Twinstar S v. Kessil

[Siege]

For those who donot subscribe to George’s YouTube channel. Excellent comparison between the 2 lights.

Ps. It’s hard typing this with a 30kg Lurcher laying on your lap!

 

[Fred13]

I personally find twinstar better.

The shimmering is way too much and makes me feel uncomfortable after a while.. The color rendition is also worse for kessil.
It is indeed pop up the greens but all the other colors in tank are lost.

Both are good lights and it is just my personal preference.

You can also see the gouramies under the twinstar. The colors are much better.

 

[Tim Harrison]

I like the colour rendition of the Twinstar, but I also miss the glitter lines from a single point source light, it adds a whole other dimension. For me a combination of the two would be ideal...

 

[soggybongo]

Love the reds/ purple the twinstar shows in the plants but the downside it also makes the water look washed out and not clear so, for me on my screen looking at the comparison the kessil makes the aquarium more natural looking and a better viewable experience, would be nice to see their new 360 model with the adjustable reds though.
Thanks for sharing this siege, missed this one somehow.

 

[Zeus.]

I do like the shimmering/glitter lines of my 160 kessils but they do lack the red, so I run them with some T5 growlux tubes best of both worlds for different periods and intensity's for the photoperiod. Plus with four Kessils I have the Moonlight Passover where one kessils is on at a time for 10-15 mins each on lowest setting when the shimmering really maxes out

 

[Ady34]

I like the colour of the tank contents better under the twinstar but as others have said I also like the glitter lines too. I think to get glitter lines you would need only a very small point source light to get the effect. On an evening switch your mobile phone torch light on and hold it above your tank, it’s remarkable the effect you get from a tiny light......I’ve considered adding a small light somehow to create the effect but will need to research lighting options to do so.

 

[ralfred]

I'm red-green colourblind which probably makes me a useless judge (!), but for me the Kessil is far more interesting. Understand it would be a bit much in a darkened room - but my tanks have always been in areas with other ambient light.

 

[Ady34]

Interesting about the lumens also, I thought even at 20% intensity my twinstar units ‘looked’ bright to my eye, George kind of confirms this in this video.

 

[Tim Harrison]

George briefly mentions the new Kessil light...
I'm thinking they could be a good option, but really need to see them for myself...

P.S...just seen the price £495.00

 

[Tom Michael]

Thanks for the Link Tim - high price for sure, but looking at the info they state the coverage angle is improved? I'm currently considering high end lighting options and wonder if one of these would suffice for a 90cm high aquarium ?

 

[Zeus.]

they state the coverage angle is improved?

130 degrees! they call it improved, but the spillage across the room will also increase

 

[tayloss]

As George mentioned and other have said, the problem with spot lighting is if you sit below it, then the spill into your eyes can be quite strong and distracting etc.. I had the same issue with my to be sold Hydra 52HD where it was far too bright and I ended up looking at it more than the TV.. which isn't always a bad thing

I just prefer a more contained lighting without going full hood over the tank!

 

[Tim Harrison]

That spread is too wide, you're right @Zeus. the light spillage will be fairly bad and you'll still get hot spots directly under the light, and deep shadow at the sides.
@Tom Michael because of the above, I'd say you'd definitely need 2. The problem with all point light sources is shadow created by plants and hardscape.
It takes at least 2 point sources to ensure a more uniform distribution of light, even in a tank as small as 60cm, and even if you're very clever with your scape design.

 

[Zeus.]

I do 'love' the shadows my 160 give in the twilight/moon phase, but I do have T5 tubes as well for the main photoperiod so eliminating most of the shadows and increasing penetration to the 50cm deep carpet

 

[Jayefc1]

I much prefer the way the reds pop on the twinstar it's all down to personal preference I guess but it almost looks like two different scapes there is so much difference between them

 

[Johny]

my humble opinion, the Kessil gives a much more natural vibe with different rich shades of green. compare to the more "artificial" looking purple twinstar. + the shimmering of the Kessils also give a sence of depth with the shadows, and when compared to the twinstar it makes the scape look flater and more static

 

[alto]

It takes at least 2 point sources to ensure a more uniform distribution of light, even in a tank as small as 60cm, and even if you're very clever with your scape design.

Interesting consideration
I’ve a 60cm x 45cm (x 53high) with a single A160 Tuna Sun
It was going to be temporary but due to plant growth being “better” than with the very fancy (ie expensive) T5 luminaire, the Kessil has moved in ... especially as it’s so much easier to work in the tank
To be fair to the T5 luminaire, I did only run 2 of the 4 T5’s but design of the unit means the T5’s are well spaced across the 45cm depth of the tank so light distribution should’ve been good

btw I’m far from clever with my scape design
- it’s pretty much a random process each rescape and plant species tend to be what happens to be available

I’ve also been looking forward to the new Kessil - except the price is crazy - there’s been some discussion on reef forums that it may drop soon - especially as the wifi dongle is still playing least in sight
Unfortunately I suspect the A160 upgrade is far behind as no rumours

As for George Farmer’s tank ... Kessil all the way
Twinstar seems to have forgotten to support the greens in their race for the red

 

[Tim Harrison]

I managed to get great growth with my single Radion, but I found it had a hot spot directly under the light and the shadows at the side were quite intense, and that accordingly although the plants at the periphery grew well it took twice as long as those directly under the light.
It was always difficult balancing intensity to ensure I got growth at the edges, but no algae, like GSA, on the plants directly under the light. I usually failed in the end. I always felt that, although one light was adequate, two would have been much better in order to give me a more uniform coverage and greater controllability, especially with a complex hardscape and planting. But at the end of the day I guess we all have different requirements.

It's dropped https://charterhouse-aquatics.com/shop/aquatics/lighting/kessil-lighting/kessil-a360x-led-tuna-sun

 

[sciencefiction]

The color rendition is also worse for kessil.
It is indeed pop up the greens but all the other colors in tank are lost.

I felt the same using the Kessil, not a fan of the color rendition. All fish had washed out colors when in fact they didn't.

 

[Wookii]

Sorry to bring up this slightly older thread, but I'm research lighting for my potential new future aquarium.

So I wondered if the colour issue mentioned above with the Kessil units (presumably the A360WE) is still the same with the newer A360X Tuna Sun, which appears to have dedicated red LED's? Those it has those new LED's, the spectrum graphs don't look significantly different between the two? Has anyone seen it in action?

Older A360WE:

Newer A360X:

Has anyone compared the Kessil side by side with one of the RGB LED units like the Chihiros Vivid or ADA RGB?

Watching the Aquarium Gardens video posted above, I personally love the shimmer effect, and when George switches to the Twinstar, the tank looks flat and lifeless in comparison. I always wanted that shimmer back in the day when metal halides were the only way to get it and I couldn't afford them and had to go with mercury vapour.

That being said, good colour rendition is important too.

I also note peoples comments above on the spread of the Kessil lights, but I see they now have an additional Narrow Reflector that reduces the beam angle to 55 degrees, which I assume fixes the issue. If my calculations are correct, on a 1500 x 500 x 500 tank, three of the Kessil units would give sufficient coverage, without light spill, if positioned around 480mm off the tank height?