Orphek v4 compact and AI light mount

littlewing · Nov 25, 2018

Watching this too. Ordered 2 V4 Compacts also.

bckey · Nov 25, 2018

littlewing said:
Watching this too. Ordered 2 V4 Compacts also.

Awesome! I have a feeling that there will be a lot more Orphek owners in the near future. It is too good of a light to stay mostly unknown by the mainstream reefing community. I think with the newer version being recently released coupled with the high praise that BRS gave it that sales are going to be climbing. More owners. More reviews. More knowledge about what we have and how to use it best for each situation. It really should only get better from this point on for Orphek. I believe they have a couple of winners with the full size and the compact version v4. A new standard has been set in the led aquarium world. Like Brett said in his BRS review:

As of the end of 2018, there isn’t another LED lighting solution that compares to these. I have owned AI, reefbreeders, kessil and ecotech even winning TOTM with them in the past. The Orphek is the most impressive fixture I have seen. Of course anyone reading this should have watched the BRS video about the spectrum and quality, but the smaller details such as the acrylic base and how it diffuses light and prevents shining in your eyes even when you have seating right next to the tank is really impressive (with a reasonable fixture height of course). It replaced on of those brands above – both fixtures did not have any light spill outside of the tank, but the glare on my eyes was there until I installed the Orphek.

It is heavy, I don’t think there is a work around for building a quality fixture like this and have it be light. I personally wouldn’t trust tank only mounts and would find a solution where you can slip black PVC or 80/20 over/under/attach and bolt to the stand or wall for support.

Right now the new 360x are $450. So two of them are the price of the Orphek. I can’t imagine primary lighting for a reef tank where one could make a solid argument for 2 of those over the Orphek for the same price. For all you get the Atlantik is a solid deal. You can even add orphek bars if you wanted and they are quite a reasonable price.

Ocelot · Nov 25, 2018

I also ordered a single Orphek V4 G2 for my tank, with gateway, should be here next week as well.

I was also thinking about a single riser column type 8020 fixture for the light, that attaches to the stand rather than the tank.

I looked at the Orphek tank arms, but their site recommends 10mm glass or thicker, and since I have a smaller but wide AIO I ruled it out.

May post some updates on this thread.

bckey · Dec 22, 2018

I ended up making this mount to hang the orphek. Cheap and it works like a champ.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2009-04/diy/index.php

NefTunzReef · Dec 23, 2018

My 3 compact V4s across RSR 525XL using DIY pendant style hanging system each bolted to the wall...[emoji4]

littlewing · Jan 2, 2019

I'm going with the HMS mounts with brackets I fabricated from 1/8 x 3/4 bar stock.

FLSharkvictim · Jan 20, 2019

bckey said:
Has anyone tried mounting the orphek atlantik v4 compact using the aqua illumination light mounting system. I want to order the orphek while it is onsale but hanging it or mounting with arms from the back glass of the aquarium are out. That is why this particular option looks appealing. If anyone has attempted this or knows someone that has any help would be appreciated. This idea was given to me by hart24601 (Brett). Much appreciated!

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/hms-multi-light-mount-kit-aqua-illumination.html

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/multi-light-hms-track-aqua-illumination.html

https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/atlantik-compact-v4-gen-2-led-light-fixture-orphek.html

I'm sure I can find a way to make it work but if someone has already done it and refined the process it would be very helpful to know before I start ordering stuff. Thanks again.

---------------------------------------
I just bought a pair of Orphek Atlantik Compact V4 (Gen 2) LED fixtures for my new SCA 150 build and I decided to go with there mounting legs instead. What I like about the mounting legs is they are designed specifically for Rimless tanks. The versatile, anti-rust, heavily-built, multi-functional mounting. The major components of this kit are made of high-quality thick aluminum strong enough to support the weight of our 24 pound Atlantik V4 let alone one of there compact fixtures.

They are super VERSATILITY the tank mount will fit tank thicknesses from 10 to 19mm (.39 to .74 inches) This kit will allow a wide range of horizontal and vertical movement to suit any aquarium application
LAYOUT

Mounts directly to aquarium tank up to 40cm high (15.74 inches)
Easy to install, allowing easy cleaning and maintenance of your aquarium and your fixtures

In the meantime, I bought a pair of their Mounting legs.

bckey · Jan 20, 2019

I searched high and low when I got the light and never found legs. I found arms all day long but I didn’t want to go that route. I just got through boxing up my Orphek yesterday out of frustration with the software app. Great light but mine kept reverting back to acclimation mode. I finally said I’m done. I wish they would have some kind of hardware control on them. Great light but crappy software. Also I am still waiting on a hangar that they were supposed to replace 6 weeks ago. Still waiting. Supposedly coming from overseas. In the meantime I had to hang the light a little lower than I wanted because the hangar that came with it was too thin in spots and would slip down to a thicker portion and stop no matter how tight you have it.

FLSharkvictim · Jan 20, 2019

bckey said:
I searched high and low when I got the light and never found legs. I found arms all day long but I didn’t want to go that route. I just got through boxing up my Orphek yesterday out of frustration with the software app. Great light but mine kept reverting back to acclimation mode. I finally said I’m done. I wish they would have some kind of hardware control on them. Great light but crappy software. Also I am still waiting on a hangar that they were supposed to replace 6 weeks ago. Still waiting. Supposedly coming from overseas. In the meantime I had to hang the light a little lower than I wanted because the hangar that came with it was too thin in spots and would slip down to a thicker portion and stop no matter how tight you have it.

@bckey - Do you have the new Compact fixtures ? I am sorry to hear your bad experience, did you contact James yet direct? I added his email address for you below. They responded to me within a half of hour on a Saturday night.
I'm in sales so I know all about customer service and Orphek, has superior customer service compared to some of these other light MFGS!
[email protected]
OR
[email protected]

bckey · Jan 20, 2019

Yes I have the new compact V4 gen 2. James was great! I contacted him back when I had the problem. He put me in touch with the rep I needed. But after that forget it. James is great on his end. Unfortunately if you have to deal with the overseas portion of their customer service they are not the same. I already packed it up and put it in the closet. Don't need the headache. Fantastic light. It just falls short by making it totally dependent on software. Absolutely no hardware controls whatsoever. Just not smart imho.