SPS and LEDs?

[stlcards14]

I'm running kessil a350 and recently wanted to get into SPS coral. I have heard debated about LEDs for some time now and would like to hear it from the SPS experts themselves. Is anyone having success running just Kessils on their tank with no additional lighting? Pics would greatly help in the debate.

[Saltar]

My local LFS is running Kessil and growing SPS on their main tank.

[Ross33]

I'm not an expert but I do have a few years experience with sps and LEDs. From what I have seen, yes it is possible to keep them and some did well. Most did very average. FWIW my new tank is going to be halides.

[CBlair]

I'm not an expert but I do have a few years experience with sps and LEDs. From what I have seen, yes it is possible to keep them and some did well. Most did very average. FWIW my new tank is going to be halides.

I 100% agree, I ran both ai sol and radions on my tank and some did ok others did not like led. I ordered an ati sunpower 8bulb t5 and installed it about a week ago. Corals seem much happier with the t5 in just 1 week. This is just my experience

[Touring]

I 100% agree, I ran both ai sol and radions on my tank and some did ok others did not like led. I ordered an ati sunpower 8bulb t5 and installed it about a week ago. Corals seem much happier with the t5 in just 1 week. This is just my experience

Keep us updated,picks too if you can

[chad p]

Had a Kessil A350 over SPS for close to a year. My experience was similar to others here. Some really nice color and growth but most very average and a few SPS that just didn't like LED much at all. I went to AI Sol for a short time and just switched to 250W MH for my 34 gallon cube. Right now it's a Hamilton Cayman Sun with Hamilton 14K but I'm going to swap it out with a Phoenix 14K for some more pop. I'm literally only on day 4 or 5 with the new light but I'm expecting better color and growth with most or all of my SPS.

[Prochef176]

I have had only Led and have almost all sps. Have had really great growth on some and great coloring as well. But I will say that start out low, I run my radions at 60% and up from 40% when I started.

[Borchers]

I've been trying to find a good thread about using Radions over an SPS system. There are only a few and they are just personal threads in their tanks.

[Reef Raf]

My LFS has tested them and been very unimpressed with them. They did multiple PAR testing and the couple model they tried could not sustain SPS very close to the surface. They were likely the smaller models. But they were hung low to the water and should have been able to sustain SPS right under the surface.

I know some people do like them though.

[CIGARSC351W]

I'm at the 9 month mark on my 45 cube. The tank is mostly sps. I'm running a maxspect razor 20" 16k. I still haven't figured out LED's completely. I turn them down the Acro's look unhappy. I turn them up they bleach. I firmly believe that LED's are the future but the technology is not perfected yet in my opinion. I have so far been able to resist the urge to mount MH over the tank.

[celamb89]

I've had my tank over LEDs for aprox a year... DIY Cree LEDs, SPS do ok, LPS have lost color but continue to grow.. I did loose a blue tort but IMO it was due to an ALK swing when my perilstatic pump overdosed and ALK when through the roof...

SPS include, seriatopora, 2x milleoporas, fire echinata, hyacinthus, strawberry short cake, tricolor acropora

recently added, granulosa and unknown sps... they show good color and started to encrust but still too soon.

[jda]

You won't find too many long term SPS keepers who have aspirations of a really nice SPS tank that are happy with LED... and the smart ones never tried them. There are a few. Most of the people who are happy with LED and their SPS are newer to the hobby and don't generally have the breadth and depth of experience to know what they are looking at, so they likely would have been happy with whatever they bought.

Most of your TOTM winners are SPS people. You can also reach out to SPS farmers and fraggers. Unfortunately, not too many post here, so you have to do the work.

[mr. pluto]

i'm a long term SPS keeper & i used LEDs For over 2 years, and recently lit up by RB photons.



http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e6/pluto123/011_zps7a641c39.jpg

[animalkingdom]

...and the smart ones never tried them.
disagree with this, I know some very experienced sps keepers who tried leds. whether or not they liked them or not is a different story.

[rovster]

You won't find too many long term SPS keepers who have aspirations of a really nice SPS tank that are happy with LED... and the smart ones never tried them. There are a few. Most of the people who are happy with LED and their SPS are newer to the hobby and don't generally have the breadth and depth of experience to know what they are looking at, so they likely would have been happy with whatever they bought.
Most of your TOTM winners are SPS people. You can also reach out to SPS farmers and fraggers. Unfortunately, not too many post here, so you have to do the work.

That is a great observation. I fall in that category. I have only known LEDs. I get decent growth and color in my nano, and have Radion Pros for my upgrade. I blame my "decent" growth and color on the fact that its a 14 gallon, not the light. I am very curious however about the whole halide thing. Once my upgrade is finished and running, I plan on setting up another nano-ish tank and am considering using a halide to see what all the fuss it about, LOL!

I think the consensus is that halides are still king if color and growth are the only criteria by which its judged. That said, if you factor in everything else, LEDs can still be a "good" choice for lighting your reef. There is no "perfect" scenario, in reefing, or in life for that matter:beer:

[marinelife]

a local hobbyist used Kessil but switched them out as they did not do well.

I have been running DYI LEDs for 3.5 years and my SPS corals have never looked better!
Been in the hobby almost 18 years and was with MHs. I have no regrets moving to LEDs. one of the best things I have done for my tank!

[Frick]

I like the Kessils, and I wouldn't say I am the most seasoned reefer. I have had successful SPS tanks with halides and T5s. And now I think I am having good success with Kessil LEDs.
Corals so have to adapt to the LED lighting most of the time, but I can say I am in no hurry to go back to halides or T5s.

Here's my 29 BioCube at work. It's had an A350 on it for about a year and before that it had an A150W Sky Blue.
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee320/Jason_Frick/29g%20BioCube%20Vasca%20tank/null_zpsc5bfa761.jpg (http://s235.photobucket.com/user/Jason_Frick/media/29g%20BioCube%20Vasca%20tank/null_zpsc5bfa761.jpg.html)
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee320/Jason_Frick/29g%20BioCube%20Vasca%20tank/null_zps98346199.jpg (http://s235.photobucket.com/user/Jason_Frick/media/29g%20BioCube%20Vasca%20tank/null_zps98346199.jpg.html)

My new 75 has two A360Ws, I need to get a FTS. Here's a few of the SPS in it.
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee320/Jason_Frick/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/0E8F626F-1F4B-47FC-AB9E-73A5556D4D81-10368-00001A1C4ACEEAF7_zpse74d50dd.jpg (http://s235.photobucket.com/user/Jason_Frick/media/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/0E8F626F-1F4B-47FC-AB9E-73A5556D4D81-10368-00001A1C4ACEEAF7_zpse74d50dd.jpg.html)
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee320/Jason_Frick/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/B94F7EFA-DAEF-4A9E-84EB-314ABB47CEBC-190-000000A867DB8A75_zps34c0f654.jpg (http://s235.photobucket.com/user/Jason_Frick/media/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/B94F7EFA-DAEF-4A9E-84EB-314ABB47CEBC-190-000000A867DB8A75_zps34c0f654.jpg.html)
http://i235.photobucket.com/albums/ee320/Jason_Frick/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/15E344F4-C372-4319-B32C-38A641A427AF-190-000000A8849087E3_zpscbb94032.jpg (http://s235.photobucket.com/user/Jason_Frick/media/75gallon%20double-bunk%20Tank/15E344F4-C372-4319-B32C-38A641A427AF-190-000000A8849087E3_zpscbb94032.jpg.html)

[Kurkis493]

I had MH and have had a Radion Pro over my cube for 3 months or so. I question the LEDs and how much easier it would be to go back to MH. You read and hear constantly people telling you how great their LEDs are and how much growth they have but very few times do we ever see images of a tank that has been under LEDs for any extended period of time...

When I get the itch to switch to MH I look at this thread and think if one person is having success then I can have success too.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2287628

This is a tank that has been under LEDs for an extensive period of time. He is running his light close to the water line at what I would consider very high intensity for that size tank... His lightning period is from 9am until 12:45am which is much longer than alot of people run their LEDs....

I have been using this person's radion profile for 3 months and up until today have I increased my intensity by about 15% during the peak 4 hours of the lightning cycle and also changed the spectrum during this peak time from bright whites to primarily blues (in attempts to regain some lost color).

This is being done on a 60 cube with the light 9" over the waterline.

[sanchoy]

30 inch deep tank here. Growing millis and acros with no problem. Montis and digis grow like weed on bottom. AJMled brand with 90 ops.

[dfm34]

I'm at the 9 month mark on my 45 cube. The tank is mostly sps. I'm running a maxspect razor 20" 16k. I still haven't figured out LED's completely. I turn them down the Acro's look unhappy. I turn them up they bleach. I firmly believe that LED's are the future but the technology is not perfected yet in my opinion. I have so far been able to resist the urge to mount MH over the tank.

I have 2 16k razors over my 75 with sps right now run them at whites 65% and blues 90% for three hours they gradually increase to this level then decrease over the course of the day and have no issues. I will say that my frags all came from led tanks so the acclimation time may not be needed or that extreme.

[barry_keith]

30 inch deep tank here. Growing millis and acros with no problem. Montis and digis grow like weed on bottom. AJMled brand with 90 ops.

How high above the water line are you running yours lights?

[ReefGeek79]

I'm making the jump to LED's and am looking forward to seeing what happens. I'm getting two Gen 2 Radions for my 65 after running T5's for the last 3 years. I also have a 29 biocube HQI in my office and am looking forward to the comparisons. I have lots of SPS in both, including acros. I get better color with the MH in the 29 but my growth is better with the T5's. When I've had the Radions up for a while I'll report back with some comparisons. I think there's going to be trade-offs (less power consumption, no bulb changes) and I guess it's all in what matters most to you.

[agcneves]

I have many friends who are already using LEDs and claim they are enjoying the results. The biggest complaint is that shooting with this lighting is difficult.

[sanchoy]

How high above the water line are you running yours lights?

12+ inches. Don't let people tell you LEDs can't grow sps. Of course certain brands perform weaker then others. Ajm performed well for me with 90 optics.

[Prochef176]

LEDs and sps? Next thing you know we will be buying $6 cups of coffee to go!

[barry_keith]

LEDs and sps? Next thing you know we will be buying $6 cups of coffee to go!

Uh... It's called Starbucks

[barry_keith]

12+ inches. Don't let people tell you LEDs can't grow sps. Of course certain brands perform weaker then others. Ajm performed well for me with 90 optics.

I'm on team LED with you.

I have no doubts.

I asked because I run 60* over my 31" deep tank. About 14" above the water

[Prochef176]

Uh... It's called Starbucksyeah, That was the joke. I have been in and out of the hobby. I had tanks previously with metal halides and they are great. However, I enjoy reading from experts that say things like no sps reefer would even try led's. These are the same types that years ago would have you believe the secret to any salt water tank was the under gravel filter. The technology will improve and I imagine that the number of critics will decrease. I personally like the led's I have. And I have had success. Is it TOTM worthy? Probably not, but that's not my goal in this hobby.

[Touring]

I personally like the led's I have. And I have had success. Is it TOTM worthy? Probably not, but that's not my goal in this hobby.

all I strive for..... I wouldn't be in this hooby if I didn't want to have the best looking tank.

L.E.Ds FTW

[Prochef176]

My point was that success isn't necessarily measured on a TOTM nod for everyone. LEDs may not be the ultimate light for sps, but it sure feels like led lighting is gaining serious momentum

[jda]

You are a successful hobbyist if you are self aware enough to know what you want and then go and get it. There are too few like you.

It is true that everybody's success measure is vastly different, and we mostly fail to give context around our recommendations when people ask questions like this. "I love my LEDs" or "Halides are the only way to go" don't really help too much - I am as guilty as anybody.

[marinelife]

Mhs for me never worked. The color and growth was just not there like it is with my DIY LEDs
With everything in the hobby not everything works for everyone.

[sanchoy]

Very true, every system is different. There may be same equipment/ tank dimensions. But there is numerous factors that play a role in the success of a reef tank. That's why certain corals flourish in some tanks , and die in others. Even though parameters are very close to the same. In my case, LEDs has proven to work.

[tilo]

I run a Pacific Sun LED module over a 40 breeder that has a few sps that grow on the sand bed. Intensity was a lot to get use to and about a year and a half ago I had that bad boy on 100% 24 inches above the tank. Story did not end happily ever after.

But when I purchased the fixture from a shop,no one had a clue on any information of this fixture, sold it to me for a steal.
Anyway this same fixture is 24 inches above the tank at 50% with white leds never hitting 100% of the max power (if you can understand that) and I get better growth all around and its still being adjusted.

I honestly bought the fixture to save money from bulbs and energy but it became more than that because I could program it to look exactly like a 14-20k metal halide bulb.

Im not choosing a side, there are successful tanks with both halides and LEDs and I can respect that if someone has the funding and husbandry to take care of the tank the way it is than why push their nose in the dirt.

If any of you guys have any questions about the LEDs I have or the way its set up don't hesitate to ask.

[Ckyuv]

I ran 3 Kessil 350w over my 55g 7" above the surface for a year. The tank had a leak and I decided to do a different set up but while it was up my tank did great! With all 3 lights turned to 100% my par readings were 400 1" under the surface and 250 on the bottom. Tank was pretty evenly lit. I added a build my led fixture over the lights to get the added colors the kessils were missing. This was a pic of the tank about half way through I don't have any from before I took it down but I had alright growth and color

[reefmutt]

Well, I have my new tank under 3 GHL Mitras. All of my old reefs were under mh and then more recently, t5 mh combos..
I believe that LEDs will produce the same results as mh or t5, when all water parameters are where they should be.
The main hurdle LEDs produce, IMO, is dialing them in properly so that the corals get optimal lighting. Keeping the bluer end of the spectrum up and reducing the whiter end to keep the corals from burning..
Running LEDs adds a big element of questioning that mh/t5 removes.
With mh/t5, one can't ask 'is it my lights?' Because they always work. The spectrum is always optimal.... I guess people still ask that question of their mh/t5 but I suspect more often than not, they should be looking elsewhere for problems.
With LEDs, it's a more legitimate question and adds another layer to peel back from the proverbial onion..
I've only had my tank going for two months and won't be making any claims anytime soon.
I have purposefully purchased both named corals as well as bleached out corals from a system running more vodka than necessary... As well as several cultured corals.
I'll post my whole system very soon as well as photos of all the different corals as a reference. I'll be as interested as everybody else to see how they colour up..

[Spirofucci]

LOL, the led debate again......

I have seen hundreds of tanks lit by LED's that have beautiful sps colonies. IMO LED's or T5's are almost a must for smaller tanks because of heat issues.

I have a Radion Pro over my 34 gal and have excellent color on my sps corals. Not that it matters but it was TOTM on an other forum....

Kessils are cool looking but have only one source and one sprectrum.

[reefmutt]

I have also seen excellent results with the radion pro..
I'm giving it 3 more years of debate before it really becomes mute..

[chefmur]

I switched from Halides to Radions over my SPS 150 gal and could not be happier, the dude that commented that experienced reefers dont know any better is completly wrong. My sps are rocking under the Radions. Better colors, just as good growth if not better and a much cooler tank. I have been keeping reefs for almost ten years and one of the main things I have learned is there is more than one way to be succesfull in this hobby.

[chad p]

Hey chefmur, couple of questions:
-Which version of Radion are you using?
-How long ago did you make the switch?
-What percentage do your Radions peak out at?

Thank you

[chefmur]

Chad P,
I switched from the Halides at the first of this year, I got 1 Gen 2 from a friend who bought it and changed his mind before even using it, then I purchased 2 of the Pros. To be honest if I had to do it over I dont think I would spend the extra $$ on the pros. Running side by side its hard to tell the difference between the pros and gen 2. I have them at 70% at the peak of the day from noon until around 4.00pm and then ramp down every couple of hours until 11.00pm. Like I said I have run everything in the last ten years from VHO. T5, Halides and now LED and my tank has never looked better. I guess the only question is long term sucess.

[Adrnalnrsh]

In the early days of LED's and SPS there was a lot of trial and error. So its expected that people who had long term success with lighting that had already been proven would obviously experience failure from a tech that wasn't.

Fast forward to today (or within the last year or so) - LED's are definitely capable of growing SPS and even enhancing colors in SPS. Florescence being the most notable enhancement when running LED's, specifically 455nm (Royal Blue).

Other potential LED issues can stem from over or underestimating the power of LED's or running a spectrum that's not ideal. e.g. Royal Blue/Cool White.

Full spectrum is the only way to go with LED's IMHO. Combination of RB, NW, TV or HV, DR, Cool Blue, Turquoise in the proper ratios can't be beat.

[Grandlotus]

LOL, the led debate again......

I have seen hundreds of tanks lit by LED's that have beautiful sps colonies. IMO LED's or T5's are almost a must for smaller tanks because of heat issues.

I have a Radion Pro over my 34 gal and have excellent color on my sps corals. Not that it matters but it was TOTM on an other forum....

Kessils are cool looking but have only one source and one sprectrum.

+1

I have radions on my 29g and am keeping acro's/tort's colored up with no issues.

LED's DO WORK and I would never go back to anything else.

[tdb320reef]

You won't find too many long term SPS keepers who have aspirations of a really nice SPS tank that are happy with LED... and the smart ones never tried them. There are a few. Most of the people who are happy with LED and their SPS are newer to the hobby and don't generally have the breadth and depth of experience to know what they are looking at, so they likely would have been happy with whatever they bought.

Most of your TOTM winners are SPS people. You can also reach out to SPS farmers and fraggers. Unfortunately, not too many post here, so you have to do the work.

Didn't that say that about T5. There is a lot more to it other than lighting. Depth or experience cannot be quantified by time but rather effectiveness. I have had more success with leds in 1 year than most of the tanks on this site including many of the TOTM. Maybe it is those that choose to post here choose not to run a TOTM. BTW I am a fragger too.

[chad p]

Maybe there's some truth to the "full spectrum is key" angle?

My only experience with LED was a Kessil 350 and Sol Blue and it was enough for me to try out MH over my tank. Not that I hated the LEDs. I didn't hate them at all but I was less than impressed with my color on some, not all of my SPS frags/mini colonies.

I want to give the MH another 6 months or so to see how I like things and then I may try a gen 2 Radion. So far though in only 10 days or so I'm seeing stuff start to color up again.

[ssdawood]

LOL, the led debate again......

I have seen hundreds of tanks lit by LED's that have beautiful sps colonies. IMO LED's or T5's are almost a must for smaller tanks because of heat issues.

I have a Radion Pro over my 34 gal and have excellent color on my sps corals. Not that it matters but it was TOTM on an other forum....

Kessils are cool looking but have only one source and one sprectrum.

The more I read about radion pro the more I am inclined to buy one. The only downside is connecting the computer to adjust settings.

[dixiedog]

LOL, the led debate again......

It used to be the T5 debate, not that long ago. I got in at the tail end of that one, when the last of the luddites were clinging to the mistaken belief that T5's would never be able to compete with halides.

Give it another 18 months and you'll never hear this subject debated again. LED's are just now starting to hit their stride. Our good friends, the Chinese, have finally begun flooding the market with decent quality LED fixtures at affordable prices for the reefkeeping masses. With every passing month the LED success stories will continue to multiply, until there is no longer any reasonable debate to be had.

[Touring]

MD Started carrying this pendent... it claims to be as stong as a 400mh. at 100 watts, i think it might be. i still think for the price and wattage the kessil 350 is a better L.E.D.



http://www.marinedepot.com/Orphek_DIF_100_100_Watt_120_Degree_LED_Pendant_Aquarium_LED_Pendant_Lights-Orphek-UG1731-FILTFILDLP-vi.html

[Spirofucci]

It used to be the T5 debate, not that long ago. I got in at the tail end of that one, when the last of the luddites were clinging to the mistaken belief that T5's would never be able to compete with halides.

Give it another 18 months and you'll never hear this subject debated again. LED's are just now starting to hit their stride. Our good friends, the Chinese, have finally begun flooding the market with decent quality LED fixtures at affordable prices for the reefkeeping masses. With every passing month the LED success stories will continue to multiply, until there is no longer any reasonable debate to be had.

Very true.

Also, we always forget to mention that when we speak of LED's we tend to lump the discussion to all types of LED set ups. It's like saying T5's are bunched together with all types flourescent bulbs.

[Psionicdragon]

MD Started carrying this pendent... it claims to be as stong as a 400mh. at 100 watts, i think it might be. i still think for the price and wattage the kessil 350 is a better L.E.D.



http://www.marinedepot.com/Orphek_DIF_100_100_Watt_120_Degree_LED_Pendant_Aquarium_LED_Pendant_Lights-Orphek-UG1731-FILTFILDLP-vi.html


I would pass on the 100watts. The par is pretty horrible and unless it included a directional lense, you are basically giving a wide spread light. Those lights are used in warehouses over Asia.

[dixiedog]

MD Started carrying this pendent... it claims to be as stong as a 400mh. at 100 watts, i think it might be. i still think for the price and wattage the kessil 350 is a better L.E.D.



http://www.marinedepot.com/Orphek_DIF_100_100_Watt_120_Degree_LED_Pendant_Aquarium_LED_Pendant_Lights-Orphek-UG1731-FILTFILDLP-vi.html

I would pass on the 100watts. The par is pretty horrible and unless it included a directional lense, you are basically giving a wide spread light. Those lights are used in warehouses over Asia.


It comes with 60 and 120 degree lenses.

And I don't see any PAR data, where is your info coming from?

[Touring]

It comes with 60 and 120 degree lenses.

And I don't see any PAR data, where is your info coming from?

Kessil has wide lens also and they work great. i guess you can light warehouses in china lol

[Epicreefer]

I've been useing ecoxitic 100w cannons and the biggest issue I see is there is just too much light. Most of them I have dimmed to 50-60% and I get about 80 par on the sand bed(5-6 feet down) which is plenty for lps. Up higher you get around 600 at the waters surface. The 80 par may not sound like much but I found 80-120 gets you the best coloration and above 150 things look pale, over 200 things look like they are dead from above but still grow well. I think it has to do with a very narrow spectrum of led light.

[nature boy]

It appears to me after many hours of research, LED can work with sps corals. But it requires just as many watts. What happened to the energy savings??? Gone.

Only advantage. Don't have to replace bulbs as often.

[FlyPenFly]

Energy savings come from heat savings and in 1:1 tests per watt, you'll get more growth from LEDs than MH/T5. Although T5 gets you more even polyp growth.

Light though, is only one small factor of SPS growth.

[rogerwilco357]

with all the led's for sale on the classifieds section , I think I may try them out even though I will keep my ATI Powermodules over my big sps tanks in place . The Led unit will be on my 28gallon nano hope to see results in a positive way with the lps and sps..

[gmneil]

so far it seems that alot of people start off their led's to intense and are unhappy with the results. i recently got a radion pro, i started it at 25% and mu corals couldnt seem happier, i switched from a 250 mh. and i am working on getting the funds to get another radion pro. each month i plan on rasing the intensity 5% we will see what happens.

[epicurus84]

Most led manufacturers went all out with the white leds. Most are/where too powerfull for almost any coral.

Pacific sun (see forum below) even advises to put the white channels on max 25%. The latest models don't have white leds, just coloured leds (together thats also white).

I do think leds can al will keep corals happy. ESP when comparing to MH only. However i also see that adding some T5 to the leds can make the corals colour and grow better.

[acroholicreefer]

All SPS are not created equal. Pocillopora, Seriatopora, Montipora, and Acropora all have much different lighting and chemistry requirements. I sold off all of my acros about 1 year ago after my twins were born. In March, I decided to set up a 40b with a maxspect razor and have been keeping a monti with good growth and color. I know that this doesn't mean much. With that being said, I'll let you know in 6 months how well this LED fixture does with acroporas.

And......pics or it didn't happen.

[Dog boy Dave]

I am a long term SPS guy. Ran my halides for years and loved them. 6 times 400 watts over my main tank. Switched to some homemade LEds about a year ago. Corals did Ok but the color was not near as intense or deep as with halides. I was not happy with the results I was getting. I loved the 200 dollar cheaper electric bill though. About 6 months ago I had a couple of the homemade fixtures fail so I picked up a couple of the Chinese 9 band lights off of EBay for 179 each. With the extra bands of color beyond the standard whites and blues that i used on my homemade units I am getting much better color, at least as good as I got under halides and better for some corals. I have one coral that is about three feet in diameter. It is large enough so it is under both my DIY and in other places it only sees the chinese lights. Not only is the color better under the multispec lights, they also have better growth and a lot more branches. My system has four boxes with water, all have corals. The main SPS /fish section is aprox 425 gallons and has a mix of 4 DIY fixtures and 4 Chinese all LED. One of my 75 gallon sumps has a 250 watt halide. Another 50 gallon sump has a small older commercial LED fixture. My large LPS section is currently lit by a single 400 watt Halide. I see the same corals under all these lights all in the same water. Search my name and I have several threads showing the corals under halides and LEds as well as the Chinese LEDs.
There is no doubt that you can grow good healthy corals with great colors using multi spectrum LEDS. The corals are more sensitive and harder to keep under the LEDS but they will do well if you are diligent. They did not so as well for me under the blue/white LEDS. The Halides are awesome . They are also very hot and very expensive. I will eventually go to 100 percent LEDS.

As I said earlier, I have lotsa of pics of the system on this site but here is one I took the other night. Sorry its hand held and the color balance is a little off as I had it set for my old halides. However, I think its clear, the corals are thriving under the LEDS.
http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13023_zpscb5cb562.jpg
In the pic you see above the left side of the big stag is directly under one of the Chinese Lights. You can see the extra branches forming on the branch that is getting blasted by the multi spectrum LED. I love these lights. I plan on buying more as soon as I can.
http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13027_zpsb294b546.jpg

http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13019_zps925b58e7.jpg

[tdb320reef]

I am a long term SPS guy. Ran my halides for years and loved them. 6 times 400 watts over my main tank. Switched to some homemade LEds about a year ago. Corals did Ok but the color was not near as intense or deep as with halides. I was not happy with the results I was getting. I loved the 200 dollar cheaper electric bill though. About 6 months ago I had a couple of the homemade fixtures fail so I picked up a couple of the Chinese 9 band lights off of EBay for 179 each. With the extra bands of color beyond the standard whites and blues that i used on my homemade units I am getting much better color, at least as good as I got under halides and better for some corals. I have one coral that is about three feet in diameter. It is large enough so it is under both my DIY and in other places it only sees the chinese lights. Not only is the color better under the multispec lights, they also have better growth and a lot more branches. My system has four boxes with water, all have corals. The main SPS /fish section is aprox 425 gallons and has a mix of 4 DIY fixtures and 4 Chinese all LED. One of my 75 gallon sumps has a 250 watt halide. Another 50 gallon sump has a small older commercial LED fixture. My large LPS section is currently lit by a single 400 watt Halide. I see the same corals under all these lights all in the same water. Search my name and I have several threads showing the corals under halides and LEds as well as the Chinese LEDs.
There is no doubt that you can grow good healthy corals with great colors using multi spectrum LEDS. The corals are more sensitive and harder to keep under the LEDS but they will do well if you are diligent. They did not so as well for me under the blue/white LEDS. The Halides are awesome . They are also very hot and very expensive. I will eventually go to 100 percent LEDS.

As I said earlier, I have lotsa of pics of the system on this site but here is one I took the other night. Sorry its hand held and the color balance is a little off as I had it set for my old halides. However, I think its clear, the corals are thriving under the LEDS.
http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13023_zpscb5cb562.jpg
In the pic you see above the left side of the big stag is directly under one of the Chinese Lights. You can see the extra branches forming on the branch that is getting blasted by the multi spectrum LED. I love these lights. I plan on buying more as soon as I can.
http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13027_zpsb294b546.jpg

http://i722.photobucket.com/albums/ww221/salinitynow/LagoonSept13019_zps925b58e7.jpg

+1 Very well said and analogous to my experience even though I took different measures and still working on improvement. thx for sharing and Love the tank. Can you please PM with build link? I looked for it a while one time.

[Dog boy Dave]

+1 Very well said and analogous to my experience even though I took different measures and still working on improvement. thx for sharing and Love the tank. Can you please PM with build link? I looked for it a while one time.


http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1425143

[NegroModelo]

I ran Cree led for my Sps tank the growth was slow and the color was varied from good to bad I switched to a six bulb powermodule with korallen Zucht bulbs and I have never seen coral grow faster than under t5 these things smoke halides
I'd love to try the new hybrid powermodule but not for that price lol