Orphek or AI

mr.wilson · #1 08-09-2011, 08:38 PM

Yeah, the T5 debate was almost as heated, then it just kinda faded away. Metal halide didn't really take off until we shifted from 6,500K Venture bulbs to 10,000k & 14,000k options. The same door is opening now with LED.

Bblinks · #2 08-09-2011, 09:06 PM

Hi Mr Wilson.
I went through Peter's build on RC but I couldn't find the pages that mention any thing about you guys going with orphek lighting. I thought you guys opted for the aquamedic 4 X 250W MH lighting fixtures due to the coverage which orphek did not provide. Just want to clarify.
Thanks for your time.
Rich

mr.wilson · #3 08-09-2011, 09:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bblinks

Hi Mr Wilson.
I went through Peter's build on RC but I couldn't find the pages that mention any thing about you guys going with orphek lighting. I thought you guys opted for the aquamedic 4 X 250W MH lighting fixtures due to the coverage which orphek did not provide. Just want to clarify.
Thanks for your time.
Rich

You guys are good

We waffled on LED for a while since we had a lot riding on it. I like the Aqua Medic 4 x 250w + 4 x 39w T5 fixtures, but the wide reef formation, particularly at the canyon meant we had shadows on the reef face. it's a two sided tank so it complicated things further. We considered doubling up the MHL fixtures to go two wide from front to back, but decided to test our 6 Orphek light we bought for the frag system. We put the LEDs up at the front and back with the MHL still in the middle and there was no going back. It is entirely possible that we could have been happy with another LED manufacturers fixture as well, but I don't have any seconds thoughts after seeing the colours we are getting. Like I said, I was happy with MHL and thought we were doing well, but the Orphek fixtures even made the fish look better.

The main issue that turned Peter (Nineball) off of the other LEDs we looked at was the rapid flicker they cast. Once he noticed it, it drove him crazy and he couldn't stop focusing on it

We have two 6' MHL fixtures left on the tank, but they are being replaced with Orpheks soon. It has been a gradual transition over the past 3 months. You can see some pics from when they went in here http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...11725&page=266

lastlight · #4 08-09-2011, 10:10 PM

A direct link into that thread is worth a million dollars it's so long. I've scrolled and page jumped for a long time before I found what I wanted. The coloration on the tank does indeed look incredible. Reminds me of what I have right now with maybe just slightly less blue.

mr.wilson · #5 08-09-2011, 10:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lastlight

A direct link into that thread is worth a million dollars it's so long. I've scrolled and page jumped for a long time before I found what I wanted. The coloration on the tank does indeed look incredible. Reminds me of what I have right now with maybe just slightly less blue.

I took some long overdue pics yesterday and will post them on the RC thread today. Maybe I should start a picture thread here to keep it Canadian content.

The friendly people at Reeftech are sending me a 200w Prometheus LED to try out. It should be here today or tomorrow. I can evaluate most of the aspects of the light pretty quick, but coral pigmentation takes a few weeks or longer to show. For the people who like control features, it has everything you would want.

ensquire · #6 08-10-2011, 08:00 AM

Here is a Canadian distributor
http://www.goreef.com/Orphek-LED/