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I need cheap and perfect LED! Any thoughts? Impossible?

Still_human

By Still_human,
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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

(edited)

I know I may be asking for the world +1, but hey, some people DO win the lottery! If anyone can help me out with suggestions, I would be infinitely grateful!!! I cannot, and absolutely AM not spending a ton more money, but I would need to find a fixture that I can rely upon and trust(that’s gonna be a toughie). I need to find something that just plain does NOT have problems. Does anyone have any thoughts or ideas of what , if there is anything, would work for me? I might sound picky, but if youve talked to me before and knew my situation, or saw my previous post about my Red Sea reefLEDs, then u can understand why i might be getting a little on the picky side! I’d really LIKE to have an LED fixture that is as good as people make them sound like they are, and not have to go back to T5s, or halides, but at this point I 100% do not believe that’s gonna happen. I’ve never had a single problem with any lights every, except from getting very old and overused, be it incandescent, fluorescent, PC, halide, or T5, but all 3 LED fixtures I’ve tried.....well, I’m already an idiot for giving them a 3rd chance, let alone even considering a 4th! Fool me once.....how often do people get to “Well, fool me four times....”! Lol
 

*i DID learn ONE lesson, though! I would only be interested in anything that is, or can be manual—where you can set/run/do everything manually o the fixture itself.

Edited by Still_human
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TheyCallMeMr.703 Grandmaster Reefer

TheyCallMeMr.703

The Blackboxes do good... Also there is a Nicer Blackbox that has what your looking for built in. Around $140 I think; grow anything from Acro/SPS to Softies.

Sent from my LM-Q610(FGN) using Tapatalk

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treesprite Neptune Reefer

treesprite

Are lights still the most expensive thing in reefing? 

 

You may eventually change your mind about doing all LED. I think some people are going back half a step to hybrids, and there are a few just going back to what they had before. Either supplementing LED with T5, or supplementing T5 with LED would be good. I can't see using halides in an everyday hobbyist situation now that we have other realistic options.

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Jon Lazar Oracle Reefer

Jon Lazar

I use the Reefbreeder fixtures.  I found them to be a great balance of performance and cost.  You can program them to ramp up and down if you want.  I turn the whole thing on at once.

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mogurnda Oracle Reefer

mogurnda

8 minutes ago, Jon Lazar said:

I use the Reefbreeder fixtures.  I found them to be a great balance of performance and cost.  You can program them to ramp up and down if you want.  I turn the whole thing on at once.

+1 on Reefbreeder.  Nice slim design, programmable, plenty of PAR.

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AlanM Oracle Reefer

AlanM

Mike does good lights and has good customer service.  It's a family company in Pensacola with his wife and daughter helping run the business.

 

https://sbreeflights.com/

 

It's also possible that some local fish stores or sponsors who also do maintenance would have some that still work well and are cheap if you wanted to go used.  People upgrade or get out of the hobby often and they often use those maintenance companies to offload old gear that they don't want to bother with selling on the forum.

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ImGoingCoastal Master Reefer

ImGoingCoastal

A friend also recommended these to me.
 
So far, seems like people like them.
https://noopsycheusa.store/
I looked into these myself for a bit. While a great suggestion on the affordability front, I think that goes against his desire for a simple design that can be manually adjusted on the fixture.

My vote would be either SBReef, Ocean Revive T247, or ReefBreeder. All three are affordable, proven, and manually adjustable.

Sent from my SM-G970U1 using Tapatalk

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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On 6/17/2020 at 11:21 AM, moga said:

What is your budget? 

Lol as little as possible! I’ve already wasted a ton of money! I can’t afford spending another thousand bucks or anything like that. I guess it could depend on if I can sell my other fixtures, but of course that probably wouldn’t be a quick process, so I dunno. I guess at this point I’d be interested in at least finding out about anything that’s as reliable and practically flawless as I need. I can figure out my budget after I can move or not move the others.

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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On 6/11/2020 at 5:46 PM, TheyCallMeMr.703 said:

The Blackboxes do good... Also there is a Nicer Blackbox that has what your looking for built in. Around $140 I think; grow anything from Acro/SPS to Softies.

Sent from my LM-Q610(FGN) using Tapatalk
 

Wow, that’s way cheaper than these Red Sea reefLEDS!!!

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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On 6/11/2020 at 8:19 PM, treesprite said:

Are lights still the most expensive thing in reefing? 

 

You may eventually change your mind about doing all LED. I think some people are going back half a step to hybrids, and there are a few just going back to what they had before. Either supplementing LED with T5, or supplementing T5 with LED would be good. I can't see using halides in an everyday hobbyist situation now that we have other realistic options.

Yeah, i definitely would prefer not to go back to halides, but that WAS one of the nicest looking&growing set ups I had. The other one was an 8tube T5 fixture(just on a 55gal), but that gets even more expensive to change than my halide/power compact fixture, and I might have to replace the fixture if I wanted to do it again, anyway, as I’m not sure if all 8 spots are still working.

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SkiCurtis Grandmaster Reefer

SkiCurtis

On 6/11/2020 at 5:49 PM, lynn.reef.nerd said:

I heard great things about the OceanRevive.

 

https://www.amazon.com/OceanRevive-Arctic-Spectrum-Dimmable-Aquarium/dp/B07Z59NPC8

This is an awesome light for 200 bucks,This is what Dr mac uses. I bought mine from him 3 years ago. They're just not controllable that's the only disadvantage that I can see.

Again until I could afford my Radion XR 30 pro on my 240 I used this on one corner and it worked perfect

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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What do u mean not controllable? Like no buttons or settings or anything, just plug in, and that’s that? How big is it? Looks like I would need 2 for a 4ft tank

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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On 6/12/2020 at 2:03 PM, GraffitiSpotCorals said:

With as many led lights that I have had issues with I would say you won’t be 100% good no matter what you get. Too many parts and variables ime. 

Yeah, I believe ur probably right! That’s why I miss all the previous lighting systems so much! The only issue at all was if a fixture was good or bad quality, not what it did, cause all lighting systems did one thing—turn on/turn off, and for the most part I hadn’t heard of, or can remember hearing of any fixtures that were just poor quality, for any type of lighting. If u want halide, go buy a halide fixture, just figure out the wattage u want, which is as easy as finding out what length fixture u need. if u want T5, go buy a T5 fixture....easy as that. Now with LEDs, fixtures not only range all the way from great down to trash, but for a million different reasons, some which matter a lot, some matter to almost no one, and...yadda yadda yadda...:/  

At the moment LED fixtures are the bane of my existence!

I really wish they were as hot as other fixtures, and didn’t save money on electricity, and didn’t eliminate a lot of bulb replacement costs, so I didnt have to really want them!

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Still_human Master Reefer

Still_human

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12 minutes ago, lynn.reef.nerd said:

 

Yes with their controller. Each controller can control up to 16 lights.

Are the controllers Physical objects that come with the lights, or is it something online?

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