Radion XR15 Gen 5 Blue AND XHO-K15s?!?

gerajn01 · May 17, 2021

Sooooo.... Ill start off by saying im a novice reefer (around 8 months deep) and assumed that if I purchased Radions I wouldn't need anything else when it comes to lighting. I just read and saw some picks from reefers that are actually adding Reefbrite XHO-K15 to their Radion (and other LEDs) XR15s.... This REALLY intrigued me so I started digging. This was my conclusion... XHO-K15 provides two additional benefits. ONE: Spread... the additional LED lights help spread light to all corners, crevasses, shaded areas of the tank to provide a more even par reading for all corals to enjoy. TWO: Provides a POP of color by utilizing blue and velvet LEDs. Sooo.... I watched BRS regarding the product and they stated that Radions don't really need assistance when it comes to evenly dispersing light throughout the tank (for the most part) and be it that I happen to have Gen 5 BLUE Radions, how much more color POP would an additional blue/velvet LED actually provide my tank/corals? These are my two main concerns. I was ready to pull the trigger but at $180 per kit and I needing three of them and possibly the BlueTooth controller, I'm looking at $800. Adding an additional $800 to already "top of the line" LEDs seems unnecessary to me. Please prove me wrong as id love for the XHO-K15 to actually improve my setup! TIA

MnFish1 · May 17, 2021

gerajn01 said:
Sooooo.... Ill start off by saying im a novice reefer (around 8 months deep) and assumed that if I purchased Radions I wouldn't need anything else when it comes to lighting. I just read and saw some picks from reefers that are actually adding Reefbrite XHO-K15 to their Radion (and other LEDs) XR15s.... This REALLY intrigued me so I started digging. This was my conclusion... XHO-K15 provides two additional benefits. ONE: Spread... the additional LED lights help spread light to all corners, crevasses, shaded areas of the tank to provide a more even par reading for all corals to enjoy. TWO: Provides a POP of color by utilizing blue and velvet LEDs. Sooo.... I watched BRS regarding the product and they stated that Radions don't really need assistance when it comes to evenly dispersing light throughout the tank (for the most part) and be it that I happen to have Gen 5 BLUE Radions, how much more color POP would an additional blue/velvet LED actually provide my tank/corals? These are my two main concerns. I was ready to pull the trigger but at $180 per kit and I needing three of them and possibly the BlueTooth controller, I'm looking at $800. Adding an additional $800 to already "top of the line" LEDs seems unnecessary to me. Please prove me wrong as id love for the XHO-K15 to actually improve my setup! TIA

I bought the Gen 5 30 regular - I think the spread is outstanding (I think I watched the same video). So - thats what I would recommend (i.e. I think you could set your radions to get the same effect as adding more lights). Additionally, adding 3 more pieces of equipment adds 3 more possible failures, etc. Just my thoughts