Well let’s see, all the tanks I’ve started with live rock. For me it was mostly I wanted all the flora and fauna that comes from that. But as has been shown dry rock has started many a reef. Both have their conveniences and cons but honestly I think that it comes down to personal preference. If I ever do a larger tank (90+ gallons) I might just try a mix, so as to get the best of both . Like use live base rock for kickstarting the cycle and dry for aquascaping.