CF's vs NO overdriven

[BCOrchidGuy]

I set up a 15 gallon reef a couple years ago and made the mistake of using black/white combination aragonite (price was to good to pass up). I found the black in the sand absorbed most of the light from my 2x48w PC unit so I added a second unit at another 48 watts and it still didn't appear to be enough light. So, now I'm thinking about doing it all over again, I have a couple of 15 gallon tanks and a 10, I could go to a 20 gallon but I don't need to. So for lighting, I'd like to avoid MH even thought the LFS has a nice 150w HQI pendant for $300 I just want to avoid the heat etc. Does anyone use NO fluorescents on their 15-20 gallon, if so, what ballasts are you using etc. I'm giving some thought to T5s but don't know anything about them yet. Any input would be appreciated.

Doug