way.
 
Having seen the futura's in action and having used numerous lighting units before (incl ATI sunpower & power modules), I would seriously invest in the Giesemann unit. LED is a very wise decision.


Posted from the comfort of my iPhone...
 
Not ecstatic about ATI dimm units at the mo, but yeah LED must be a serious consideration and with power costs escalating rapidly.

are you using the ati at the moment trevor? why are you loving it? cheers

Hi mate

I'm testing a Giesemann Futura 2 (Tropic) soon. If you can wait a couple if weeks I'll let you know how it goes and you're welcome to pop over and see it for yourself. I'll even make you a cup of tea. :)

that sounds like a plan George, lucky you hey!!
i'll grab another power lead for my tmc's to keep things going until then. Tea was the clincher bud;)
Thanks

I must admit iain those futura's are dam sexy pieces of kit and the functionality of them is amazing if you can afford one.

I'm excited to see how George gets on with his unit.

Saying that the arcadia is a really nice unit too..
very sexy, if someone told me a couple of years ago id get excited and start calling lights sexy i think i may of shot myself in advance :lol:
The arcadia looks like a real option, i shall PM mark and ask his opinion on it so far.

You can get tubes for the ati units for much less than 50 pound by the way.
Tis true, but i liked the colour of geisemann powerchrome and arcadia tropical plus together so would likely end up doing the same.

Curveball and pepe, the idea was you lot would talk me out of spending silly money, now im convincing myself its the only logical step!!:confused:
 
Eboeagles linked to these last night, they're pretty schweeet.

E lite3 > Lighting > ELOS

Super sexy and fully interchangeable.

Work out about £520 a unit ish Iain.

Look how ridiculously beautiful they look on the mounts:

zagujaru.jpg
 
Eboeagles linked to these last night, they're pretty schweeet.

E lite3 > Lighting > ELOS

Super sexy and fully interchangeable.

Work out about £520 a unit ish Iain.

Look how ridiculously beautiful they look on the mounts:

zagujaru.jpg

cheers nath, i shall start some reading... and yes pretty cool looking bit of kit.
 
Curveball and pepe, the idea was you lot would talk me out of spending silly money, now im convincing myself its the only logical step!!

Sorry Ian!

IMHO if your aquarium needs more than one TMC 1000/1500 tile and controller, then you're better served by other LEDs. The cost difference isn't that great, you get so much more control over ramping and spectrum and in a more convenient package with fewer wires and electrical plugs etc.

Also don't forget the Maxspect Razor!

P
 
I know next to nothing...so no help there, but I gotta admit some of the kit available is incredibly sexy. Obviously both form and function are important so don't you think it'd be really cool if we had a section somewhere in the forum where the latest kit was reviewed and scored using an agreed set of criteria - sorta like 'What HiFi' does incredibly well. Then we could all weigh up the pros and cons in a directly comparable way.

I also think that once a data base is established manufacturers would probably fall over themselves to get their kit reviewed especially as UKAPS membership grows and becomes key to marketing their products, in what is still essentially a niche market. It could ultimately be another source of income for the forum in one way or another. From small acorns grow...But just another random thought...
 
I know next to nothing...so no help there, but I gotta admit some of the kit available is incredibly sexy. Obviously both form and function are important so don't you think it'd be really cool if we had a section somewhere in the forum where the latest kit was reviewed and scored using an agreed set of criteria - sorta like 'What HiFi' does incredibly well. Then we could all weigh up the pros and cons in a directly comparable way.

I also think that once a data base is established manufacturers would probably fall over themselves to get their kit reviewed especially as UKAPS membership grows and becomes key to marketing their products, in what is still essentially a niche market. It could ultimately be another source of income for the forum in one way or another. From small acorns grow...But just another random thought...

Great idea and happy to help in any way, no reason not to have any lights reviewed. I guess that in order to have a useful review there would need to be a PAR rating over 40cm of water rating...... which might be difficult.
something along the lines of..

Functionality:
Aesthetics:
Mounting/ Hanging options:
Ease of use:
light source:
PAR at 40cm:
Size options:
Multiple unit integration:
Additional options:
Manufacturer power consumption:
Price :Reviewer comments:

Maybe if a mod would start a closed sticky with their light units then others could send their reviews to them to be added...???
 
Work out about £520 a unit ish Iain.

now its added up it comes in at 1490euros, thats without adding any additional leds to change colour temperature etc. For the money id rather go with the Geisemann with its plug and play ability even though these do look good.
 
now its added up it comes in at 1490euros, thats without adding any additional leds to change colour temperature etc. For the money id rather go with the Geisemann with its plug and play ability even though these do look good.

Really? How come it's shot up that much?
 
Maxspect razor led 8000k 2x 120w.
Just bought a 160w 16000k for my marine set up and they are nice. They come complete with tank mounts or hanging kit (which would be your best bet as the tank mounts are a little weak when doubling them up end to end). 2 channels for really good control over lighting programmes. 6 time points in a photoperiod which gives 4 during the day (other than off and on) slowly ramping up/down between each. I'm now seriously considering a 160w 8000k for my NA set up when funds allow.....sometime never!
Down sides are that you would need 2 120w units ( to fit the 120cm tank as I don't think 1 160w unit would offer enough spread unless hung really high) and that would be much more pricey than the ATI. If that's the factor I'd just go for the ati unit, if it's good enough for Tom Barr.....
Also maybe aesthetically not what your looking for, although I have to say when hung they really are quite subtle, especially from the front view.
 
Maxspect razor led 8000k 2x 120w.
Just bought a 160w 16000k for my marine set up and they are nice. They come complete within tank mounts or hanging kit (which would be your best bet as the tank mounts are a little weak when doubling them up end to end). 2 channels for really good control over lighting programmes. 6 time points in a photoperiod which gives 4 during the day (other than off and on) slowly ramping up/down between each. I'm seriously considering a 160w 8000k for my NA set up when funds allow.
Down sides are that you would need 2 120w units ( to fit the 120cm tank as I don't think 1 160w unit would offer enough spread) and that would be much more pricey than the ATI. If that's the factor I'd just go for the ati unit, if it's good enough for Tom Barr.....

I think I'm going to get a 160w 8k R420R soon!
 
Iain, if you think the maxspect unit maybe a viable choice pm Gary Nelson for more user info as he has one and I'm sure he would be willing to share some knowledge :)
 
Iain, if you think the maxspect unit maybe a viable choice pm Gary Nelson for more user info as he has one and I'm sure he would be willing to share some knowledge :)

Think you can also change all the LEDs individually too. For replacement or colour variation etc.
 
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