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Fluval 3.0 alternatives

Ash J

Member
Joined
22 Nov 2021
Messages
65
Location
Nottinghamshire
Hi all,

I've been running the Fuval 3.0 on my Fluval Roma 125 for the last couple of months and although I'm pretty happy with the growth of the plants, there's something I just don't like about this light. I'm not a fan of the "warm light" and have turned this almost completely off and feel the colours of the plants just look a bit washed out compared to other lights I've seen in other scapes. Now that I've added Co2 into the tank I'm looking to create a more high tech setup and not sure the Fluval is the best choice for this, however I do like the app functionality.

I've got a budget of about £200 for an upgrade. I've been looking into the Chihiros WRGB II as this also has app functionality and wondered if this is likely going to be the best bang for my buck? Does anybody have any experience of using both the Fluval 3.0 and Chihiros? I have looked also into Twinstar but there's so many model variations I'm not quite sure which would be the better option plus it lacking app function is off putting.

Any comments are greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Ash
 
Does anybody have any experience of using both the Fluval 3.0 and Chihiros?

Yeah, I’ve lived with both. I ran the Fluval for about a year, and I agree it’s a very yellow light and washes out most of the other colours. It’s also a very narrow light and caused me issues with not fully illuminating the front and rear of the tank. The app is good though, and pretty polished.

The Chihiros light is in another league in terms of colour rendition, but the app takes a bit more getting used to. It would be my pick in your budget. You may have to modify your Roma hood though, as the WRGB II does get quite warm and needs decent airflow around its upper heat sink.
 
Just received this today after a month wait with the initial one getting lost on the way from China!
IMG_20220222_141608.jpg

If anyone has any recommendations for settings/intensity that would be awesome.

Cheers

Ash
 
Just received this today after a month wait with the initial one getting lost on the way from China!
View attachment 183218

If anyone has any recommendations for settings/intensity that would be awesome.

Cheers

Ash

They're quite a bit brighter than the Fluval unit, so don't go 100% straight off the bat. maybe start at 60-70% and see how you go.

As for the colour setting, the world in your oyster with these. Download the app and try some of the standard presets - the 'Buce' setting has always been my preferred of those, or try the colour temperature slider and see what you prefer.

In the end for me, I found the greens a little overcooked if left at the same level as blue and red, I also like a slightly cooler colour temp than a warmer one, so I ended up with Red @ 60%, Green @ 50% and Blue @ 70% or something close to that.
 
Thanks Wookii!

And woooooow!!! What a difference this light is compared to the Fluval. The colours are popping so much more and even my fish look 10x better, the reds and blues on them are now so prominent.

I quite like both the Shrimp and Buce settings so have saved less intense versions of those and will test both out over the coming days :D
 
Do you have a before and after pic? Would be great to be able to compare the Fluval with the WRGB.

There’s one in this thread below - I can’t vouch for how accurate the images are or how much the camera has changed things etc, but it looks fairly representative to me:

6c088879-45f5-445f-bf84-673270207d2d-jpeg.jpg
 
Hi all,

I've been running the Fuval 3.0 on my Fluval Roma 125 for the last couple of months and although I'm pretty happy with the growth of the plants, there's something I just don't like about this light. I'm not a fan of the "warm light" and have turned this almost completely off and feel the colours of the plants just look a bit washed out compared to other lights I've seen in other scapes. Now that I've added Co2 into the tank I'm looking to create a more high tech setup and not sure the Fluval is the best choice for this, however I do like the app functionality.

I've got a budget of about £200 for an upgrade. I've been looking into the Chihiros WRGB II as this also has app functionality and wondered if this is likely going to be the best bang for my buck? Does anybody have any experience of using both the Fluval 3.0 and Chihiros? I have looked also into Twinstar but there's so many model variations I'm not quite sure which would be the better option plus it lacking app function is off putting.

Any comments are greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Ash
Which one did you opt for the 60cm? Did it fit ok for the fluval 125?
 
Which one did you opt for the 60cm? Did it fit ok for the fluval 125?
Hi Laurence,

Yep opted for the 60cm. Fits quite well, although the extending arms aren't fully extended, I wouldn't feel comfortable if they were extended any further for stability reasons. You'll need to remove the hood completely off the tank so that the arms on the light fitting fit over the grooves where the hood would sit. If you want to see how it fits over the tank, let me know and I'll upload a pic 😊
 
Yes, that would really appreciated. Any photos of the item in situ, was curious to see how lit up the tank is. Was a little nervous how the edges of the tank would be lit up.
 
It sits quite nicely on the top and provides complete coverage on the Roma 125. Bear in mind I'm only running this at 40% atm so it's not so bright. At 100% it's ridiculously bright even at substrate level.
IMG_20220322_162342.jpg
Tbh I think I got lucky with the light as managed to get it off Amazon for £188, albeit took a few weeks to arrive.
 
How is going with the new light ?

I have a Fluval 3.0 and also experience the yellow/greenish color.

I’m looking for a chihiros wrgb 2 or something similar but less pricey.
 
It's going great!

Check out my journal "A fresh start" to see it in action. They've recently updated the Chihiros app which makes it alot more user friendly when setting up an autoschedule.
 
This is a very helpful thread!
I have the same Fluval light in my Shaker 252 and agree with what you say the plants look washed out but your before and after pictures, wow, what a difference! Your Fluval looks like it’s producing the same colour temperature as mine so you picture is definitely painting a good real life representation. I’m going to look into this light and see if I can find one for mine, I better save some money first though 😁
 
I don't understand all this hate for the Fluval plant 3.0, i have one of thier 1st gen lights, the different shades of green i get off my crypts are deep, the red and orange hues on my Rotala Macranda are spot on, sometimes we chase things in this hobby and the grass isn't always greener, literally.
 
I agree that the Fluval gets a lot of flak.
In the comparison above, the Fluval casts a yellow light, but the greens shown under Chihiros are blue toned and the previously white wall is now purple. The comparison post doesn't seem to say which channels were running on each light, both can be tweaked, Fluval for less yellow and Chihiros for less blurple.
That people's yellow shrimps are orange under Chihiros is a major drawback in my opinion.
 
I don't understand all this hate for the Fluval plant 3.0, i, sometimes we chase things in this hobby and the grass isn't always greener, literally.
Lol, folks with plant issues tend to look for excuses, the haters probably have issues... the fluval plant 3 will grow plants, and that's a fact, colour rendition Is obviously marmite territory. 😶‍🌫️
 
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Personally, I don’t hate the Fluval. It can be tweaked many ways. I just don’t like the yellow/green tone. Is it a problem if I lower the Warm White setting without any problems for the plants ? I think this will reduce the yellowish tone.

It is now running on:

Red 100 / blue 5 / Cold, Pure and Warm white at 100%
 
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