Radions - worst light fixtures in its class

[VintageReefer]

Most likely true but their money source is coral and if the lights did not support their money source adequately then it wouldnt matter if they were free or not.

I'm not a big fan of my XR15 lights either. I give them a B grade overall but it is obvious that big time coral vendors have success with radion lights.

Define success?

Color pop to sell coral? Or provide the best for long term coral growth and health?

I’m not saying they can’t do the job but the vendors give the big name the shops to use as advertising. They are then reviewed by the big name website owned by the company that owns the light company

New people see all this and think it’s what they need. Surprise happens to be the most expensive. Surprise 2. They are average

 

[DanyL]

These clowns obviously have not read this thread and do not know what they are doing.

LED Lighting Presets

Download our LED Lighting Schedules EcoTech Mobius 1200g Lagoon Mobius Schedule - LPS Reef Download Now 1500g Reef Mobius Schedule - SPS Dominant Download Now 100g Reef * Mobius Schedule - Mixed Reef Download Now Download our LED Lighting Schedules EcoTech Radion 1200g Lagoon Radion Schedule...

worldwidecorals.com

I had the opportunity to tour their farm, they even let me look above Casper's tank to see how the light was setup - it's very impressive.

But no one here have ever doubt WWC's credibility, they know what they're doing.
At the same time, they are also a business and make business decisions - for them to accept a generous offer from Ecotech makes a lot of sense, given that the lights are more than capable to grow coral and produce attractive colors.

However, this does not reflect wether this light is any better than others, nor does it reflect its value.
It simply means that yes, it can grow coral and can produce nice colors.

 

[Lavey29]

I had the opportunity to tour their farm, they even let me look above Casper's tank to see how the light was setup - it's very impressive.

But no one here have ever doubt WWC's credibility, they know what they're doing.
At the same time, they are also a business and make business decisions - for them to accept a generous offer from Ecotech makes a lot of sense, given that the lights are more than capable to grow coral and produce attractive colors.

However, this does not reflect wether this light is any better than others, nor does it reflect its value.
It simply means that yes, it can grow coral and can produce nice colors.

Yes there is more then one path to success. Every tank is unique right?

 

[DanyL]

Yes there is more then one path to success. Every tank is unique right?

Exactly

 

[Lavey29]

Define success?

Color pop to sell coral? Or provide the best for long term coral growth and health?

I’m not saying they can’t do the job but the vendors give the big name the shops to use as advertising. They are then reviewed by the big name website owned by the company that owns the light company

New people see all this and think it’s what they need. Surprise happens to be the most expensive. Surprise 2. They are average

Ferrari or Lamborghini? Gets you the same place as a Hyundai just not as fast.

 

[VintageReefer]

Ferrari or Lamborghini? Gets you the same place as a Hyundai just not as fast. Those two companies you pay a premium to get a premium top of the line product on a whole other level than a Hyundai

Irrelevant. With those two companies you pay a premium, to get a premium product significantly better than something average. With radions you pay 2-3x the cost and for what?

Imagine paying for the Ferrari and it’s as fast as a Camry. That’s radion summed up

 

[DanyL]

Ferrari or Lamborghini? Gets you the same place as a Hyundai just not as fast.

What if the Hyundai came with the same engine and body as a Bugatti, but cost half as much as the Ferrari?

Thing is that Radion have lost it's momentum and others caught up with the technology.
I'm not talking about the cheap Chinese off brands, which yes can grow coral but can lack in spectrum, spread or other areas. I'm talking about head-to-head competition - you can find options today that would not only compare in performance but will also provide wider spectrum, more power and more spreading options.
They will still cost more than the generic Chinese off brands, but still wouldn't be priced as high as Radion does.

One can go wrong with lighting, but it's harder these days and there are more decent options avaialble if you aren't as fixed on the branding.

 

[JGT]

Isn’t that huge though

Eh, depends what you consider huge. About 13.5” inches round. Supposedly 2 is all that’s needed over a 72” tank. Claims of 189% more par than Radions XR30 and 171% more that Reefi are being made. Yet to be confirmed.

 

[DanyL]

Eh, depends what you consider huge. About 13.5” inches round. Supposedly 2 is all that’s needed over a 72” tank. Claims of 189% more par than Radions XR30 and 171% more that Reefi are being made. Yet to be confirmed.

It's definitely interesting and I've been following the announcements.
But from what I can tell, the tank needs to be very deep - otherwise it'll spill over quite a bit.

I think these lights are more of a replacement to those huge MH used in public Aquariums where you need good penetration, or farms where you have a large area usually covered by multiple rows of fixtures, rather than a typical home aquarium.

But I guess there's nothing stopping one to use them on 6ft a "nano"

 

[exnisstech]

14 foot reef just installed 3 of the atlas over his new frag tank and should be posting his thoughts for anyone interested.

Quanta Atlas and Helix

What about pricing? He says about $500, can this be confirmed?

www.reef2reef.com

 

[rtparty]

The whole thread

 

[areefer01]

The whole thread

It does make one squint.

 

[VintageReefer]

Off topic but can I ask what you use for your pictures? Stunning color contrast.

Photon 48 v2
iPhone se
Orange lens
No editing

This is how it looks in person

 

[VintageReefer]

Eh, depends what you consider huge. About 13.5” inches round. Supposedly 2 is all that’s needed over a 72” tank. Claims of 189% more par than Radions XR30 and 171% more that Reefi are being made. Yet to be confirmed.

I will say I don’t know much about them but I am intrigued

 

[rtparty]

It does make one squint.

I’d rather splash bleach in my eyes

 

[Cichlid Dad]

Par has never been an issue for me with Radion. It’s the spectrum of that PAR. Too blue (atleast with gen 5 and 6).

“Class” takes into consideration watts and price.

Sam

Spectrum is in your control. You have the power to do any spectrum you want with the lights. Don't want it so blue, change it. I think it's in bad taste to complain about the spectrum on something so customizable

 

[DanyL]

Spectrum is in your control. You have the power to do any spectrum you want with the lights. Don't want it so blue, change it. I think it's in bad taste to complain about the spectrum on something so customizable

Read my comment on the first page (#18) - I wrote exactly about this point.

One of the drawbacks of the Radions is that they aren't as customizable as other fixtures on the market today.
They intentionally or unintentionally split the Radion into 2 models, with 2 different spectrums - which ever you choose, if you want switch to the other model's spectrum you'll either have to significantly compromise on PAR (power), or to purchase and switch to the other model.

 

[Lavey29]

What if the Hyundai came with the same engine and body as a Bugatti, but cost half as much as the Ferrari?

Thing is that Radion have lost it's momentum and others caught up with the technology.
I'm not talking about the cheap Chinese off brands, which yes can grow coral but can lack in spectrum, spread or other areas. I'm talking about head-to-head competition - you can find options today that would not only compare in performance but will also provide wider spectrum, more power and more spreading options.
They will still cost more than the generic Chinese off brands, but still wouldn't be priced as high as Radion does.

One can go wrong with lighting, but it's harder these days and there are more decent options avaialble if you aren't as fixed on the branding.

Yes it would be made in China then

 

[Lavey29]

Irrelevant. With those two companies you pay a premium, to get a premium product significantly better than something average. With radions you pay 2-3x the cost and for what?

Imagine paying for the Ferrari and it’s as fast as a Camry. That’s radion summed up

But you get more girls with the Ferrari

 

[Lavey29]

I personally think tank dimensions play an important roll on which lights to use also. Everyone here probably is aware of this to. If I had a large tank I would definitely be using T5 lights which are cheap and proven to work and mixing them with some LEDs also to get full spectrum control. I think hybrid systems work great on large tanks.

Can you be successful with cheaper lights versus big brand names? Sure, but lights are only one element for a successful reef tank. Technically you could run no lights right and just use direct sunlight? Talk about the cheapest pure option.

All I know is my BMW M850 rides a lot nicer then my 4runner but they both get me where I need to go.