Scalable Lighting - AI Prime VS. (New) Maxspect Jump LED

[Reef Dweller]

Hey Everyone, 

 

Looking for a light that will scale well as I upgrade my tank. For me price is a consideration, I am fine with buying more units as time goes on but do not want to have to resell and then buy a whole other lighting set.  I used to just run T5 lights on my larger tank, but I like the color pop from LED's so I would like to switch over.

 

My Goal:

I've been out of the hobby for a couple of years, and just getting back in I have limited space right now (back to basics with my old Nuvo 10 with a skkye light), but I will likely move in the next year and upgrade tanks. I am hoping for a shallow 75 - 90 Gallon tank when the time comes I want this to be a mixed reef dominated by LPS. 

 

looking forward to your thoughts below and votes in the poll. 

 

AI Prime:

 

Pros:

1. Price (New $210) (Large used market) - I've seen them for around $170 with shipping

2. Well known brand

3. Known reproducible results

4. High Par Values

5. Control ability of spectrum through WIFI App

 

Cons:

1.  Not a great spread of light - ( Could be hard to expand with larger tank requiring two rows)

2. Brackets sold separately (about $ 40) 

3. Bracket Height /Adjustablity  limited without fabrication

4. Higher mounting Height (proper spread concerns) 

 

Maxspect Jump I165 

 

Pros:

1. Price (light about $215)

2. Brand is well known for their Ethereal Light 

3. Spread seems really good - Meaning I could mount a little lower giving a cleaner look. 

4. Includes mounting brackets with a lot of adjustability. 

5. I would be buying new so I would know the run time on the lights/ Warranties. 

6.  Control ability of spectrum through WIFI App

 

Cons:

1. New light - no guarantee on the results. 

2. Par values seem lower but again tested at a high mounting height in the (Reef dudes video posted below) 

3. no used market yet for people selling but their might be when I go to upgrade in a year. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Reef Dweller]

Update:

 

I ordered the MJ-L165 - the light itself is great. The par output and spread far exceeding the AI prime. However I returned it because of what I see as failure of its wireless app capabilities. 

 

Router mode install: 

 

Initially tried to set this up using their router mode. It failed to find the device after hours of trying to get it to connect. The issue here might have been it requires a 2.4GHz router signal vs a 5GHz router signal. Unfortunately my router is unable to put out a signal at 2.4 GHz. 

 

AP mode install: 

 

After being unsuccessful with router mode I went to AP mode which is a direct connection from my phone to the light itself. I was able to connect and set up the light cycles and timing. This was a pain however because I had to get off my home network and onto the MJ-L165 network. Additonally you had to turn on AP mode manually each time to connect. The lights internal pairing time was extremely short requiring the user to pair within the few blinks of the lights indicator of entering AP mode.  Once I had this all set up and my schedule going the next day the light turned on and worked well. However the day after it did not turn on at the scheduled time. I reset everything and set it up again, the next day the light did not turn on again at the scheduled time.

 

Overall it seems like the light itself is a great product but the App control leaves much to be desired. 

 

Thanks,

 

ReefDweller

[howaboutme]

It seems like the 2.4 vs 5 ghz router issue is common amongst many of the wifi enabled devices in the hobby today.

 

I have some quick thoughts on the AI fixtures. I do use the AI Prime HD (not 16), which uses wifi. The 16 uses bluetooth, which is important to understand. I do use the nero ph via bluetooth so I do have experience with the app. If you desire the latest and greatest, then disregard. If you don't care, my thought is that I do think the old HD's are more functional because of the ability to use wifi to control the light. The bluetooth connectivity is not stable for one (a quick google will confirm). Two, using the wifi version allows you to use your computer (via the AI website) to make the adjustments (some of them are micro) rather than your tiny phone (or tablet) and fat fingers. This by itself is enough for me to never upgrade unless something more functional comes out. In fact, I'm in the middle of switching over to the old non-Mobius vortech pumps just to avoid BT connectivity. Good luck!