LED Lighting selection

[sphelps]

Originally Posted by mrhasan

Vertex doesn't have a very good reputation for growing SPS as far as I know.

I wouldn't say that, the 260-360 fixtures are really nice, seen lots of amazing SPS tanks under those but the IV fixture is way different. At only 6 LED per foot you're looking at 68 watts total. While it sure would be nice if you could get away with only 68W of lighting on a 4' tank 80 gallon tank it just isn't nearly enough for SPS and many LPS corals. The IV fixtures are modular, the idea is to use as many of them as you need which in your case is probably 3-4. So they certainly aren't budget fixtures, AI sols are cheaper and IMO a better option.

I agree you should look at Evergrow. Two D120s would be good if you're not interested in much control. A single 32" IT2080 is the other option which will offer more control but less output. That's pretty much it for LED options under $500 to cover that size tank and support SPS coral.