Solaris I4 Series

[NewbReefer]

http://www.solarisled.com/
Wanted to see what everyones thoughts are on the new Solaris coming out soon.

I would love to try one of these fixtures but... $2,800 for the fixture to fit my tank. If it really does use 40% less energy than a 400w MH the cost would surely pay off quickly. I know they had some issues with some of the LED strips burning out with the first series but im sure they've got most of those issues squared away.

 

[Alexander]

I would absolutely love to have one, yes they has some issues, but PFO is really good about warranty and taking care of their customers. not only does it use less energy but I love how you can completely customize your lighting and also create the gradual daylight on them. I would have tons of fun with one if I had some extra cash to blow on a 72 inch fixture.

 

[RyanG]

Ill wait a couple of years till they are a little more affordable. They are cool though. Wait until the organic LEDs find their way into reefing. 3/8" thick. You can look right through them. They are just hitting the television market. Cool technology.

 

[NewbReefer]

it would be interesting to see how the moon phases interact with the corals aswell.

 

[dustin_P74]

ryan why would you want OLED's in your aquarium lighting fixture, they release less light then regular LED's

 

[NewbReefer]

like LED's 10 years ago, OLED's are just starting to grab hold and evolve each year regular LED's get consideribly brighter in lumens per watt once OLED's reach the point where LED's are now I would think it would be a better choice to go with.

 

[Oscarsdad608]

Has anone seen these.http://news.zdnet.com/2422-13568_22-192842.html

 

[dustin_P74]

i think the plasma in that would burn out quickly

 

[McCrary]

I continue to see amazing tanks that use halides and very few that use LED technology, so I can't seem to think of a reason to switch. Not to mention that LED technology seems to improve so rapidly I am always waiting for the next thing to come out. LED's also seem to cost an arm and a leg, so to me they are also problematic in terms of cost, but if I should suddenly find myself in possession of a winning lottery ticket I will promptly buy one and tell you guys all about it.

 

[RyanG]

I read somewhere that the plasma lights put off even more heat than Halides, maybe I read it wrong though.

Dustin as of right now I dont want any LED or OLED technology but Im very interested to see where both will go.

 

[reeffreak]

I'm not the type to jump on the latest,greatest bandwagon yet!I believe the technology needs a couple more years to be proven and perfected.Hopefully, by that time the price will go down,like way down.

 

[NewbReefer]

I'm not the type to jump on the latest,greatest bandwagon yet!I believe the technology needs a couple more years to be proven and perfected.Hopefully, by that time the price will go down,like way down.

Yeah i was hoping to see a few more competing companies with a few more LED products out by now but oh well.

 

[daugherty]

i am intrested in the plasma lighting.

 

[McCrary]

I think the reason that other companies are not producing LED's is because the cost is so high and the demand seems to be low. Halides and T5's seem to do the trick and are less expensive, so something pretty neat is going to have to come out to get people to switch.

 

[daugherty]

it has to effective if you by a 72 inch fixture and need a lot of light on your tank one unit will probably not be enough you could spend 5 or 6 thousand dollars just on light.

 

[NewbReefer]

The new I4 is suppose to be as effective as MH. just lookin at the price tag of them makes your stomache sick but how much do you spend in a year on electricity to run MH's and imagine keeping 40% of that, thats a nice chunk of change, it would pay off. not to mention the $100-$200 a year you spend on bulbs. and also the electricity your paying for to run your AC or chiller due to heat of the MH.

Im really hoping this I4 helps get more companies involved in LED lighting there just seems to be so many pros over cons, especially with LED's now becoming more intense and effecient.

 

[daugherty]

what i am saying is that it is only good for 400watts what if you need more 400 hundred watts is not all that much light for a 100 gallons or bigger.

 

[NewbReefer]

Yeah it'll be interesting to see what the LED's can produce in a year.

 

[daugherty]

i am shure they will have nig improvements. but the cost has to come down a lot if they are going to sell a lot of them.

 

[Bifferwine]

There are some people that have enough money that they are willing to pay a premium for the novelty of new items. The rest of us (the majority) base our purchasing decisions on the practicality of the item. Like McCrary pointed out, T5s and halides seem to do the job just fine, and what we get in return from fixtures like the Solaris just doesn't seem to justify several grand extra in price. The people that can, and do buy the Solars fixtures seem to be going after the cool and rarity factor.