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New ADA Aquasky "Moon" - Thoughts?!?...

Daniel

Member
Joined
9 Dec 2013
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97
ADA is launching a new Aquasky dubbed "Moon". It has the same basic design but the acrylic has a frosted look instead of clear and there is a mirror at the rear of the unit to enable you a "top down" view from the front. The LED's output is also up 50% compared with the current Aquasky. I couldn't find any details regarding European release but I would possibly think early/spring 2015 might be a good bet?!

I'd be interested to hear people's thoughts as I'm not quite sure what to make of it. It's pretty cool looking and the mirror might be something of a different feature, but I think perhaps their time would of been better spent developing additional features on the current models such as a dimmer, timer, 90cm version, etc.

http://reefbuilders.com/2014/12/12/ada-unveils-aquasky-moon-led-brighter-diodes-novelty-mirror/
http://peha68.pl/aquasky-moon-nowe-wcielenie-aquasky/

ADA-Aquasky-Moon-1.jpg


 
Love the style. Can't pay the entry fee. LOL. That flip down mirror is kinda weird, seeing that ADA tanks and cabinets in this size are quite low so you're always looking down on it as you walk up to it.
 
Not a fan to be honest but because it sits on the tank. It's sleek but sitting anything on a tank of the price I imagine it being, would be a no no for clumbsy me. It would end up on the floor or in the tank.:)
 
I prefer the look of the standard one and I have a 602. One issue I have with it is that the light passing through the rim at the back of the tank causes a very bright unattractive strip on the wall behind the tank. My solution has been to rest a length of plastic L section on the back edge of the tank which works but is hardly elegant. I imagine that the mirror on the "Moon" will stop this but I don't like the look of it or fancy keeping it clean and splash free.

I agree that #1 thing missing from these is a dimming facility, I've added a dimmer to mine that works but by using it neither the dimmer manufacturer nor ADA will offer any guarantee. Hardly ideal!
 
Dimming is against the ADA philosophy i guess. Have you ever read to start your light low and less hours? Nope.
They start with the same light power all the time and use it for 7-9 hours a day. No dimming required in this picture.
They promise completed scape in 3 months with their instructions and everything is aligned to this on their range. Light, filter, fertilization, soils.

The question is why we would do dimming?
For aesthetic reason? Which sometimes really useful but nothing to do with the aquascape.
Or for safety (algae) reason? Then i would think about why i need to go safely :) probably something else is missing. Like regular maintenance or proper filtration?

Really we do use some dimming light, but i do not get the point. :)
If this missing people miss it. If it is there i usually hear the dimming is expensive. Which is true.
The dimmer units usually adds up too much overage on any unit.

But the main point is the philosophy behind their things. Use enough power for a specific time. You usually cause more problems starting low, but if the plants selected carefully this could work.

On the lamp i do not like the mirror :)
The light is kind of a replacement of 602 which is an extreme powerful unit. So they came out with something in between 601 and 602.
This has 50% more LED in it than 601 so this is where the additional lighting power comes from. You can see some photos on the unit.
Mist stand? could work, but goes against the super clean opti, perfect clean glasses we do use. Will check in life how this works. Maybe works better also as not that sensitive for cleaning.
But still i am not in love with the mirror :) It only looks good when you have a fully matured scape with surface close planting.
 
Well for me I want as much creative flexibility as possible and this means having the ability to vary the light intensity as well as duration. ADA seems geared towards high profits and so encouraging their customers to run full speed highly lit tanks that require the frequent purchase lots of CO2 and fertilisers etc. suits their business model but it does not necessarily meets my needs.

Running a single Aquasky unit is a bit like running a single HQI but without the heat, hum or power consumption but still it's a lot of light and not ideal for a low tech scape or a sleepy moss and fern style for instance.

Add dimming to the Aquasky and you get T8, T5 or HQI equivalents and more in the one aesthetically pleasing unit. With dimming on my 602 I can light my tank for 10 hours or more if I want by running one unit on low and the second unit on high for a shorter period... Looks good and more closely replicates an actual tropical photoperiod.
 
I do not get the speed growth vs profit factor, but of course there are many viewpoint.

I see the lots of light lots of possibility. Or go without limitation.
For sure a low tech does not need Aquasky nor HQI. 2xT5 is fine or T8.
I have a simple tank at home without any light too. A 60x30x36 and Anubias love it! This has been running for 5 years now.
 
Yes the growth/profit factor comment maybe unfair, I'm not in the business and really wouldn't know.

I do know that I'd like one light unit that offers lots of possibilities rather than many different light choices for differing demands. I very nearly opted for a Giesemann Futura over the Aquasky because of this but in the end I decided I couldn't really justify that level of expense relative to all the other demands for my cash. I won't be upgrading to any kind of Aquasky Moon though, but I do wonder what will come after that mind!
 
Chris, not so sure your comments regarding ada and profiteering are unfair at all. I think you are bang on.... an example being their simplest products, such as scissors and pinsettes..... can anyone tell me what makes the ones with the ada logo on worth paying 3 times more for, than others on the market?? Other than the ada logo?

The light unit looks great, but i bet it's over priced
 
Ah the overpriced scissors..... Haha now way back in in the early noughties when ADA products could only be purchased from ADA Europe in Rome I bough a ridiculously priced pair of long scissors and pinsette/tweezers over a hundred quid the pair .... but at that time I simply could not find anything similar anywhere so I finally stumped up the cash. Some ten+ years on and I don't regret that purchase for a minute. Those scissors are and continue to be an absolute delight to use, light, delicate, precise, balanced and sharp. Times have changed and there are many more imitators and options...I also have some Neutro tools...fantastic value, well made, but heavy and awkward in comparison to the ADA ones.

So many complain about ADA prices but I really don't know how much of this is down to profiteering or taxes, duty, exchange rates and middlemen but I personally don't particularly begrudge those prices after all I dont have to pay them. We have freedom of choice and these days there a so many other viable cheaper alternatives that the market is probably going to drive ADA prices down. However Takashi Amano alone has inspired and transformed the world of planted aquaria over the past two decades like no one before and I don't resent supporting his lavish lifestyle a tad by paying over the odds for a few products but not the Aquasky Moon.... In fact I've just ordered a pair of Giesemann Pulzars....
 
Yeah this seriously kick some ass again :)

I made some photos how this compare to the current king the Aquasky 602.

Yup this is not just the photo. This is equal in real life too.

From the side this does not look good. More noticeable the glass and the light material difference. But from front the stand gives a nice border to the tank.

16670367320_51a73d9493_b.jpgADA Aquasky Moon 601 by viktorlantos, on Flickr

16237785903_3e4e5bc7fb_b.jpgADA Aquasky Moon 601 by viktorlantos, on Flickr

16857750625_7ea9e44723_b.jpgADA Aquasky Moon 601 by viktorlantos, on Flickr

Check the tanks in the back. Right one is a 4x39W ATI Sun Power. Next to that are the 150W ADA Solars. ATI is kind of a beast but this one is pretty much up to that level.

16237783753_4584ef3e90_b.jpgADA Aquasky Moon 601 by viktorlantos, on Flickr

I find a bit warmer but probably more LED more heat exchange too. The heatsink is thicker on this model.

I am still not in love with the mirrors by the way.
 
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