ya the customer service is great because they have had so much practice dealing with the wet side issues:mrgreen:......its to the point that when you order Vortech pumps they automatically send a service pack to deal with any warranty issues...........dont get me wrong ....I love the three vortechs I have.....they are a cool pump that move massive amounts of water and I will continue to fix mine....but IMHO the wet sides need work

I know someone who is running both the AIs and the Radions on separate tanks and he says go with the AIs......he says the programing sucks on the Radions and the AIs have better par.....Im not sure if his opinion about the programming has changed at all after the software update....


It will be interesting if a couple more of the big dogs, like Giessemann or ATI finally get into the game.....

This is a common statement from those who have owned both the AI and the Radions...the Radions always win out with the ability to dial in your colour spectrum to your liking, something which the current version of the AI's aren't able to accomplish. If price point is the real issue then I think the DIY would be the best option if you have the time to spare.


On a side note, I just ordered two more Radions for my frag tank build :wink:

I just can't understand why someone would pay so much more money for something that can be achieved for less money.

Red and green LEDs are not going to increase coral growth.

I guess you would would be the expert there:wink:

I have more than enough par to burn up everything in my tank and grow any coral I wish...I also like to look at my coral, the ability to adjust colours is more than worth the little bit of money involved...I think it's already been said here, buy what you can afford... if it's a car to get you from A to B and you can only afford the ford focus, then buy the focus...if you want to drive in style with every possible creature comfort and you have the means to do so, buy a nice Mercedes...both cars are going to get you there, ones just much nicer than the other...IMHO.

Or...maybe you'd understand this statement better...

I have a nice point and shoot camera, it takes nice pictures and only cost me $500. My father takes some nice pictures with his camera too, he doesn't think twice about spending $10,000 on one lense...that doesn't make sense to me but it does to him.

What do you mean adjust the color? The only LEDs in the radions that have any real sigificants are the whites and blues.

First thing in the morning, turn up only the red or green to the highest power and see if the corals even respond to the light.

the red spectrum actually does directly affect growth....both coral and algae (so nutrient rich systems beware:mrgreen:)


can get the same effect with a string of Christmas lights.....in fact they are probably on sale right now:razz:

but see.....some posters here are saying that you need two Focuses to one Mercedes, to get you where you are going.......thats more what the debate is about.....

A buddy has the Vertex, did'nt even think about them when I was in the market for LEDs. IMO way overpriced and like having seperate units shall something go wrong and you have to send away. But the option to adjust the reds is so wicked. It really is cool to be able to get that perfect color by adjusting the reds which can be done on the Radions. I forgot to mention that next summer I plan on replacing 2 of my AI's with 2 Radions just so I can do some reds. I just hope the price goes down and that they will be able to fit on the light rails for the AI's.

Proof plz... Green probably no but red certainly does provide light energy for photosynthesis.

Sorry buddy, not a DIY guy when it comes to lighting, and actually not much difference, price wise, than the AI, if I did my figuring right on Modular's site.

Aren't the white LEDs on both units full spectrum already? Meaning they already carry the proper light output colors of the sun. The other bulbs simulate deeper water effects and enhance colors to the viewers taste not to simulate colors as you would see them in person underwater. There are numerous LED companies out there that sell cheap add-on set ups to add different colors to suit your personal tastes regardless of what light set up one chooses.

BTW I love the Focus vs Mercedes comparison, twice the price and twice the shop time! I really hope that's not how the reliability of the radion turns out. LED reliability has already been given a bad rep by a previous "top end" manufacturer.

I came to the same conclusion if I only needed a couple of units. If you need to cover an 8 foot tank and can buy in bulk, the pricing is quite a bit cheaper going DIY!

I agree with you there, I own a few other high end LED fixtures, two of which have been a huge letdown, Pacific Sun & Reef-tech. The pacsun fixture was very nice until the blue drivers failed, then i find out the Canadian distributor dropped them and wouldnt give me any warranty assistance...Reef-tech made all kinds of promises but never came through with the software as advertised. I went with Ecotech Marine as they have a great rep for customer care, and they are local to north America, no more euro-trash electronics for me if I can help it...

I like that Eco-tech has been around for quite awhile and are not a fly by night company. I'm sure that any issues that do arise will be dealt with and not leave owners holding a pile of garbage from a defunct company.

I hear ya bro, it's a good thing I like to build stuff. :biggrin:

I did the math on buying manufactured fixtures and there was no way in helz the wife would go for that.

Sounds like you use the same bank I do!

Yep, Bank of Old Lady :biggrin:

I spoiled my wife so bad at Xmas , I get a free pass here on lighting.
What i have decided thus far is that it definately will be LED. Just waitng for quotes to come in from 4 of the reliable vendors on here, then it's decision time.
Judging by poll results Radion is the most liked so far, so it comes down to a price choice.

Here's some Radion 411, also over a 4' 90gal system...he's also tested the AIs and ecoxotics...

http://www.MrSaltWaterTank.com/mr-sa...riment-update/

That's the one that really started me thinking Radion, tank full of corals and 2 fixtures run lengthways.

Giessemann are getting in the game as they already have a LED fixture soon to be released

So when you're running 8 x 5 watt whites, 8 x 3 watt blues and 10 x 3 watt royal blues at full power and you turn on the 4 x 3 watt reds, does the color of the tank turn purple or pink?

My question is, if you're running the whites and blues can adding the red and green LEDs actually change the color of the light? Or is it only really visible when the high powered LEDs are off?

Just an update of sorts.
Have received two quotes so far, and as far as vendors see it, there is a 1 1/2 to 1 ratio at minimum for Sol fixtures. Depending on if you have a center brace or not.

Which one are you going with?

I'm going to go with the Radions
The basic argument either way here seems to be that if they were the same price, must people would go with Radions.
I like the fact that there is only a need for 2 fixtures instead of 3 or 4 with the AI.
Broader light spectrum.
Better spread.

Good choice and I agree with you 100%. You won't be disappointed at all!

Okay Off to the hardware for sale section and see if anyone wants a couple of light fixtures.
Thanks for all the comments...