Cree vs. Bridgelux led's

[C5flyboy]

Thanks SchintzelReef! I kind of figured it was the camera thing making the blue. I know unless I use my DSLR for pics of my tank they are really really blue. Even with the DSLR they have a blue tint to them but way less so.

I have a 54 corner tank and it's approx 18 to 20ish inches deep (I need to get an exact measurement). I'm thinking about getting the 48 LED DIY kit from Aquastyle for the change to LED lighting and putting the 60 degree optics on it. Does that sound like I'm looking at about the right amount of bulbs and optic angle?

[C5flyboy]

Here is a pic of my tank now. It will probably be two to three weeks before i'm able to get the LED's and put them together but I'll put some comparison photos up when I do.

[SchnitzelReef]

that is a good looking tank dude! i had a 55g corner tank awhile ago. I just got frustrated with it being so small, my new 180 fixed that lol. IMO i think 48 would be PLENTY. you will be able to get an even spread and you will probably end up dimming them down to 80%. which is good to help prolong the life. What kind of heatsink are u doing? if i were u, i would REALLY consider the c channel heatisnk. Its super easy to make and mine is working fantastic. The reason i say u should in particular is because of the awkward dimensions. U can cut the c channel to fit to the exact dims of the top of ur tank. I bought all my stuff from Home Depot. As far as optics goes, with that many LEDs on that small of a tank i would i go with 80. Unless of course u plan on hanging ur light really high. In my tank i have mainly LPS and softys, and the 80 degree optics were too much. Also on ur color choice if u go with Aquastyle i would recommend doing :

32-Royal Blue
8-6500k
5-10000k
3-4500k
(if u like the 20k look, then id consider maybe 7:6500, 7:10000k, and 2 4500k. Make sure if u use the 4500k, do not use the optic. It will look like a yellow spotlight. With out the optic though it looks sweet.)
I think that would be awesome. On my setup i havent been able to dimm my leds yet cuz im waiting on my apex to come in, and im REALLY surprised because my tank looks awesome with all LEDs @ 100%. Most people either do too much blue or too much white, and they will have to dimm one or the other to be able to get the color they like. I hit it right on the head with my color choice. That was my next question, do u have an apex? or any controller? or are u planning on getting one in the future?

[ghellin]

Yep it takes a great camera to get good pics, my wife actually complains saying my tank is too blue LOL.

Oh and it can be blue.

[C5flyboy]

Thanks Schnitzelreef! I had a lot of help from a buddy of mine NickC5guy on the first page of this thread getting started.

I came up with almost identical numbers for the bulb ratio with a 48 bulb setup though I think i'm going to go with your numbers because I have no experience in the LED world yet. As far as the LED driver goes I was thinking of using Meanwell ELN-60-48P driver x 2 and a DDC-01 controller from Rapid LED. It looks to be a easy setup with the three built in auto sunrise to sunset programs in it. And I think i'll put 2 extra bulbs for moonlights with a seperate moonlight driver set to come on a little bit before the daytime controller kicks off for the night. Sound like i'm on the right track or should I be turning somewhere in there?

Ghellin that is wild dude! I took some pics of my tank today at lunch with my phone and my DSLR and my phone was dark and blue and the DSLR was really bright and blue but that's what Lightroom is for

[ghellin]

Yep this is why dimmable is a must on LED builds you can dial in your perfect color!

[SchnitzelReef]

def go with dimmable. The ELN 60-48P driver will work with that controller, But if u ever want to get an Apex i would go with the ELN 60-48D driver. It works perfectly with the APEX... And No matter which color ratio u go with, remember u are trying to get it as close as possibe to what u think perfect will be. But since u have the dimmer, u can control the colors and tweak it to be exactly what u want. good luck

[C5flyboy]

What exactly is an Apex? I'm completely new to the led world. how is it different from the controller I mentioned earlier? Are they better and do they differ in operation?

[NickC5FE]

Lee, an APEX or RKL are digital aquarium controllers capable of running lights, feeders, pumps, heaters etc all in one simple digital controller. They are pretty badazz!

[ghellin]

I run an apex, I can control my entire tank from my phone. Plus it graphs all my parameters!

[SchnitzelReef]

an apex is a controller made by neptune, it will controll the ELN D ballasts. Thats the route i went

[joelespinoza]

Here is pics of my tank and details of my cree setup. Its fairly new so growth isnt there yet and the tank is foggy, but you can get a general idea: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2160939